Heerema Fabrication Group’s Zwijndrecht yard in the Netherlands officially started the construction of the integrated production Montrose BLP (bridge linked platform) topsides for client Talisman Sinopec Energy UK Ltd., the company announced on 21 March 2013.
Montrose BLP illustration (Image: Heerema Fabrication Group)At the end of last year HFG’s Zwijndrecht fabrication facility signed the contract with Talisman Sinopec Energy for the fabrication of the 8,500 tons Montrose BLP topsides destined for the UK Central North Sea Montrose and Arbroath field area. The topsides will have a length of 75 meters, a width of 44 meters and a height of 40 meters. A bridge, optional in the contract, will link the existing Montrose Alpha facility to the new Montrose BLP platform.
The ceremonial first cut of steel took place today at the yard of Heerema Fabrication Group in Zwijndrecht (the Netherlands), where the topsides will be built. The project is expected to create more than 1,300,000 man hours of fabrication, and an average of approximately 500 people will be working on the Heerema’s Zwijndrecht site during the project. It is expected that the topsides and bridge constructions will be completed for load out in April 2015.
The Montrose BLP topsides will be fabricated indoors under controlled conditions, which greatly enhances safety, efficiency and quality of the work. Heerema Zwijndrecht has one of the largest indoor facilities in North West Europe which enable HFG to offer clients these advantages.
Currently Heerema Zwijndrecht also has the 690 MW HelWin beta platform under construction for Siemens, along with the nearly completed 900 MW DolWin alpha topsides for client ABB. Both HVDC platforms are fabricated on behalf of grid operator TenneT.
Wim Matthijssen, Chief Operating Officer of Heerema Fabrication Group said: “Today’s ceremony marks a major milestone in the start of the fabrication of the Montrose BLP topsides. It is furthermore a privilege for HFG to commence fabrication for a client we have not worked for before and who has the confidence in our capabilities to deliver a high quality product on time, but more importantly safely.”
Geoff Holmes, CEO of Talisman Sinopec Energy, said: "The Montrose Area Redevelopment is an exciting project with a substantial investment of £1.6 billion. This project will extend the life of existing North Sea fields, developing around 100 million barrels of new reserves. It is vital that we all continue to work together to ensure support and investment is made in this sector, creating many new skilled employment opportunities and maximising the benefits of the oil and gas industry."
The Montrose field lies in Block 22/17 of the United Kingdom Continental Shelf, 207 km east of Aberdeen in the Central North Sea. Talisman Sinopec Energy’s Montrose BLP is designed to maximise recovery from the existing Montrose field and new subsea developments at Cayley gas and Shaw oil fields.
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