SBM Offshore wins ‘Spotlight on New Technology’ award at OTC 2017

SBM Offshore wins OTC ‘Spotlight on New Technology’ award for the innovative FPSO Turritella Turret Mooring System (TMS)

SBM Offshore has received the prestigious 2017 OTC Spotlight on New Technology award. This is the 6^th Spotlight on New Technology award that SBM Offshore has received in seven years.  The previous awards have been for:

• 2015 – ARCA Chain Connector
• 2014 – Very High Pressure (VHP) Swivel
• 2013 – Drilling Riser Trip Saver
• 2011 – HV Electric Swivel
• 2011 – COOL Hose

SBM Offshore’s driving force is to be at the forefront of technology development, helping the transformation of the offshore industry. The TMS for the FPSO Turritella is the latest example of how SBM Offshore engages early on with its clients to find innovative, safe and cost-effective solutions. The pioneering TMS for the FPSO Turritella represents a step change for the industry and cements SBM Offshore’s reputation as the leader in turret mooring systems, leveraging over 60 years of experience.

Pushing the boundaries of mooring technologies, the TMS for the FPSO Turritella has resulted in two new world records for FPSO Turritella as:

• The world’s deepest floating oil and gas production system at 9,500ft (2,900m).
• The first use of steel lazy wave risers on a disconnectable Turret Mooring System.

To achieve these industry firsts, the project required four enabling technologies to be developed, qualified and incorporated into the TMS design, associated with the disconnectable buoy, the reconnection system and the mooring line tensioning system. See editor’s note (1 & 2).

Accepting the award, SBM Offshore’s Technology Director Andrew Newport commented “Designing a disconnectable mooring system for the world’s deepest floating production unit required innovation and development across a range of systems and technologies, whilst leveraging SBM Offshore’s long experience of turret mooring system design.”

SBM Offshore USA President Stein Rasmussen added “We are proud to have played a part in helping our client  safely and competitively pioneer a new frontier of deepwater oil and gas production. This is SBM Offshore’s first FPSO in the Gulf of Mexico, where we operate Turritella for our client. The future of deepwater developments depends on new technology and we are proud to play a key role with our clients in unlocking these new frontiers.”