Benthic, a global geosciences company, was awarded a contract by Statoil Tanzania AS in November for geotechnical site investigation services in Block 2 off the coast of Tanzania.
Statoil announced its fifth natural gas discovery in Block 2 in December, at the Mronge-1 well. ("Tanzania Discovery for Statoil," OE Daily, 6 Dec 2013)
Under the Statoil contract, Benthic’s PROD 2 (Portable Remotely Operated Drill), operating from the newly built (2013) and DP2-equipped Jaya Valour platform supply vessel, will perform a site investigation survey and retrieve core samples up to 100m below the seafloor in water depths to 2900m in Block 2.
Additional equipment will be deployed to gather geotechnical information requested by Statoil. Having recently worked in the region, Benthic has experience with the difficult seafloor conditions and has a track record working in ultra-deepwater, providing confidence that high-quality samples will be provided in a timely manner.
"This project marks the second contract Benthic has secured off the East African coast. Benthic is proud of the high-quality sample results PROD repeatedly produces in challenging environments,” said Greg Fyffe, VP of Operations. "PROD's recent success in the African Region signifies a bright future for Benthic and our growing reputation in the ultra-deepwater market.”
Benthic began mobilizing aboard the PSV Jaya Valour in December and will begin the offshore campaign this month.
Photo: PSV Jaya Valour, courtesy of Singapore-based Jaya Holdings Ltd.