Westwood Energy Newsletter – Edition 8

Curated offshore energy news from our DailyLogix desk.

Ten offshore energy stories every fortnight, tracking the latest moves across the supply chain – from rigs and production to subsea, marine and renewables.

1. QatarEnergy Awards Maydan Mahzam EPIC2 Contract to COOEC

Industry sources have reported that China Offshore Oil Engineering Co (COOEC) has received a notification of award from QatarEnergy for the MM EPIC2 project at the QatarEnergy-operated Maydan Mahzam Redevelopment project offshore Qatar. The engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contract covers more than 100 km of subsea pipelines, subsea cables and umbilicals, together with associated offshore facilities, and forms a key component of QatarEnergy’s wider redevelopment programme for the field.

2. Trion FSO Turret Integration Completed at COSCO Yard

SBM Offshore has announced that the turret for the floating storage and offloading (FSO) vessel Chalchi, destined for the Woodside Energy-operated Trion field offshore Mexico, has been safely and successfully integrated into the vessel’s hull at the COSCO yard in China. The milestone marks the completion of SBM Offshore’s disconnectable turret mooring (DTM) construction scope for the Trion development. The associated DTM buoy has already been delivered to Mexico, while construction of the FSO Chalchi is scheduled to continue through 2026 ahead of the vessel’s targeted arrival in Mexico in 2027.

3. Aker Solutions Secures Engineering and Integrity Framework Agreement for BP’s UK North Sea Assets

Aker Solutions has announced that it has been awarded a frame agreement covering the BP-operated West of Shetland and Central North Sea assets offshore the UK. The scope comprises engineering, integrity management, project support and operational services, extending Aker Solutions’ existing support for BP’s West of Shetland assets to include the operator’s Central North Sea portfolio. The contract will be managed by Aker Solutions’ Life Cycle segment from its facilities in Aberdeen, Scotland. The agreement has an initial three-year term and includes two optional one-year extensions, providing a potential total duration of five years.

4. Valaris 123 Arrives in Świnoujście Ahead of New Contract

Jackup Valaris 123 (400′-IC) has arrived in Świnoujście anchorage in Poland after mobilising from the Netherlands for its new one-well contract with Central European Petroleum. The campaign, which is expected to begin shortly, has an estimated duration of 110 days and includes a priced option for a second well with an estimated duration of 30 days. The operating dayrate is $135,000. The rig had previously been working for TAQA offshore the Netherlands under an accommodation support deployment.

5. Petrobras Finds Another Oil-Bearing Interval in Morpho Prospect

Following the August 2026 Morpho discovery announcement from Petrobras, the operator has now confirmed finding another oil-bearing interval in the 1-BRSA-1405-APS well, which constitutes a new discovery in block FZA-M-59 off the coast of Amapa, Brazil. The well is located in 9,469ft of water and is being drilled by Foresea UDW drillship ODN II (10,000′). The drilling that followed the previous discovery announcement was aimed at evaluating deeper exploratory intervals and led to the latest discovery, identified through electrical logs, indications in rock samples, and fluid samples obtained during operations. Analyses are ongoing, and the information collected will subsequently be characterised through laboratory analyses and integrated with the dataset acquired during drilling. In the case of the earlier discovery, Petrobras indicated the analyses already carried out confirm the good quality of the oil found. After this well, ODN II is scheduled to undergo its five-year special periodic survey (SPS) before commencing its next Petrobras charter for 1,095 days.

6. NYK Joins Trudvang CCS Project Offshore Norway

Vår Energi and Inpex have strengthened their planned Trudvang carbon capture and storage (CCS) project offshore Norway by bringing in Japanese shipping giant NYK, which has acquired a 30% stake in both the project and the associated CO₂ storage licence. Located near the Sleipner area of the North Sea, Trudvang is designed to store third-party carbon dioxide in the proven Utsira formation, with an initial injection capacity of around 2 million tonnes per year and potential to expand beyond 10 million tonnes annually. NYK’s entry adds specialist expertise in CO₂ shipping and logistics as the partners advance the project’s next development phase. The move also marks NYK’s first investment in a CO₂ storage project, building on its work in carbon transportation through its Knutsen NYK Carbon Carriers joint venture. The partners said the combination of offshore development, storage and transport expertise will help support the commercialisation of a scalable CCS value chain in Norway.

7. Equinor Appoints ERM and CMS for Celtic Sea Project Scoping

Equinor has awarded environmental and legal advisory contracts for the development of its 1.5 GW Celtic Sea floating wind project, located offshore England, UK. ERM has been selected to deliver Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) scoping and Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) screening for the wind farm, transmission cable and grid connection infrastructure. CMS will provide legal support for the Development Consent Order (DCO) application process, including strategic advice during pre-application activities and land rights matters.

8. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Awarded Taean Offshore Substation Contract

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has secured an engineering, procurement, manufacturing, installation and commissioning contract for an offshore substation at the 504 MW Taean wind farm, located offshore South Korea. The award follows a preliminary design contract signed in March 2026 and a preferred supplier agreement executed in July 2026 between HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and Taean Wind Power. Following detailed technical and commercial discussions under these earlier agreements, the parties finalised the main contract.

9. Boskalis Awarded Infield Cable Installation Contract at Dutch Wind Farm

Boskalis has been awarded a contract for the transport and installation of the infield cable system for the Ijmuiden Ver Beta (III & IV) Phase 1 wind farm, located offshore the Netherlands. The scope covers approximately 149 km of 66 kV infield cables linking 69 wind turbines, along with testing, terminations, cable protection systems, survey activities and seabed intervention works. Installation is scheduled for 2029 using the cable-laying vessel Boka Ocean. Boskalis has classified the contract as sizable, with an estimated value of EUR 50-150 million (US$57-170 million).

10. DEME Completes Monopile Installation at Nordlicht I

DEME has finished the installation of 68 monopile turbine foundations at the Nordlicht I wind farm, located offshore Germany. The campaign was carried out using the Orion 1 heavy lift vessel, with the first monopile installed in July 2026 and the first transition piece following in August 2026. Completion of the final monopile marks the end of the foundation installation programme.

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This newsletter features a sample of news from DailyLogix, sourced from Westwood’s SubseaLogix, PlatformLogix, RigLogix, WindLogix and MarineLogix market intelligence solutions. For comprehensive daily offshore energy news delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe to one of our solutions today.

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