FPSO Turritella Changes Hands
SBM Offshore has finalized the sale of FPSO Turritella to Shell E and P Offshore Services B.V. (Shell), the company said.
Shell exercised the purchase option for the FPSO in July 2017, which was followed by an operational transition period to allow for safe handover of operations.
The company selling the asset is a joint-venture owned by SBM Offshore with 55 percent interest, Mitsubishi Corporation with 30 percent interest and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) with 15 percent interest.
The transaction comprises a total cash consideration to the JV of USD 1 billion.
SBM Offshore said earlier that the net proceeds from the sale, after taking into account the unwinding of the JV ownership and partner commitments, will primarily be used for project finance redemption and as such will decrease SBM Offshore’s proportional net debt position.
FPSO Turritella has been on hire since September 2, 2016 and forms an early phase in Shell’s Stones development in the Gulf of Mexico.
The vessel is the deepest FPSO development in the world and has a turret with a disconnectable buoy allowing it to weathervane in normal conditions and disconnect from the FPSO upon the approach of a hurricane.
