All-clear for Aker BP to deploy well intervention vessel for North Sea ops

Norwegian oil and gas company Aker BP has received consent from the country’s offshore safety regulator to use one of Island Offshore’s mobile offshore units (MOU) for work in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.

The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) recently gave DNO Norge consent to use the Island Constructor vessel for light well intervention without risers. These activities will be carried out in three production licences: 359, 338 C, and 028 B.

The first licence, 359, was awarded on 6 January 2006 and is valid until 6 January 2036. It is operated by Aker BP (65 per cent) with partners: OMV Norge (20 per cent) and Wintershall Dea Norge (15 per cent).

The second licence, 338 C, was awarded on 16 December 2014 and is valid until 17 December 2029. Aker BP is the operator of this licence with an 80 per cent interest while its partner, OMV Norge, holds the remaining 20 per cent stake.

The third licence, 028 B, was awarded on 15 December 1999 and has been extended until 31 December 2036. While Aker BP is the operator of this licence with a 35 per cent interest, the company’s partners, Equinor and Sval Energi, hold the remaining 50 and 15 per cent stake, respectively.

The 2008-built Island Constructor multi-purpose offshore vessel is of Ulstein SX 121 design. It can accommodate 90 people. The vessel received an Acknowledgement of Compliance (AoC) from the PSA in April 2010.

This consent comes three months after the PSA gave similar ones to DNO and Norske Shell for the Island Constructor vessel to carry out well intervention on the Trym field (DNO) and Knarr and Gaupe fields (Shell).