Oil giant BP has hailed a huge investment in two new platform support vessels (PSVs) for its west of Shetland operations as a long-term commitment to the UK North Sea.
The purpose-built ships, weighing 4,400 and 5,165 gross tonnes and each costing £35million, have been delivered and christened in Aberdeen.
They both have special tanks to transport chemicals needed for enhanced oil recovery schemes planned for the Schiehallion and Clair fields.
NS Iona, which set sail from Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD) in Ulsan, South Korea, in late April and arrived in Aberdeen last month, starts work this week.
NS Elida, also built by HMD, has been operating in the region since January.
Both Cayman Islands-flagged ships were commissioned by BP from its own logistics arm, BP Shipping, for an exclusive 15-year bareboat term charter – meaning no crew or supplies were included.
“The delivery of these two vessels completes our long-term marine strategy,” said Mark Hardie, BP’s UK logistics and infrastructure manager.
“The PSVs – together with other redeployed vessels – will be used west of Shetland to support cargo delivery, rescue and recovery operations, oil spill response and collision risk-management in the area.
“The capability and flexibility they offer…is a critical component of our wider marine strategy.”
BP North Sea regional president Trevor Garlick added: “Our long-term commitment to the region gives us the confidence to make major investments in vital support services.
“These new vessels provide us with a number of safety and commercial benefits but also allow for the greater deployment of technology, improving our capability to recover more oil from our reservoirs – which is crucial to the future of the North Sea.”
The ships will be based and maintained in Aberdeen.
BP said operational and maintenance work to support them would be locally supplied, while they would be crewed by UK and Norwegian qualified mariners.
The Quad 204 deepwater scheme, involving the redevelopment of the BP-operated Schiehallion and Loyal fields, is targeting an estimated 450million barrels of oil.
BP’s £4.5billion Clair Ridge project is expected to keep the UK producing oil beyond 2050.
Recommended for you
