The first topsides unit built for the Shah Deniz stage 2 platforms is now en route from the Azfen fabrication yard in Bibi-Heybat to the Shah Deniz contract area in the Caspian Sea offshore Azerbaijan.
BP announced 1 June that the topsides transportation, floatover and installation activities are expected to take five days to complete. The unit will be installed on top of the quarter and utilities (QU) jacket, which is already at its offshore location in a water depth of 94 m.
Built by the AMEC-Tekfen-Azfen consortium, the Q&A platform weighs about 12,400-tonne and is 100m long by 60m wide. It contains 100-person living quarters, four main power generators totalling 60 MW, 10 direct electrical heating modules and a range of subsea production equipment.
The QU platform topsides were jacked up onto the loading frame at the quayside of the fabrication yard on 8 May in preparation for transfer onto the STB-1 transportation barge.
Over 5000 people, including subcontractors and specialist vendors, were involved in the construction work. More than 90% of these were Azerbaijani citizens.
“The first platform topsides sail away is an important milestone and we are pleased to have achieved it ahead of schedule as we move towards successful completion of the giant Shah Deniz 2 project safely, below the planned budget and on schedule,” said Gary Jones, BP’s regional president for Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, in a press release.
On 15 March, the Shah Deniz 2 QU jacket sailed from the Heydar Aliyev Baku Deepwater Jackets Factory.
Located 70km offshore Baku, Azerbaijan in 50-500m of water, the Shah Deniz project includes stage 1, which with the capacity to produce some 10 Bcm/yr of gas, and about 50,000 b/d of condensate. Shah Deniz Stage 2 will add an additional 16 Bcm per year of gas production. The project also includes the Southern Gas Corridor pipeline system that will help deliver 6 Bcm/yr of gas to Turkey and a further 10 Bcm/yr of gas to markets in Europe.
This month, BP is expected to finalize a production sharing contract that will extend its presence in Azerbaijan through 2050.
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