High season for lifting operations 

A compressor module of the size of a medium block of flats and a total weight of 1,300 tonnes, will be lifted on board the Sleipner B platform in July. This is the heaviest lift StatoilHydro is carrying out this year.

The compressor module for Sleipner B is being transported to the harbour in Haugesund.

Sleipner B is normally unstaffed and is the smallest of StatoilHydro’s stand-alone platforms. This is the platform that will carry the gigantic module measuring 27 times 15 times 28 metres. The purpose is to increase and accelerate the gas production when the reservoir pressure drops.

Expected lifetime of the Sleipner West field will be extended by two years thanks to the new module, and production is now expected to continue until 2024.

Gives higher production
”Such projects are crucial for StatoilHydro to maintain oil and gas production on the Norwegian continental shelf in the years ahead,” says Marianne M Bjelland, who is head of StatoilHydro’s modifications and projects unit in Stavanger.

The module will boost gas production by 4.5 billion standard cubic metres and condensate production by 1.5 million standard cubic metres.

The compressor module was first moved onto a barge in Haugesund

Aibel in Haugesund has been assigned the assembly and installation operations of the module on Sleipner B. The Saipem 7000 crane vessel is scheduled for lifting the compressor on board the platform in July.

Some preparations and testing will then be performed before the compressor starts operating in October.

”This project seems to go according to plan, both on time and budget. We also stand to spend much less money than the NOK 1.8 billion on the budget,” says Asbjørn Johnsen, StatoilHydro’s project manager for the Sleipner B compression project.

More oil and gas from the fields
The compressor is a good example of the activities in the North Sea. It is far between the major discoveries and the development of new oil and gas provinces.

Much of the work currently being performed is aimed for maintaining production on existing fields, developing satellite fields connected to existing infrastructure and making production more efficient and less polluting.

Many lifts
StatoilHydro has carried out four gigantic lifts earlier this year. Including the lifting of the Sleipner B compressor, twice the number of lifts will be performed this summer compared to the average for the last few years.

In May, a module was lifted on board the Kristin platform enabling the reception of gas from the new Tyrihans satellite field.

During the same month the two subsea templates for the Morvin field were installed on the field. This field will be tied back to Åsgard.

In June, two compressor modules were lifted on board Troll A, and a complete, small gas-fired power station was lifted on board the Heimdal platform. The latter is an environmental project which will reduce carbon emissions by close to 50,000 tonnes per year.

Heavy lifts
Here is a list of the heavy lifts carried out by StatoilHydro this year:

• Two subsea templates for the Morvin field, each weighing 250 tonnes
• The Tyrihans module for the Kristin platform, weighing 200 tonnes
• Two compressor motors for Troll A, each weighing 140 tonnes
• A new gas-fired power station on Heimdal, weighing 550 tonnes
• A Sleipner B compressor, weighing 1,300 tonnes

Published 2008-07-08, 14:22 CET | Updated 2008-07-08, 14:22 CET Sleipner area
Facts about the Sleipner area
The Sleipner area embraces the Sleipner East and Sleipner West gas and condensate fields, as well as the satellite fields Gungne, Loke and Alpha North.

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