Asia's first cylindrical FPSO facility completed in E China

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Asia's first cylindrical floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) facility was completed in east China's Qingdao City on Friday, marking a milestone technological breakthrough in the country's high-end offshore oil and natural gas exploration.

Dubbed "Haikui No.1," the enormous facility was independently designed and built by China.

The floating vessel, containing 600,000 parts, consists of functional modules on the hull and the deck, with a maximum diameter of about 90 meters and a height of more than 60 meters. It is designed with a maximum displacement of 100,000 tonnes and a storage capacity of 60,000 tonnes of oil.

With a designed service lifespan of 30 years, the cylinder-shaped facility integrates functions of crude oil production, storage and external transmission. It is able to operate at sea for 15 years without docking, according to its producer, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC).

"Through tackling technological bottlenecks, we have achieved the autonomous application of 15 key technological equipment and systems, such as the sea-land integrated intelligent central control system and high-capacity hydraulic submersible pumps. Furthermore, we have introduced new natural gas desulfurization and dual-fuel generators on offshore platforms. These advancements enable us to effectively utilize associated gas from oil fields and largely improve the energy saving of offshore oil fields," said Liu Huaxiang, general manager of the Deepwater Engineering and Construction Center of CNOOC's Shenzhen branch.

The offshore oil and gas processing project is planned to be commissioned in China's first deepwater oil field, Liuhua 11-1, in the Pearl River Mouth Basin, said CNOOC, adding that the facility is capable of processing 5,600 tonnes of crude per day.