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Offshore Report The FPU Market Is Primed To Produce by James R. McCaul, president, International Maritime Associates (IMA) According to a study just completed by IMA, 121 floating production systems are in operation or available. This is an increase of approximately 90 percent over the number of units in operation five years ago. About one-quarter of the units are oper- ating off Northern Europe, another quarter off Brazil and the remainder are mostly in the Gulf of Mexico, offshore China/Southeast Asia, West Africa and Australia. Recent burst of orders for floaters Reflecting upbeat conditions in the oil and gas sector, there has been a burst of orders for new floating production systems over the past six months. Between September 2000 and March 2001, eight production units have been ordered: four FPSO vessels, three spars and a production semi. With these new orders 27 floating production systems are now being built (see chart 1). Chart 1: 27 Floating Production and Five Storage Systems are On Order JlL JL =lL A Source: IMA, Floating Production Study What type floaters are being built A noticeable shift has taken place in type produc- tion system now being built vs. five years ago. In 1996, about one-quarter of the production units on order utilized semisub- mersible hulls. Now spars comprise about one-quarter of the pro- duction units on order and only two of the 27 units currently on order are semisubmersibles. Accounting for this shift in platform is the grow- ing popularity of spars as dry completion units and the lack of suitable semi- submersible hulls that can be used for conver- sion to production facilities (see chart 2). Where will they be placed? A noticeable shift has also taken place in where these floating production systems are to be used. Almost half of the units under construction in 1996 were for fields in the North Sea and another 30 per- cent of the units were destined for use offshore Brazil. Now the major destination is the Gulf of Mexico, which accounts for more than one-third of the systems currently on order. Equally significant is the increased presence of West Africa as a desti- nation for floating production systems. There are now as many systems on order for use off West Africa as for use in the North Sea (see chart 3, page 36). New floaters planned or under study IMA has identified 155 offshore projects in the bidding, design or planning stage where a floating production and/or storage system is being consid- ered as a development solution. Projects off West Africa account for 26 percent of these planned pro- jects and the Gulf of Mexico accounts for another 22 percent. There has been a significant drop in number of projects planned in the North Sea vs. five years ago, reflecting the downturn in new activ- Chart 2: Types of Floating Production Units on Order September 1996 March 2001 FPSO \ tsscls FPSO Vessels 59% Spars III-- (trZ Smart Pneumatic Level Sensor with Generic 4-20mA Output The Bubbler is an electro-pneumatic level trans- mitter that allows remote level measurement using a 4-20mA analog output. The lack of air pressure poses no operational problems, due to an auto- matic one-way valve which closes as soon as the pressure drops below 1 bar, this prevents back flow in the bubbling line towards the transmitter. Over pressure is also protected against by an automatic one-way valve. • It's the size of a grapefruit • Explosion proof housing • Accuracy .3% full scale • Automatic over-pressure valve • Automatic stop valve for air failure • Automatic cleaning of bubbling line • Connection for pressurized tanks • 2 pair 24 VDC and 4-20mA cable • Top or side mount Many Options S ELECTRONIC MARINE SYSTEMS, INC. 800 Ferndale Place Rahway, NJ 07065 Call today for more information! 732.382.4344 732.388.5111 fax emsmarcon@aol.com e-mail http://www.emsmarcon.com Circle 244 on Reader Service Card Source: IMA, Floating Production Study
