Keppel Completes Conversion of FPSO Brazil

Keppel Shipyard, the marine unit of Keppel Corporation, has set a new benchmark for fast-track conversions of highly complex Floating Production Storage Offloading facilities (FPSO) with the delivery of FPSO Brazil to Single Buoy Moorings (SBM) Inc. Nelson Yeo, Keppel Shipyard’s Executive Director said, “Keppel Shipyard completed this urgent and exacting job in 12 months while the owners are carrying out the engineering specifications and procurement work concurrently. “This is certainly very challenging for both the shipyard and the owners. It is especially in a complex FPSO conversion like Brazil.” The scope of the conversion work on Brazil for Keppel is significantly larger than Espadarte FPSO, which Keppel Shipyard had set a record in 2000 as the most complex conversion completed in 10.5 months. The 256,712 dwt vessel, FPSO Brazil, will be leased to Petrobras SA for deployment in the Roncador Field in the Campos Basin off the coast of Brazil. It is capable of handling up to 100,000bpd of crude oil production and a storage capacity of approximately 1.7 million barrels. “SBM has a very urgent production deadline of this FPSO for Brazil. As its preferred shipyard, we work closely with their team of professionals to meet the schedule as well as the stringent requirements that are typical of an offshore vessel. I am glad this partnership with them is yet another success for all of us.” Furthermore, Keppel Shipyard was also given a Silver Award for safety at work on FPSO Brasil by the Ministry of Manpower for year 2002. “We won this award as the result of SBM and our project team’s commitment to safety," added Yeo. SBM, which owns and operates the world’s largest fleet of FPSO and FSO, has chosen Keppel Shipyard as its preferred shipyard in the Far East. The yard has completed the conversion of four (4) FPSOs/FSOs for SBM in the last three years. Currently, SBM has contracted Keppel Shipyard to carry out another FPSO conversion on VLCC Amazon Eagle. The vessel sailed into the yard in May 2002 and is due for completion in mid 2003.