Press Release

Major Norwegian Contract for Booth

 

International fire and blast protection specialist Booth Industries Ltd of Bolton, North West England has been awarded a major contract by Norwegian contractor Aker Solutions for the design, engineering, construction and delivery of an Emergency Escape Corridor for BP Norway’s Skarv Field Development Project.

 

The total contract value at this time is over £3million and delivery of the modular units which make up the corridor will be shipped to Samsung Heavy Industries in South Korea who will install the assembled units to the Skarv FPSO deck.

 

Booth will design the 200metre long corridor, which has an internal structural supporting truss, to withstand up to 2.5bar blast loadings with H60 fire resistance coupled with temperature rise insulation. Major materials of construction will include stainless steel Duplex SAF 2304, doors, flexible seals and internal fit out will all be completed prior to shipment, minimising works at the construction site.

This contract brings the total value of work secured in recent times by Booth from the Norwegian market to over £11 million.

Notes

 

Skarv was discovered in 1998, and it has taken 10 years to mature the field to its current stage.. The Skarv development is located in the Norwegian Sea, 200 km west of Sandnessjøen, between the Norne field (35 km to the north) and Heidrun (45 km to the south) in water depths between 350 and 450 m. The Skarv Development consists of oil and gas fields. Both fields contain hydrocarbons at three reservoir levels and the total recoverable resource basis is estimated to 16.8 MSm3 of oil and condensate and 48.3 GSm3 of rich gas. There are additional identified resources and prospectivity in the Skarv area. These can be developed as tie-backs to the Skarv FPSO at a later stage.

Aker Solutions was chosen by BP to perform the detail engineering, procurement and construction management assistance (EPcma) for the Skarv field development in the Norwegian Sea. Since November 2005, Aker Kvaerner has been involved with the project, performing the front end engineering design of the complete production ship (FPSO) and intermediate engineering of the topsides. The total value of Aker Kvaerner's new scope of work is approximately NOK 2 billion.

Aker Solutions is a leading global provider of engineering and construction services, technology products and integrated solutions. The business within Aker Solutions comprises several industries, including Oil & Gas, Refining & Petrochemicals, Mining & Metals and Power Generation.

The parent company in the group is Aker Solutions ASA. Aker Solutions has aggregated annual revenues of approximately NOK 58billion and employs approximately 24,000 people in about 30 countries.

Aker Solutions is part of Aker (www.akerasa.com), a group of premier companies with a focus on energy, maritime and marine-resources industries. The Aker companies share a common set of values and long traditions through Aker Holding AS, Aker ASA takes an active role in the development of Aker Solutions.

Samsung Heavy Industries BP on behalf of the Skarv licensees has awarded a contract for Topside, Fabrication & Installation (TF&I) for the FPSO on the Skarv field following an extensive and competitive tendering process. The contract for the about 16000 tonnes of topsides modules has been awarded to the Offshore Division of Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI), based in Goeje Island,South Korea, and the contract has an estimated value of $ 350 million. The contract covers fabrication of six modules each weighing approximately 2,500 tonnes and the flaretower which will be mounted on the FPSO in a yard on completion of the passage from the TFI yard. On completion of fabrication and quayside commissioning activities the modules will be installed on the Skarv FPSO deck, integrated into the complete process and utility systems and commissioned. In addition to the work associated with mounting the flare in an onshore yard the vessel's five thrusters will also be fitted, after undergoing a trial fit and removal for the voyage.

(SHI) puts its main focus on shipbuilding, offshore floaters, digital devices for ships and construction and engineering concerns. In particular special purpose vessels, including Liquified Natural Gas Carriers, Offshore Oil and Gas related vessels, Drilling Ships, Ultra Large Container Ships and Arctic Shuttle Tankers. SHI operates facilities in South Korea and around the world, including ship block facilities in Ningbo and Rongcheng, China.

Booth Industries Limited is part of Redhall Group plc, the engineering support services group, and is a world leading expert company in the design, manufacture, installation and maintenance of specialist doors, wall systems and windows. It has a significant design capability that is highly valued by customers which demand the highest specifications to meet the hostile and challenging conditions in which its products operate.

Booth expertise and products are supplied for a wide range of exacting applications which include the Infrastructure, Oil and Gas, Defence and Nuclear Industries. www.booth-industries.co.uk

For further information please contact Michael Stott, Booth Industries Limited Designers and Constructors of High Integrity Doors, Fire and Blast Protection Systems. PO Box 50, Nelson Street, Bolton, BL3 2AP, UK.

Tel: +44(0)1204 366333 Fax: +44(0)1204 380888 Mobile: +44(0)7899 882505 E-mail: m.stott@booth-industries.co.uk

July 2008