Page 106: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (May/Jun 2015)

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Tracking foating

Gulf of Mexico production in Mexico

It has an oil throughput of up to 600,000

Bruce Crager profles some of the foating production b/d. It can also handle 120 MMcf/d of gas vessels already being used ofshore Mexico, and highlights including H S in the gas phase (approx. 2 400 ppm). The gas is sweetened with an what is yet to come. amine plant and used for fuel.

The FSO Ta’ Kuntah is operated by

Pemex in the Cantarell Field in the Bay of Campeche. The vessel was converted from an ultra large crude carrier (ULCC) tanker and installed in 1998. The vessel was originally owned and operated by

MODEC, who sold it to Pemex in 2013.

It can handle 800,000 b/d and store up to 2.3 MMbbl. The vessel is permanently moored in 75m of water using a SOFEC external turret that is connected to two fexible lazy-S risers. Ta’ Kuntah has both side-by-side and tandem offoading capabilities and can offoad from both locations simultaneously.

The FPSO Crystal Ocean was built in 1999 by Kvaerner Govan and is owned by

FPSO s Yùum K’ak’Náab i

Rubicon Offshore. It is one of the smallest currently operating in the KMZ oilfeld in the Bay of Campeche.

FPSOs in the world and one of the few to

Photos from Pemex.

have a dynamic positioning system. The vessel can handle up to 40,000 b/d and emex currently has over 232 fxed well test vessels. uses DP3 with a disconnectable turret. It

P production platforms in water The FPSO Yùum K’ak’Náab (YKN) is operated as an extended well test (EWT) depths shallower than 200m with no vessel was converted from a tanker to vessel by Blue Marine for Pemex.

hydrocarbon production in water depths an FPSO in 2007 by BW Offshore. It is The Toisa Pisces is a well test and deeper than 200m. currently operating in the KMZ oilfeld servicing vessel owned and operated by

There is a huge offshore develop- in the Bay of Campeche. The vessel is Sealion Shipping Ltd It was frst used in ment contact between US and Mexico. one of the largest FPSOs in the world and Mexico in 2002 and has a length of 106 m

It stretches from the US-Mexico land can store up to 2.2 MMbbl. It is turret with a 27-m beam.

border on the coast SSE into the east-cen- moored in 100m water depth and cannot The Bourban Opale is another well tral Gulf to the “donut hole” where the be disconnected in hurricanes. The pro- testing vessel that is owned by Bourban

US and Mexico have signed a boundary cess system includes the capability for Ships AS and operated by Sealion treaty to divide their portion. Cuba is the 200,000 b/d processing as well as blend- Shipping Ltd. The vessel started working other party to this area and treaties are ing, mixing stabilized heavy and light oil in Mexico in 2006 and has a length of still being negotiated for its boundaries. of API 13 and 21, from other locations. 91m with a breadth of 19m.

Pemex assigned 169 blocks

Future FPSO Plans to CNH, which will be offered

Pemex has plans to add a num- for leasing. Most of these ber of FPSOs in the future. A blocks are offshore.

replacement FPSO for FSO

Due to the relatively shallow

Ta’Kuntah. The Ta’Kuntah is water depths and the relative located in the Cantarell feld, closeness of producing blocks which is beginning to pro- to shore, there is only one duce water. One solution is to foating production facility remove the existing FSO and installed offshore Mexico, the

FSO is operated by Ta’ Kuntah

FPSO is operated as Crystal Ocean replace it with an FPSO able

FPSO Yùum K’ak’Náab. There

Pemex in the Cantarell Field an EWT vessel by Blue Marine for to handle water production. is also one large FSO and three in the Bay of Campeche.

Pemex.

May 2015 | OE oedigital.com 108 108_OE0515_Geo2_Endeavor.indd 108 4/20/15 9:58 PM