Offshore staff
SOUTH KOREA — Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) said on Aug. 5 that it has filed an arbitration request with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) regarding a claim for damages from INPEX, Japan's largest oil and gas exploration and production company, according to Business Korea and various Aug. 8 news reports.
The Japanese company demanded damages worth US$970 million regarding the FPSO built and installed by DSME in the waters off Australia in 2017.
INPEX claimed that production was delayed at the FPSO due to defects of the facilities.
DSME signed a contract on the FPSO in March 2012. After about five years of construction, DSME shipped the facility in July 2017. In June 2019, the facility was delivered after preparations for production in Australia and is currently producing LNG, LPG and condensate.
“Most of INPEX's claims do not hold water and the amount of the damages is excessive,” DSME said, according to the Business Korea report. “The facility was ready for departure at Okpo Shipyard within the completion date required in the contract. Additional costs related to changes in contract details that occurred during the execution of the contract were also approved by INPEX, so we received the payment. The claims filed by INPEX are matters beyond the scope of DSME’s responsibilities under the contract.”
“We will actively respond to arbitration procedures to minimize financial impacts on our company and receive the remaining contract money. We will make steady efforts to commercially settle this matter,” DSME added.
While the company did not identify the project by name, the companies involved and the dates provided correspond to the delivery date of INPEX’s Ichthys Venturer FPSO, built for Inpex's Ichthys project in Australia.
DSME said Aug. 5 that INPEX had filed a claim for damages, claiming delays and defects in the commissioning preparation work.
"In this regard, the company determines that the amount of compensation and the grounds claimed by INPEX are unreasonable,” DSME said. "We are currently preparing a response to INPEX's claim and arbitration request, and we plan to respond according to the arbitration process in the future."
According to data on INPEX's website, 17 offshore condensate cargos were shipped from the Ichthys Venturer in the first half of 2022. The FPSO can produce around 100,000 bbl/d at peak.
08.10.2022
