OREANDA-NEWS. The LOTOS shipyard located in Astrakhan has completed the construction of two supporting blocks commissioned by LUKOIL. The two supporting blocks are designated for the ice-resistant stationary platform (IRP-1) located at the Vladimir Filanovsky field in the Caspian Sea.

The supporting blocks will soon be towed offshore and fixed at a 7-meter depth.

The total weight of two supporting blocks is around 5,000 tons. The length of each supporting block is 28.3 m, the width 23.7 m, and the height 16.4 m. The supporting blocks will be fixed to the seabed by means of 20 piles, each with a diameter of more than 2 meters, while their total weight exceeds 4,000 tons. The piles are hammered down to the bottom at a depth reaching 60 meters and expanded across the pile guides of the supporting blocks, which ensures their secure mounting in order to withstand possible extreme ice, wave and earthquake effects.

The topside of the IRP-1 that is being constructed by the Astrakhan Shipbuilding Production Association will be assembled at the supporting blocks during the middle of 2014.

The IRP-1 is a production platform meant for well drilling and operation. The platform includes a drilling complex for the drilling of 11 directional wells with a horizontal borehole ending, a production complex for the collection and transportation of production to the central processing platform (CPP), and a power complex. The total weight of the IRP-1 will total 15,200 tons. The IRP-1 will be connected to the living quarters module and the CPP via catwalk bridges.