BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd. has let a 30 million kroner ($4.6 million) contract to Norway's Den norske stats oljeselskap AS (Statoil) for front-end engineering design of a floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel to be used in development of Pierce field on U.K. North Sea Blocks 23/27 and 23/22a.
The contract award is ahead of development approval by U.K.'s Department of Trade and Industry, which is expected to sanction the project in May 1997.
Pierce field was put on extended-well test in summer 1996 by license partner Ranger Oil (U.K.) Ltd. (OGJ, Oct. 21, 1996, p. 26).
First full-scale production is expected in mid-1998.
Pierce has estimated reserves of 100 million bbl of oil equivalent and is expected to produce for 10 years, reaching peak output of 45,000 b/d of oil and 100 MMcfd of gas.
Contract details
BP said Statoil's contract is for design of topsides for the multi-purpose shuttle tanker/production ship MST Berge Hugin, a speculative newbuild launched by Statoil in December in South Korea.
The FPSO will have capacity to store 640,000 bbl, and oil will be unloaded into shuttle tankers provided by Statoil.
Pierce will be brought on stream with seven production wells and three gas injectors.
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