Delivery of the Goliat floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) platform has been delayed until early 2015, operator Eni Norge announced today.
Eni said that conditions to depart at the end of June 2014, and complete commissioning in Norway in Q4 2014, were not in place.
“In particular, elements necessary to complete commissioning offshore in the Barents Sea were unavailable,” Eni said in a statement. Instead, commissioning will be completed in Hyundai Heavy Industries’ shipyard in South Korea.
The FPSO, being built by Hyundai Heavy Industries, will be used to produce the first oil field in the Barents Sea.
Production start-up had been scheduled for Q4 2013, but the date was delayed in 2012, due to challenges and increased complexity, on the production platform. Production start-up is now targeted for mid-2015. Eni says: “A fast ramp-up to steady production is expected, given the opportunity to test and fine-tune the FPSO before it leaves South Korea.”
Giving an update on the construction progress, Eni said work on the hull is finished, the topsides are reaching mechanical completion, and commissioning activities are progressing steadily in parallel. The final activities, related to sea trials, are expected well before sailaway. In parallel, the other parts of the project – drilling, installation of subsea – are progressing steadily in Norway.
The Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) for the Goliat field was submitted in 2009. Project cost estimates are now about NOK 45 billion, with an increase in line with the industry trend, according to Eni.
Eni has 65% interest in Goliat, with Statoil owning the remaining 35%. Goliat is planned to produce 170MM bbl during a 15 year production life.
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