Billions of dollars worth of worldwide offshore construction projects show industry growth.

Offshore construction has expanded into a multibillion-dollar-a-year industry with jackets, platforms, floating production systems and subsea equipment from Indonesia, Europe, South Korea and the Gulf of Mexico bound for offshore production units around the world.
An examination of some of the more ambitious projects around the world illustrates the magnitude of this industry.
Canada
In spite of a late start, Petro-Canada's Terra Nova floating production, offloading and storage (FPSO) project offshore Newfoundland is under production. Operators also have put the planned Hebron/Ben Nevis project on hold, but Husky Energy Inc. plans to move forward on its US $1.5 billion White Rose project, which should be similar to Terra Nova. Husky plans to make a decision on the project in May. The field holds an estimated 230 million bbl of oil.
Offshore Nova Scotia, the massive Sable project has awarded contracts for preliminary engineering, compression needs and field development with a new platform for South Venture field and development work for Alma field. That work will be done by local construction facilities. Glenelg field also will be placed on production.
Partners in Sable are ExxonMobil Canada, Shell Canada, Imperial Oil Resources, Emera and Mosbacher Operating Ltd.
Also offshore Nova Scotia, PanCanadian Energy Corp. has applied to the National Energy Board to build a 111-mile (179-km), 24-in. diameter pipeline and facilities from its Deep Panuke project to Nova Scotia at a cost of $687 million (C $1.1 billion) with first gas in 2005.
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a hotbed of offshore activity, with BP leading the way as it contracts Daewoo of South Korea to design, build and deliver the world's largest semisubmersible production unit for the region's largest field complex, the Thunder Horse/Thunder Horse North 1.5 billion-bbl combination. The cost for 2004 delivery is $380 million. Front-end engineering and design (FEED) work comes from GVA Consultants of Sweden, now part of Halliburton.
As far away as Singapore, Keppel Fels will build the $22 million Atlantia Offshore Ltd. mini tension-leg platform (TLP) for TotalFinaElf's Matterhorn field by the end of 2002. Atlantia gave the dry-tree topsides and foundation piles contracts to Gulf Marine Fabricators in Texas.
El Paso Energy Partners and Cal Dive will build and own Anadarko Petroleum Corp.'s first deepwater project, Marco Polo, in Green Canyon 608, but Anadarko will operate it. The companies signed letter of intent for Japan's Modec to supply the TLP in 4,300-ft (1,312-m) waters.
CSO Aker Maritime landed the spar platform hull and moorings contract for Kerr-McGee's Gunnison project in 3,122-ft (952-m) waters.
FMC Technologies picked up two contracts for wellhead trees and services: one for equipment on Dominion Exploration & Production's Devil's Tower spar in Mississippi Canyon 733 and the other for Murphy Oil Co.'s Medusa spar in Mississippi Canyon 582. On completion, Devil's Tower will become the world's deepest dry-tree platform in 5,610-ft (1,711-m) waters.
Coming up, BP and BHP Billiton have given the go-ahead for the Mad Dog ultradeep field development. The $1.4 billion project includes a truss spar on Green Canyon 826 in the $800 million first phase.
Murphy Oil has given J. Ray McDermott the contract for the floating production system for its Front Runner SparTec spar.
South America
TotalFinaElf is setting up the development of its Carina and Aries fields east of Tierra del Fuego and west of the Falkland Islands. The development work includes one platform over each of the fields and multiphase pipelines to carry oil and gas 50 miles (80 km) to the mainland. J.Ray McDermott has the $160 million engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contract for the project.
To the north and off the coast of Brazil, Kværner Oilfield Products has two deepwater contracts valued at $13 million for 12 subsea trees and workover and well intervention jobs in 9,843-ft (3,000-m) waters.
Europe
BP's decision to move forward with Clair field in the UK North Sea unleashed a flurry of contracts.
For example, Leirvik MT of Norway has the $19.2 million contact for the fixed platform's accommodation module with delivery scheduled for 2004.
In another project, Statoil awarded two contracts worth a combined $10 million for its Kristin gas and condensate field in the Norwegian sector. Baker Oil Tools will supply the completion equipment for $6.6 million on the $1.9 billion project. It also signed a $110 million letter of intent with Kværner for10 subsea wells and support equipment. Aker Maritime has the $560 million contract for the topsides and hookup work.
Shell is parceling out contracts for its Goldeneye platform, a $423 million gas condensate project in Block 14/29 in the Outer Moray Firth. The field also will generate the longest tieback on the UK Continental Shelf at 64 miles (105 km). Aker Kværner's Aker Vidal landed the EPCI work for the jacket and piles for $14 million.
Aker Vidal also is building jackets for Kvietbjorn for Statoil, Valhall for BP and Grane for Norsk Hydro.
Denmark isn't out of the action. The Some shipyard in Singapore has an $81 million contract to build a platform and living quarters for the offshore Denmark Halfdan field being developed by Mærsk Oil and Gas.
Offshore Ireland, Burlington Resources awarded a $78 million contract to Allseas K and Genesis Oil and Gas Consultants for its Rivers gas fields.
Africa
Hyundai Heavy Industries, Amec and Fluor Daniel landed the contract for the Kizomba A FPSO offshore Angola. Hyundai will build the hull in Ulsan, South Korea, while Amec and Fluor Daniel build the topsides in Houston, Texas.
Granherne has been awarded a 9-month FEED for BP's Block 18 Greater Plutonio complex off Angola. The Cobalto, Cromio, Galio, Paladio and Plutonio fields hold about 1 billion bbl of oil.
Stolt Comex got the contract award for the 240 million-bbl Jasmin field in Block 17 offshore Angola for TotalFinaElf.
To the north off Nigeria, Prosafe Production landed a $220 million contract from Agip for the Abo FPSO. It will convert the Suezmax Grey Warrior tanker for the work.
Nearby, ChevronTexaco gave preliminary approval for development of its giant Agbami field with an FPSO, but the final decision isn't due until May 10 for the 1 billion-bbl field.
ExxonMobil reduced its specifications for the $2 billion Erha development offshore Nigeria, cutting back the number of wellheads from 32 to 24 after lethargic production from appraisal wells.
Forest Oil wants to get started on its $1.4 billion, 1 Tcf Ibhubesi gas discovery in the Orange Basin offshore South Africa.
Japan's Modec will supply the floating storage and offloading unit for ExxonMobil's $3.5 billion Chad project. Although Chad is landlocked, the storage system offshore Cameroon is the end point for a 650-mile (1,070-km) pipeline and a tanker pickup facility.
TotalFinaElf is working on prequalification for its $800 million Moho/Bilondo development in Congo Brazzaville's Haute Mer Block.
Asia
Asia is pushing ahead on some world-class projects. In the Caspian Sea region, construction work concentrates offshore Azerbaijan on two projects, Shah Deniz for gas and Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG) for oil.
Off the east coast of Russia, ExxonMobil gave the formal go-ahead for its 2.3 billion-bbl, $4 billion Sakhalin 1 offshore Sakhalin Island development. It will spend $12 billion during 30 to 40 years.
Sakhalin 2, which is about the same size, also has early approvals, and BP is ready to start work on Sakhalin 5.
Meanwhile, Phillips China Inc. plans to put $2 billion into its Penglai field in Bohai Bay, with phase one scheduled to begin this year. Partner China National Offshore Oil Co. and its partners want to build 50 additional offshore platforms in Bohai Bay by the end of 2005.
Farther south, in the Pearl River Mouth Basin, the company, with Agip and ChevronTexaco, is making plans for the $300 million development of the Huizhou 21-1 field.
India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp. has awarded a $170 million contract for a water injection and gas compression platform and modifications to increase production from Mumbai High field off the east coast, India's largest field. Engineers India Ltd. has the contract.
ExxonMobil has started production from the first - Seligi H - of five platforms off Terengganu, Malaysia, as part of a $240 million project. The company has drilled the well for the Raya B platform as well.
Shell has a plan in place for its $79 million Egret field development offshore Brunei. Technip Engineering won the contract for engineering procurement and project management, while AWE will build the jacket and topsides.
Unocal got $350 million in financing from the Overseas Private Investment Corp. to develop its West Seno deepwater project in the Makassar Strait east of Kalimantan. Meanwhile, TotalFinaElf, ChevronTexaco and Gulf Indonesia plan to spend $1.6 billion this year building new platforms and buying new equipment in their Indonesian operations. Targets are North Duri, Riau and East Natuna fields.
After completing the conversion of Diamond Offshore's Ocean Baroness to fifth-generation specifications, Keppel Fels in Singapore got a similar contract for the Ocean Rover.
Australasia
Shell said it has the backing of the Australian government to build a $4.9 billion floating LNG plant to market gas from partner Woodside Petroleum's Greater Sunrise development in the Timor Sea north of Australia.
Saipem took home the $50.8 million contract to install Woodside Petroleum's $407 million gas trunkline from its fourth liquefied natural gas processing train to an onshore gas plant near Karratha, Western Australia. The company also plans to lease a floating production platform for its Enfield development on the North West Shelf.
Shell outlined plans for a $373.5 million project to develop its Pohokura gas field offshore the North Island of New Zealand.
The expansion of offshore production will continue to make this a growth area for the industry.

Comments