Floating LNG (FLNG) as a concept has been around a long time. Concept studies and early techno-economic evaluations have been carried out in earnest since the 1990s, alongside other novel approaches of the period, placing LNG production facilities on top of gravity-based structures. At that time, onshore LNG production facilities were the quickest, most proven, lowest risk, energy efficient way to monetise large, easily accessible gas reserves. An LNG project's technical challenges were on a par with those present elsewhere in the oil and gas market, and there was simply no need to produce the LNG on a vessel that would require what was seen at the time as an untried, unduly risky and expensive combination of technologies.
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