DOF Subsea Lines Up Athena Decommissioning Work

Ithaca Energy has tapped DOF Subsea to remove the subsea water column infrastructure used on the Athena Field in the U.K. North Sea as part of the first phase of decommissioning work at the field.

As part of the contract, DOF will be responsible for removing mid-water arch and risers as well as securing utilization of several DOF Subsea vessels capable of taking on moorings and construction work.

“This is a very important project for us. Conditions in the industry are challenging, but the North Sea decommissioning sector is active, and we are well positioned to deliver in this market,” DOF Subsea’s U.K. Managing Director Robert Gillespie said in a news release. “We have completed several decommissioning projects in recent years, and we are looking forward to working with Ithaca Energy on this scope.”

Athena is located in the Outer Moray Firth area in the central North Sea at a water depth of 130 m (426.5 ft). Production ended at the field in January with the FPSO unit leaving the following month.

Eni Ramping Up Output At Goliat Oil Field

Eni has restarted production at its Goliat oil field off the coast of northern Norway and expects to reach full capacity soon, a spokesman for the operator said Sept. 27.

The Goliat Field, situated in the Barents Sea, has a capacity of 100,000 bbl/d of oil.

The outage began on Aug. 26 following a power outage and partial evacuation of Eni’s platform, the latest in a series of safety incidents. Since then, the company has said its staff needed to improve its grasp of the field’s potential risks.

Eni owns 65% of Goliat while Norway’s Statoil holds the remaining 35%.

Leviathan Field Developers Sign $10 Billion Jordan Export Deal

Backers of Israel’s massive Leviathan natural gas field on Sept. 26 signed a $10 billion deal to supply 45.3 Bcm (1.6 Tcf) of gas to Jordan’s National Electric Power Co.

“Subject to regulatory approvals from Israel and Jordan, sales ...are anticipated to commence at field startup,” said Texas-based Noble Energy, the project’s operator.

Talks on the contract began more than two years ago.

The 15-year deal for Leviathan, which holds an estimated 622 Bcm (22 Tcf) of gas, should help the U.S.-Israeli group secure funds to bring it online. Production is expected to begin around 2019 or 2020.

The Leviathan group also has been in talks to export much larger quantities of gas to companies in Egypt.

Leviathan, discovered in the eastern Mediterranean in 2010, is one of the world’s largest offshore gas discoveries of the past decade. Last year Israel approved plans for a 15.5-km (9.6-mile) pipeline near the Dead Sea to export gas to Jordan.

Petrofac Wraps Up Decommissioning Work For Tullow Oil

Petrofac said it saved Tullow Oil about $2.5 million, compared to traditional approaches, on its well plugging and abandonment campaign for the Horne & Wren platform in the North Sea.

The service provider deployed well engineering and well project management services within the six-month contract and delivered the conceptual design, detailed planning, procurement, subcontractor management and the full execution of the plug and abandonment operations.

The company’s technical solutions for the normally unmanned asset included using a jackup lift barge instead of a jackup rig and using a pipe recovery technique instead of a heavy-lift vessel. The company also used its WellAtlas well project management software.

INPEX Selects Amec Foster Wheeler For Ichthys Consultancy Job

Amec Foster Wheeler has landed a consultancy contract from INPEX for its Ichthys LNG project in Australia. As part of the contract, Amec Foster Wheeler said it will conduct competency assessments for Ichthys operations and maintenance teams covering the central processing facility, floating production storage and offtake vessel, and the Bladin Point LNG onshore processing plant. The assessments, which will take place at construction yards in Korea, offshore Western Australia and at the onshore LNG facility in Darwin, will be aligned to Australian national competency standards for the Process industry, the company said. The contract ends in April.

ACE Winches Wraps Up Subsea Infrastructure Project

ACE Winches said it has finished work for Technip that entailed overcoming the challenge of limited deck space involving the Quad 204 redevelopment project.

The company developed a package that houses the hydraulic drum, an overboard system and spooling gear into the winch base frame. The winch package includes closed-loop hydraulic power units located nearby, the company said.

“A custom-made compact winch was designed to accommodate the limited space and meet the required performance characteristics for riser installation, while the overboard system provides access to the tower, with ladders and walkways included,” ACE Winches said.

The subsea infrastructure project was for Loyal Field, one of two fields that are part of the Quad 204 redevelopment project west of the Shetland Islands.

—Staff & Wire Reports

Offshore