FPSO Raroa Returns to Maari Field after Repairs

OMV New Zealand has informed that the upgrade and repair work on the FPSO Raroa in Port Nelson has now been completed and the vessel has returned to its location in the Maari Field.

“It’s been a huge effort at Port Nelson. Despite the weather challenges that delayed the Raroa’s arrival, over the course of some three weeks, up to 250 people a day worked more than 60000 man- hours to complete the work programme safely,” Peter Zeilinger, Managing Director of OMV New Zealand said.

“The spirit and professional attitude of the team was extraordinary. It is obvious that everyone involved gave their best to complete the large scope of work within the timeframe, but even more importantly, it was all done in a safe and efficient manner without a single lost time accident.”

The swap out of the old swivel for a new one was of particular note. These swivels, which allow a vessel to rotate around its mooring, weigh more than 45 tonnes each.

“The exchange went exactly as planned thanks to the excellent support of the Port Nelson crew and, in particular, the skill of their crane operators.”

Parallel to the work conducted in Port Nelson, the repair to the mooring system in the Maari field has been completed using the specialised vessel Skandi Hercules. Four of the eight lines were repaired while maintenance and inspections were done on the full mooring system.

Now that the Raroa is back on station, reconnection and start-up work is currently underway with production restart expected before the end of the calendar year.

“It’s good to be back,” Zeilinger said. “Going to Nelson proved to be a fantastic opportunity to get a lot of upgrades and improvements done, but the Raroa belongs to Taranaki and the Maari field. There is a lot of potential remaining in the area and it’s time to start producing again.”

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Press Release, November 20, 2013