Statoil signed a letter of intent with Sembcorp Marine Rigs & Floaters in Singapore for the construction of the hull and integrated living quarters for a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel.
The construction of the hull is the most time-critical delivery for the delivery of the Johan Castberg project for the scheduled start-up in 2022, Statoil said.
The contract, which will worth NOK 4 billion, will be signed at the final investment decision scheduled before Christmas and will include Covering engineering, procurement and construction.
It will also incorporate a cancellation clause linked to the approval of the plan for development and operation (PDO).
The contract was won through international competitive bidding and no Norwegian companies bade for the contract.
“Johan Castberg is the next major field development on the Norwegian continental shelf and important to future infrastructure in the Barents Sea. Analyses from Agenda Kaupang show that the project will generate some 47,000 man-years of employment in Norway in the development phase from 2018-2022 given a competitive Norwegian supply industry,” said Torger Rød, Statoil’s senior vice president for project development.
The FPSO vessel will be located on the Johan Castberg field in the Barents Sea.
The Johan Castberg field aims to produce ripple effects for all of Northern Norway. The Castberg project also plans to increase the percentage of pre-qualified suppliers from Northern Norway.
Furthermore, the Johan Castberg project will consist of a large subsea system tied in to a FPSO vessel. Recoverable resources are estimated at 450-650 million barrels of oil equivalent and 30 wells are planned to be drilled on the field in the period 2019-2024.
