Cairn Energy, an independent oil and gas company, has informed that first steel has been cut for the Premier-operated Catcher FPSO unit. Cairn owns a stake in the Catcher area, located in the UK Central North Sea.

Cairn did not specify the exact date of the Catcher FPSO steel cutting ceremony but only said it had been held in the first quarter of 2015, meaning in the last two weeks.

Cairn also said that development drilling at the project is expected to start in the second half or the year, following installation of the first phase of subsea drilling templates.

Japan’s IHI is responsible for the construction of the FPSO hull, while Singapore’s Dyna-Mac will deliver 10 FPSO modules and a flare tower. BW Offshore, which will own the FPSO and lease it to Premier Oil, has recently reported that the construction activities started on the FPSO turret mooring system.

Cairn, which owns a 20% share in the project following a 10% interest sale to Dyas, has said that the Catcher is progressing as planned with production expected in 2017.

The Catcher field, discovered in 2010, is expected to produce 96 million barrels of oil equivalent with a peak production rate of around 50,000 barrels of oil per day.

Source: www.offshoreenergytoday.com

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