Page 22: of Marine Technology Magazine (April 2013)

IMA has just completed an in-depth analysis of the ß oating production sector. The study proÞ les the deepwater industry, examines the dynamics driving the sector and forecasts or- ders for ß oating production systems between 2013 and 2017. Highlighted below are some key Þ ndings in the study. Growing Inventory of Floating Production Systems There are now 264 ß oating production systems in operation. The number of units is 25% greater than Þ ve years ago, almost 85% higher than 10 years back and triple the number of units 15 years ago. Most of the growth has been in the number of Floating Production, Storage and Ofß oading Vessels (FPSOs). This Þ gure has increased by 114 units over the past 15 years. FPSOs now account for 63% of the existing systems. The balance is comprised of production semis, tension leg plat- forms, production spars, production barges and ß oating re- gasiÞ cation/storage units. In addition to ß oating production systems, another 102 ß oating storage/ofß oading units (FSOs) are in service.O shore Market Report Floating Production System projected to grow 40% in Five Years 3D Model of TLPHyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) received a letter of award for a $1.3B order for a ß oating production unit (FPU) and a $700m order for a tension leg platform (TLP) from Total E&P Congo. HHI will carry out engineering, procure-ment, supply, construc- tion, and commissioning for the two offshore fa- cilities to be deployed in Moho Nord Þ eld, 80 km off Republic of the Congo?s coast. The 14,600-ton ver- tically moored ß oating TLP will be used to extract oil and natural gas, and trans-port those to the ß oating production unit. By Jim McCaul, IMA22 MTRApril 2013MTR #3 (18-33).indd 22MTR #3 (18-33).indd 224/3/2013 11:49:26 AM4/3/2013 11:49:26 AM