Husky names shuttle tankers
Husky Energy has taken delivery of two shuttle tankers that will transport oil from the White Rose field off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
Samsung Heavy Industries Koje shipyard in Busan, South Korea, the same shipyard that delivered theSeaRose FPSO hull, delivered the Heather Knutsen in late March and the Jasmine Knutsen in May. The vessels will work as conventional trading tankers until the White Rose field begins production at the end of the year.
Samsung designed the two double-hulled tankers with 1 MMbbl crude oil capacity. The shuttle tankers load in tandem from the stern of theSeaRose FPSO, which has a storage capacity of 940,000 bbl, equivalent to about 10 days of production.
The shuttle tankers will transport oil from the White Rose field to market destinations on Canada’s east coast and the US.
Canship-Ugland Ltd. of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, has a management agreement with Knutsen to operate theHeather Knutsen and the Jasmine Knutsen. Canship-Ugland manages three existing shuttle tankers serving the Hibernia and Terra Nova fields that lie near White Rose in the Jeanne d’Arc basin.
Keppel keeps busy
The Keppel yards have been exceptionally busy taking orders over the last few months.
In early March, Keppel FELS Ltd. completed a semisubmersible accommodation platform for the 85/15 special purpose company formed by Keppel Offshore & Marine and JCE Group of Sweden.
TheSafe Concordia moved immediately to the Timor Sea, where ConocoPhillips has a short bareboat charter for the rig.
The six-column unit carries accommodation for 400, complete with full recreational facilities. The semi is compact and capable of operating alongside fixed platforms, with a complement of a fully redundant DPS, a crane with heavy lifting capacity, and fire fighting capabilities.
Keppel O&M and JCE have invested in the semisubmersible accommodation platform in anticipation of expected strong demand for offshore supporting units.
A second unit, theSafe Astoria, owned by JCE, underwent a $5.6-million conversion at Keppel FELS from a drilling semisubmersible to an accommodation platform. The conversion was scheduled for completion in May.
Keppel Shipyard also secured an FPSO hull conversion contract from Norway’s Marathon Petroleum Co.
TheOdin, an 87,000 dwt multi-purpose shuttle tanker, arrived at Keppel Shipyard for a fast-track hull conversion toward the end of March.
Odinwill undergo hull upgrading and modification work that encompasses procurement, construction, and installation of the FPSO hull equipment, including shipboard marine systems, cargo, ballast, inert gas, crude oil washing, fire fighting and electrical systems, and instrumentation.
The contract also covers fabrication and installation of topside module support structures, green water protection, modification of the mid-ship moon pool into a cargo tank, turret cone/support structures, and caissons for seawater lift pumps.
Vetco Aibel will redeliver the vessel at the end of 2005 and will integrate it with the processing facilities before deployment in the Alvheim field in the North Sea, where the company expects to begin production in 1Q 2007.
The majority of Keppel’s present backlog is for newbuild jackups.
Michael Chia, executive director, Keppel FELS Ltd, says, “Outlook for the offshore rig market looks very positive, with utilization rates rising faster than anticipated in the last one year. As the industry expects the market to tighten further, there is growing interest in rig building, particularly in the drilling jackup market.”
In mid March, Odfjell Invest placed an order for a repeat KFELS B class jackup rig. The company is exercising an option offered when it signed a contract for the first rig in March 2004.
Like the first rig, this newbuild can operate in water depths to 350 ft, can drill to 30,000 ft.
Ketil Lenning, CEO of Odfjell Drilling, says, “Offshore drilling activities are on the rise, and Odfjell is expanding its fleet to meet the increasing demand for premium jackups.”
The new jackup is scheduled for delivery in 2Q 2007.
Later in March 2005, Keppel FELS secured a contract for yet another KFELS B class jackup from Seatankers Management Co. Ltd.
The jackup, to be built to Keppel FELS’ proprietary design, will have drilling capability to 30,000 ft in 400-ft water depth.
Keppel FELS will deliver the new rig for Seatankers in 3Q 2007.
Also in March, A.P. Moller-Mærsk A/S contracted Keppel FELS to build four jackup rigs.
These four high-efficiency jackups are of the CJ 50 design from Marine Structure Consultants. They can operate in water depths to 350 ft and can drill high-pressure wells to 30,000 ft.
The first rig will be complete in 4Q 2007. The remaining three will be delivered in half-yearly intervals thereafter.
According to Choo Chiau Beng, chairman and CEO of Keppel O&M, “This is the largest series of jackup contracts that Keppel FELS has secured from a customer at any one time.”
In April, Keppel FELS landed another contract from Ensco International Inc., which routinely uses the Keppel yards. Ensco placed an order to build a KFELS B class jackup rig, which the company says will be a replacement forEnsco 64, which Hurricane Ivan damaged in September 2004.
The new jackup, to be namedEnsco 108, is due for delivery in 1Q 2007. Sister rig Ensco 106 is now operating offshore Australia, and the Ensco 107 is to be delivered in early 2006. In addition to the newbuild contract, the Keppel O&M Group has undertaken several other projects for Ensco. They include three major refurbishment and life extension jackup rig projects, which will be executed by AmFELS. Keppel FELS is currently carrying out a significant upgrading and life extension project for Ensco.
TheEnsco 108 is the seventh consecutive premium jackup Keppel FELS has built for Ensco. •
