Zakum Development Company (Zadco), Abu Dhabi, has awarded a five-year programme management consultancy (PMC) contract to Amec.
The reimbursable contract is estimated to be worth $75 million - the largest oil-related PMC contract ever awarded by Zadco.
Amec will provide engineering, consultancy and project management services extending from concept stage through front-end engineering design (Feed), design, construction and commissioning of several projects on the multi-billion-dollar Upper Zakum full field development programme. The programme began in 2007 and is expected to be completed by 2013.
Among the projects in which Amec will be involved are the replacement of the 60 km main subsea oil pipeline, expansion of onshore/offshore gas treatment facilities, development of the east and west areas of the field, and a major programme of work to increase offshore crude production capacity from 500,000 to 750,000 barrels per day.
“This contract on one of the world’s major offshore fields is another significant step in our strategic growth plans in the Middle East and North Africa region,” said Tony Cruddas, president - growth regions, Amec’s Natural Resources division. “Our offshore expertise from around the world and our PMC experience in the Middle East, together with our Convero programme management system, were key factors in winning the contract, which we hope will lead to further work in the region,” said Cruddas.
Upper Zakum is the most important of Zadco’s fields. Located 84 km offshore to the north-west of Abu Dhabi’s islands, the field covers approximately 1,200 sq km of the Arabian Gulf. It is part of the Zakum field, the second largest field in the Gulf and the fourth largest in the world.
Zadco, formed in 1977, has three major shareholders, namely Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) with 60 per cent shares, ExxonMobil (28 per cent) and Japan Oil Development Company limited (Jodco) (12 per cent).
Amec’s natural resources, power and process and earth and environmental businesses employ over 23,000 people in more than 30 countries globally.
The Natural Resources division is a leading provider of total life-of-asset services to customers in the upstream and downstream oil and gas sectors, petrochemicals, pipelines and mining industries. The company has worked in the Middle East for more 30 years and is currently working on oil and gas projects in Kuwait, Libya, UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Amec has been ranked one of the world’s top five companies for sustainability in the oil equipment and services sector according to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) 2008/9. The firm was in competition with 49 other organisations for only five places.
It is the first time Amec has appeared in this sector and the fifth year in succession that it has featured in the DJSI, which annually surveys and benchmarks the world’s 2,500 largest companies. Only the top 10 per cent are included in the index.