The Netherlands-based Royal Boskalis Westminster has been awarded three oil and gas-related contracts worth approximately E100 million for pipeline projects in Europe and the Middle East.
According to the company, two contracts are linked to the Nord Stream gas pipeline project. This project encompasses the construction of two 1,220km gas pipelines from Russia to northern Germany through the Baltic Sea.
Boskalis will prepare the seabed for the laying of the pipelines over the full distance of the Nord Stream pipelines, and also execute the shore approach of the pipelines in Germany.
The contract for the preparation of the seabed for the 1,220km double pipeline requires the construction of rock beds and berms using approximately 320,000 tonnes of rock to level and stabilize the seabed. The project will be executed in a 50-50 partnership with Tideway and will be realized in 2010, said the company.
The contract for the shore approach for the double pipeline in Germany requires the dredging of a 23km trench for the pipes, a pipe-pull over a distance of approximately 800m and the backfilling of the dredged trench. A 650m cofferdam will be constructed on the waterline to protect the pipeline. The project will be executed in a 50-50 partnership with Rohde Nielsen and will also be realized in 2010.
The oil company said that the third contract comprises the infrastructure, including the shore approach, for an oil pipeline from the Safaniyah offshore field to mainland Saudi Arabia. Boskalis will dredge a 7km trench and backfill the trench with sand after completing a pipe-pull. The project will be executed in 2009 for Saudi Aramco.
Royal Boskalis Westminster is an international group engaged in dredging services. Its core activities are the construction and maintenance of ports and waterways, land reclamation, coastal defense and riverbank protection.