Leighton Holdings Limited today announced that its subsidiary Leighton Offshore had been awarded a major contract by Iraq’s South Oil Company.
The US$518 million contract forms part of the Crude Oil Export Facility Reconstruction Project (the “Sea Line Project”), which is financed and supported through the Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA) Loan by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Project involves the development of two offshore platforms, a 75 kilometer 48” oil pipeline and a Single Point Mooring system.
The project aims to stabilize and expand Iraq’s crude oil export capacity, a lifeline of the Iraqi economy, by constructing a pipeline connecting crude oil storage facilities to the offshore crude oil export terminal in Fao, Basrah in Southern Iraq.
Leighton Holdings Chief Executive Officer, Hamish Tyrwhitt said the contract award demonstrated the wealth of expertise and highlighted the Leighton Group’s broader strategy to become a major player in the offshore construction Industry.
“Leighton Offshore has demonstrated its ability to deliver complex projects in difficult and remote locations and we are extremely proud to be a part of the rebuilding of Iraq’s oil export infrastructure which is critical to Iraq’s economy,” Mr Tyrwhitt said.
Leighton Offshore Chief Executive Officer, Peter Cox, said offshore oil and gas sector represented a key area of growth for the Company.
“Leighton Offshore is a leading engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning (EPCIC) and life of field services (LOFS) contractor,” Mr Cox said.
“This project builds on our experience in the installation of Single Point Mooring systems, offshore platforms and the laying of large diameter offshore pipelines working in diverse locations including across Asia, India, the Middle East and Africa.
“This is an extremely important project for Iraq and we are very pleased to be working with the Iraq South Oil Company to assist them to achieve their redevelopment goals,” he said.
Leighton Offshore also confirmed the award of an additional Single Point Mooring (SPM) contract by Iraq’s South Oil Company (SOC).
The SPM contract worth US $79.85m is in addition to the $799m Phase 1 Iraq Crude Oil Export Expansion Project (ICOEEP) scope currently underway. The work will be undertaken in parallel with the current Phase 1 scope and is scheduled for completion by early 2012.
“This project adds to our track record as an integrated EPCIC contractor and as the premier SPM installer in the region, having installed more than a dozen SPM systems across Asia, Africa and the Middle East over the past decade,” said Cox.
The ICOEEP is aimed at expanding offshore loading facilities to enable export capability of 4.5 million barrels of oil per day.
Mr Cox added “The Iraqi oil market is the fastest growing market in the region – it is expected that in under a decade, Iraq will treble its current oil production. Leighton Offshore will be a major contributor to achieving this ambitious goal and we look forward to continuing our strong working relationship with SOC to deliver on this goal.”
