More time for Floatel unit on Equinor’s North Sea field

Norwegian offshore safety regulator has given Equinor consent to continue using one of Floatel’s semi-submersible support vessels as a mobile accommodation unit for an extended period at a field in the North Sea off Norway.

Originally, the Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) gave Equinor consent back in January 2022 to deploy the Floatel Superior mobile accommodation facility from 1 April 2022 at the Grane field, which is located in the central North Sea, east of the Balder field in a water depth of 128 metres.

Come October 2022, Equinor was given consent to use the unit at the Grane field for an extended period. After the Norwegian giant applied again for extended consent for the same project, the PSA granted it last week.

Discovered in 1991 with the plan for development and operation (PDO) approved in 2000, the Grane field has been developed with an integrated accommodation, drilling and processing facility with 40 well slots and a steel jacket. The production at the field started in 2003 and the Svalin field is tied-back to the Grane platform.

The 2010-built Floatel Superior is a dynamically positioned (DP-3) semi-submersible accommodation and construction support vessel, which was constructed at the Keppel FELS yard in Singapore. This vessel can accommodate 440 people. It received an Acknowledgement of Compliance (AoC) from the PSA in 2011.