BW Offshore is still working on assessing and rectifying the damage aboard the Cidade de Sao Mateus FPSO, which blew up in February, killing nine workers in the process.

Months after the explosion, the damaged Floating Production Storage and Offloading unit has yet to be disconnected and moved to a yard for repairs.

In an update on Thursday, BW Offshore said that work was still ongoing to empty the Petrobras-hired FPSO of cargo and disconnect the unit for transport to a yard.

“The disconnection of the unit has been significantly delayed by the approval process in Brazil. The cost of repairs are still being estimated together with impact from impairment to be taken for damages incurred,” said the Oslo-listed provider of offshore production and storage units to the international oil and gas industry

BW Offshore did say that cargo offloading was getting closer, and a tanker to take the oil was on site. It also said it was working closely with insurance companies to take care of crew and families and the reinstatement of the unit.

As the unit is still at the field, it has been challenging to get access to make an accurate assessment of the damages, BW Offshore said, and thus it has been also hard to decide the book value to be impaired. This impairment charge will be booked as soon as a reliable estimate can be made, BW Offshore added.

Also, the company could not give a timeline for when the vessel might return to production: “Given the delay to the disconnection the unit is expected to be without rate for some time before repairs can be carried out, and the unit returns to the field. The length of this period is still uncertain.”

The ill-fated FPSO has been on contract with Petrobras since 2009 on the Camarupim and Camarupim Norte fields in Espirito Santo, 120 km from the coast. The contract is set for expiration in 2018, with Petrobras having an option to extend until 2024.

In June 2015, Petrobras issued a report in which it said the main factors that caused the February accident were breaches of fluid pumping operating procedures, the installation of a piece of equipment (racket) in a pipe without the proper technical specifications and alteration registration, and safety procedure violations.

Source: www.offshoreenergytoday.com

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