(Ecofin Agency) - The largest Floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel constructed by Nigerdock is to set sail to the Egina oil field to speed up oil production.

This is coming after the company announced the successful conclusion of work for the construction and the sail away of the Flare Tower for the Egina FPSO project for Total.

At present, the deep water field operated Total is under development and production is expected to begin in 2018.

Situated about 130km off the coast of Nigeria at water depths of over 1,500 metres, the Egina Oil Field is one of Total’s greatest ultra-deep offshore projects and most part of the project is being developed locally to hasten the pace of technology transfer.“The fabrication for Egina was a big success being delivered on time and budget and to world class specifications. We have expended over 1.7 million man hours on the project, and it has helped generate employment for hundreds of Nigerians while also creating the opportunity for the provision of thousands of man-hours of specialized training,” Emeka Uhara, the project manager, said.

Total commenced the drilling programme on the Egina field in December 2014. Five out of the intended 44 subsea wells have been drilled at water depths between 1,400m and 1,700m, and an additional 13 will be concluded when the field begins operation.

These wells are to be linked, using umbilicals and risers, to an FPSO vessel with a 2.3 million BO capacity, Leadership news reports.

Anita Fatunji