The world’s biggest floating production storage offloading unit (FPSO) is being built at Shanghai Waigaoqiao to DNV rules, and is an important example of offshore competency.

Since the early 1980s, DNV has also been involved in the oil and gas activities in China. Work on offshore installations has included fixed platforms, FPSOs, and submarine pipelines. Since 2001, DNV has been actively providing extended services to onshore downstream sectors such as refineries, petrochemical plants, LNG terminals etc, with a focus on HSE Risk Management and Asset Integrity Management services.

DNV is the classification society of choice for offshore projects in China. Current projects include involvement with Cosco Shipyard, Dalian Shipbuilding, Hantong Shipbuilding, Shanghai Waigaoqiao and Yantai Raffles.

Sevan Marine’s Floating Production Storage Offloading Unit is under construction at both Yantai Raffles (two units) and also Hantong Shipyard (one unit). Yantai Raffles is building two circular Sevan FPSO units for 2007 completion. The Sevan 300, with a storage capacity of 300,000 barrels can process and treat 30,000 barrels of oil and 3.6 million standard cubic metres of gas per day.

Another innovative and actually dramatic project is the DNV-classed rig, named “SS Frigstad Oslo” based on the Frigstad D90 design, that is being built at Yantai Raffles and will be the largest semi-submersible ever built. The rig will be used in ultra deep-water environments of up to 12,000 feet and drilling depth of 50,000 feet.

Elsewhere in the DNV offshore portfolio, CNOOC and ConocoPhillips China Inc are completing a contract with Shanghai Waigaoqiao for a 280,000 dwt FPSO hull for Peng Lai oil field in Bohai Bay. The $200m contract for the 310m long, 60m wide, 29m deep hull, is the largest yet built in China and will have storage capacity of 2 million barrels of crude oil. Another unique project is the order by MPF Corporation Limited, to build at Cosco Dalian Shipyard the hull of a Floating, Drilling, Processing, Storage and Offloading vessel (FDPSO).

There are also two harsh environment semisubmersible rigs for OffRig with DNV class at Yantai Raffles.