Amec Foster Wheeler to build living quarters for BP’s ETAP (UK)

Amec Foster Wheeler has been awarded an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract by BP for the provision of additional living quarters, as part of BP’s Life Extension Project on the Eastern Trough Area Project (ETAP) in the Central North Sea.

The company notes that the BP ETAP Life Extension Project will extend the life of the platform to 2030 and improve its operating efficiency. BP has recently announced its plans to invest $1 billion (£640 million) to expand the life of its North Sea assets.

According to Amec Foster Wheeler, the contract worth £36 million ($55.8M) was awarded under the company’s global agreement with BP to provide engineering and project management services for BP’s offshore developments around the world. 90 Amec Foster Wheeler people, including eight graduates, are working on the contract.

The additional living quarters will comprise 16 modules, creating space for an additional 26 beds. The modules will sit on a grillage support with sliding connectors, which are usually found on bridges and onshore refineries. The sliding connectors allow enough movement to accommodate for the flex and stress from the weight of the new structures, increasing efficiency by removing the need to drill through the deck and weld to deck support beams.

Alan Johnstone, Amec Foster Wheeler’s Managing Director for Upstream Asset Solutions, said: “We are delighted to be supporting BP’s rejuvenation of ETAP as they continue to invest in the North Sea. We’ve been working with BP for more than 35 years, delivering safe and efficient solutions and this contract award is another example of Amec Foster Wheeler combining our leading brownfield and EPC expertise and bringing new ways of working into the oil and gas industry.”

The Eastern Trough Area Project is an integrated development of nine different reservoirs with differing ownership and operatorship – six separate fields are operated by BP, and a further three fields are operated by Shell. BP’s reserves in ETAP lie in its interests in Marnock, Mungo, Machar, Monan, Mirren and Madoes fields.

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