Norwegian oil and gas firm Equinor has awarded Aker Solutions a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract for an FPSO to be deployed at the Wisting oil field in the Barents Sea, offshore Norway.

According to Equinor, valued at around NOK 350 million, the study includes an option for engineering, procurement, construction, and installation (EPCI) calculated at NOK 8-12 billion.

“Equinor is cooperating well with partners, the supplier industry and the authorities to ensure a successful development of the Wisting field, meeting the requirements expected for future oil and gas production. We plan to submit the plan for development and operation (PDO) to the authorities at the end of 2022. A decision to develop the Wisting field will generate considerable value for Norwegian society and spin-offs for Norwegian supplier industry both in the development and operations phases,” says Geir Tungesvik, senior vice president for project development.Credit: Equinor

The Wisting field is a standalone field development in the Barents Sea, containing close to 500 million barrels of oil equivalent. Capital investments are expected to be in the order of NOK 60-75 billion. The concept chosen for the Wisting development involves a circular FPSO and a power-from-shore solution to be integrated in the technical solution, resulting in very low CO2 emissions from the field.

The FEED contract includes an EPCI option. A floating production unit is to be developed in the FEED phase and Aker Solutions will be responsible for creating an overall solution covering topside facilities, living quarters and a hull. The supplier expects the total scope of work to involve around 5500 person-years. Any exercising of the option will take place at an investment decision.

Involving up to 270 people, the FEED work will mainly be carried out in Norway. Leirvik AS and Sevan SSP AS will contribute as sub-suppliers of engineering services for the living quarters and hull respectively.

The PDO for the Wisting field will be submitted to the Norwegian Parliament (the Storting) after the partners have made an investment decision late 2022.

License partners are Equinor (35%), OMV (25%), Petoro (20 %), Idemitsu (10 %), and Lundin Energy (10%). OMV has recently agreed to sell its stake in the project to Lundin.