The ENI Cote d’Ivoire-Petroci consortium, a partnership of Italian explorer ENI and Cote d’Ivoire’s state owned Petroci, has awarded the major contracts for the development of Cote D’Ivoire ‘s large deepwater oil development to Italian contractor Saipem.
There are two new contracts and they are “worth approximately 1Billion euro overall”, Saipem says in a statement released September 27, 2022.
The contracts are for the Baleine Phase 1 Project, for the development of the relative oil and gas field offshore Ivory Coast located at a 1,200m water depth. “The Baleine Prospect represents the largest commercial discovery in the country in the last 20 years”, Saipem explains. The field was discovered in 2021 and it holds over 1Billion barrels of oil in recoverable reserves, ENI itself has disclosed.
The first contract entails Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Installation (EPCI) activities of Subsea Umbilicals, Risers and Flowlines (SURF) and of an onshore gas pipeline for the connection to the distribution grid. The offshore laying of flexible lines, risers and umbilicals will be executed by Saipem’s flagship vessel FDS2 and the development of the project will be on a fast-track basis. The start of operations is planned for the fourth quarter of 2022.
The second contract – also expected to be a fast-track – encompasses Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning activities regarding the refurbishment of the Firenze FPSO vessel, plus 10 years of Operations and Maintenance services of the vessel.
The award of significant contracts in a new area with great potential such as Cote d’Ivoire represents an important recognition of Saipem’s role as a contractor of excellence for the execution of complex projects requiring the integration of drilling, engineering and construction skills – both onshore and offshore – on a fast-track basis. These contracts also consolidate Saipem’s strategic positioning in West Africa.
