Aibel kicks off construction of first Dvalin module

Norwegian oil services company Aibel has started construction of the first of two modules for the DEA-operated Dvalin project, formerly known as Zidane, located in the Norwegian Sea. 

The two modules will enable the Statoil-operated Heidrun platform to receive production from Dvalin.

DEA, the operator of the Dvalin field, submitted the Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) for the Dvalin field to the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy in Norway in October 2016 and the authorities approved it in March this year.

The plan entails a four wells subsea template, which is connected to the Heidrun platform where the gas will be partially processed in a new module before it is transported in a new export pipeline to Polarled, going to the Nyhamna onshore gas terminal. At Nyhamna, the gas will be processed and transported to the European market.

Aibel got the contract to build the two modules last October. These will weigh 4,000 tons (M40) and 400 tons (H25), respectively. H25 was scheduled for installation in 2018 and M40 in 2019. In addition to building the modules, Aibel was put in charge of clearing the area on Heidrun and manage integration on the platform.

Progress

Aibel informed on Friday that it finished all construction drawings for module H25 on August 1. On the next day, the fabrication started by making the first cut for the Dvalin module H25 in Haugesund.

“We have made a good start during the first nine months of the project. We had a very ambitious target of completing all construction drawings ahead of the H25 first cut. Yesterday we reached our goal. I don’t think we have ever had a more solid base for module construction,” said a project manager, Jon Garborg.

The module is scheduled to be completed in no more than seven months.

“It is an incredible achievement to complete the engineering ahead of the first cut. We are very pleased with our collaboration and Aibel’s deliveries so far,” Statoil’s project manager Wenche Eide said during the event in Smistadhallen.

Håkon Skofteland, Facilities & Development Technology Manager at operator company DEA, commented: “It has taken us some time to get to where we are today. Several development solutions were considered before we decided upon a subsea development with tie-back to Heidrun. The project is now really starting to take shape, and with Statoil and Aibel on our team, I am sure it will become a success,” he said.

On October 17 the construction of the second and largest Dvalin module, M40, will start in Haugesund. The prefabrication for the modification scope at Heidrun has been ongoing since May.

“We are now fully focused on completing the drawings for M40 and ensuring that the fabrication team has the materials it needs. We are in good control of progress and are on track,” Aibel’s project manager said.

Offshore Energy Today Staff