Another ‘critical’ step taken to get FPSO ready for first gas in 2025

Norway’s FPSO operator BW Offshore has disclosed further progress in the integration and commissioning of its newbuild floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which is on track to start work at a giant field off the coast of Australia in the first quarter of 2025.

According to BW Offshore, the FPSO BW Opal, destined for the Barossa field which is located 300 kilometers off the coast of Darwin, achieved significant milestones, including the firing of the combined cycle power generation gas turbine generators (GTG) three and four out of five. The company sees this as “a critical step in advancing” the FPSO’s power systems toward readiness.

BW Offshore further added: “Adding to the week’s excitement, we proudly cooked the first meal onboard, nearly five months ahead of departure. It was a special moment to have our Client Santos and key contractors join us for this occasion.

“This milestone marks the beginning of providing onboard meals to our colleagues and contractors, who are working hard to bring the BW Opal to completion and prepare for Sailaway. The galley and mess room are looking fantastic, and is a testament to our commitment to building a state-of-the-art FPSO and living quarters with crew welfare at its core.”

After the firm won a contract in March 2021 for the construction, connection, and operation of an FPSO destined for the Barossa field, the final investment decision (FID) for the project, which followed the award, kick-started a $600 million investment in the Darwin LNG life extension and pipeline tie-in projects.

To bring the vessel to life, Dyna-Mac was selected by BW Offshore to build the topside modules for the Australian development project, encompassing an FPSO unit, subsea production wells, supporting subsea infrastructure, and a gas export pipeline tied into the existing Bayu-Undan to Darwin LNG pipeline to extend the facility life for around 20 years.

In September 2021, BW Offshore disclosed a $1.15 billion project debt financing for the construction and operation of the FPSO BW Opal, which will handle natural gas production at the Barossa field, thanks to the 4.6 billion, 15-year FPSO contract, with additional ten-year extension options. The first shipboard turret module was integrated into the hull on February 4, 2024. 

With a processing capacity of up to 900 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of gas and a design capacity of 11,000 barrels per day of stabilized condensate, the FPSO is expected to head to Australia in the first quarter of 2025. The first gas at the project is due in the third quarter of 2025.

The Gas Export Pipeline (GEP) that will deliver gas from the field to Darwin LNG was recently completed. In addition, construction activities for the Darwin Pipeline Duplication are underway. The Barossa project is a joint venture between Santos (50%), SK E&S (32.5%), and JERA (12.5%).