A joint venture of is in the driving seat to land a major turnkey contract to provide the subsea flowline and gas export system for Italian operator Eni’s huge Mamba gas project in Area 4 off Mozambique.

The pairing of Milan-based Saipem and Oslo-listed Subsea 7 are set to land the deal, Upstream understands.

Industry sources said the pairing has emerged as front runner to land a contract that is expected to be worth up to $2 billion.