MMA vessel to support stranded Australian FPSO

Offshore vessel provider MMA Offshore has been awarded a support contract with Upstream Production Solutions for which the MPSV Mermaid Searcher will be used.

Earlier this year, the Australian government was tasked to find a solution for the continued safety and security of the Northern Endeavour FPSO after Northern Oil and Gas Australia (NOGA), the operator of the FPSO, was placed into liquidation.

Upstream PS has been engaged by the Australian Government Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources to provide operations and maintenance services for the Northern Endeavour FPSO.

Following a letter of agreement in February 2020, the contract award to Upstream PS was confirmed in mid-May 2020.

It was agreed that Upstream PS would operate and maintain the FPSO in lighthouse mode, which is the minimum required for safe operations, with no production and a small crew until a longer-term solution is determined.

MMA said last week that the Mermaid Searcher would provide offshore logistics services as well as other marine services out of Darwin to Upstream PS.

The Northern Endeavour FPSO is permanently moored between the Laminaria and Corallina oil fields in the Timor Sea.

“We are very pleased to be working with our new client to ensure the safety and security of the Northern Endeavour“, MMA Offshore concluded.