An important component for Excelerate's Energy Bridge project, under which LNG for the US market will be regasified offshore and transported ashore by subsea pipeline, is under construction in Uddevalla, Sweden.
Heavy engineering specialist Junoverken is fabricating the submerged turret-loading buoy through which gas will be transferred from the regasification vessel to the subsea pipeline. The structure comprises a buoy weighing 102 tonnes with a 50-tonne turret. According to managing director Sören Forsberg, this is the company's first order from APL, the Norwegian supplier that markets the submerged turret technology. It is also the first time APL has contracted the fabrication of a submerged turret system outside Norway. To this end, APL undertook a quality audit of Junoverken last year.
The schedule is tight – delivery is set for October, although the contract was only signed early this year. In addition, the two parts of the buoy are both complicated structures; quality norms are high; 100% traceability is required on all materials and welds; and there is a demanding test program.
Assembly has begun on the submerged turret-loading buoy for the Energy Bridge project, Junover-ken's first delivery to APL.
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The buoy is being built from 31C certified carbon steel. Material availability is usually vital in fast-track projects – in this case, the steel had to be procured from several suppliers as mills do not usually keep this grade in stock. Some fine tolerances also have to be achieved: for example, the top rim of the cone of the buoy has to be machined with a tolerance of ± 3mm.
Snøhvit umbilicals
Junoverken, which is certified to the ISO 9001:2000 standard and the EN 729-2 welding norm, performs materials handling, machining, welding, pipe installation, machine assembly, heat treatment, surface treatment, testing, and documentation.
Currently it is fabricating bend restrictors for Nexans to be used for the installation of umbilicals on Statoil's Snøhvit project, and recently it also supplied end terminations to the same company. Junoverken has made various deliveries to Pharmadule Emtunga for offshore accommodation modules, including most recently the base frame and helipad beams for Statoil's Kristin quarters. Another regular customer is the drilling equipment and crane manufacturer Hydralift.
For more information, contact Sören Forsberg, Junoverken. Tel +46 522 984 08, fax +46 522 367 30, [email protected], www.mattsson.se.
