Gagak Rimang FSO for Banyu Urip project to be completed in August
Thursday, June 26 2014 - 01:01 AM WIB
The conversion of an old vessel into a floating storage and off loading (FSO) unit to be used at the Cepu block, East Java is projected to be completed in August of this year, according to a top official of PT Pertamina EP Cepu (PEPC), a subsidiary of state owned oil and gas firm PT Pertamina (Persero).
The provision of the vesssel is part of the Engineering, Procurement and Construction 4 (EPC-4) work package of the Banyu Urip field project.
President Director of PEPC Amril Thaib Mandailing told Petromindo.com that the vessel which will be called ?Gagak Rimang?, is now under modification process in Singapore by Singaporean firm Sembawang Shipyard, a Sembcorp Marine?s subsidiary.
The Gagak Rimang vessel was initially a very-large crude carrier (VLCC) named ?MT Chios? with a total capacity of 320,000 deadweight tonnage (dwt), able to store up to 1.7 million barrels. The Greek-flagged VLCC vessel was made in 1993 by Hyundai Heavy Industries with a length of 327 meters, almost twice that of a football field. In time, the vessel?s flag will be changed with Indonesia?s.
Under the contract, Sembawang is responsible for the engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning and hook-up work of a VLCC-sized FSO vessel for the Banyu Urip project. The conversion process will include cleaning up the cargo, ballast and slop tanks. Installation of platforms in the cargo tanks will follow, and, afterward, a detailed survey will be done. As a last step, all unused machines and pipes will be taken off.
?After being converted, the vessel?s name will be changed into Gagak Rimang,? Amril said.
Development of the Cepu block is divided into five EPC projects, of which the fourth is for the provision of the FSO. The FSO project has been awarded to a consortium of PT Scorpa Pranedya and Sembawang Shipyard with a contract value of US$298.7 million.
The Banyu Urip project in the Cepu block located in the border areas of Central Java and East Java is one of the prime oil and gas projects expected to come onstream this year. The block is jointly operated by Mobil Cepu Ltd, a unit of ExxonMobil Indonesia and PT Pertamina EP Cepu.
Editing by Johannes Simbolon