LNG

Seatrium of Singapore, the shipyard engineering company, with continued project successes in oil and LNG with many projects to work on through 2025 has signed an accord with Shell Global Solutions to explore and strengthen collaboration opportunities in Floating Production Systems through leveraging their engineering capabilities and technologies.

Seatrium, formerly called Sembcorp Marine Ltd and renamed as Seatrium following its merger with Keppel Offshore & Marine, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with ethe Shell unit focusing on driving project standardisation and replication while seeking to promote best practices in the design of floating systems.

The Singaporean company noted that Seatrium and Shell had worked together on various projects over the years, including the recently-announced Sparta floating production unit (FPU), which is conceived as a replicable project to leverage the Group’s topsides single-lift integration methodology, following the
fabrication of Vito and Whale FPU newbuilds in 2021 and 2023 respectively.

Collaboration

“We are pleased to deepen our collaboration with Shell, leveraging both parties’ competencies and technologies in past Floating Production Systems projects,” explained William Gu, Executive Vice President of Seatrium Oil & Gas (International).

“We look forward to continuing working with Shell to mutually learn and develop best-in-class project management practices to achieve operational efficiency in future floater projects, benefitting both parties,” Gu stated.

Seatrium also said in April 2024 that the its shipyard engineering activities would include more LNG project successes.

The company as secured a series of major contracts with an aggregate value of S$350 million (US$259M), to be completed by the end 2025, reinforcing its reputation as a market leader in vessel repairs, upgrades and conversions.

Seatrium, formerly called Sembcorp Marine Ltd and renamed as Seatrium following its merger with Keppel Offshore & Marine, is moving forward in the sector after big LNG delivery highlights in 2023.

These included the successful delivery in November 2023 of the Greek floating storage and regasification unit, the “FSRU Alexandroupolis”, now deployed offshore northeast Greece as part of a Balkans LNG supply hub. 

Conversions

The backlog of FSRU conversions involves three LNG Carriers (LNGC) being converted to FSRUs for Turkish company Karpowership, with an option for a fourth project.

Seatrium also in November last year handed over the LNG production unit for the BP-led FLNG project offshore Senegal and Mauritania in West Africa and also involving Dallas-based US company Kosmos Energy.

The group’s businesses include oil & gas newbuilds and conversions, offshore renewables, repairs & upgrades, and new energies, to advance the global energy transition from its 60 years of experience in the offshore industry.

Seatrium operates shipyards and engineering and technology centres in 12 countries including Brazil, China, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates and the UK and the US as well as Singapore.

Seatrium of Singapore, the shipyard engineering company, aims to continue with its liquefied natural gas project successes with a large book of projects to work on through 2025.

Seatrium has secured a series of major contracts with an aggregate value of S$350 million (US$259M), to be completed by the end 2025, reinforcing its reputation as a market leader in vessel repairs, upgrades and conversions.

Seatrium, formerly called Sembcorp Marine Ltd and renamed as Seatrium following its merger with Keppel Offshore & Marine, is moving forward in the sector after big LNG delivery highlights in 2023.

These included the successful delivery in November 2023 of the Greek floating storage and regasification unit, the “FSRU Alexandroupolis”, now deployed offshore northeast Greece as part of a Balkans LNG supply hub.

African FLNG

Seatrium also in November last year handed over the LNG production unit for the BP-led FLNG project offshore Senegal and Mauritania in West Africa and also involving Dallas-based US company Kosmos Energy.

The group said that the diverse range of complex contracts secured by the Seatrium Repairs and Upgrades unit and currently being worked on or being prepared for include upgrades and conversions of FSRUs, life-extension and remediation works for floating production systems as well as repairs to conventional LNG carriers

“We thank our customers for their confidence in Seatrium’s capabilities and for entrusting us with these important projects,” said Alvin Gan, Executive Vice President of Seatrium Repairs and Upgrades.

“With our expertise and extensive track records, we are committed to deliver safe, timely and reliable projects to our customers,” he stated.

The backlog of FSRU conversions involves three LNG Carriers (LNGC) being converted to FSRUs for Turkish company Karpowership, with an option for a fourth project.

“The conversion work involves installing a regasification skid, as well as other supporting systems such as cargo, utility, spread-mooring, offloading, electrical, and automation systems,” Seatrium explained.

This work is scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2024 and involves the vessels “Karmol LNGT Powership Africa”, “Karmol LNGT Powership Asia” and “Karmol LNGT Powership Europe”.

“This work reinforces the group's position as a pioneer and market leader in the highly specialised FSRU conversion market,” Seatrium added.

LNG dry-dockings

A series of LNG carriers will also be dry-docking in Singapore under a “favoured customer contract” with Hyundai LNG Shipping of South Korea

Vessel life extension, upgrade and remediation and maintenance also involves customers like Japan’s MODEC with a Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) unit, the “Pyrenees Venture”, for Australian LNG operator and oil and gas player Woodside Energy.

“The vessel is expected to be re-deployed back into production off the coast of Western Australia,” Seatrium said.

The Singaporean company has also attracted business for its successful Cruise Ship Refurbishments yard.

“We have vessel retrofits for a series of 10 cruise vessels from our long-term partners, Carnival Corp. and Royal Caribbean Group, in 2024,” Seatrium added.

Keppel Shipyard in Singapore has started work on the conventional LNG carrier “GasLog Chelsea” to convert the vessel to a floating storage and regasification unit to be deployment as an import terminal in eastern Greece to supply the Balkans region.

The FSRU will be stationed in the north-eastern part of the Aegean Sea and about 17.6 kilometres (11 miles) from the costal Greek town of Alexandroupolis.

The vessel is being renamed “FSRU Alexandroupoli” and will serve as an offshore storage and import facility.

The “FSRU Alexandroupoli” will be linked to a pipeline system of 28km connecting the floating unit to the Greek National Natural Gas Transmission System (NNGTS).

The ship of 155,000 cubic metres capacity was also recently reflagged to the Greek flag.

The project’s owner, Gastrade, leads a consortium of key players in the wider region’s energy market. The group includes Mrs Elmina Copelouzou, the shipping line GasLog, the Public Gas Corporation of Greece (DEFSA), the affiliated Greek company DEPA Commercial, the Hellenic Natural Gas Transmission System Operator and Bulgartransgaz, the Bulgarian natural gas transmission and storage system operator.

Ship for its time

“GasLog believed in the ‘FSRU Alexandroupoli’ endeavor from the very beginning and at a time when energy security in Europe was taken for granted,” said Kostas Karathanos GasLog’s Chief Operating Officer.

“We worked patiently and diligently to reach this stage and we are extremely proud to soon offer the first ever FSRU in Greek waters,” added Karathanos

“Through GasLog’s renowned high standards of safety and reliability, the ‘FSRU Alexandroupolis’ will offer energy diversification and security to the wider region and establish GasLog as an integrated provider of natural gas solutions,” he stated.

GasLog is being backed in the conversion process by the leading European classification society DNV.

Martin Cartwright, Business Director DNV Maritime’s Gas Carriers and FSRUs division, said the project was moving forward as a result of “an exceptional collaborative” effort.

Ninth FSRU

“This will be our record 9th FSRU conversion project as a classification society and we take great pride in being entrusted with supporting this initiative,” explained Cartwright.

“By choosing DNV and our pioneering REGAS (ES) and ASP notations, the consortium demonstrates that they are focused on delivering an installation that meets the most innovative and rigorous standards in the industry,” he stated.

The investors noted that the “FSRU Alexandroupoli” vessel and the project aim to add a new gateway for natural gas in the Greek and wider Balkan region, improving the region's energy mix and diversifying energy sources to enhance security.

March 26 (LNGJ) - Greek LNG developer Gastrade said the binding phase of a market test for reservation of capacity at the floating LNG terminal proposed for offshore  Alexandroupolis in northeastern Greece was successfully completed. “With an aggregate long-term profile of binding offers for up to 15 years, reaching 2.6 billion cubic metres per year, Greek and international natural gas companies, as well as end-consumers, confirmed their interest in the reservation of regasification capacity at the FSRU terminal,” said Gastrade.

   LNG delivered to the terminal will be regasified and transmitted to the markets of Greece and the region via the Greek National Natural Gas Transmission System. Konstantinos Spyropoulos, Managing Director of Gastrade, said the process was a critical step towards “the enhancement of energy diversification and security of supply in Greece, the Balkans and the wider southeast European area”.