Contract Awarded for Construction of Valemon Deck

Press Release May 18, 2011

Illustration: The Valemon platform

Statoil is to choose Samsung Heavy Industries for construction of the topsides for the Valemon platform. The contract is worth an estimated NOK 2.3 billion.

The award has taken place in wide-ranging international competition among pre-qualified suppliers.

“We’ve awarded the assignment to build the Valemon topsides to Samsung Heavy Industries,” says Jon Arnt Jacobsen, chief procurement officer in Statoil.

“We have good experience with this supplier which also has a good track record in HSE. All requirements were met and Samsung presented the overall best offer.”

The contract covers engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the topsides and living quarters, as well as an option for mating offshore of the topsides with the steel jacket. The Grenland group in Sandefjord, Norway and Technip in Malaysia will perform the engineering work. The Grenland group will also construct the flare boom. The living quarters will be built by Hertel Marine in the Netherlands.

Capacity and cost developments on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) are challenging and it is important for Statoil to have a diversity of suppliers with capacity to deliver on time and with the proper quality.

“This is an interesting project for the supplier industry,” says Jacobsen.

“Several suppliers based in Norway will also benefit from this contract award as sub-contractors for Samsung. In addition there will be deliveries under Statoil’s other frame agreements, where the Norwegian supplier industry is expected to be competitive and to secure important contracts.”

Contracts for the construction of the steel platform jacket have previously been awarded to Heerema Vlissingen B.V. Transport and installation of the jacket and topsides was awarded earlier to Heerema Marine Contractors Nederland B.V. Saipem was assigned the contract for installation of the topsides. The contract for pipeline design has been awarded to IKM Ocean Design.

The Valemon field will have a fixed steel platform to separate gas, condensate (light oil) and water. The topsides will have facilities for partial processing and export of unstabilised condensate and rich gas.

“The platform and transport solution for Valemon forms a good basis for developing other oil and gas fields in the area,” says Ivar Aasheim, senior vice president for Statoil’s field development business cluster.

“Along with the ongoing Gudrun development, Valemon will contribute to a high activity level on the NCS in the coming years.”

The Valemon field will be one of Statoil’s largest development projects on the NCS in the time ahead. It contains about 206 million barrels of oil equivalent. The Valemon reservoir is complex since it is split up but also because of high pressure and temperature.

The gas from Valemon will be sent via the existing pipeline between Huldra and Heimdal, which is a hub for onward transport to the European gas markets. The condensate will be piped via Kvitebjørn for stabilisation and sent on to the Mongstad refinery near Bergen. A submarine cable will supply Valemon with electricity from Kvitebjørn.