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September 30, 2010 - Construction jobs in Furness are to be boosted because part of a £60m gas terminal needs rebuilding.  It is thought at least 50 jobs will be on offer when work begins on demolishing the existing sulphuric acid plant at the Rivers gas terminal at Rampside and it is replaced with a new plant.   The existing plant is only seven years old.  Work is expected to begin early next year and take five months.  The Rivers gas terminal belongs to oil giant ConocoPhillips but is run on a day-to-day basis on contract by British firm Centrica.   It was built because the gas piped into it from the Rivers fields in the Irish Sea has got hydrogen sulphide in it and needs to have the sulphur extracted as sulphuric acid before the gas can be fed through the Centrica main terminals and into the national gas grid.  Hydrogen sulphide can be deadly if it escapes and staff at the plant all have breathing masks strapped to them in case of an emergency, however unlikely.
Rivers opened in 2003 and had problems with the acid plant from the start.  The RSK Group plc of Cheshire is acting as an agent for ConocoPhillips and is making planning applications to Barrow Borough Council.  In a “scoping document” sent to the council, RSK says: “Since beginning commissioning in late 2003, the site has suffered from technical operational issues associated with the composition of the receiving gas and this has affected the operability of the sulphuric acid plant; resulting in quality issues, process upsets and shut downs affecting both the Rivers Terminal and the operations of the North Morecambe (Centrica) terminal.  “Following a detailed design review, ConocoPhillips are now seeking to replace the existing sulphuric with a replacement that will result in less flaring, less interruptions, and provide operational improvements to the running of both the Rivers Terminal and the operations of the North Morecambe Terminal.”
A work camp will be built next to the site for managers and contractors.  The main contractor will have an office for 25 people and there will be a car park for at least 60 vehicles.  Borough council planning  officer Jason Hipkiss, who had a meeting with the applicants, said: “I pushed the council’s view that we would like to see local contractors and local firms used and they said it was their policy to employ as many local people as possible.”  Stuart Klosinski, industrial development manager for Furness Enterprise, said: “We are working with ConocoPhillips and Centrica to identify with them what capabilities there are in the area. We are waiting for them to come back to us and outline what skills and capabilities they will need.”   The agency would then work with them to ensure local firms and skills are involved in the work when it begins next year.