Aker BP Awards $81M in FEED Contracts for NOA Fulla Field Project

Aker BP has awarded FEED contracts worth nearly NOK 700 million (~$81,2 million) to its alliance partners Aker Solutions, Siemens Energy, and Subsea 7, related to the field development of NOA Fulla in the southern part of the NOAKA area, offshore Norway.

The NOAKA area includes NOA, Fulla, and Krafla. Aker BP is the operator for NOA Fulla in the south. Equinor is the operator for Krafla to the north.

Lars Høier SVP NOAKA in Aker BP said: “We’ve passed an important milestone in the development of NOA Fulla. These are the first major contracts to be awarded in the field development. 

“Now we are getting started on further developing the concept of platforms, production systems, and flowlines on the seabed. We are also developing a solution for power from shore that will pave the way for minimal greenhouse gas emissions from operations of the field. 

This is just the beginning of a field development that will have great significance for activity in the Norwegian supplier industry.” 

Power from shore

The development concept for NOA Fulla consists of a process, drilling and living quarters platform (PdQ) on NOA, a normally unmanned wellhead platform (NUI) on Frøy, and three subsea templates for the development of Fulla, Langfjellet, and Rind. The entire area will receive power from shore, which will minimize greenhouse gas emissions.

Aker BP and its licence partners Equinor and LOTOS have now made a decision to further mature the NOA Fulla concept. The field development will be Aker BP’s largest project to date.

“NOA Fulla will be carried out in the alliance model, a model where we work side-by-side with strategic partners with common goals and incentives. We have a strong track record using this model, and we see clear improvements as regards efficiency and quality. Therefore, we believe that this is the key to implementing profitable projects in a demanding market going forward,” says Project Director for NOA Fulla, Bård Atle Hovd.
Credit: Aker BPThe largest FEED contract relates to the processing, drilling and quarters platform (PdQ) platform. 

Aker Solutions has been awarded two FEED contracts for both PdQ and for the normally unmanned Frøy wellhead platform (NUI).

The scope of the FEED for the NOA PdQ is expected to include a topside weighing about 22-24,000 metric tons and a jacket substructure weighing about 15,000 metric tons. The scope of the FEED for the Frøy NUI  includes a topside weighing about 2,000 metric tons and a jacket substructure with an operational weight of about 4,500 metric tons.

The Frøy NUI will be a close copy of the Hod B wellhead platform delivered by Aker Solutions in July 2021. It will be the third wellhead platform project delivered by the Fixed Facilities Alliance established in the spring of 2017.

“The FEED contracts make Aker Solutions well-positioned for further contracts if the field development moves into the execution phase in 2022. They could potentially represent a value of more than NOK 10 billion [$1,16 billion ] for Aker Solutions, subject to final investment decision,” Aker Solutions said.

The platform will receive and transmit power from shore. It will process the oil from the fields and export it via the Oseberg Transport System (OTS), while the gas will be exported via Statpipe. Oil and produced water from Equinor’s northern development will also be processed on the PdQ. Siemens Energy has secured a FEED for electrical, instrument, control systems and telecom (EICT).

“The NOA PdQ is the very heart of the NOAKA development, tying the entire area together. Now the Fixed Facilities Alliance between Aker Solutions, Siemens Energy and Aker BP will spend the next year working to create a good design basis. That, along with the other FEED deliveries, forms the basis for the Plan for Development and Operation, which we plan to submit to the Norwegian authorities by the end of 2022,” says Hovd.

Subsea scope

As for the subsea scope of work, the subsea production system is planned to include 14 standardized vertical subsea trees, Vectus 6.0 based Control system modules, four six-slot manifolds, wellheads, and a large number of tie-in and connection systems. It will also include close to 60 kilometers of umbilical. 

The SPS project will be executed through the Subsea Alliance between Aker BP, Aker Solutions, and Subsea 7.

As part of the Subsea Alliance, Aker Solutions will be responsible for the subsea production system (SPS) and Subsea 7 will be responsible for Umbilicals, risers and flowlines (SURF).

Subsea 7 said that project management and engineering will take place in its office in Stavanger, Norway, with offshore installation activities, subject to a 2022 FID, would be scheduled for 2025, 2026, and 2027.

Aker Solutions will be responsible for Project management of the Power from shore part of the project including sub-contractors for civil and electro scopes.