Nation achieves breakthrough in oil and gas platform construction

China's heaviest international offshore oil and gas platform, built by China Offshore Oil Engineering Co Ltd and officially delivered in Qingdao, East China's Shandong province, on Monday, is a breakthrough in the construction technology of large-scale offshore oil and gas equipment in the country, said industry experts.

The platform, weighing 17,000 metric tons, will be transported by a large cargo ship to its installation site 6,400 nautical miles away in the waters off Saudi Arabia at the end of this month, according to the company, which is China's leading offshore contractor and a subsidiary of China National Offshore Oil Corp.

The successful delivery of the project, after 34 months of construction, not only demonstrates China's engineering and technical service capabilities in the offshore oil and gas sector, but also reflects the deep advancement of China's comprehensive energy cooperation with countries and regions participating in the Belt and Road Initiative across the entire industry chain, said Wang Lining, director of the oil market department of the Economics and Technology Research Institute of China National Petroleum Corp.

It highlights China's ability, as a global manufacturing powerhouse, to continuously expand into new fields by leveraging its strong and complete industry chain advantages, Wang said.

Wang said China is currently a leader in global energy infrastructure development and the project underscores the country's commitment to fostering international cooperation in the energy sector by providing top-tier engineering solutions and services.

"The project is a testament to China's advanced manufacturing capabilities and its ability to execute large-scale, high-tech projects that meet international standards," he said.

According to COOEC, the platform, which is mainly responsible for collecting extracted offshore oil and gas and transporting it to land for processing, consists of complex equipment such as large manifolds, pipeline cleaning, chemical treatment and operational control.

The deck area is equivalent to 15 standard basketball courts and the height of the platform is higher than that of a 24-story residential building. The massive structure can collect and transport 24 million tons of crude oil and 7.4 billion cubic meters of gas every year, with platform scale, pipeline types and sizes, and system complexity all setting records compared to similar international platforms, it said.

The platform will be installed in the waters off Saudi Arabia to help the Marjan oilfield increase its production capacity. After the Marjan oilfield is fully operational, the annual crude oil production will reach 24 million tons, it said.