The contract includes FEED for the offshore gas and condensate production facilities and an export pipeline more than 850 kilometers to the Ichthys LNG Plant in Darwin.

AMEC will now be responsible for providing project management, engineering and other resources necessary to produce the FEED for a large semi-submersible gas production facility, a Floating Production, Storage and Offloading facility (FPSO), Umbilicals, Risers and Flowlines (URF), and a gas export pipeline.

The award of this major project underlines the strength of AMEC's position in providing asset development solutions to the world's leading oil and gas producers and demonstrates the company's commitment to the development of natural resources in Australia.

Neil Bruce, Chief Operating Officer of AMEC's Natural Resources division, said: "Using our global delivery capability AMEC is one of the few companies able to produce an integrated design solution for this large and complex project. We recognize the importance of this project to Australia and Japan and are committed to delivering a successful FEED to INPEX."

The Ichthys Field lies about 850 kilometers west-south-west of Darwin in the Timor Sea and is one of Australia's largest undeveloped gas fields. The Ichthys Field is operated by INPEX Browse, Ltd (76%) in joint venture with Total E&P Australia (24%).

It is anticipated that the gas production facilities will be in operation for at least 40 years.