The platform, dubbed the submersible production, storage and offloading (SPSO) unit, was custom designed by Houston naval architect Friede & Goldman to develop the US independent's Bohai Bay discoveries.
The hull of the box-shaped unit is ballasted so that it submerges into the water until it hits bottom in water depths of around 30 feet. Piles are then driven to secure the hull to the seabed.
However,
