Boskalis vessels carry out ‘all in one’ FPSO job for MODEC

Dutch offshore services provider Boskalis has finished its assignment off the coast of Côte d’Ivoire, where its fleet of anchor handling and oceangoing tugs undertook work related to a floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which is going to be refurbished in the UAE to enable it to remain on duty in West Africa for many more years.

Boskalis’ Marine Services business unit has disconnected a 403-meter-long FPSO from its eight mooring lines and towed it to a dry dock in Dubai, where it will undergo an extensive overhaul before returning to service off the coast of Côte d’Ivoire for at least another decade.

The Manta, BOKA Expedition, BOKA Forward, and BOKA Falcon vessels delivered what the Dutch player has described as a true ‘all in one’ service. While the first three ships kept the FPSO in the correct position, the BOKA Falcon, using its 150-ton crane, disconnected the mooring lines.

Afterward, the chains were left on the seabed, ready to be retrieved when the unit returns to Côte d’Ivoire in 2026. The firm’s BOKA Expedition and BOKA Forward vessels completed the FPSO’s transport to Dubai to enable the start of the refurbishment process. Following the overhaul, Boskalis will handle the unit’s return trip and installation.

While describing the assignment as “a full-service package from start to finish,” the Dutch firm highlighted: “We would like to thank the crews of our vessels, the project team, and our client MODEC for the excellent cooperation during this project. We look forward to future projects.”

While Boskalis did not mention the FPSO’s name, the contract likely refers to the refurbishment and life extension of the FPSO Baobab Ivoirien, which worked at the deepwater producing Baobab field in Block CI-40 offshore Côte d’Ivoire before ceasing hydrocarbon production in January 2025 in preparation for it to be wet towed to a shipyard in Dubai. 

MODEC recently hired Drydocks World Dubai, a part of DP World, to undertake the refurbishment of the FPSO, which was originally converted in 2003 from an ultra-large crude carrier (ULCC) and designed with expandable topsides to maximize offshore production capacity.

With a processing capacity of 70,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) and 75 million cubic feet of natural gas, the FPSO Baobab Ivoirien can inject 100,000 bpd of water and store up to two million barrels of crude oil. This refurbishment is anticipated to allow hydrocarbon production to continue until 2038 or even longer.

The Baobab field is operated by Canadian Natural Resources International (CNRI) (57.61% working interest), with Vaalco (27.39%) and the national oil company (NOC), Petroci Holding (15%), as partners in the project.