BP Picks Designers for Kaskida FPU in the US Gulf of Mexico

BP has selected Exmar Offshore and Audubon Engineering Company to complete engineering and design of a floating production unit (FPU) destined for the British supermajor’s deepwater Kaskida development in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

Exmar Offshore, a Houston-based subsidiary of Belgium’s Exmar, has been awarded a contract to design and engineer the FPU’s hull, while Houston-based Audubon has been contracted to deliver topside engineering and design.

When BP announced final investment decision (FID) for the deepwater Kaskida project in July, it said it plans to leverage existing platform and subsea equipment designs that can be replicated in future projects to drive cost efficiencies across Kaskida’s construction, commissioning and operations.

Exmar’s use of its proprietary, patented OPTI hull design for Kaskida marks the fifth time that this hull design will be used, the company said.

Exmar CEO, Carl-Antoine Saverys said “EXMAR is pleased to have been selected by bp for their Kaskida development and looks forward to an exciting new project in the Gulf of Mexico.”

Audubon said it will harness its knowledge and experience—most recently exhibited for the Delta House, King’s Quay and Shenandoah semisubmersibles—to design Kaskida’s topside, prioritizing smart design, tight execution and a faster cycle time.

Audubon Executive Vice President of Offshore Terry Mienie said, “Our engineering team holds decades of talent and experience designing and delivering exceptional offshore platforms. We are excited to collaborate with bp, utilizing our topside expertise to develop Kaskida optimally and safely.”

David Robison, Audubon CEO, said, “This project represents an opportunity for Audubon to showcase our engineering proficiency and agility for one of the most significant oil and gas plays in U.S. history. Our team is committed to delivering quality for every client and every project, and we especially look forward to supporting bp with its production objectives for the Gulf of Mexico.”

(Image: Audubon)

Engineering work for the Kaskida FPU is already underway. Singapore’s Seatrium had previously been selected to carry out early engineering work.

Kaskida will be bp’s sixth hub in the Gulf of Mexico, featuring a new floating production platform with the capacity to produce 80,000 barrels of crude oil per day from six wells in the first phase. Production is expected to start in 2029.  

Owned 100% by BP, the Kaskida field has discovered recoverable resources currently estimated at around 275 million barrels of oil equivalent from the initial phase. Additional wells could be drilled in future phases, subject to further evaluation.

Located in the Keathley Canyon area about 250 miles southwest off the coast of New Orleans, the Kaskida project unlocks the potential future development of 10 billion barrels of discovered resources in place across the Kaskida and Tiber catchment areas.

Notably, Kaskida will be BP’s first development in the Gulf of Mexico to produce from reservoirs that will require well equipment with a pressure rating of up to 20,000 pounds per square inch (20K).