OREANDA-NEWS. February 10, 2012. Essar Projects has today announced the completion of Rs.1,064crores D1 Development Project for ONGC by end-March 2012.  The project includes installation of three offshore platforms, layingof subsea pipelines to connect the three platforms to the existing floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) through a Pipeline End Manifold (PLEM). All new platforms, the PLEM and the existing D1 Platform will be connected with a network of subsea rigid and flexible pipelines and composite cables totalling about 14.5 Kms.

Essar Projects is completing this project on a fast-track basis within 24 months for the client. The scope of work includedEngineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation & Commissioning of the three unmanned four-legged fixed Jacket SMART Platforms – D1B, D1C & D1D in water depths of approximately 90 meters, 200 kms off Mumbai.

Commenting on this project, Alwyn Bowden, President & CEO of Essar Projects said,”TheD1 Project bears testimony to the engineering and execution capabilities of Essar Projects team in implementing a project of such scale in the Indian offshore environment on a fast-track basis. Our experience and excellent track record in the offshore construction has enabled us to complete this project to international quality standards”

D1B platform will receive the 35,000 bopd of crude produced by the D1, D1C and D1D platforms and this will then be transferred for processing to the D1 field FPSO via the PLEM.

Each platform has two main parts – Jacket and Deck. The Jackets for each of the three platforms were fabricated at the CUEL Yard in LaemChabang, Thailand. And the threeDecks were fabricated at the Profab yard in Batam, Indonesia.

The Projects Team split the fabrication scope at two yards to meet the fast-track project completion deadline.

The D1B deck weighs approximately 1500MT and is due to be installed on the D1B Jacket to complete the installation of D1B platform in entirety. This Platform is likely to rank amongst the heaviest Wellhead Platformsto be installed in Bombay High, using the Lift Installation Method.

Mr PCB Nair, CEO & MD, Essar Offshore & Subsea, Limited, the Offshore & Subsea Business Unit of Essar Projects said, “We are proud to have been associates with this project which has many of the complexities of a large offshore project. We have successfully executed many projects in Mumbai High in the past. The D1 Development Project represents a technical & fast-track project execution achievement for the Essar Projects Team, given the size and complexity of the project. This is also the largest offshore project that we have ever executed”.

17,000 tonnes of steel was used in fabrication and Jackets and Decks have been transported over 3,500 nautical miles to reach Bombay High, the destination. The Jackets are embedded into sea bed at a depth of 90 metres and the decks are placed on the Jacket to complete the Platform. One of the jackets-D1 Bhas already been installed and subsea lines of 14.5 km have been laid to connect the three Platforms. The installation of the second and the third Platforms will be completed by mid-March and the entire D1 Development project is scheduled to be completed by end-March.