INNOVATION IN RESPONSE TO A CRISIS
EXMAR OFFSHORE COMPANY
The Delta House offshore installation, operated by Murphy Oil Corporation, utilises the Exmar OPTI-11000â„¢ hull
2 | North America Outlook issue 01
OIL & GAS
The Age of T
Energy Transition As the oil and gas industry recovers from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, we speak to David Lim and Jay Cotaya about the innovative new route for Exmar Offshore Company Writer: Marcus Kääpä Project Manager: David Knott
he past year has seen the stagnation or decline of entire industries across the globe. The travel industry, for example, saw many airlines suffer from 90 percent reductions in passengers, while many others took to switching their services to freight transport to bring back some of what they lost during lockdown periods. The oil and gas industry has been no different. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the global average of daily oil demand will be reduced to eight million barrels per day this year, a decline of roughly eight percent from last year. Major oil consumers such as the aviation industry, that itself has been hit incredibly hard by the effects of the pandemic, have reduced their oil consumption drastically. This has led to oil production companies suffering a drawn-out decline of financial strength over the course of 2020. According to David Lim (Managing Director) and Jay Cotaya (Sales Manager – Major Projects) of Exmar Offshore Company, the result of the pandemic has caused a huge drop for offshore drilling and related services. “COVID-19 has resulted in global demand reduction, projects being re-evaluated or even cancelled, and has been extremely hard on an already challenged industry – one that was coming off years of efforts to reduce inefficiency and operate with lower margins,” Lim tells us. Exmar is the US-based branch of the Belgian Exmar NV Group, operating under the wider company’s Infrastructure sector (with Shipping representing the other main division). Exmar Offshore is an engineering services and project development company, proud experts in the provision of a multitude of practices backed up by its broad and historical industry knowledge. As opposed to the firm’s other branches (Exmar LNG, Exmar LPG, and other services) that focus largely North America Outlook issue 01 | 3
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EXMAR OFFSHORE COMPANY on the shipping side of the wider company, Exmar Offshore specialises in the assembly, leasing, operation, and maintenance of company designed semisubmersible drilling and production platforms.
OPTI® – AN INDUSTRY STANDARD-SETTER The company has a long history of working in offshore. It was generally focused on industry floating solutions
but specifically dealt with drilling and production, and in 2006 the firm took a bold move and built the OPTI-EX™ production submersible – the first Exmar OPTI® design to enter the industry. “Exmar Offshore Company has a reputation for efficiency and in these times its practical and lower cost solutions receive the greatest attention,” Cotaya says. “The OPTI® production semisubmersible was
OPTI® KEY FEATURES MOTIONS: The design includes a proprietary multi-sided column which reduces drag forces, leading to lower mooring forces and negligible VIM. The proprietary ring pontoon shape, featuring surfaces outboard of the columns, reducing heave motions. Combined, these features result in motions suitable for both SCRs and flexibles and minimised mooring equipment requirements. CONSTRUCTABILITY: The form of the hull is designed to reduce motions; the hull structure is designed to simplify construction. Minimal structural shapes, thicknesses, and steel material grades are selected to reduce fabrication costs and improve shipyard efficiency. A truss structure with a flat upper deck allows for modular equipment skids to be integrated near-ground level in a flexible sequence, while the spacious lower deck accommodates further equipment as needed. SCALABILITY: The hull form and deck truss fit a broad selection of global fabricator capabilities. The structurally repeatable columns, pontoons, and nodes allow for both easy repetition across projects and are easy scalability. The large, flat deck facilitates the removal or modification of modules with minimal impact.
The Exmar OPTI-EX® production semisubmersible en route to LLOG’s Who Dat development
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Bexco A leading producer of ultra-deepwater mooring rope in the Gulf of Mexico BEXCO has decades of expertise and knowhow in designing and manufacturing its reliable, made-tomeasure synthetic ultra-deepwater mooring solution for full production systems in the Gulf of Mexico. DeepRope® has been installed and operational on the DELTAHOUSE OPTI® Floating Production System since 2014 and is proudly awaiting its delivered DeepRope® reels to be installed on the King’s Quay Floating Production System (FPS). Both of these utilizes EXMAR Offshore´s unique OPTI® semisubmersible design, making it the scalable GOM standard for specialised independent energy companies dedicated to oil and natural gas development and exploration. From the pre-FEED to project management, installation and support, BEXCO´s expert engineers are on hand to partner with all stakeholders to deliver its proven DeepRope® solution in the field.
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DeepRope delivers proven performance ®
BEXCO’s DeepRope® represents the industry standard in ultra-deepwater synthetic mooring solutions. Produced to perfection at our purpose built site in Antwerp with efficient connectivity to ocean transport, DeepRope® meets and exceeds the demands of the global oil and gas exploration industry. It’s a claim that’s confirmed by Deeprope® being the rope of choice for GOM projects such as Deltahouse, Vito, Stones and Kings Quay, to name just a few. So for proven performance backed by BEXCO’s reputation for quality and service delivery, BEXCO’s DeepRope® delivers.
BEXCO nv • Industriepark Zwaarveld 25 • 9220 Hamme Belgium • Tel: +32 52 499 370 Email: offshore@bexco.be • For more information on our products: www.bexco.be
EXMAR OFFSHORE COMPANY conceived nearly 20 years ago as a standard, scalable and low-cost solution for deep-water production.” The firm’s activities are historically grounded in naval architecture and structural engineering. On top of this, it houses decades of experience and knowledge in related fields such as production and marine systems. Seen as a reliable, dependable partner, it is this reputation which has kept the company buoyant in challenging times. Indeed, Exmar’s OPTI® is a standout in the oil and gas industry. Conceived two decades ago, it is a proven and accepted deep water development solution – the semisubmersible hull design platform is revolutionary within a conservative industry that is relatively averse to change. The OPTI® is formed of a hull and deck truss form that aids in the execution of offshore projects and leads to lower lifecycle costs. The OPTI® proprietary hull form and single
deck truss features combine superior hydrodynamic performance with payload weight efficiency, ease of construction, simple integration, and rapid, flexible project execution. This design achieves optimised motions by utilising a deeper draft and ringed pontoon design and has become something of a company hallmark. “The OPTI® has become nearly synonymous with Exmar Offshore Company, and although its business includes significant non-OPTI® related engineering services, the OPTI® makes us particularly proud,” Lim says. This design has given Exmar an edge over its competition in the industry. Through owning the design, the firm has the independence to work with any EPC contractor, shipyard, or operator under a license agreement. But the company is also forward thinking in its business approach. “Its commitment to continual innovation and practical solutions has
OPTI® MODELS OPTI-MICRO™: Introduced in 2016 as a solution for limited recoverable reserves or as an early production system, the OPTI-micro™ offers a flexible development solution with upside production potential. With a 40,000 barrels per day production capability, the OPTImicro™ offers a strategic alternative to a complicated, expensive tie-back at a lower cost than a larger conventional hub.
Bardex Since the 1960’s Bardex has been providing solutions to lift, move, position or restrain heavy loads in Oil & Gas and Shipyard applications. The mooring systems we have used on Exmar FPU hulls in the past have been Moveable/Removable Topside Tensioning Systems and most recently the newly designed (OVT) Off Vessel Tensioning Systems. These 2 types of mooring systems offer considerable advantages, with the latter saving considerably more weight, space and costs.
www.bardex.com
OPTI-16000™: To meet future hub applications, where greater production rates and enhanced oil and gas recovery requirements demand a larger deck and load capability, Exmar has developed the OPTI-16000™. The design will provide production rates in excess of 120,000 barrels per day and provide space and load capacity for water flood, gas injection, and subsea boosting equipment. It retains all the technical features and construction strategies of previous designs for a cost-effective facility.
OPTI-EX®: Exmar’s confidence in the OPTI® concept and design was so great that it took the ultimate risk, and OPTI-EX® became the industry’s first speculative build semisubmersible floating production system. A decade later, OPTI-EX®, with up to a 60,000 barrels per day capacity, continues safely producing for LLOG with unrivalled uptime availability. OPTI-11000™: Sized specifically to take advantage of the largest platform integration crane available on the US Gulf Coast, the OPTI-11000™ offers increased capacity up to 100,000 barrels per day. The result is the industry leading and award-winning Delta House facility operated by Murphy Oil Corporation.
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The OPTI-11000™ hull for the Delta House offshore installation makes ready to sail from South Korea to Ingleside, Texas
OIL & GAS
Bardex Mooring System Solutions – To Save Space, Weight & Costs
Movable & Removable Topside Tensioning (to save equipment weight & costs)
www.bardex.com Features & Benefits of Bardex Mooring Systems DIFFERENTIATORS • CAPEX & OPEX savings systems designs • Innovative Chain Management Solutions to save weight, costs and installation time. • Field proven designs • Reliable, unique load measurement systems • Designed to reduce chain stress and wear • Patented BarLatch UFCS to reduce or eliminate OPB/IPB • Low friction bearing on Conventional & UFCS fairlead designs. • Minimized FPU Hull Interface Structures & Associated Costs • Reduced Mooring Equipment Lifecycle Costs
Off Vessel Tensioning
(to capture all topsides space, eliminate topsides weight & minimize CAPEX & OPEX costs)
EXPERIENCE • Inventors of the Chain Jack; patented and in use for over 50+ years. • Top level technical team with the longest track record in the industry, specializing in client’s technical requirements. • Designs Reviewed and Certified by ABS, BV and DNV-GL • Mooring & Design analysis with flexible design configurations • Numerous mooring high profile Global & Gulf of Mexico references with key oil & gas Majors & Supermajors • Engineering Services from concept design to Construction & Installation to Decommissioning. • Lifecycle Support Services ensuring equipment availability, operating at peak performance
The OPTI-11000™ hull for Murphy Oil Corporation’s King’s Quay deep water development in the Gulf of Mexico
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EXMAR OFFSHORE COMPANY driven Exmar Offshore Company to develop and improve products with clear intent,” Cotaya adds. While the OPTI® and its deployment is an in-house feature of Exmar, Lim and Cotaya acknowledge that the company would not be able to provision its whole service offering without the presence of a number of strategic partnerships with external companies. The professional relationships that the firm cultivates and maintains are both mutual and beneficial for both parties and the end customer. “The company works closely with subsurface and subsea companies. It also works with topsides companies, typically selected by the operator,” Cotaya says. “For the execution of projects, we work closely with shipyards relying on the network and reputation of the Exmar Group which has extensive construction experience. “For instance, we have had relationships with riser and mooring companies that have been instrumental in developing an optimised performance solution.”
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE Just as partnerships are held in the highest regard, the individual efforts of the Exmar workforce drive the design, production, and services the company provides its varied customer base. The firm prides itself on its workforce of employees from diverse backgrounds that collectively make up the drive behind high-performance service. “Exmar is full of examples of technically innovative successes, whether it is FSRUs, FLNG, LPG fuelled LPG carriers or OPTIs®, and exciting projects attract creative people,” Cotaya says. “Keeping creative people motivated means giving them challenges and real responsibilities. “It is not a large company among its peers, but it achieves great things, and each person is able to point to where they contributed to that success.” 10 | North America Outlook issue 01
“FLEXIBILITY COMBINED WITH A STRONG WORK ETHIC THAT WAS CONSISTENT WHETHER AT HOME OR IN THE OFFICE HELPED US TO SUCCEED IN THESE DIFFICULT TIMES” – DAVID LIM
OIL & GAS
The King’s Quay process facility and deck truss under construction at Hyundai Heavy Industries, South Korea
North America Outlook issue 01 | 11
EXMAR OFFSHORE COMPANY
THE CHAIRMAN’S VIEW OUTLOOK PUBLISHING (OP): Tell us a bit about yourself and your background in the industry. How did you get involved with Exmar? NICOLAS SAVERYS (NS): My family has been involved in the maritime industry for more than 190 years, mainly through shipbuilding. Since the 60s and 70s, as a family we have been diversifying more into shipping activities. I founded Exmar in 1981, starting as a new player active in the LPG shipping industry. As a family, we bought CMB in 1991, at that time Belgium’s largest ship-owner. After demerger we recreated three companies as from 2003, CMB (Bocimar), Euronav, and Exmar. OP: How important is LNG regasification to Exmar? Can you tell us about the company’s legacy in this field, and what your outlook is for the future?
We have in the meantime developed our seventh generation of midsize LPG carriers (segment between 20,000 – 40,000 cubic metres), and we have since Exmar’s inception continuously been pushing the limits of new ship designs. Also, operationally we have been ground-breaking in the shift over between different types of cargos. Today Exmar is building the world’s first Very Large Gas Carriers (VLGCs) that can use LPG as a fuel instead of traditional fuel oil. These vessels, being built in China and to be chartered to Equinor, were the first of their kind and now others have followed suit. OP: What trends are currently shaping the gas industry? NS: Oil and gas will be there for the longer term, the next decades. Natural gas is the cleanest fossil fuel, and it will continue to grow. Renewables are not a reliable source of energy.
NS: Nearly 20 years ago Exmar started floating LNG regasification as a true pioneer, bringing the first FSRUs to the market. Exmar’s practical approach to problem solving has led the way the industry thinks about floating regasification from the design itself, the floating transfer of LNG cargo and most recently barge-based regasification.
When looking at trends, we see that the market requires the flexibility that floating LNG infrastructure provides. Drivers for this flexibility are:
With an ever-growing need in the market for flexible solutions, floating LNG technology will continue to progress. The well-known advantages of being fast track, re-deployable and cost efficient have led to the unlocking of many new LNG markets over the past decade thanks to FSRUs.
- Political uncertainty.
As for the future, there are still non-traditional markets where gas as an energy source are needed. These markets can be small and in developing countries. The barriers to opening these new markets are economics and permitting. Exmar has the proven, technical solutions and operational experience to quickly bring clean gas to these markets. OP: What innovations are you introducing to the LPG shipping sector? NS: LPG is more mature market and Exmar has had a significant presence in it since the early 1980s as a shipowner. Like it has done in all its businesses, Exmar embraces innovation that leads to better solutions meaning higher efficiency with a cost benefit, but always safe.
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- Shorter term contracts. - More uncertainty on the longer term from competing fuels.
Not only flexibility but also cost competitiveness remains key for the business portfolio. Exmar has a role to play on bringing costs down for its customers in the gas value chain. OP: Looking ahead, what are your views on the transition to a low carbon energy mix? How do you see it developing? NS: Energy demand is going only in one direction. Low carbon sources of fuel (specifically gas) have increased substantially and will take a greater share in the near future. Hydrogen and ammonia are also coming, but not immediately. Renewables are seeing a large investment that will drive their share of supply. There will not be a complete replacement of fossil fuels, but the mix or ratio is changing as more sources of energy are needed. Exmar is involved in all these areas of the transition.
OIL & GAS
Nicolas Saverys, Chairman
“THERE WILL NOT BE A COMPLETE REPLACEMENT OF FOSSIL FUELS, BUT THE MIX OR RATIO IS CHANGING AS MORE SOURCES OF ENERGY ARE NEEDED. EXMAR IS INVOLVED IN ALL THESE AREAS OF THE TRANSITION” – NICOLAS SAVERYS The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown many obstacles in the way all industries approach the workplace, and Exmar is one firm that has risen to the challenge. The company promoted remote working for its employees and aided the transition to such an environment. “Flexibility combined with a strong work ethic that was consistent whether at home or in the office helped us to succeed in these difficult times, and we believe that while the landscape is very different now,” Lim continues. “We believe we are better and stronger.” Indeed, it was this kind of individual employee focus that has defined Lim’s
own tenure at the company. His career had veered towards law before he was presented with the opportunity to join Exmar. He had originally joined the firm to gain experience in shipping to later explore the avenues of becoming an admiralty lawyer. Starting in Exmar’s Hong Kong office in 1997, he began with the trading of pressurised LPG vehicles. The 2000s saw Lim’s career leap forward through the firm. He was given the opportunity to move to Exmar’s headquarters in Antwerp in 2001, then to Houston to develop the company’s nascent LNG regasification business, and a few
years after he was presented with yet another opportunity. “In 2004 I was given the responsibility of taking Exmar Offshore Company from a technically strong design development company to a commercially profitable services and project development company,” Lim says. Now, as Exmar continues to serve its customers, energy is starting to pick back up, and optimism remains the primary emotion for Lim. “While deep-water exploration and development was paused in the early days of the pandemic, we are starting to see activity returning after months of re-evaluation,” he says. “Projects have been delayed but have not been cancelled.” The firm plans to deliver the installation of the King’s Quay FPS for Murphy Oil and its partners, as well as the sanctioning of another project in 2021. On top of this, OPTI® studies are ongoing, the aim being to move these forward for approval in the next 12-24 months. One of the most exciting prospects, however, is Exmar’s plans to explore the offshore renewables space, an area where the firm can take and apply its knowledge to a more sustainable sphere of the energy spectrum. “I am very optimistic for the coming year and beyond,” Cotaya says, bringing the conversation to a close. “I don’t believe the doomsday scenarios will be as bad as predicted. Difficult times lay ahead but the industry has always regrouped and redoubled its efforts. The offshore industry has weathered extreme highs and lows and continues to improve. We are in the age of energy transition and Exmar is part of it.”
EXMAR OFFSHORE COMPANY Tel: +1-281-679-3900 info@exmaroffshore.com www.exmaroffshore.com
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EXMAR OFFSHORE COMPANY 3700 West Sam Houston Parkway South Suite 300, Houston, TX USA Tel: +1-281-679-3900 Fax: +1-281-497-3370 info@exmaroffshore.com www.exmaroffshore.com
PRODUCED BY NORTH AMERICA OUTLOOK MAGAZINE