China completes construction of record-breaking deepwater jacket structure

SHENZHEN -- China has completed the construction of a record-breaking deepwater jacket structure in the southern province of Guangdong, according to the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) on Tuesday.

The 338.5-meter Haiji-2 jacket will operate at an average depth of 324 meters and weighs 37,000 tonnes, breaking Asian records for structure height, weight, operational depth and construction speed, the company said.

Jackets are constructions affixed to the seabed, serving as foundations for offshore oil and gas production facilities.

Haiji-2 utilizes a newly developed 420-megapascal ultra-high-strength steel plate that is considered an innovative and cost-effective lightweight design for large-scale ocean platforms, according to Fu Dianfu at the CNOOC research institute.

The jacket also showcases the country's capability of building ultra-large deepwater fixed jackets at depths of over 300 meters, said Wang Huoping, an engineer at the company's Shenzhen branch.

Haiji-2 is expected to be installed soon at an oilfield in the Pearl River Mouth Basin sea area.