08 Oct 2008

Keppel/Technip consortium on track to deliver P-51 to Petrobras

The consortium of Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M) and Technip Engenharia S/A is on track to deliver the P-51 floating production unit (FPU) to Petrobras Netherlands BV (PNBV) by November 2008.

This 48,000 tonne FPU is the second such rig that the consortium partners have completed. The first rig, the P-52 FPU, is currently producing in the Roncador field.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil and First Lady Marisa Letícia Lula da Silva who was the Lady Sponsor, were at Keppel FELS Brasil’s BrasFELS shipyard yesterday to witness the christening. They were joined by some 5,000 Brazilian workers who also celebrated the achievement of the national project.

Like the P-52, the P-51 also realises the country’s aspiration to revive its shipbuilding industry and to become a net oil exporter. It will support Petrobras' offshore oil exploration and production activities, contributing significantly towards Brazil’s self-sufficiency in oil production. The making of the two rigs has also enabled significant technological and knowledge transfer to Brazil.

With the P-51, Keppel’s projects for Petrobras will contribute at production capacity more than 1 million barrels of oil per day (bopd). This represents over 50% of Brazil’s present production rate of 1.8 million bopd. In 2010, when it reaches its top operating capacity, the P-51 will account for 8% of Brazil’s domestic oil production.

The project also won accolades from Petrobras for excellence in project management and execution through the PRODEP award for two consecutive years in 2006 and 2007.

Mr Choo Chiau Beng, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Keppel O&M, said, “Keppel is a long term and serious investor. We are committed to support Brazil in its aims for local contents and to realise its goal as a net oil exporter. We are privileged to play a part in the Brazilian Government and Petrobras’s ambition to have the platform P-51 rig built almost entirely in Brazil using Brazilian workers.

“This is part and parcel of Keppel O&M’s Near Market, Near Customer Strategy. It is our mission everywhere we set up operations, to lend full support to our customers to reach their goals.

“We are close to completing the P-51, we will continue to service Petrobras in its other projects including the P-56. We hope to build more rig projects for Petrobras here in BrasFELS. We are honoured to be able to help further enhance the close relationship between Singapore and Brazil, as well as that of Keppel with Petrobras.”

The P-51 is a FPU that stands 34 storeys high and 10 Olympic swimming pools wide. The platform will be anchored in a water depth of 1,255 metres in the Marlim Sul field, in the Campos Basin in Brazil, and will have the capacity to produce 180,000 bopd with medium API gravity of 28 and 6 million m³/day of gas.

In addition to the P-51, the Keppel/Technip consortium is also building the P-56, which had in September 2008 achieved the completion of the first block and one million manhours without lost time incident. Identical to the P-51, the P-56 will be the third FPU constructed by Keppel FELS Brasil and will help create and sustain employment in Angra dos Reis.

In Brazil’s bid to become a net exporter of energy, its national oil company, Petrobras, has a planned investment of more than US$ 112 billion for 2008-2012 and about 60% of the budget has been allocated for exploration and production. It has also announced plans to build and convert more floating production units such as semisubmersibles and floating production storage and offloading facilities (FPSOs).


For further information, please contact:

Singapore
Sarah Seah (Ms)
Deputy General Manager
Group Corporate Communications
Tel: +65 64136 420
Email: sarah.seah@kepcorp.com

Brazil
Marcio Ferreira (Mr)
Press Advisor
Keppel FELS Brasil
M: +55 21 7816 9593 / +55 21 9315 7974
Email: marcioferreira@hotmail.com or assessoria.imprensa@kfelsbrasil.com.br


ABOUT KEPPEL FELS BRASIL

Keppel FELS Brasil is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel O&M. It operates BrasFELS yard in Angra dos Reis, which is the most comprehensive shipyard in the Southern Hemisphere.

A global leader in offshore rigs and ship conversion and repair as well as a specialised shipbuilder, Keppel O&M is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Corporation. Its ‘Near Market, Near Customer’ strategy is bolstered by a global network of 20 yards in the Asia Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, Brazil, the Caspian Sea, Middle East and the North Sea regions.

Integrating the experience and expertise of its yards worldwide, the group aims to be the provider of choice and partner in solutions for the offshore and marine industry.


ABOUT TECHNIP ENGENHARIA S/A

Headquartered in Paris, Technip Engenharia S/A is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Technip S.A., which is ranked among the top five corporations in the field of oil, gas and petrochemical engineering, construction and services.


ABOUT PNBV

PNBV is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Petrobras SA, which is the state oil company of Brazil, engaged in exploration, production, refining, trading and transportation of petroleum and its by-products at home and abroad.

Attachments:

Download - Speech by Mr Choo Chiau Beng

At the christening of the P-51 floating production unit (FPU) on 7 October 2008 in Brazil: (from L-R) Mr Choo Chiau Beng, Chairman & CEO of Keppel Offshore & Marine, First Lady Marisa Letícia and Lady Sponsor of the P-51; His Excellency Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil.

During the christening of the P-51 FPU, Mr Choo Chiau Beng, Chairman & CEO of Keppel Offshore & Marine, reiterates Keppel’s commitment to work with Petrobras to reach its goal to be a net oil exporter.

His Excellency Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil (raising Brazil’s national flag) and First Lady Marisa Letícia and Lady Sponsor of the P-51 (on his right) with workers of Petrobras and Keppel FELS Brasil. In the background is the P-51 FPU.

With the P-51 FPU, Keppel’s projects for Petrobras will contribute over 50% of Brazil’s present production rate of 1.8 million bopd.