InterMoor has completed the final tensioning and chain-cutting operations on the Turritella FPSO vessel for Shell’s Stones (32/22) project, located in the Walker Ridge protraction area in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM).
The Turritella will connect to subsea infrastructure in about 2,896 m of water, breaking the existing water depth record for an oil and gas production facility.
The ultradeepwater project marks the first FPSO unit for Shell in the GoM, and the second FPSO unit in the GoM after Cascade/Chinook (32/20).
The Turritella, which arrived in January, is a disconnectable turret moored FPSO unit with nine mooring lines consisting of chain and polyester, arrayed in three bundles of three.
The mooring lines were attached to a disconnectable buoyant turret mooring (BTM) buoy at the field, awaiting the FPSO unit’s arrival.
Each mooring leg has an in-line mooring connector (ILMC) tensioning system, located about 274 m below the surface, which was pretensioned after connection to the BTM. Once the Turritella arrived, and the BTM was recovered by the FPSO unit.
InterMoor’s workscope consisted of chain final tension adjustments through the ILMC system, subsequent cut and removal of excess chain, and riser pull-in rope stretching and transfer to the FPSO unit.
InterMoor used the Seacor Keith Cowan anchor-handling vessel to perform the first phase of the operations and later moved to a larger construction vessel already on charter and on standby.
Recommended Reading
E&P Highlights: Aug. 26, 2024
2024-08-26 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, with Ovintiv considering selling its Uinta assets and drilling operations beginning at the Anchois project offshore Morocco.
E&P Highlights: Sep. 2, 2024
2024-09-03 - Here's a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, with Valeura increasing production at their Nong Yao C development and Oceaneering securing several contracts in the U.K. North Sea.
Breakthroughs in the Energy Industry’s Contact Sport, Geophysics
2024-09-05 - At the 2024 IMAGE Conference, Shell’s Bill Langin showcased how industry advances in seismic technology has unlocked key areas in the Gulf of Mexico.
E&P Highlights: Sept. 16, 2024
2024-09-16 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, with an update on Hurricane Francine and a major contract between Saipem and QatarEnergy.
Seadrill to Adopt Oil States’ Offshore MPD Technology
2024-09-17 - As part of their collaboration, Seadrill will be adopting Oil States International’s managed pressure drilling integrated riser joints in its offshore drilling operations.