Amerada Hess Ltd. has ordered the U.K. North Sea's largest single topside unit for its 1.1 billion ($2.13 billion) Scott field development project.

Scott, the largest current oil field project off the U.K., is being developed with a drilling and production platform linked by a bridge to an accommodation unit.

The field in Blocks 15/21 and 15/22 holds an estimated 450 million bbl of oil reserves, 40 million bbl of natural gas liquids, and 290 bcf of gas. Production is expected to average 180,000 b/d.

Italy's Belleli will build the processing and drilling deck, which will weigh about 10,000 metric tons when lifted onto the main platform by Heeremac's DB102 barge in 1993.

A contract for a second integrated deck containing utilities went to Press Offshore Ltd. in collaboration with Dragados y Construcciones. The 8,500 ton unit and a 600 ton support structure for the living quarters will be built at a Dragados yard in Spain.

A third contract for the drilling package and derrick substructure went to SLP Davy Engineering Ltd, Teesside, England.

Amerada's partners in the project are Deminex U.K. Oil & Gas Ltd., Amoco (U.K.) Exploration Co., Enterprise Oil plc, Mobil North Sea Ltd., Kerr-McGee Oil (U.K.) plc, North Sea Inc., and Pict Petroleum plc.

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