Eni Updates on Zohr, Saipem Wins Job
Eni has awarded Saipem a contract worth over €1.5bn, principally for the development of the “supergiant” Zohr gas field offshore Egypt.
Separately Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi told the Financial Times July 8 that the company hopes to sell a part-stake in the 30 trillion ft³ field in the Mediterranean by end-2017 and has received several expressions of interest from majors and national oil companies. Descalzi did not say how large a stake it will sell, but said it would contribute to Eni’s target for disposals, and spread the risk of its Egyptian investment. An analyst told the FT that a 20% stake might fetch $1.6bn.
Saipem said July 7 it was awarded the engineering, procurement, construction & installation (EPCI) contract for the accelerated start-up of the development project for the Zohr field by Petrobel, the joint venture between Eni and state Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC). The contract was awarded on behalf of PetroShorouk, a joint venture between Egypt’s state EGAS and Eni. “We are very pleased to have been selected for the important objective of delivering first gas from Zohr before the end of 2017,” said Saipem CEO Stefano Cao.
The pipelay vessel Castorone (Photo credit: Saipem)
Work will include installation of a 26-in gas export trunkline and 14-in and 8-in service trunklines, as well as EPCI work for the field development in deep water (up to 1700 metres) of six wells and the installation of the umbilical system. It will start this month and is due to be completed by the end of 2017. Saipem will use its Castorone, Castoro Sei and Castoro 10 pipelay vessels. As part of the contract, Saipem also agreed to various changes in the scope of work on existing offshore construction contracts in other countries.
Zohr is due to start up in late 2017 initially at 1bn ft³/d and rise in later phases to 2.8bn ft³/d by 2019; the field was discovered by Eni in August 2015, using the drillship Saipem 10000 which is still operating nearby.
A month ago Norwegian contractor Aker Solutions won an order worth over $120mn to deliver an umbilicals system at Zohr, awarded by Petrobel.
Mark Smedley | www.naturalgasafrica.com