BM Offshore has received formal production readiness notice (PRN) for the N’Goma FPSO from Eni for the block 15/06 West Hub development offshore Angola.

Following successful first oil in November 2014 and completion of the 72-hour continuous production test in early December, PRN goes into effect retroactively as of November 28, 2014. The vessel is on hire from that date onward.

Eni operates block 15/06 on behalf of joint venture participants Sonangol Pesquisa e Produção, SSI Fifteen Ltd., and Falcon Oil Holding Angola SA. The FPSO will operate under a 12-year lease and operate contract with Eni Angola SpA on the development.

The FPSO is owned by Sonasing and operated by OPS, a joint venture company formed by SBM Offshore (50%) and Sonangol (50%). N’Goma was previously on hire as FPSO Xikomba and was disconnected in 2011 from block 15 offshore Angola after eight years of operations.

SBM Offshore converted FPSO Xikomba, renaming it N’Goma, at the Keppel shipyard in Singapore before the vessel set sail for the Paenal yard in Angola where it completed the final scope of work on time.
The vessel has 100,000 b/d of oil processing capacity, 115 mcf/d of gas handling capacity, and water injection capacity of 120,000 b/d.

Source: Offshore