Page 66: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (September 2013)

66 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News ? SEPTEMBER 2013 this market. Typical FPSO/FSO new hulls cost $100 to 150 million, but can be as much as $450 million depending on size and owner speciÞ cation. While stringent offshore service standards ap- ply to the hull construction, the work scope is limited to completion of the hull. Topside fabrication and integration is under separate contract(s) and when Þ nished, the hull is towed to another fa- cility for completion. ? FPSO/FSO conversion The balance of FPSOs and FSOs are conversions of trading tankers. Ship repair yards with drydocking capability for extended conversion of large tank- ers can target this conversion business. Of course, there are entry issues. The quality standards for FPSO conversion are more demanding than typical com-mercial ship repair and upgrade ? and the scope of work can be much more complex, as the yard will typically be responsible for the entire conversion project. But this is a growth market that could interest ship repair yards looking for new markets. ? Module fabrication ? An FPSO top- sides is an assembly of prefabricated modules that house process plant equip-ment, power systems, accommodation facilities, etc. Each module is designed and engineered to be lifted and readily installed on the FPSO topside. Com-plex, large FPSOs can involve 15 to 20 modules in total weighing as much as 15,000 tons. Module fabrication could be an interesting market opportunity for yards that have substantial space for steel assembly and can work to stringent tolerances and offshore standards. ? New product development Leapfrogging existing technology is an-other entry path. Recently, for example, we advised an investor on the feasibility of building standardized barge-mounted regas plants that would be leased to small power consumers as part of a network of LNG reception facilities. A shipyard could align with an engineering partner and leasing contractor to develop and of-The Workboat Edition ? Floating Production SystemsExhibit 2Number and Location of Facilities Fabricating or Converting Floating Production Units (as of end 2nd quarter each year) MR #9 (66-73).indd 66MR #9 (66-73).indd 669/5/2013 10:08:54 AM9/5/2013 10:08:54 AM