Aker Solutions Secures Work For Utgard Tie-in To Sleipner Area

Statoil has chosen to stick with Aker Solutions for engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning (EPCIC) services to enable a tie-in of the Utgard gas and condensate field to the Statoil-operated Sleipner facilities in the North Sea.

The work, valued at about NOK 500 million (US$6.1 million), follows a contract won for preliminary engineering work on the tie-in. The contract had an option for EPCIC work, Aker Solutions said.

“We’ve worked closely with Statoil to find the most cost-efficient solution for this project, which builds on our capabilities in complex modifications,” said Knut Sandvik, head of Aker Solutions’ maintenance, modifications and operations business.

The Utgard subsea development will be connected by pipeline to the Sleipner T processing and CO₂ removal platform and by umbilical to the Sleipner A processing, drilling and living quarters platform, Aker said.

Work on the contract is scheduled for completion in fourth-quarter 2019.

EnQuest Lowers Production Guidance After Slow Oil Field Startup

North Sea-focused oil producer EnQuest lowered its full-year production guidance on Sept. 8 after initial output at its new Alma/Galia Field was less than expected.

The London-listed company also said it had reduced gross capex on its Kraken Field in the North Sea by $150 million to $2.6 billion, squeezing costs to contend with low crude prices. The project remains on track to produce first oil in first-half 2017.

EnQuest also reported a 51% rise in first-half profit before tax and net finance costs to $150 million, helped by output that jumped 43% year-on-year.

The increase in production, however, was weaker than expected, prompting the company to lower full-year output guidance to between 42,000 boe/d and 44,000 boe/d, down from the 44,000 bbl/d to 48,000 bbl/d previously expected.

FMC Technologies Lands Contract For Eni’s West Hub

FMC Technologies Inc. has secured a contract to provide subsea multiphase boosting pumps, manifolds and installation support services for Eni Angola’s Block 15/06 West Hub Development Project offshore Angola.

By reducing backpressure on the reservoir, increasing flow rates and total recoverable resources, FMC said it aims to improve production economics with the subsea multiphase boosting pumps.

“This is our second award for our new subsea multiphase boosting system, and we are confident that this technology will be a critical and important part in supporting increased deepwater field recovery,” Tore Halvorsen, senior vice president of subsea technologies for FMC, said in a news release.

With water depths ranging from 1,000 m to 1,500 m (3,281 ft to 4,921 ft), the West Hub project develops the Sangos, Cinguvu, Mpungi, Mpungi North, Ochigufu and Vandumbu fields through the N’Goma FPSO unit, according to Eni.

Block 15/06 is operated by Eni, which has a 36.84% stake. Partners in the joint venture are Sonangol Pesquisa e Produção (36.84%) and SSI Fifteen Ltd. (26.32%).

Wood Group Secures $1 Million Contract For Subsea Tieback Work

Statoil has selected Wood Group for the detailed design scope of the subsea tieback from the Utgard gas and condensate field to the Sleipner facilities in the Norwegian North Sea, Wood Group said in a news release.

The $1 million work scope is the first call-off under the master service agreement signed in May 2016. Wood Group said the three-year contract will be executed from its Stavanger and Oslo offices.

Earlier this year, Statoil tapped Wood Group for FEED work for the same project.

The Utgard tieback consists of a 21-km-long (13-mile-long) pipe-in-pipe production pipeline from the four-slot template at Utgard to the Sleipner T platform and an integrated service umbilical from Sleipner A, the release said.

The contract was one of several snagged up recently by Wood Group.

Wintershall Norge AS awarded a new four-year frame agreement to Wood Group to tender for the provision of modification and maintenance services for its Norwegian Continental Shelf assets. The agreement has two three-year extension options.

Wood Group also was successful in securing an engineering framework deal with DONG Energy. The contract took effect immediately.

DONG Energy awarded Wood Group a new engineering services framework agreement to support oil and gas assets across the Danish, Norwegian and U.K. continental shelves, according to a news release.

The four-year contract is for front-end development, maintenance and modifications, engineering, and late life and decommissioning services, for topsides and subsea facilities.

—Staff & Reuters Reports

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