In a statement to the Korean stock exchange the shipbuilder announced
that a $2.4bn order placed in 2008 has been brought to an end due to lack of
financing by the buyer.
It did not name the European client concerned but the
announcement tallies with an order the Oslo-listed company made that year but
later canned due to financing difficulties.
The two have been locked in a long-running dispute over the LNG
FPSO units and specifically over close to $500m worth of down payments made on
them.
Flex had been seeking to channel the funds into alternative
tonnage at the yard such as LNG carriers and/or regasification vessels.
However Samsung has said that most of the cash has already
been spent on pre-engineering for the original order.
In its most recent statement on the issue in January, Flex
said it had engaged international law firm Pinsent Masons to try to claw
back the funds after failing to reach a resolution.
It added that a final settlement could be a drawn out affair
with no certainty of the cost or a favourable outcome.
The company booked a $285m impairment charge in its fourth
quarter results over the dispute.
SHI was understood to have been in talks with third parties over
the possibility of taking over the slot for the FLNG units that Flex was due to
build.
It is not clear from the latest update whether it
has given up on that idea.
Unlike commonplace floating regasification units, floating liquefaction
technology has yet to become a proven commercial reality.
Global oil and gas powerhouse Shell has one unit under construction
at Samsung Heavy Industries at a cost of $4bn.
The facility will be deployed in the Prelude field off the
coast of Australia.
