Azfen to build topsides for Caspian Sea compression platform

BP, on behalf of the Shah Deniz consortium, has awarded Azfen a $321-million contract to construct the topsides for the $2.9-billion Shah Deniz Compression (SDC) project in the Caspian Sea.

The contract follows the FID on the project, the nest stage of development of the Shah Deniz gas field, in June.

According to BP Azerbaijan’s news release of September 4, Azfen’s responsibilities cover fabrication, assembly, installation, and integration of the 8,500-metric ton topsides unit at the company’s Bayil yard in Azerbaijan for the new normally unattended, electrically-powered SDC compression platform.

Construction activities are due to start during Q4, with completion anticipated by the end of 2028.

The consortium selected the upgraded fabrication yard, BP added, as it provides the capability to integrate and safely load out the topsides unit. This should help to keep the project on schedule and within budget.

SDC is designed to produce a further 50 bcm of gas and around 25 MMboe of condensate. The new platform will be installed in 85 m of water, 3 km from the existing Shah Deniz Bravo (SDB) platform.

The SDC platform, which will have four 11-MW compressors onboard, will host compression of gas from SDB and the Shah Deniz Alpha (SDA) platform, followed by export to the onshore Sangachal terminal.

Further new facilities will be installed offshore in the Shah Deniz contract area, along with brownfield works to be undertaken at SDA, SDB, and the terminal.