Japan's JGC Corp has signed a $355-million deal with Bahrain's Banagas to build the expansion of a gas-processing plant in kingdom, Bahrain's state news agency reported on Wednesday.

The plant is expected to process 350 million cu ft of additional associated gas from the Bahrain oilfield, the agency reported.

A signing ceremony was held today under the patronage of Bahrain's Minister of Energy Dr Abdul Hussain bin Ali Mirza.

The agreement includes the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the Banagas Expansion Project.

The agreement was signed by Shaikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, the chief executive of the Bahrain National Gas Company (Banagas), on behalf of Bahrain and Yoshihiro Shigehisa, the chairman emeritus of JGC Group, at a ceremony held at Four Seasons Bahrain Hotel, said the BNA report.

Dr Mirza said the agreement was a significant milestone for Banagas' expansion and added to the achievements of the energy sector in Bahrain. The project is among the many other National Oil and Gas Authority (Noga) strategic projects aimed at securing continued economic growth in the country, he said.

Dr Mirza said that setting up of the gas project by JGC further enhanced the historical relations between the company and the oil companies in Bahrain.

Three international companies had participated in the tendering process at the design and construction phase of the gas plant, a design which had to accommodate 350 million cu ft of associated gas from the Bahrain Oil Field and produce liquefied petroleum gas and naphtha, utilising re-injection pressure and excess gas. The plant will be equipped to process dry gas.

The project is expected to take 32 months to be ready for a trial run and start actual operations in September 2018. It is one of the largest projects implemented by the company in terms of capital, energy utilisation and providing job opportunities to Bahrainis. - TradeArabia News Service and Reuters