Jumbo installs Karish FPSO mooring system while breaking its deep-water record in the process
On behalf of TechnipFMC, Jumbo Offshore successfully completed the first phase of work on Energean’s Karish gas field offshore Israel in October. Jumbo’s scope of work included transport and installation of 14 suction piles (part of a 14-point FPSO mooring system), a tie-in manifold and a 24 inch deepwater gas sales spool. Jumbo installed the components at a depth of 1,760 metres, breaking its own deep-water installation record. Jumbo’s work is scheduled to recommence in 2021, with the hook-up and installation of the Energean Power FPSO, the first FPSO ever to operate in the East Mediterranean
Installing the mooring spread for the Energean Power FPSO, Jumbo installed 13 suction piles of 176 tonnes each and one weighing 235 tone. Both the deck layout and the two 900-tonne cranes of Jumbo’s offshore construction vessel Fairplayer were reconfigured to enable each part of the installation. This involved the Fairplayer’s deep-water winches being modified to allow installation work down to 3,000 metres deep.
A multi-disciplinary operation
Joost van der Wiel, Lead Project Engineer at Jumbo, said that installation of the large suction pile was especially challenging and required a specially engineered method in which the pile was first taken down to a depth of 200 metres, where it was hung off a Dyneema pennant. “We then recovered the hook, reconfigured the crane, picked up the pile from the pennant and began the second lift down to 1,760 metres deep. That’s a record for us and I am very proud of the team that made this happen!”
The installation of the tie-in manifold and the 24-inch gas sales SSIV closing spool illustrate Jumbo’s position as a full service T&I contractor, continues Jumbo Project Manager Wieteke Looijschelder. “The gas sales spool is a flexible piece of equipment, so lifting and lowering it called for a dual lift with a complex rigging arrangement. This technical efficiency is a good example of how our DP2 vessels can handle both the transport and installation needs of a project with just one vessel.”
Zero injuries & Covid safety
As always, Jumbo paid a lot of attention to the subject of safety during the execution of this contract. “As well as implementing the highest standards possible, we aim to create an open and communicative atmosphere with respect to safety,” states Ms Looijschelder. “It is this constructive safety culture that helped us complete the Karish project with zero injuries or incidents.”
Of course, Covid-19 played a role in both the mobilization and execution phase of the project. Jumbo’s staff, crew and subcontractors aimed to be as flexible as possible given the circumstances. Thanks to their efforts, the result was a relatively smooth, but above all safe, mobilization, despite new and changing rules. Note that Jumbo’s Stay Well programme also played a part in this, not only giving attention to life-saving rules, but also setting up a programme for mind-saving rules – as Covid-anxiety, working from home or overdue crew-changes can put pressure on employees and partners. By continuously monitoring the well-being of its employees, Jumbo aims to keep negative effects from the Covid pandemic to a minimum.
About Jumbo
Jumbo (est. 1969) is a global enterprise headquartered in the Netherlands with two main divisions, Shipping and Offshore. For 50 years, our family-owned company has been lifting and shipping high-value cargoes safely and on time, along with providing reliable and efficient heavy lift transportation solutions for our clients worldwide. Jumbo operates a versatile fleet of Heavy Lift Vessels with lifting capacities from 650 to 3,000 tonnes. With a specialised offshore fleet, Jumbo serves the global offshore energy industry as an offshore installation contractor in the Oil & Gas, Subsea and Renewables markets. In relative shallow water environments, Jumbo are experts in the installation of fixed facilities such as piled foundations, templates, conductors, jackets and topsides and wind turbine foundations. In more challenging deep water and ultra-deep water, Jumbo excels in subsea lifting of large and complex structures and foundations, including the provision of complete FPSO Mooring System installations.
