Zakum Development Company (Zadco) has invited companies to submit technical bids by mid-September for a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract covering the fabrication and installation of gas injection topsides at the Upper Zakum field.

About six companies are expected to bid for the contract. They include Mott MacDonald of the UK, Tebodin Middle East, part of Tebodin of the Netherlands, Paris-based Technip, the US/Canadian VECO, Engineers India (EIL)and WorleyParsons of Australia. The project is aimed at the reinjection of additional volumes of gas into the oil reservoir to maintain pressure.

Zadco plans more reinjection work. A selection is awaited for the contract to carry out the FEED package on the Satah field development project. The estimated $200 million-250 million scheme will centre on the supply and installation of gas injection compressors (MEED 11:3:05).

For the Umm al-Dalkh field, a tender is due to be issued soon for a conceptual design study contract. About five companies expressed interest in late July in bidding for the estimated $150 million full-field development project, which is aimed at increasing production capacity to 20,000 barrels a day (b/d) from 13,000 b/d, through enhanced oil recovery (EOR) techniques.

VECO is already working on a conceptual study for the Upper Zakum producing water facilities project, which is aimed at handling increasing water production at the three offshore platforms. The level of water cuts at Upper Zakum is just under 10 per cent and is projected to increase to 30 per cent by 2020. The present production capacity of Zadco is about 450,000 b/d.