Highlights of the Week

Subsea World News has put together a recap of the most interesting articles from the previous week (June 08 – June 14).

Three more tendons on the Chevron’s Big Foot tension-leg platform (TLP) have sunk, causing an indefinite delay to the start of the project.

As Reuters reports, nine of sixteen tendons have sunk to the seabed after failing to float. Chevron previously reported that the Big Foot TLP was not connected to any subsea wells or tendons at the time of the incident and was not damaged.

Aker Solutions has notified employees at its subsea services facility in Ågotnes, Norway, that it has become necessary to adjust the plant’s workforce capacity because of a decline in activity in the Norwegian market.

Between 150 and 200 positions in Ågotnes may be affected. Adjustments will be made through normal employee turnover, reassignments to other parts of the company and dismissals.

The Lewek Constellation has set an industry pipelay record in the GOM in 7,368 feet (2,246 metres) of water during its sea trials.

In preparation for the execution of three subsea tie-back projects for Noble Energy, the vessel performed its final pipelay trial in the US GOM and during the deployment of the 3.2 kilometre, 16-inch diameter, 28mm wall thickness pipeline, complete with the second end pipeline end termination (PLET), the tension recorded was 632mT, rendering this the highest tension ever experienced in the history of rigid reeled-lay operations, the company said.

Pipelaying for the Statoil-operated Mariner field on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) started Monday 8 June.

Around 40 kilometers of pipelines for gas, oil and diluent will be installed on the seabed from pipelay vessel Seven Navica. The turn-key (EPCI) contract for the SURF scope on Mariner was awarded to Subsea 7 in 2013. In addition, a contract for the fiber optic cable was awarded to Tampnet.

Houston-based subsea specialist, FMC Technologies, has reportedly started a next stage of workforce reduction in Norway as it marks a drop in offshore activity and feels the cost control sting from the oil companies.

According to Norwegian media reports, FMC Technologies’ board has decided that the company must downsize by additional 400 employees in Norway.