PIPELINE CONTRACTS AWARDED FOR CUSIANA PROJECT IN COLUMBIA

Oleoducto Central SA (Ocensa) has finished awarding construction contracts for facilities needed to set up oil exports from Cusiana field in Colombia's Llanos basin.

The contracts cover pipeline, pumps, and storage units to be installed in Phase II of Cusiana-Cupiagua project development, which aims to boost oil production to about 500,000 b/d by yearend 1997.

Cusiana-Cupiagua operator BP Exploration Co. (Colombia) Ltd. and partners earlier this year began producing 185,000 b/d with completion of Phase I of Cusiana early production facilities.

THE CONTRACTS

In the latest action, Ocensa let contracts with a combined value of nearly $200 million to:

Distral, a Colombian company, for a 160,000 b/d pump station at the Cusiana central processing facility (CPF) in Tauramena municipality, department of Casanare, and to upgrade the El Porvenir, Miraflores, Vasconia, and Caucasia pump stations.
A combine including Technit of Argentina and Cotecol of Colombia for construction of three 350,000 bbl storage tanks and related onshore facilities at the Covenas tank farm and oil terminal on the Gulf of Morrosquillo on Colombia's Caribbean coast. Covenas is Colombia's main oil export point.
Saipem of Italy and Bouygues of France for construction of a tanker loading unit, including a 42 in. subsea pipeline in the Gulf of Morrosquillo. Last month, Ocensa said it had let Phase II contracts to:
The Technit-Cotecol combine to lay a total of 218 km of line in segments between Cusiana's CPF and the La Belleza pump station.
Saipem to lay about 480 km of 30 in. loop on the Oleoducto Central system between Vasconia and Covenas.

BASIS OF AWARDS

Ocensa said it awarded the contracts on the basis of competitive bids, guarantees that supplies could be obtained on schedule and that local labor would be used in work areas, and promises of strict compliance with environmental requirements.

All companies with winning bids have international experience building pipelines. Most previously have worked in Colombia, some on Cusiana Phase I facilities.

Technit has operated in Colombia since 1979. The company took part in construction of the Oleoducto de Colombia system. The Technit-Cotecol combine was in charge of the Cusiana Phase I upgrade of the Central Llanos pipeline system between La Belleza and Vasconia.

By contract, Ocensa Saipem believes working on the Cusiana- Cupiagua project will open the door to other opportunities in Latin America. Saipem subcontracted Distral to provide support in the areas of civil works, local transportation, and community relations. Distral in Cusiana Phase I development was responsible for building the early production CPF.

Ocensa is a joint stock company formed in December 1994 by Cusiana-Cupiagua partners and units of Canadian pipeline companies TransCanada and Interprovincial.

Ocensa will construct, own, and operate facilities being built to transport and export Cusiana-Cupiagua oil.

Ocensa partners and their shares of equity are Empresa Colombiana de Petroleos 25%; TCPL International and IPL Enterprise 17.5% each; BP Colombia Pipeline and Total Pipeline Colombia 15.2% each, and Triton Pipeline Colombia Inc. 9.6%.