Abu Dhabi Gas Industries (Gasco) announced on 9 October it had awarded a $1bn engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the first phase of the Habshan gas complex expansion to Fluor Corp. “The package-1 project will increase the capacity of the pressure boosting units to feed additional associated gas from the Bab oilfield for processing in the gas treatment trains of the complex,” Gasco said. The first phase of the expansion involves the installation of two sulfur recovery units with total output capacity of 1,600 tons/day, an acid gas enrichment unit as well as additional process and utilities and the upgrade of existing control systems. The project is due to be completed by mid-2008. Fluor has already carried out minor upgrading works at the Habshan complex (MEES, 20 October 2003). The expansion will lift the Habshan complex’s gas handling capacity to 4.5bn cfd. The contract is the third of five major ones forming ADNOC’s onshore gas development scheme.