A massive floating platform has arrived off the West Australian coast as Woodside Energy's controversial Scarborough gas project nears production.
The 70,000-tonne floating production unit was slowly towed by five large ocean towing vessels more than 7400km from China to its position 375km off Karratha.
The journey began in November, with Woodside comparing it to the equivalent of towing an apartment block at jogging pace from Perth to Sydney and back again.
One of the largest semi-submersible facilities ever built, the floating production unit features six deck levels, 75 beds, a gym and open-plan communal living areas.
It measures 165m from keel to top, which is taller than a 50-storey building.
The unit will be used to separate, dry and compress natural gas from the initial eight wells in the Scarborough gas field once the project enters production in the second half of 2026.
The treated gas will then travel via a 430km pipeline to Woodside's Pluto LNG plant on the Burrup Peninsula for liquefaction and export to Asia.
Having the floating production unit safely in the field was a momentous way to begin 2026, Woodside acting CEO Liz Westcott said.
"Its successful arrival is a further demonstration of the Woodside, McDermott and subcontractor teams' collaboration and commitment to safe delivery of the project," she said.
The Scarborough project is 91 per cent complete, Woodside says, and will provide up to eight million tonnes of LNG for export a year, as well as up to 225 terajoules of gas per day for domestic consumption.
The $18.6 billion project will boost Australia's economy by $174 billion, support more than 3,000 jobs per year and generate $55.5 billion in direct and indirect tax payments, Woodside said.
Environmentalists have fiercely condemned the project as a potential huge contributor to climate change, saying it would generate an estimated 1.37 billion tonnes of emissions by 2055.
Woodside shares were down 1.4 per cent to $23.38 after midday on Tuesday.
