By Adedapo Adesanya
The Norwegian Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) leasing firm, BW Offshore, has closed the transaction for the sale of the Nigerian vessel, Abo FPSO, after several short-term charter extensions for $20 million.
FPSO refers to a floating vessel located near an offshore oil field, where oil is processed and stored until it can be transferred to a tanker for transporting and additional refining.
BW Offshore closed the transaction for the sale of Abo FPSO to STAC Marine Offshore Limited, a member of the Nigerian Transport Group (STAC).
As part of the transaction, BW Offshore has entered into a bareboat charter with STAC to allow for uninterrupted operations for the client during a transition period of a maximum of two months.
It was reported that upon the expiry of the bareboat charter, STAC will assume responsibility for the operations of the unit.
Originally recognized as the “Gray Warrior”, a Suezmax tanker constructed in 1976, the vessel underwent conversion at Keppel Shipyard before beginning its operations in April 2003.
Abo FPSO has now reached a commendable milestone, having completed two decades of service in the Abo field. This achievement underscores its enduring contribution to the oil and gas industry in Nigeria.
The Abo field, where the FPSO has been deployed for two decades, is located in Block OML 125, offshore Nigeria. In 2022, production from the block was derived mainly from the Abo field, which yielded approximately 14,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day net to Eni.
The FPSO has an oil production capacity of 44,000 barrels per day, a gas handling capacity of 44 million standard cubic feet per day, and can store 930,000 barrels. The vessel is spread-moored in a water depth of 500 meters.
BW Offshore has been working to offload the non-core FPSO fleet, including the Abo FPSO.
This is the latest of such transactions in the past year. In July, the company sold FPSO Sendje Berge in Nigeria to a local FPSO owner and operator for $15 million and before that, BW Offshore sold the Espoir Ivoirien, BW Athena, and the BW Opportunity.
BW Offshore’s core FPSO projects include the Barossa FPSO being built for Santos in Australia, BW Adolo, which produces oil for BW Energy in Gabon, BW Catcher, which is on a contract with Harbour Energy in the UK North Sea, and BW Pioneer, which is on a contract with Murphy Oil Corporation in the Gulf of Mexico in the US.
