Contracts worth more than £1 billion have now been placed by BP as the oil giant progresses with a major redevelopment of one of the UK’s largest fields.
Aker Solutions yesterday secured a £70 million deal to manufacture and supply equipment for Quad 204, the £3bn project that will extend the lives of the Schiehallion and Loyal fields approximately 100 miles west of Shetland out past 2035.
The oil major estimates a further 450m barrels of oil equivalent are recoverable from the seabed, and an upgrade of infrastructure in the area is under way, with a new floating production vessel due on station in 2015.
Aker yesterday won the latest contract for the redevelopment with an agreement that will see its Aberdeen-based operations provide subsea control equipment and safety isolation valves for the entire field.
In January, Babcock’s Rosyth yard was awarded a £30m contract to manufacture 74 heavy duty subsea footings a project involving more than 100 workers and the fabrication of more than 2,300 tonnes of steel for the same zone.
The largest single deal agreed so far, worth £500m, was earlier awarded to Technip. BP yesterday confirmed the total value of contracts which have been placed was now in excess of £1bn.
Matt Corbin, managing director of Aker Solutions’ subsea business in the UK, said the contract continued a long association between the two firms and would help it to grow its operations in Scotland.
The company employs about 2,800 people in the north east and has plans to grow numbers to 3,200 by 2015, making it one of the area’s biggest employers.
“Aker Solutions has had a long and successful partnership with BP in the North Sea over many years,” Mr Corbin said.
“This award is further good news for Aker Solutions in the UK. Recent contract wins, combined with our ongoing recruitment campaign and investment in our people, premises and processes, reinforces our position as a major player in the energy supply chain and contributor to the UK economy.”
First Minister Alex Salmond said the new contract demonstrated the confidence in the North Sea oil and gas sector.
He said: “Projected investment in Scotland’s oil sector is already set to reach £13 billion in 2013 and it is clear that, with announcements such as this, major players in the industry see North Sea oil as a safe bet for the future.
“Aker Solutions is already a huge employer in Aberdeen and I have seen for myself the world-class expertise that their employees bring to the subsea technology necessary to exploit our vast oil resources.”
Technip moved to snap up Oslo-based offshore engineering and services contractor Ingenium.
The company designs and develops mechanical and electro-hydraulic tools and equipment for the offshore oil and gas industry and provides engineering services for marine operations such as the installation of pipes and cables.
Odd Strmsnes of Technip said: “Ingenium brings a team with solid experience and engineering capabilities that reinforces Technip’s presence in one of the group’s key markets. Technip has a long history of working on projects with Ingenium. We are thrilled that they will be joining the group.”
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