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Construction of Vito RPF completed
The successful delivery further demonstrates the Group’s Tuas Boulevard Yard value proposition as a one-stop production facility capable of fabricating, assembling, and installing larger and heavier integrated structures which help fulfl business objectives of safety, quality, time, and cost. The integration of Vito’s topside structure with its hull was executed safely and efciently by a pair of state-of-the-art goliath cranes with 30,000t combined lifting capacity and 100m hook height in the Tuas Boulevard Yard. The yard’s ability to perform this type of megablock lifting enabled the Vito topsides and living quarters to be fabricated and assembled at ground level to minimise work-at-height risks before integration with the four-column FPU hull in a single lift.
Key milestone
The landmark project was executed in compliance with high quality, HSE and sustainability standards, as well as stringent inspection processes by Shell, the Certifed Verifcation Authority, and the US Coast Guard. Mr Wong Weng Sun, President and CEO of Sembcorp Marine, says, “The successful construction and delivery of Vito FPU is a key milestone in our newbuilding track record and a testament to Sembcorp Marine’s proven expertise and diferentiated capabilities in the construction of turnkey projects for the ofshore, marine, and energy industries. We would like to thank Shell for their strong teamwork and steadfast support in overcoming the challenges and constraints brought on by COVID-19. We look forward to continuing this partnership with Shell for the Whale Host Facility (WHF).”
Thorough cost reduction
The Vito FPU was successfully delivered to Shell on 27 December 2021, and the platform departed Tuas Boulevard Yard for Singapore’s anchorage to prepare for loadout and its sail away to the Gulf of Mexico where it is expected to start production this year. In April 2018, Shell took the fnal investment decision to develop the Vito deep-water project in the US Gulf of Mexico after a thorough cost reduction of more than 70% from the original concept. Vito is located 240km southeast of New Orleans. It is Shell’s eleventh deep-water project in the area. Once fully operational, it will supply an estimated 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day at peak production. Located over four blocks in the Mississippi Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico, the Vito development consists of eight subsea wells with deep (5,500m) in-well gas lift.
Photo courtesy of Sembcorp Marine.
Integration of Vito topsides with the FPU hull.
Sembcorp Marine is currently undertaking the construction of a second FPU project for Shell, involving the fabrication and integration of the FPU topsides, living quarters and hull, for the Whale development, also located in the US Gulf of Mexico. The Whale FPU features a 99% replicated hull and 80% replicated topsides of the Vito project. By leveraging the engineering, construction, and supply chain of Vito, Whale is expected to achieve frst oil 7.5 years after discovery.
