On 5 December Statoil entered into a contract with Vestbase AS for the establishment of new buildings and infrastructure especially adjusted to serve Åsgard subsea compression.
Statoil is planning to install the compressors and associated seabed equipment on the Åsgard field in the autumn of 2014 with start-up the following year.
“When we now go subsea with this process equipment we have to do maintenance onshore with changeable modules. Buildings and infrastructure are shaped for this purpose,” says Astrid Jørgenvåg, head of production at Åsgard, in Development and production Norway.
The Åsgard subsea compression system will be run and maintained in a manner which gives the highest possible regularity for the Åsgard field. The base must subsequently be equipped and ready for quick and effective response. A third compressor train and associated modules, equipment and tools will be stored on the base for quick shipment if required.
“Ripple effects”
“Åsgard subsea compression represents a new technological epoch, and this development provides opportunities for some major ripple effects in the form of increased activities and the building of competence related to activities on the base. This can lead to the establishment and emergence of new ventures, both locally in Kristiansund and regionally,” says Jørgenvåg .
This long-term contract with Vestbase AS involves preparing the buildings, sites and infrastructure, as well as the operative services in connection with the handling, cleaning, storage, plus service and testing of the Åsgard subsea equipment.
Boost for Kristiansund
“This represents a considerable boost for Kristiansund as a subsea centre for the Norwegian Sea. It is the most extensive contract Vestbase has signed with Statoil,” says Jørgenvåg .
She believes that Åsgard subsea compression represents a new quantum leap in subsea technology with pressure support in the form of compression installed on the seabed. This technology will support Statoil’s efforts to increase oil recovery.
The contract between Statoil and Vestbase AS includes the building of three new special buildings, a mechanical workshop, a hall for storage plus offices and washing facilities. The buildings will be specially designed to handle heavy equipment internally, with some of the components weighing up to 400 tonnes. The height of the roof will be roughly 32 metres and the door opening will be 25 metres.
The buildings will be located on the east side of the site. Access to a deep-water dock, and the provision of transport machinery, heavy-lift crane and different categories of personnel, will also form part of the delivery by Vestbase AS.
FACTS
– Added value: Increases recovery by 280 mill. barrels oil equivalents from Mikkel and Midgard.
– Technological leap: Recovery rates and lifetimes of several gas fields can be boosted.
– Pioneering work: Complex development and important step towards a complete subsea factory.
[mappress] Press Release, December 06, 2012