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Contractors are preparing bids for a major Saudi Aramco project to construct onshore surface facilities aimed at boosting productivity at the Safaniya offshore oil field development in Saudi Arabia.

The Safaniya field is the world’s largest offshore oil field, with a production capacity of nearly 1.2 million barrels a day (b/d). Discovered in 1951, the field is located in the Gulf waters, approximately 265 kilometres north of Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran.

Aramco issued the main tender for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on the Safaniya onshore surface facilities project on 9 July, according to sources.

Contractors have been given deadlines of 24 October and 7 November to submit technical and commercial bids for the project, sources told MEED.

Aramco is understood to have issued the solicitation of interest document for the Safaniya field onshore surface facilities project in May, with contractors submitting responses by 28 May, MEED previously reported.

The EPC scope of work has been divided into two packages:

• Package 1 – Water treatment and injection plant:
  • Building new water injection units
  • Expansion of gas-oil separation plant 1
  • Building storage tanks, transfer pumps and substation
  • A central processing facility at the Zuluf field development, including water transfer pumps, chemical injection skids and other components
     
• Package 2 – Produced water utilities:
  • Fire water system
  • Potable water units
  • Utilities
  • Nitrogen generation system
  • Site buildings
  • Electrical infrastructure
  • Security systems
  • Telecommunications networks

In addition to launching the onshore facilities project to boost Safaniya’s productivity, MEED also previously reported that Aramco had issued three offshore tenders for the field’s next expansion phase.

Contractors in Aramco’s Long-Term Agreement pool of offshore service providers are preparing bids for the three tenders – Contracts Release and Purchase Order numbers 154, 155 and 156 – due by 28 August.