Located in the Barents Sea, north of the Arctic Circle, the new field will be developed with an FPSO (Floating Production, Storage and Offloading production vessel) and subsea installation with 30 wells. The new field has proven volumes estimated at between 400 and 600 million barrels of oil, and is the world’s largest new offshore oil project.

In 2017 ABB signed a project specific agreement for the safety and automation system with Statoil for the Johan Castberg offshore oil field development. Statoil has issued the first call-off from the agreement covering front end engineering and design (FEED). Engineers from ABB in Norway were performing the FEED in close collaboration with Statoil.

“We appreciate to be involved at such an early stage in the project. Together with Statoil we can immediately develop standard design solutions using our world-class 800xA safety and automation system. The innovative approach streamlines project execution, and helps reduce capital expenditure,” says Per Erik Holsten, managing director for ABB’s oil, gas and chemical business.

Industry	Oil, gas and petrochemicals
Customer	Statoil
Country	Norway
Solutions	Front end engineering and design (FEED) based on intelligent, agile execution of automation projects ABB Ability System 800xA automation and safety system including advanced simulation and services

ABB will provide integrated ABB Ability™ System 800xA automation and safety systems, including advanced simulation and related services to ensure safe, reliable and efficient operation of the offshore FPSO. The order is valued at around $25 million.

Working closely with design contractor Aker Solutions ABB will provide engineering, installation and commissioning for flawless execution of the project and ensure that production runs efficiently from day one of operation.

“Digitalization and advanced safety and automation systems are key to safer, more efficient, more reliable and more environmentally friendly operation of oil, gas, and chemical facilities,” said Per Erik Holsten, Managing Director ABB Oil, Gas, and Chemicals. “Combined with our vast experience in advanced process control, and subsea and power systems, project execution is streamlined, cost are reduced, and long-term operations are safer and more efficient.”

Holsten points out that digitalization with advanced safety and automation is vital for safe, efficient, reliable and environmentally friendly operation of any industrial plant and particularly oil, gas and chemical facilities.

”For offshore fields like Johan Castberg located in the Barents Sea, having state-of-the-art safety and automation systems is absolutely critical,” says Holsten. “Possible future condition-based and predictive maintenance, and remote monitoring and operations, may further reduce exposing humans and nature to risks. At the same time such services may decrease the operational expenditures and increase productivity”.

ABB has extensive experience in gas production and optimization, and a long history of successful collaboration with Statoil on numerous projects around the world. All major oil and gas installations above the Arctic Circle in Norway use ABB’s automation and safety systems. This experience, combined with four decades of providing safety and automation systems to the industry, were important factors in this project win.

The field is scheduled to commence operation in 2022 and will have an estimated production lifespan of 30 years. ABB’s deliveries will start in late 2018.

ABB’s leading portfolio of digital solutions, ABB Ability™, combines ABB’s deep domain expertise with network connectivity and the latest digital technologies to help customers develop new processes and advance existing ones by providing insights and optimizing planning and controls for real-time operations.