Client
Phillips Petroleum Company
Location
Espoir Field, Ivory Coast, Africa

Phillips Petroleum Early Development Production Facilities Construction Management

The Espoir field was developed by Phillips Petroleum Company.

Fluor was the construction manager for a $1.1 million contract to manage five contractors involved in the installation and hook-up of initial facilities.


Client's Challenge

The project entailed deep-water subsea facilities that produced oil to be processed on a jack-up drilling rig and then piped into a storage and export tanker.

To complete the project, Phillips utilized about ten small engineering firms and six fabrication and installation contractors over a period of 18 months from project start to "first oil" and project completion.

Located in 290 feet of water, an early development production platform, the “Dan Duke,” was equipped with a 600-ton removable production module. A 12-inch submarine pipeline transferred processed oil from the production platform to a tethered mooring connected to the stern of a very large crude carrier (VLCC) of 230,000 dry weight tons.


Fluor's Solution

Fluor managed contractors who constructed the template for the riser caisson, the pipelines, the mooring facilities, and the storage / loading facilities; installed the Dan Duke through completion of subsea tie-ins; and performed hook-up and commissioning. Other responsibilities were administration of the five major contracts; material management and control; and inspection and documentation for quality assurance. The facilities involved were the pipeline spooling yard; hookup and commissioning of the Dan Duke and VLCC; pipeline installation including hydraulic and electrical umbilicals; derrick barge work for leg extensions and guide pile in installing the Dan Duke; and installation of the riser caisson template.

Fluor also provided liaison, and controlled and monitored the functions of field construction to assure completion of the work within budget and in accordance with Phillips' quality objectives and specifications. In addition, Fluor was responsible for cost estimating, project schedule, and preparation of specific project procedures, as well as material control, administrative and financial services, quality control guidelines, overview, and safety supervision.


Conclusion

The early development production program was undertaken to evaluate the recoverable oil in place and to design a tailored development program. It consisted of four to five production wells, each linked by flowlines to production facilities on the Dan Duke platform.

The processed crude was then stored aboard a VLCC and shipped to refining facilities.

First oil production occurred in late 1982.