FMC Awarded 5 Major Subsea Processing Projects

In the last year, five subsea processing contracts have been awarded worldwide, and FMC Technologies claimed them all. John Gremp, vice president of Energy Services for FMC, hosted an informational session at the company's OTC booth to expand on the projects.

An industry leader in subsea technologies, FMC Technologies was awarded five major subsea processing contracts for work on the Tordis, Pazflor, Perdido, BC-10, and Cascade/Chinook fields.

"Strong customer relationships have always been the key to our technological success," said FMC Vice President of Energy Services John Gremp. "We don't just make a product and try to sell it -- we collaborate with our customers, understand their needs and challenges and then work to develop a solution. Our success in doing this has led to the current five for five achievement."

Located in the Gulf of Mexico in 8,800 feet of water, the Cascade/Chinook field is operated by Petrobras. Encompassing all trees, manifolds, jumpers and controls, as well as two subsea horizontal electrical submersible pumping (ESP) systems, FMC is expected to complete the subsea processing work by 2010. The greenfield boosting project is expected to increase production by approximately two to three times.

Also in the Gulf of Mexico, the Perdido field is located below 8,500 feet of water. With an unannounced completion date, Perdido is a greenfield that is currently under construction and includes a subsea separation system.

Operated by Shell, the BC-10 field is located offshore Brazil in water depths of 6,500 feet. Slated for completion this year, the BC-10 field is the "first full-field development based on subsea oil and gas separation and subsea pumping." FMC is responsible for the subsea trees, manifolds, and boosting and separation systems.

Offshore Angola, water depths for Pazflor range from 2,000 to 5,000 feet. Contracted by operator Total, FMC is providing a seabed gas and liquid separation system, as well as 49 enhanced horizontal subsea trees to overcome the challenge of two types of oil in the field: Miocene and Oligocene. A completion date has not been announced.

The only brownfield in the bunch, Tordis in the North Sea is exactly the type of field for which FMC developed its subsea technology. Boosting production to 55%, FMC installed a subsea water/sand/oil separation system in 650 feet of water, completed in January 2008. Because of the upgrades, operator StatoilHydro has ensured Tordis will remain operative for another 15 to 17 years.

While four of the projects awarded were for new fields, the FMC's subsea technology is an attractive solution for older fields experiencing reduced production. By boosting hydrocarbons at the sea floor, many more fields will be able to increase production and their field lives.

In addition to subsea processing, FMC focuses on measurement solutions, fluid control, surface wellsheads, and gas and liquid offloading and transport systems. Find out more about how FMC contributes to the oil and gas industry at booth #1941.

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