MMA vessel finds work on Chevron’s Western Australian assets

Australian offshore vessel player MMA Offshore, an affiliate of Singapore-based Cyan Renewables, has won a multi-year contract with Chevron’s Australian subsidiary for a high-specification platform supply vessel (PSV) from its fleet.

As disclosed, the MMA Plover has been booked by Chevron Australia to provide marine logistics support to its Barrow Island and Wheatstone assets, situated off the coast of Western Australia.

“This contract reflects MMA’s capability to deliver a comprehensive, high-value solution that goes beyond the provision of a vessel, reinforcing the trust and confidence our valued clients place in us,” said Cyan Renewables Group CEO Keng Lin Lee.

“We are looking forward to supporting Chevron Australia through this long-term contract and to providing a superior service at their two world class gas projects, which have become pillars of energy security for Australia and the broader Asia Pacific region.”

The 2015-built MMA Plover features advanced technologies such as high-performance hull coatings, which the offshore vessel player says lead to reduced biofouling and therefore increased fuel efficiency, thus slashing emissions.

Prior to the contract, the vessel is set to undergo an extensive modification program to enable the carriage of up to 90 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) sea containers and provide operational efficiency and reliability. 

The operator expressed its satisfaction with being able to support the Barrow Island and Wheatstone assets, which it sees as critical producers of natural gas for Western Australia and liquified natural gas (LNG) for the Asia Pacific region.

Barrow Island is also home to what Chevron says is the world’s largest carbon capture and storage (CCS) system, located at the Gorgon liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility.

With a startup in 2019, the Gorgon CCS system is meant to remain in operation for over 40 years. As part of the CCS project, naturally occurring CO2 is taken from offshore gas reservoirs and injected into a giant sandstone formation two kilometers under Barrow Island.

According to Chevron, more than 11 million tonnes of CO2 have been injected into the reservoirs from 2019 to May 2025. Additionally, 100 million tonnes of CO2 are expected to be mitigated over the life of the CCS system.

The Gorgon Project is a joint venture between Chevron Australia (47.3%), ExxonMobil (25%), Shell (25%), Osaka Gas (1.25%), MidOcean Energy (1%), and JERA (0.417%).

The Australian Government has committed $60 million to the Gorgon CO2 injection project as part of the Low Emissions Technology Demonstration Fund (LETDF).

In late 2024, Chevron Australia struck a deal with Woodside to swap assets in Western Australia. The deal entailed Chevron transferring to Woodside its 16.67% non-operated interest in the North West Shelf (NWS) project, NWS oil project, and its 20% non-operated interest in the Angel CCS project.

In turn, Chevron was to acquire Woodside’s 13% non-operated interest in the Wheatstone project and 65% operated interest in the Julimar-Brunello project.