Heerema Marine Contractors has designed and installed the 280t pre-drilling template on the Statoil-operated Johan Sverdrup field off the coast of Stavanger in the Norwegian North Sea.

installation

Installed using Thialf crane vessel, the 32m-long, 10m-high pre-drilling template features eight well slots that will allow for pre-drilling of production wells before platform installation to help operates utilize the production capacity as much as possible once the field enters service.

Pre-drilling is planned to be carried out from March 2016 by Deepsea Atlantic drilling rig through the pre-drilling template, while the drilling platform is scheduled to be installed in 2018.

Johan Sverdrup field development head Kjetel Digre said: "We have completed and installed the first piece of one of the largest industrial projects in Europe."

"We have awarded several main contracts and utility packages worth more than NOK40bn ($4.8bn) so far.

"We have also started building the first platform jacket at Kværner Verdal. So far, the Johan Sverdrup development is on track."

The Johan Sverdrup field production is scheduled to commence in late-2019.

In addition to Statoil, the Johan Sverdrup partnership comprises Lundin Norway, Petoro, Det norske oljeselskap and Maersk Oil.


Image: The 32m-long pre-drilling template. Photo: courtesy of Statoil.