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SNS contract extension a major achievement for ODE
16th September 2008
| International engineering contractor ODE has won a three-year extension to its contract to support the southern North Sea operations of energy giant E.ON Ruhrgas UK. The new deal is widened to include services to the Rita and Babbage field development, both due to come into production over the next two years. Babbage is believed to be one of the largest undeveloped gas fields in the UK Southern North Sea with an estimated life of over 20 years. Work will be managed from ODE’s Great Yarmouth base where regional manager Paul Chilvers described the extended contract as a major achievement for the company. It rested on the strong relationship they had developed with E.ON Ruhrgas UK North Sea (ERUK) in providing support to the SNS assets since 2000 through previous owners Caledonia Oil and Gas and Consort Resources. Mr Chilvers said they were delighted to be working through to the final stages of major design and construction work on the Babbage platform and would continue to be involved in operations when it started production in 2010. “This extension of the ERUK operations support contract represents a further demonstration of ODE’s commitment to provide a locally based comprehensive support capability to SNS operators,” he said. “It is an aspect of the business we are very keen to develop further.” While the Rita Field, due to start production next year, will be another subsea development tied-back to the ConocoPhillips operated Murdoch platform, the Block 48/2a Babbage Field will be developed with a standalone platform about 80km north east of Dimlington, Gas produced from the Babbage platform will be exported via a 28km pipeline to the nearby BP-operated West Sole pipeline system to the Dimlington Gas Terminal on the East Yorkshire coast. The Babbage Field is operated by ERUK (47% share) and its partners Dana Petroleum (40%) and Centrica Resources (13%) and is expected to produce at a peak production rate of 75 mmscf/d. ODE will provide operations and maintenance input during detailed design and onshore pre-commissioning as well as the development of maintenance, inspection and integrity management schemes. Once the Babbage platform is installed, ODE will provide a full crew comprising operations, maintenance and support services (catering, medic, radio operators) to assist during commissioning and start-up for the manned phase of Babbage operations. The scope of services in the contract includes office-based engineering support facilities such as engineering and technical services, maintenance planning, emergency response centre, warehousing, operational spares storage and quayside access and storage. |
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