SOFEC replaces Lufeng 13-2 FSO turret system

Offshore staff

HOUSTON – CNOOC’s FSO HYSY121 has been installed at the Lufeng 13-2 field in the South China Sea.

SOFEC supplied the replacement vessel’s internal disconnectable turret system at the end of last year for integration with the vessel at CNOOC’s yard in Shenzhen, China, but the program was subsequently delayed due to the impact of COVID-19.

However, early last month, the completed system sailed from Shenzhen to the offshore location.  The FSO was successfully connected to the existing Lufeng 13-2 moorings on May 6, with operations starting the following day.                             

In 1993 SOFEC designed and installed the original internal disconnectable turret system for a 121,361 dwt FSO converted by MODEC to operate in 141 m (462 ft) of water in a typhoon-prone region.

The turret mooring system allowed the FSO to disconnect and sail to a safe harbor if a typhoon approached and then return to the field and reconnect after the storm had passed.

Under normal operating conditions, the turret allowed the FSO to continually rotate into prevailing weather without interruptions to production, SOFEC said.   

In 2012, the company replaced the mooring legs and submerged buoy of the original system as part of a field life extension program. This new vessel and turret were designed to connect to the existing buoy and moorings, and to provide a fluid flow path for the riser.

SOFEC CEO Rick Hall said the new disconnectable system should remain in service over the next 30 years.  

06/16/2020