Eni selects polyester ropes for Goliat moorings in Barents Sea

Sept. 27, 2011
Eni Norge has contracted Lankhorst Ropes Offshore Division to supply polyester rope mooring lines for the Goliat FPSO.

Offshore staff

SANDNES, Norway – Eni Norge has contracted Lankhorst Ropes Offshore Division to supply polyester rope mooring lines for the Goliat FPSO.

The cylindrical floater will be stationed in the Norwegian sector of the Barents Sea, 85 km (53 mi) offshore and northwest of Hammerfest, in the PL229 and PL229B license areas.

The mooring configuration will comprise 14 polyester lines made from Gama 98 polyester rope in three clusters of (four, four, and six lines) at 400 m (1,312 ft) water depth. Lankhorst claims the rope will be one of the strongest supplied for an FPSO to date.

Due to the prevailing weather conditions and relatively shallow water depth, a semi-taut leg mooring system will be employed to limit the FPSO’s movement. Two of the three clusters will have longer lines and these, along with the sea bed chain, should provide the lateral restoring force needed to keep the production vessel on station.

To minimize potential damage arising from trawl wire impact, Lankhorst Ropes is developing a trawler wire-resistant rope “jacket” for the mooring lines. This will be an integral part of the rope construction during manufacture at the company’s facility in Portugal.

The moorings will also incorporate in-line buoyancy elements manufactured by Lankhorst Mouldings. These will be secured on elongated shackles with an uplift of 19 tons, and should prevent the ropes from touching the sea bed.

Deliveries are scheduled for early 2013.

09/27/2011