FPSOS THROUGH THE AGES:

The FPSO Development Timeline

With more than 270 floating systems in operation to date, the market for FPSOs has proven to be a lucrative space for oil
and gas operators. Although the current low oil price has caused many projects to be postponed, FPSOs will continue to
be the most cost-effective solution to access frontier offshore regions. As a look back at the history of FPSO development
shows, this is certainly not the first market downturn to affect the industry and the popularity of FPSOs will rise again.

1937
Pure Oil, current day Chevron, and its partner Superior Oil, now
ExxonMobil, use a fixed platform to develop a field one mile
offshore off Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana in 14 feet of water.
Kerr-McGee Industries, current day Anadarko
Petroleum, in cooperation with Phillips
Petroleum (ConocoPhillips) and Stanolind Oil

1946

Magnolia Petroleum, current

day ExxonMobil, drilled 29
kilometres off the coast of St.
Mary Parish, Louisiana, erecting

1947

a platform in 18 feet of water.

& Gas (BP), finished the Ship Shoal Block 32 project, making it
THE FIRST OIL DISCOVERY DRILLED OUT OF SIGHT OF LAND.

1961
THE FIRST SEMI-SUBMERSIBLE IS CREATED, somewhat by
accident, when the Blue Water Drilling Company and Shell Oil
Company decided to tow their submersible drilling rig Blue Water
Rig No.1 in the Gulf of Mexico. As the pontoons were not sufficiently
buoyant to support the weight of the rig, it was towed at a draught
midway between the top of the pontoons and the underside of the
deck. It was observed that the motions at this draught were very
small, leading Blue Water Drilling and Shell to jointly decide that the
rig could be operated in this floating mode.
Ocean Driller becomes the first
purpose built drilling semi-submersible.

The first oil FPSO the Shell Castellon - is built

in Spain, later operating in 117 metres of water.

1963

1975

1977

A converted semi-submersible
drilling rig called Transworld
58 is deployed as the worlds
first semi-submersible floating

The price of oil

peaks at

35

1980

production platform in the Argyll

field in the North Sea.

1981
SBM OFFSHORE PROVIDES THE WORLDS FIRST LEASED FPSO.

per barrel.

It is first contracted to Amoco on the Cadlao field, achieving first

oil in August 1981. Later relocated from the Cadlao field to the

1985

Linapacan field leased to Alcorn (Production) Philippines Inc. The

vessel was decommissioned in 1996 and relocated to the Marlim
field under a lease contract to Petrobras.
The Jabiru Venture
becomes the worlds

first disconnectable FPSO, designed

to operate in a cyclone-prone region off the
northwest coast of Australia. In the same year,
the stern of the 140,000 DWT Alba Marina FSO,
was fitted with the worlds
first external
turret.

1986
The OIL PRICE COLLAPSES by nearly
half, resulting in a loss of revenue for
oil-producing countries such as those in
Northern Europe, the Soviet Union and OPEC.

SBM Offshore supplies the worlds first internal

turret for the Alba FPSO in the North Sea.

SONANGOL SANCTIONS
THE WORLDS LARGEST FPSO

1991
1998

to Angolas first deepwater development

in the Girassol Field. The project is projected to cost $2.5 billion
and ultimately recover 700 million bbl from the Oligocene
Girassol B reservoir system, with first oil expected in late 2000.

1993
The first permanent FPSO in the North Sea sees first oil. The
Gryphon FPSO is operated in partnership between Maersk Oil UK
(86.5 percent) and Sojitz (13.5 percent) and can store 540,000 bbl.

2004
ESSO EXPLORATION ANGOLA BEGINS TO RECOVER OIL FROM

2005

KIZOMBA, a deepwater development fueled by the Hungo and

Chocalho fields at a rate of 130,000 bpd. The $800-million FPSO
was built by Hyundai Heavy Industries.

The contract for the worlds first cylindrical production and

storage unit, named the FPSO Sevan Piranema, later renamed the
FPSO Piranema Spirit, is signed with Brazils oil-giant Petrobras.
First oil is reached by the $3-billion Kizomba B
project, built by Esso. The ExxonMobils $750-million
FPSO has a storage capacity of 2.2 million bbl.

2006
For the first time, A PETROBRAS-LED FPSO BW PIONEER - WAS
APPROVED FOR THE GULF OF MEXICO on the Cascade/Chinook

2007
Nearly 190 FPSO systems have been installed globally
when the FIRST LNG CARRIER CONVERSION TO AN
LNG FLOATING STORAGE AND REGASIFICATION UNIT (FSRU)
Golar Spirit-is undertaken at Singapores Keppel shipyard,
contracted by Petrobras and build by Kawasaki Shipbuilding
Corporation. The vessel began operation in 2009.

project in Walker Ridge, in some 2,600 metres of water. Petrobras

began oil production in 2012, with a processing capacity of 80,000
bbl and 500,000 cubic metres of gas per day as well as a storage
capacity of 500,000 bbl. At the time, the FPSO was the first of its
kind in the USA and the deepest in the world.

2008
THE MONDO, SAXI AND BATUQUE FIELDS BEGIN

BP submits plan for the joint development of the Skarv and Idun

PRODUCTION FOR KIZOMBA CS TWO FPSO VESSELS. The

fields in the North Sea, off the coast of Norway. BP awards the

$1.5-billion Kizomba C development is ExxonMobils largest

$400-million contract for fabrication of the Skarv FPSO hull to

subsea development worldwide. Meanwhile, ExxonMobil

Samsung Heavy Industries. First production of the Skarv field is

launches phase one of the Kozomba satellites project, which

scheduled for 2012. The FPSO has an output capacity of 85,000

will see the development of satellite discoveries Clochas and

bopd and a gas output of 19 mcm per day.

Mavacola, estimated to hold some 250

million bbl and that will tie back to

ROYAL DUTCH SHELL AND SAMSUNG

HEAVY INDUSTRIES ANNOUNCE THEIR
PARTNERSHIP in the construction and

2009

long-term supply of LNG-FPSOs, marking the largest number of

Kozomba A and B facilities.

JULY

145

DECEMBER

30.3

orders in the history of the global shipbuilding industry. As many

as 10 FPSOs, running for some $5 billion each, are expected to be
ordered over a 15-year period.

In July, oil hit a record peak of $145 per barrel. By

December, WTI crude oil fell to $30.28 per barrel,

The worlds first drilling FPSO (FDPSO) makes way to the Congo for

due to the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008.

the Azurite deepwater field development. The $400-million FDPSO

is owned by Prosafe Production, has a storage capacity of 1.4 million
bbl and a processing capacity of 40,000 bopd.

2011

2012
PETRONAS JOINS WITH THE TECHNIP AND DSME CONSORTIUM
for the procurement, engineering, construction, installation and
commissioning of the worlds first floating liquefaction unit on the
Kanowit gas field off Sarawak, Malaysia, following a
FEED contract in 2011. The $771-millon contract

L N G

is originally scheduled for completion

in 2015 and a production
of 1.2 mtpa of

ROYAL DUTCH SHELL MAKES FINAL INVESTMENT DECISION

ON THE PRELUDE FLNG PROJECT to produce and export LNG

LNG, boosting
Malaysias total

off the coast of Australia, making it the first FLNG platform

LNG output from

as well as the largest offshore facility ever contracted. The

25.7 mtpa to

vessel was launched in November 2013. The Prelude FLNG has

BORNEO

26.9 mtpa.

an output of 5.3 million tonnes (mtpa) per annum of liquids,

3.6 mtpa of LNG, 1.3 mtpa of condensate (equivalent to 35,000
bbl/d) and 0.4 mtpa of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

SAMSUNG HEAVY INDUSTRIES

ANNOUNCES IT WILL BUILD THE LARGEST
FPSO IN THE WORLD through its Nigerian

2013

2014
ENI AND BUMI

subsidiary, Total Upstream Petroleum Nigeria Limited. The

ARMADA BERHAD

Egina FPSO project will cost $3.5 billion, also making it the most

ANNOUNCE THEIR

expensive FPSO to date. It will be 330 metres long, 61 meteres wide,

and 34 metres tall. The FPSO will be able to carry 2.3 million bbl.
First production is scheduled for 2018.

$3-BILLION CONTRACT
for the chartering, operations
and maintenance of a FPSO
for deployment at the East

Samsung Heavy Industries cancels a $2.39-billion order from

Norways Flex LNG for four FLNG production units due to a lack of
financing. Flex and Samsung were mired in a dispute over nearly
$460-million down payment that Flex had made to Samsung on the
orders, and the companies failed to reach a resolution.

The second-ever FLNG project,

PFLNG 1 IS SET FOR FIRST PRODUCTION. The

2016

Hub field located in deep water

offshore Angola.

2015
Global capital spending on newbuild and converted FPSOs is set
to reach $8.65 billion, with most efforts geared towards South
American and West Africa exploration ventures.

PFLNG 1 is Petronas first floating LNG unit and

AN EXPLOSION OCCURS ON BOARD BW OFFSHORE GROUP-

will produce 1.2 million mtpa of LNG. The unit is

OPERATED CIDADE DE SO MATEUS FPSO, CLAIMING THE LIVES

360-metres long, 50-metres wide and will be

OF 9 OF THE 74 PEOPLE ON BOARD. Petrobras determined the

moored 180 kilometres offshore.

cause of the explosion to be breaches of fluid pumping operating

procedures, installation of a piece of equipment in a pipe without
the proper technical specifications and safety procedure violations.

The Turritella FPSO for Shells Stones is

scheduled to achieve first oil. This will be the
worlds deepest unit and gas pipeline nearly

Oil prices plummet more than 55 per cent in six

2 MILES (3.2KM) BELOW SEA LEVEL

months and cast a shadow on the worldwide

FPSO market, which struggles to

in the Stones field in the US Gulf of Mexico.

deliver cost-effective projects.

High growth in the number of FPSOs is expected

once the price of oil recovers. Key growth areas
are expected to be Brazil, UK and Norway.

2019

2017
Premier oil is set to achieve first oil from its
Catcher project, which it owns and operates
in the North Sea, 180 kilometres from the

Originally scheduled to be commissioned in

2018 but since delayed due to the low oil price,
PETRONAS SECOND FLNG, THE PFLNG 2, IS

2020

coast of the UK. The FPSO has a processing

and storage capacity of 60,000 bopd and
650,000 bbl, respectively.

LIKELY TO BE DELIVERED to the Rotan field, 130 kilometres offshore

Sabah, Malaysia. The unit is design to produce 1.5 mtpa.

Learn about the latest FPSO developments and

where the industry is headed at the:

20 - 21 September 2016,
Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

CLICK TO LEARN MORE