S Norske Shell News

Norwegian offshore vessel operator DOF Group has secured a ‘substantial’ subsea engineering procurement removal and disposal (EPRD) contract from Norske Shell in the Atlantic region.The contract outlines 100 combined days of utilization of DOF’s vessels Skandi Hera and Maersk Installer.DOF will deliver an integrated solution of project management, engineering, design, analysis and survey.Described as ‘substantial’ by DOF, this means that the contract is valued between $23.8 million and $47.8 million (NOK 250 million to NOK 500 million).The scope includes recovery and recycling of umbilicals…

Esgian has published its Week 48 Rig Market Roundup highlighting that new contract awards were revealed for a Velesto Drilling jackup, two Seadrill drillships and a Dolphin Drilling semisub. Meanwhile, Wintershall Dea is planning to drill a new carbon storage well in Norway.ContractsMalaysia’s Velesto Drilling has agreed on an extension of a contract with Carigali Hess Operating Company for another year and six months.Seadrill has secured a short-term contract for 12,000ft drillship West Vela in the US Gulf of Mexico with QuarterNorth Energy…

OneSubsea, the subsea technologies, production and processing systems division of Schlumberger, has contracted Nexans to design and supply two 120-km (75-mi) power umbilicals for a subsea multiphase compression system at Norske Shell’s Ormen Lange gas field in the Norwegian Sea.The French player in the cable and optical fiber industry said that the system will help extend the production life of the Ormen Lange field, Norway’s second-largest gas field that currently supplies 20 percent of the UK’s gas needs.Located in the Norwegian Sea, the Ormen Lange gas field produces about 70 million cubic meters of gas a day that is piped to the onshore Nyhamna processing plant.

Saipem has signed a contract with Eni Angola S.p.A. in relation to the West Hub Development project in Angola, which incorporates the work orders previously assigned and communicated in 2016 and 2017 and adds the scope of work for the development of the Vandumbu field in Block 15/06. The additional activities will be carried out by the Offshore E&C division and encompass the engineering, procurement, construction and installation required for the development of the Vandumbu subseea field at deepwater depths ranging from 1300 to 1500 metres. Overall the project includes the realisation of two production pipelines made of special material, and the laying of umbilicals and service lines of various diameters (Subsea, Umbilicals, Risers & Flowlines - SURF).

iSURVEY has secured a non exclusive call-off contract with Shell UK Ltd, Shell NAM, Norske Shell and Shell E&P Ireland for the provision of rig positioning and surveying services. With an effective date of 1 January 2017, the three year contract, which has the option of up to two, one year extensions, will see iSURVEY provide non exclusive rig and surface positioning services, subsurface positioning and dimensional control and platform surveys to Shell’s mobile offshore drilling units. Andrew McMurtrie, managing director of iSURVEY Offshore Limited said: “This is a significant win for iSURVEY in what has been a challenging time for the entire market.

Flexible fuels, Bold designs ... Eastern Shipbuilding Group has arguably been one of the more progressive and aggressive U.S. builders of high-spec Offshore Service Vessels in recent years, winning a number of high-profile contracts for operators globally. Eastern recently delivered M/V HOS Red Dawn and christened M/V HOS Renaissance, both for Hornbeck Offshore Services, LLC. HOS Red Dawn (H201) – now delivered – was launched on February 15, 2013. HOS Red Rock (H202) was launched April 19, 2013, and is currently at Eastern completing final outfitting, regulatory and DP-2 trials.

Siem Offshore and Norske Shell signed a contract for a new dual fueled (LNG/Diesel) large-size platform supply vessel (PSV). Remontowa Shipyard /Poland will construct the vessel as their H/N 856/1.The new PSV shall commence operations in Q1/'15 for operations in the North Sea, to support offshore activities at, among others, the Draugen and Ormen Lange oil and gas fields. The under deck tank configuration shall include systems for handling of drill cuttings, in addition to liquid and dry bulk.

ABB signs a $260 million service contract with A/S Norske Shell for operations at the Draugen and Ormen Lange oil & gas fields. The contract is for a period of 9 years and requires ABB to provide integrated service and support solutions for the Draugen offshore oil platform and the nearby Ormen Lange onshore gas processing plant on the west coast of Norway. The agreement includes the option of two consecutive two year contracts and covers both the oil and gas fields, as well as future expansions, tie-ins and upgrades. ABB has delivered significant annual savings over five successive years since it was awarded the first service contract by A/S Norske Shell in 2007. The contract scope includes the system’s integration across the electric, instrument, control and telecommunication systems.

Norske Shell AS award Atlantic Offshore an 18 months ERRV contract to support drilling operations. Atlantic’s Offshore Emergency Response Rescue Vessel (ERRV) ‘Ocean Sky’ will start work in accordance with the contract in mid-January 2013. The owners say the same vessel has worked for Norske Shell AS since 2000, and they are very pleased to continue this long partnership.

Aker Solutions has been awarded a contract by A/S Norske Shell, to deliver subsea connection systems for the Draugen field on the Norwegian continental shelf. The scope of work includes the delivery of complete tie-in connection systems for production flow lines and umbilicals for the expansion of the Draugen field. "Aker Solutions has supplied connection systems for the subsea installations on the Draugen field since 2002. We are pleased that we can continue to assist A/S Norske Shell to expand the field and increase the production with our solutions," said Alan Brunnen, executive vice president of Aker Solutions' subsea business area. Management, engineering and procurement of the connection systems will be performed at Aker Solutions' head office in Fornebu, Norway.

NCS Survey, an Acteon company, won a rig positioning contract by Shell. The contract covers Shell’s four entities in Europe; Shell UK Ltd, Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij BV, A/S Norske Shell and Shell E&P Ireland Ltd. The contract is for three years with two one-year extension options. This is the second time that NCS Survey has been awarded such a contract by Shell, first one being in December 2006 less than 18 months after the company was incorporated. Andy Gray, NCS Survey president, said, “We are delighted that Shell has selected NCS Survey to provide the positioning services on board its rigs for the next few years.

The Statfjord late life project has prolonged this North Sea field's productive life beyond expectations. “We are highly satisfied with every single year we can add to the Statfjord field’s productive life,” said Ståle Tungesvik, senior vice president for the operations west cluster in the Exploration & Production Norway business area. “During the late life project we have extended the production period at the Statfjord field beyond 2020. The work on extending the field’s productive life is carried out while the platforms are in operation.

Gas has been found by StatoilHydro in the Asterix prospect, which lies in 1,360 metres of water 345 kilometres west of Sandnessjøen in the Norwegian Sea. Preliminary estimates put the proven recoverable volume, which is located 80 kilometres west of the Luva gas discovery, at about 16 billion cubic metres (100 million barrels of oil equivalent). “This represents one of the bigger discoveries off Norway in recent years, and we’re very pleased with the result,” said Tove Stuhr Sjøblom, StatoilHydro’s head of Norwegian exploration. The resources are located in Upper Cretaceous reservoir rocks. No formation test was carried out, but extensive data gathering and coring took place in the reservoir.

Aker Kvaerner has signed a five-year partnership agreement with Shell U.K. Limited and A/S Norske Shell ('Shell') covering the provision, installation, commissioning and life-of-field support of subsea control systems in the North Sea. The framework agreement is signed for an initial five year period, with five optional one-year extensions. It could be worth between GBP 20 and 30 million over the first five years. The contract encapsulates the two companies' solid working relationship, which has been running since the late 1970s. The deal brings Aker Kvaerner Subsea's controls delivery and service, including aftermarket services, into one contract arrangement to ensure maximum efficiency in supporting Shell's projects.

Smedvig has been awarded a letter of intent by A/S Norske Shell for the assignment of the deepwater drillship West Navigator on the Ormen Lange field in the Norwegian Sea. The assignment includes drilling of eight deepwater wells in approximately 900 meters of water, with options for four additional wells. The contract value for the firm part of the contract is estimated to US$ 167 million (NOK 1.17 billion). The commencement is planned in the second half of 2005. The drilling period for the firm part of the contract is estimated to 740 days, while the option period could have a duration up to one year. The assignment is subject to final government approval of the Ormen Lange project.

Norcontrol IT has won the contract to upgrade the Vessel Traffic Management and Information System (VTMIS) for the Draugen Offshore Oil Platform in the North Sea. The contract also includes a five-year Long Term System Support Program (LT-SSP). The Draugen Platform is owned and operated by A/S Norske Shell and currently uses a Norcontrol IT VOC 90 system. This system will be replaced with the latest VTMIS 5060, which can be upgraded to communicate with other VTS systems in the North Sea. The VTMIS 5060 has the built in capability to meet future government requirements regarding communication between land and offshore platforms. Draugen Offshore Oil Platform has been in operation since 1993 and has an average production of 220,000 barrels of oil per day.

A/S Norske Shell announced that the company has entered into an agreement with E.ON Ruhrgas Norge AS to sell its 28% equity interests in the undeveloped Skarv and Idun fields for US$ 893 million. The agreement covers the licenses PL-159, PL-212, PL-212B and PL-262 in the Norwegian Sea. David Loughman, Managing Director A/S Norske Shell, said: "We remain fully committed to Norway and continue to consider this to be a key area of growth within our European business. We are currently making major investments on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The Ormen Lange development, where Shell assumes operatorship in November 2007, is very important in our growth strategy.

Reports said that safety authorities ordered a production shutdown at two Norwegian offshore platforms Thursday, sharply reducing flows from the world's third largest oil exporter, an official said. The fields' operators — state oil company Statoil ASA and the Norwegian branch of Royal Dutch Shell PLC — were likely to keep the fields running at least until they meet safety officials on Friday. Officials from the Petroleum Safety Authority, said the agency wrote to the companies to say it did not accept lifeboat standards at Statoil's roughly 110,000-barrel-per-day Snorre A platform and Norske Shell ASA's 140,000-barrel-per-day Draugen field.

Norske Shell awarded Aker Kvaerner a maintenance and modification contract for the Draugen platform and the Ormen Lange plant on the north-western coast of Norway. The latter will be operational during autumn 2007. The contract period is five years, with option for renewals every two year thereafter. The total contract value is between $178-296 million, depending on the modification scope at the Ormen Lange plant. The contract has been signed with Aker Kvaerner Offshore Partner. Aker Kvaerner Elektro and Aker Moere Montasje will also contribute in the execution. In addition, Linjebygg Offshore AS will be subcontractor for insulation, scaffolding and surface treatment.