Keppel FELS' Subsidiary Gets FPSO Conversion Job

The Brazilian subsidiary of Keppel FELS Limited, FELS Setal SA, has signed a Letter of Intent with Halliburton Productos Ltd. for the marine conversion of a tanker, Stena Concordia into a Floating Production Storage and Offloading facility (FPSO). This contract, once it is finalised, will be a major step for FELS Setal, as the last time any work of this magnitude was performed in Brazil was over four years ago. It is expected to re-vitalise the offshore and marine fabrication industry in Brazil, with projections to create thousands of new jobs for the state of Rio de Janeiro. FELS Setal was formed in March 2000 as a 60/40 percent joint venture between Keppel FELS and Brazilian PEM Setal respectively. It is operating from a 360,000 sq. m. yard located in the city of Angra dos Reis, about two hours south of Rio de Janeiro. Keppel FELS has just partnered ENSCO to build and operate a $130 million jack-up rig for deployment in deep waters of the North Sea, Gulf of Mexico and Southeast Asia. In October, its US subsidiary, AMFELS secured a $76 million rig order from Chiles Offshore. In September, another subsidiary, Caspian Shipyard Company in Azerbaijan, delivered a jack-up rig to owner Transocean Sedco Forex.