Nexans Umbilical Technology for the Askeladd Development

Nexans has been awarded a major contract to provide complex umbilicals with power, fiber-optic and hydraulic elements for the next stage of the multi-phased Snøhvit development.

The Snøhvit gas field in the Barents Sea is the largest ever industrial project in North Norway. It is now entering part two of its multi-phase development plan with Equinor and its partners investing over half a billion euros in the Askeladd development which will provide feedstock for the onshore LNG (liquified natural gas) plant at Melkøya in Hammerfest. To support the development, Equinor has awarded a major contract to Nexans to design, manufacture and supply a total of 42 kilometers of static infield and interfield umbilicals to control the subsea production systems.

The Askeladd development, at a water depth of about 250 meters, will supply 21 billion cubic meters of gas and two million cubic meters of condensate to the Hammerfest LNG plant, with production scheduled to come on stream towards the end of 2020. It will tie-in to the existing Snøhvit field infrastructure which features Nexans’ umbilicals installed in previous projects - including a 145 kilometer umbilical that is still the longest umbilical in the world.

For the Askeladd development, Nexans will provide static subsea umbilicals with a complex cross-section comprising 3 kilovolt (kV) power, fiber-optic communications and hydraulic elements for chemical injection, together with a range of connection and termination accessories.

The electrical and fiber optic elements will be manufactured at the Nexans Norway facility in Rognan, North Norway with its 250 skilled and experienced employees. The contract would also involve over 50 local subcontractors and vendors. The complete umbilical system will be developed, manufactured and tested at Nexans Norway facility in Halden, Norway.

Vincent Dessale, Nexans Senior Executive Vice President Subsea and Land Systems Business Group, said: “Equinor’s Snøhvit development is a perfect example of how advanced technology can enable the effective operation of subsea gas fields with no need for surface installations. We are therefore delighted to further extend our involvement in this ground-breaking project by winning this major contract to provide the complex umbilicals required for the new Askeladd development".

The delivery of the Nexans umbilicals for the Askeladd development is scheduled for the first quarter of 2020.