Brunei Shell Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd’s (Brunei Shell Petroleum) has completed construction of its remotely-controlled Bugan platform a year ahead of schedule and within budget. The facility is on track to deliver first oil in September 2009. The platform, which has a 1400 tonne, 40 meter-high topside, was built at Brunei Shell Petroleum marine construction yard in Kuala Belait.
The project maximized the use of Bruneian contractors throughout the supply chain, from design, equipment supply, fabrication and installation. More than BND27 million has been spent with 33 local businesses, who have played a key role in delivering this project.
In 2007, it was decided to develop a new platform to accelerate production from the Bugan field, first discovered in the 1990s.
Traditionally, the journey from final investment decision to first oil would take over three years. Bugan took just 20 months.
The Bugan jacket and topside structure were planned as ‘carbon copies’ of the earlier Champion West and Mampak platforms, benefiting from a proven design and standardized equipment.
Another key contributor to fast delivery was the unparalleled performance of local businesses, especially SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises). Many had gained experience on Champion West, Mampak and other previous Brunei Shell Petroleum projects.
Instead of appointing one large international contractor to manage the project, Brunei Shell Petroleum divided it into components, which enabled experienced local contractors and suppliers to compete through an open tender.
The Managing Director of SKS, Omar bin Abdul said, “The award of the Major Fabrication contract signifies an opportunity for SKS to showcase its capability in handling major projects. As a local contractor, we are committed to develop Bruneians to acquire the skills required in the oil and gas industry.”
“Towards this commitment, SKS has invested million of dollars in the construction of a new training school with facilities to train welders, scaffolders, electricians, inspectors, HSE and various other courses with the aim to increase the number of Bruneians to join the workforce.”
“We strongly support the involvement of SMEs and at present, there are more than 100 SMEs that are working closely with us on various projects.”
He continued, “Safety remains the top priority in all our operation. Despite of the high-risk activities, SKS has worked over 2 million man-hours without a lost time incident, since the beginning of the contract, and more than 400 accident free days for the Bugan Project. This is indeed an outstanding safety performance. The success is achieved jointly with BSP Major Project Team which helps to bring the best out of the Contractors.”
“Indeed it is a pride for us in SKS to deliver the project in time, within the budget and above all in a safe manner.”
Brunei Shell Petroleum’s Grahaeme Henderson said it was particularly pleasing to see local business development now accelerating and expanding as a result of this long-term investment.
“Many of the Bruneian skilled workers, such as scaffolders, welders and electricians, who worked on Bugan were actually trained on Mampak – the last platform we built in Brunei. These workers are now in demand for other projects. This investment in skills is opening up new opportunities for Bruneian people, and directly supports the Government’s aspirations on skills development and diversification,” he said.
“Bruneian contractors are also winning work abroad on the back of capabilities they’ve gained through Brunei Shell Petroleum,” Henderson said. “The world-leading safety practices, performance management systems, quality control requirements and exposure to leading-edge technologies, learned through working with Brunei Shell Petroleum, are making local firms attractive partners to international companies.”
“Winning international business is a clear business demonstration of how competitive these companies have become.”