Norwegian-based subsea contractor Ocean Installer AS has awarded GE Oil & Gas a contract to supply subsea tie-in connection systems that will support the development of the Gina Krog and Eirin gas fields in the Norwegian North Sea.

Statoil Petroleum AS, which operates the Gina Krog (formerly known as Dagny) and Eirin fields, previously awarded Ocean Installer the overall engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contract to provide the subsea installations and tie-in operations for the two fields. As part of its EPCI contract, Ocean Installer is responsible for the design, fabrication and subsea installation of a gas export pipeline end manifold (PLEM); the oil export riser base; the tie-in spools and covers; and all associated remote tie-in operations. The work scope related to the Eirin field is included as an option due to the project being sanctioned at a later stage.

The Gina Krog field is located 30 kilometers (km) northwest of the Sleipner A installation and approximately 250 kilometers (km) southwest of Stavanger, Norway. The Eirin gas and condensate field is located 9 km northwest of Gina Krog. The fields are among Statoil's major new developments with an estimated 225 million barrels of oil and gas.

For the project with Ocean Installer, GE is providing equipment to connect the Sleipner A installation with a new Gina Krog production platform and floating storage unit after they are built. The value of the contract with Ocean Installer is approximately 100 MNOK (U.S $16.7 million) and includes hardware and offshore installations, with an additional 30 MNOK in options. The option consists of connections to the nearby Eirin field.

The order with Ocean Installer reinforces GE’s position as a preferred supplier of tie-in operation solutions and strengthens the company’s experience with supporting challenging projects around the world.

“We are pleased having signed this contract with Ocean Installer, combining our extensive experience in the segment with Ocean Installer’s highly qualified project organization and efficient assets,” said Tom Huuse, regional service leader—Subsea Systems for GE Oil & Gas. “With our field-proven, reliable and efficient tie-in connection system, we will create value not only for Ocean Installer as the EPCI contractor, but also for Statoil as the end user.”

Huuse noted that GE’s OTR Intervention department in Dusavik, Norway will manage the contract work on behalf of Ocean Installer, reinforcing the Dusavik team’s long-term strategy to lead GE Oil & Gas’ tie–in connection services, not only in the region but also globally.

GE will start to deliver its equipment to Ocean Installer in the fourth quarter of 2014, with commercial operation of the equipment scheduled for the third quarter of 2016.

Statoil is the operator of the Gina Krog field (58.7 percent) and its additional license partners are Total E&P Norge (38 percent) and Det Norske (3.3 percent). Statoil also operates the Eirin field (78.2 percent) with Total E&P Norge serving as license partner (21.8 percent).

The contract with Ocean Installer comes a month after GE announced it was awarded a contract to provide Korean shipbuilding firm Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) with turbomachinery equipment and services for the new oil and gas production platform being built to support the Gina Krog field production activities.

The Gina Krog platform order represented the second contract to be implemented as part of a five-year turbomachinery equipment and services supply frame agreement that GE and Statoil signed in February 2013.

Statoil and GE Oil & Gas' cooperation dates back to the 1970s with the supply of compressors for the Statfjord platform in the North Sea. In addition to signing their latest frame agreements, GE and Statoil recently signed a technology cooperation agreement involving key engineering personnel from both companies. Once a year, GE and Statoil’s CEOs also hold a management forum. Based in Stavanger, Norway, Statoil Petroleum AS explores, produces and transports oil and gas including petroleum and petroleum-derived products. Statoil Petroleum AS is a subsidiary of Statoil ASA.

About Ocean Installer

Ocean Installer is a subsea company headquartered in Stavanger, Norway and with offices in Aberdeen and Houston. Ocean Installer holds strong EPCI expertise within the SURF (Subsea, Umbilicals, Risers, Flowlines) segment and is rapidly expanding its operations and organisation within and beyond the North Sea basin.

Ocean Installer provides its clients with recognized first-rate assets and has secured long-term charters on two construction support vessels (CSV): Normand Clipper and Normand Mermaid. A third CSV, in which Ocean Installer has ownership, is under construction and is to be delivered in Q2 2014. Ocean Installer will continuously invest and develop its assets to fulfill its ambition to be a key service provider within the SURF segment.

Ocean Installer is majority-owned by HitecVision, a leading investor in the oil and gas industry.

About GE Oil & Gas

GE Oil & Gas (NYSE: GE) is a world leader in advanced technologies and services with 43,000 employees in more than 100 countries supporting customers across the industry—from extraction to transportation to end use. Our unrelenting commitment to the environment, health and safety, quality and integrity defines us: it’s The Way We Work. We develop smart solutions for our customers across the oil and gas value chain delivering the innovation, customized service solutions, training programs and technology that helps them to maximize their efficiency, productivity and equipment reliability. We partner with our customers to develop their next generation workforce; help them to fully benefit from the megatrends of natural gas, the growth of subsea and hard-to-reach reserves and the revolution in asset health management.

About GE

GE (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter. The best people and the best technologies taking on the toughest challenges. Finding solutions in energy, health and home, transportation and finance. Building, powering, moving and curing the world. Not just imagining. Doing. GE works.

About Statoil

Statoil (OSE:STL, NYSE:STO) is an international energy company with operations in 34 countries. Building on 40 years of experience from oil and gas production on the Norwegian continental shelf, we are committed to accommodating the world's energy needs in a responsible manner, applying technology and creating innovative business solutions. We are headquartered in Stavanger, Norway with approx. 23,000 employees worldwide, and are listed on the New York and Oslo stock exchanges.