Equinor has revealed that, under license BM-C-33, it has awarded a subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines (SURF) contract to TechnipFMC, and a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) for the delivery of a floating production . , storage and offloading unit (FPSO) at MODEC Inc.
The SURF system will be installed at a water depth of approximately 2,900 meters, Equinor said, adding that it is the deepest installation in the company’s history. This agreement includes the delivery of Subsea 2.0 tree systems, manifolds, bridges, rigid pipes and flowlines, umbilicals, end-of-pipe terminations and subsea distribution and topside control equipment, Equinor explained.
The FPSO award is primarily a lump sum turnkey contract that includes engineering, procurement, construction and installation for the entire unit, Equinor said. MODEC will also provide Equinor with operations and maintenance service for the FPSO for the first year since commissioning, after which Equinor plans to operate the unit, Equinor disclosed.
Equinor did not disclose the value of the contracts. MODEC also made no mention of the value of the contract in a statement posted on its website about the Equinor deal. In a statement posted on its site, TechnipFMC described its Equinor deal as “significant,” which TechnipFMC defines as worth more than $1 billion.
In its statement, TechnipFMC emphasized that the Equinor award follows the conclusion of an integrated study of Front End Engineering and Design of the BM-C-33 field. MODEC noted that the FPSO is one of the most complex facilities in MODEC’s history, “handling large volumes of exported gas with a significant focus on reducing GHG emissions.”
Equinor, TechnipFMC, MODEC Comments
In a company statement, Geir Tungesvik, Equinor’s executive vice president of Projects, Drilling and Procurement, said: “We are delighted to award these contracts to companies known for their experience and quality, which will be important to these milestone deliveries to the BM- Development C-33”.
“MODEC was also awarded the FPSO contract for our Bacalhau project, and we look forward to leveraging the experiences between the two projects to ensure a safe and efficient execution of the developments. We also have a long history of collaboration with TechnipFMC and are pleased to continue our good collaboration on another major project development,” he added.
Veronica Coelho, Equinor’s senior vice president and country manager for Brazil, said: “BM-C-33 is a world-class asset in the Brazilian pre-salt Campos area.”
“Brazil is a core growth area for Equinor, and the company has the ambition to deepen our presence in the country. BM-C-33 will be an important contributor to achieving this goal, being a key supplier of gas in the national market, contributing to industrial development and energy security at the local level,” added Coelho.
“At the same time, we are committed to using technology to substantially reduce our emissions. BM-C-33 has a carbon intensity target of less than 6 kg/boe over the life of the field, while the average of the global industry is 16 kg of CO2 per barrel,” Coelho continued.
Jonathan Landes, President of Subsea at TechnipFMC, said “iEPCI continues to reshape our industry, demonstrating our unique ability to bring together all subsea components of an integrated solution.”
“We have built trust with our customers and to see Equinor using our Subsea 2.0 make-to-order solution together with iEPCI is a proud moment for us,” added Landes.
Takeshi Kanamori, President and CEO of MODEC, said: “We are very honored and proud to be selected to provide an FPSO for the BM-C-33 project.”
“We are equally proud of the confidence Equinor obviously has in MODEC. We believe this award represents a strong relationship of trust between us based on the ongoing Bacalhau FPSO project as well as our strong track record in the pre-salt region” , Kanamori added.
“We look forward to working closely with Equinor and its partners to make this project a success,” Kanamori continued.
BM-C-33 Final investment decision
On May 8, Equinor announced that the company, Repsol Sinopec Brasil, and Petrobras had made the investment decision to develop the BM-C-33 project in Brazil, adding that the investment is approximately 9 billion dollars
BM-C-33 is located in the Campos basin and includes three different pre-salt discoveries: Pão de Açúcar, Gávea and Seat. These contain recoverable reserves of natural gas and oil/condensate in excess of one billion barrels of oil equivalent, according to Equinor.
The concept selected for the BM-C-33 is based on an FPSO capable of processing gas and oil/condensate and specifying them for sale without the need for further onshore processing, Equinor noted in the May announcement. The production capacity of the FPSO is 16 million cubic meters of gas per day with average exports of 14 million cubic meters of gas per day, Equinor highlighted. Launch is planned for 2028.
“The final investment decision for BM-C-33 is an important milestone for the partners and for Equinor,” Tungesvik said in a company statement last week.
“Together with partners and suppliers we have developed an important project that will provide Brazil with energy to meet its growing energy demand and create value for owners and society, contributing to local industrial development,” he added.
“Brazil is one of Equinor’s core areas and the investment in BM-C-33 emphasizes the strategic importance of our Brazilian portfolio,” continued Tungesvik.
In the statement, Coelho said: “BM-C-33 is one of the main projects in the country to bring new supplies of domestic gas, being a key contributor to the development of the Brazilian gas market.”
“Exported gas from the project could represent 15 percent of total Brazilian gas demand at the start. Its development will also contribute to energy security and economic development, allowing many new job opportunities locally,” he said. add Coelho.
Equinor has a 35 percent operating interest in BM-C-33. Repsol Sinopec Brasil also has a 35% stake and Petrobras the remaining 30%. Equinor became the operator of the development in 2016.
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