Royal Dutch Shell said on Wednesday it has begun output at its Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility in Australia, the world’s largest floating production structure and the last of a wave of eight LNG projects built in the country over the last decade. Though the project started up later and cost more than originally estimated, it is expected to further cement Australia’s lead as the world’s biggest LNG exporter, after the country took the crown in November. In a statement, Shell said wells have now been opened at the Prelude facility, located 475 kilometers north-north east of Broome in western Australia. Prelude is expected to have an annual LNG production capacity of 3.6 million tonnes, 1.3 million tonnes a year of condensate and 400,000 tonnes a year of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). Shell owns 67.5 percent of the project, while Japan’s Inpex Corp, Taiwan’s CPC Corp and Korea Gas Corp hold the rest of the shares. Australia overtook Qatar as the world’s largest exporter of LNG for the first time in November, after the start-up of a number of export projects over the past three years, most recently the Ichthys facility. Reuters