Roundup: Contracts for Aker, MicroSeismic and Expro opens facility
Aker Solutions awarded drilling equipment contracts
Aker Solutions has signed two contracts worth about $230 million with South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) for delivery of complete drilling equipment packages for two new deepwater drillships. Aker Solutions will handle all major aspects of the delivery, from engineering and procurement to installation and commissioning. The majority of the equipment will be delivered in 2012, and the drillship deliveries are scheduled for Q4 2013.
Additionally, Statoil has exercised options for the engineering, procurement and construction of three subsea workover systems for use on the Norwegian Continental Shelf from Aker Solutions. The project will be managed at Aker’s Tranby Technology and Manufacturing Centre outside Oslo. The manufacturing of the well control package and riser elements will be completed at Tranby and the workover control module out of Aberdeen.
MicroSeismic awarded another contract in Marcellus
Geophysical services company MicroSeismic (MSI) has been awarded a second BuriedArray contract in the Marcellus Shale in northern West Virginia by independent Gastar Exploration. BuriedArray services offer long-term, field-wide, microseismic monitoring capabilities. The ability to monitor large areas leads to more strategic field planning and development.
“Gastar has used MSI’s FracStar in East Texas and, because of the knowledge gained, we have decided to implement their BuriedArray in our Marcellus Shale play. We look forward to optimizing our completion techniques and in turn maximizing our production and minimizing our capital investment from the microseismic data gathered,” Gastar VP and exploration manager Keith Blair commented.
Expro opens base in Ghana
Oilfield services provider Expro has opened a custom-built facility in Ghana, West Africa. The company currently operates in Takoradi with teams working on the Tullow Oil Jubilee contract, supplying deepwater electrohydraulic subsea services, well testing and other services.
The new 8,000-sq-meter facility allows all project activity, including deepwater subsea tools, well testing, cleanup, sampling and PVT (pressure, volume, temperature) services, to be coordinated and monitored from one place.
West Africa has been a major focus for Expro in recent years, with a number of significant contracts secured. Almost 700 people are currently working across Expro’s Southern & West Africa region, and the company is continuing to invest in people, technology and infrastructure to position itself for growth opportunities.
