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    1. Subsea

    First Subsea contracted for PSVM FPSO mooring connectors

    Dec. 3, 2009
    SOFEC has awarded First Subsea a contract to supply the mooring connectors for the Plutao, Saturno, Venus, and Marte (PSVM) FPSO to be installed in the ultra deepwater development in block 31 offshore Angola.

    Offshore staff

    ABERDEEN, UK -- SOFEC has awarded First Subsea a contract to supply the mooring connectors for the Plutao, Saturno, Venus, and Marte (PSVM) FPSO to be installed in the ultra deepwater development in block 31 offshore Angola. The FPSO will be moored with an external turret in 2,000 m (6,562 t) of water. The double-hulled PSVM FPSO will have production capacity for 157,000 b/d of oil.

    First Subsea is supplying 12 Ballgrab ball and taper connectors, with a minimum breaking load (MBL) of 4,903kN, for the SOFEC external turret's mooring lines. Ballgrab connectors will link the suction piles and ground chain segments, interfacing directly with the mooring lines' mooring shackles.

    The female receptacle part of the Ballgrab connectors will be installed subsea with the piles mounted on docking porches. When the FPSO is in position, the male connector, attached to the mooring line, is lowered from the surface into the female receptacle to complete the mooring installation. The process is then repeated until all 12 mooring lines are connected.

    12/03/2009