AMEC, the international engineering and project management company, has won two contracts from Apache North Sea Limited. These multi-million pound projects are part of Apache’s substantial investment in extending the life of the Forties field. The Forties field was the first major oil and gas find in the Central North Sea thirty eight years ago, and its continued hydrocarbon production will be significantly reinforced by these projects.

One contract is for a front end engineering design (FEED) review and detailed design for the Forties Charlie deep gas lift compression project. This contract covers the addition of a new high pressure gas lift compressor package into an existing module on Forties Charlie, together with a new produced water treatment package and vessel internals.

The second contract award covers the design, construction and commissioning of Phase 1 of the Forties field switchboard upgrade project. This complex project will enable expansion opportunities as well as improved operations reliability for the Forties field. The project is expected to take three years to complete and is technically challenging because it will be executed with minimal impact to existing operations and with no major outages. The first phase of the project involves the replacement of all 3.3kV and 415V distribution switchboards and transformers on Forties Bravo. The 11kV switchboard will be refurbished with new circuit breakers and protection relays.

"Apache is an important client for AMEC,” said Sandy Clark, European Operations Director for AMEC’s Natural Resources division. “We have supported them previously at the front end engineering design stage and now welcome the opportunity to provide further support with these two contracts. The contracts are significant in demonstrating our provision of multi-disciplined support to an independent operator like Apache. At their peak the contracts will provide employment for more than 150 people. “Phase I of the development programme for the Forties field began in September 2008 and runs for three years, but there may be further opportunities for us as part of Apache’s rolling five-year year plan. This major investment by Apache is a clear demonstration of the confidence the company has in the long term future of the Forties Field and the North Sea".

Jim House, Regional Vice President and Managing Director, Apache North Sea Limited, said: ‘’Over the last five years, Apache North Sea Ltd has transformed the Forties Field into one of the UKCS region’s more notable oil producing assets. This has been achieved through a sustained program of significant investments in projects to renovate a mature operation, critical long term and fabric maintenance as well as an active drilling operation. These two new projects awarded to AMEC are part of our long term development plan, and together with a range of others, will help deliver sustainable production growth as well as achieve our integrity and safety objectives. In selecting AMEC, Apache was confident in their project management capabilities as well as their recognition of the need to actively address significant issues impacting the long term sustainability of the region”.

Tags: AMEC plc, Apache Corporation