Construction Start for Next Phase of Norway’s Upcoming Major Income Source
Monday 17 December 2018
On 13 December, Kvaerner and Aker Solutions cut the first steel plate for phase 2 of the Johan Sverdrup offshore field development. After start of oil production starts, this installation will become one of Norway’s most important income sources for the coming decades. The Johan Sverdrup development, including phase 1 and phase 2, is already one of the largest current industry projects in Europe with approximately 150 000 man-years involved in developing the various installations.
The big Johan Sverdrup field is located around 160 kilometres west of Stavanger, and Kvaerner is one of the suppliers that have won the most contracts for the project. For phase 2 of the project, the contract for Kvaerner in a 50/50 partnership with Aker Solutions includes engineering, procurement and construction of a 5 000 tonnes module with new systems. The total contract value is NOK 3.4 billion and also includes modification work on the field centre, plus offshore installation and integration work in connection with phase 2 of the field development. The construction of the module will be conducted by Kvaerner at the company’s facility at Stord, Norway. The project is scheduled for completion in 2022.
At Stord, first steel will be cut for the second phase of the facility that will become one of Norway’s biggest sources of incomes in the coming decades. The very first steel plate to be cut will be utilised at a bridge support module which will be positioned where a new bridge is connected to the existing riser platform at the Johan Sverdrup development.
For Kvaerner, the peak manning on the project will be around 550 people and a further 300 in Aker Solutions. Including subcontractors, service companies, etc., the contract is expected to create ripple effects for around 2 000 jobs.
The sections of the Johan Sverdrup field that are built in phase 1 will start production in 2019, while the sections in phase 2 will have production start-up in 2022. Phase 1 includes four platform topsides on steel jackets, where Kvaerner is the supplier of one topside and three steel jacket substructures. Phase 2 includes a new platform topside on a steel substructure, including the new module that Kvaerner will deliver in cooperation with Aker Solutions. Kvaerner will also supply the steel jacket that will carry the new phase 2 processing platform topside.