Solstad Offshore has been awarded a long-term contract with Woodside for platform supply vessel (PSV) Normand Tortuga to support large decommissioning and gas resource development campaigns in northwestern Australian
The firm contract is for 572 days, with options available to Australian oil and gas company Woodside to extend the charter.
Built in 2014 by India’s Cochin Shipyard, the STX 05-L CD design PSV has been contracted to support activities with the Valaris semi-submersible DPS-1 on the Enfield plug and abandonment (P&A) and Scarborough projects, commencing in late Q1 and Q2 2022. Woodside has chartered DPS-1 for a 16-well campaign.
For the Enfield P&A, Woodside is planning to permanently plug and abandon 16-18 wells (eight production wells, eight water injection wells, and two gas injection wells), in production licence WA-28-L, 38 km north of the North West Cape. The wells were shut-in and depressurised in Q4 2018. The P&A activity is planned to start in 2022 and to be completed by mid 2024. Once the wells have been permanently plugged and abandoned, the Xmas trees, flowbases and wellheads, including temporary guide bases, will be removed from the seabed. The Enfield decommissioning is being conducted in phases. Removal of the remaining subsea infrastructure (final phase), including manifolds, flowlines and umbilicals will be the subject of a separate environment plan and is also planned to be completed by mid 2024.
Production licence WA-28-L is held by Woodside Energy Ltd (operator and 60% joint venture participant), and Mitsui E&P Australia Pty Ltd (40% joint venture participant).
Scarborough project
Meanwhile, the Scarborough project in the Carnarvon Basin, 375 km west-north-west of Karratha in Western Australia, is being developed through new offshore facilities connected by an approximately 430-km pipeline to a proposed second LNG train at the existing Pluto LNG onshore facility.
The proposal is to initially develop the estimated 11.1 trillion cubic feet of dry gas with eight subsea, high-rate gas wells, and 13 wells drilled over the life of the Scarborough field, with all wells tied back to a semi-submersible floating production unit moored in 950 m of water close to the Scarborough field. Approximately 5 mta of Scarborough gas will be processed through Pluto Train 2, with up to 3 mta processed through the existing Pluto Train 1. The beneficiaries of the increased LNG capacity will be neighbouring Asian countries. The first LNG cargo is targeted for 2026.
During the period of the contract, 82-m Normand Tortuga will be operating from Dampier, Western Australia.
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