SembCorp lands FPSO conversions
SembCorp Marine subsidiary Jurong Shipyard secured two FPSO conversion contracts worth $58 million from Tanker Pacific Offshore Terminals Pte. Ltd. at the end of 2006.
The first contract involves the conversion of the 92,802 dwt tanker M.T.Andaman Sea, which will be renamed FPSO Raroa upon completion in 4Q 2007. Modification will involve installing an internal turret and three boilers on deck to generate 20 MW of power, renewing the piping and electrical systems, and installing new process facilities, including crude separation, water injection, and chemical injection.
When complete, theRaroa will be leased to OMV New Zealand for deployment in the Maari field.
Designed to operate for 15 years without dry docking, FPSORaroa will be capable of processing 40,000 b/d of oil and storing 646,548 bbl.
The second contract involves the conversion of the 148,255 dwt oil tanker M.T.Freeway into an FPSO for deployment in the Montara field offshore Australia. On completion in 2Q 2008, M.T. Freeway will be renamed FPSO MontaraVenture and will be chartered to Coogee Resources.
Scheduled to enter Jurong Shipyard in 2Q 2007, the vessel will undergo extensive life extension and conversion work, including an internal turret and process facilities for crude separation, gas compression, gas lift, and gas re-injection.
Designed to operate for 20 years without dry docking, theMontaraVenture will have a production capacity of 40,000 b/d of oil and a storage capacity of 900,000 bbl.
Yantai gets jackup order
Yantai Raffles Shipyard Ltd. finished 2006 with an order for a Super M2 general service jackup for Remedial Cyprus Ltd. under a contract that includes owner-furnished equipment.
The Super M2 Friede & Goldman jackup is scheduled for delivery in mid-2008.
The new rig is a self-elevating unit designed for 99 m (325 ft) water depth in a benign operating environment. The unit is equipped with three thrusters for maximum maneuverability and will have accommodation for 110.
Singapore-based Yantai Raffles, which operates out of a shipyard on Zhifu Island, Yantai, in China’s Shandong province, says it is in discussions with Cyprus-incorporated Remedial for several more rigs.
Remedial Offshore also plans to build and operate purpose-built elevating support vessels to facilitate post drilling activities and to enable increased hydrocarbon production from the large number of oil and gas wells in water depths to 99 m (325 ft).
Keppel continues deliveries
In 4Q 2006, Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd. subsidiary Keppel FELS Ltd. delivered its first jackup drilling rig to Qatar’s national drilling company, Gulf Drilling International Ltd., ahead of time.
Built to Keppel’s proprietary KFELS B Class design, theAl-Khor jackup was completed ahead of schedule. According to Keppel, it is the first major Singaporean project to be carried out for Qatar.
Al-Khor was built for operations in 91 m (300 ft) water depth and can drill to 9,144 m (30,000 ft). The rig can accommodate up to 110 and is readily upgradeable for higher drilling capabilities in water depths to 122 m (400 ft).
Following theAl-Khor jackup delivery, Keppel secured a $371-million contract to build the first KFELS N Class jackup rig for ProdJack AS, a member of the Skeie Group.
When delivered at the end of 1Q 2010, the KFELS N Class rig will be the largest jackup rig ever to be built in Singapore, the company says. It also will be among the world’s largest jackup rigs to be constructed for the North Sea.
According to KFELS, the new design provides the flexibility of a jackup unit that can drill and produce concurrently. The rig will readily accept process modules for production activities, the company says.
The KFELS N Class design is in full compliance with the requirements for rigs operating in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea, the company says, and is suited for operation in harsh weather conditions. The rig can drill in 122 m (400 ft) water depths to 10,668 m (35,000 ft).
According to Keppel FELS, no other jackup rigs on order today are designed specifically to meet these requirements.
Aker Yards expands
Aker Yards is taking a strategic position in the fast growing Asian market for offshore vessels by setting up a shipyard in Vietnam. The shipyard will be a joint venture between Aker Yards (70%) and Amanda Group (30%), headquartered in Singapore.
The shipyard will be in Vung Tau in the heart of Vietnam’s growing offshore operations. Aker Yards will invest $16 million over three years.
When fully operational, the yard will have an annual capacity of three to four vessels, depending on the vessel type and size.
The yard will deliver the first vessel in 2009.
Prosafe lands gas FPSO contract
In 4Q 2006, Petrobras contracted Prosafe to supply and operate a gas FPSO that will work offshore Brazil. The firm period of the contract is nine years, followed by a maximum of six one-year options.
Prosafe is responsible for engineering, procurement, construction, installation, commissioning, and operation of the FPSO, which is scheduled to be onsite in 4Q 2008.
The spread moored vessel will be designed for a maximum water depth of 1,500 m (4,921 ft). The conversion will be based on a VLCC size vessel owned by Prosafe. The FPSO will have a gas compression capacity of 353,000 MMcf/d and oil storage capacity of 700,000 bbl.
This award is the fourth FPSO conversion project that Prosafe secured in just over a year. These four contracts, including option periods, increased the company’s order backlog more than $2.5 billion.
Awilco gets jackup
At the end of last year, Awilco Offshore took delivery of its second ultra-premium jackup rig from the Keppel FELS Shipyard in Singapore.
TheWilCraft jackup is of the KFELS Mod V B-class, capable of drilling in water depths to 122 m (400 ft) and of drilling high-pressure, high-temperature wells to 9,144 m (30,000 ft).
In February, the rig moved to Australia, where it is to begin a 13- to 24-month contract.
