The first of two offshore structures has left a J Ray McDermott fabrication yard in Dubai, bound for Qatar, where it will produce natural gas for the Pearl Gas to Liquids project.
The Pearl 1 topside was built over 20 months by J Ray McDermott at its yard in Jebel Ali. It will be transported to Qatar by barge.
“The J Ray McDermott team are to be congratulated for completing the construction of the Pearl 1 topside safely and efficiently. I am glad that the Pearl 1 topside is now on its way to Qatar, where it will serve for decades producing natural gas,” Andy Brown, Shell’s executive vice president and managing director of the Pearl GTL project, said.
The structure has a lift weight of 1,840 tonnes and once it reaches its destination, will be lifted on top of a platform jacket which is already fixed to the seabed over the North Field in a water depth of about 36 metres.
The topside has five decks of production, control and testing equipment including 90km of control and power cables within it. The structure will be connected to 11 wells drilled into the natural gas reservoir deep below the seabed. Processing of the natural gas will be conducted onshore.
