Woodside Petroleum has followed through with its pledge to simplify its contracting processes by handpicking about nine major services companies to compete for four work packages linked to the US$11 billion Scarborough gas project and Pluto Train 2 expansion off Western Australia.

Woodside has come up with four very large packages — three for Scarborough and one for Pluto.

At Scarborough, one is for the semi-submersible production platform, one is for the subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines, and one is for the gas export pipeline.

The Pluto workscope relates to the entire Train 2.

Instead of running traditional pre-qualification, or expression of interest, exercises to gauge contractor capability and capacity, Woodside has handpicked about nine competitors — two each to bid for the three Scarborough packages, and possibly three to compete for the Pluto train.

The nine are understood to be Allseas of the Netherlands, Chiyoda of Japan, Fluor, KBR and McDermott of the US, Italy’s Saipem, European subsea specialist Subsea 7, UK-based TechnipFMC and Australia’s WorleyParsons.

Sources added that private US contracting giant Bechtel could also potentially be involved.

Fluor and McDermott are understood to have been handpicked to compete for the semisub competition.

TechnipFMC and Subsea 7 are seen as the contenders for the SURF work, while Saipem and Allseas are in the frame for the export pipeline.

For the Pluto train there is slightly less clarity with KBR, and either Chiyoda or WorleyParsons or Bechtel seen as the likely competitors.

The semisub will weigh between 40,000 and 50,000 tonnes, will be located in 900 metres of water, and will have compression and water handling facilities.

The SURF workscope will require the connection of at least seven high-rate subsea gas wells to the semisub.

The 430-kilometre export pipeline will comprise 300,000 tonnes of linepipe and will travel up a scarp break to the Pluto LNG facilities. The Pluto second train will be built with LNG production capacity of between 4 million and 5 million tonnes per annum, and is likely to be built in a modular fashion.

There was mixed reaction to Woodside’s approach.

Some said it was a slap in the face for those contractors not given an opportunity, while others said operators nowadays are trying to avoid issuing big complicated and potentially lengthy tenders to instead look at the benefits of partnerships.

There was even a suggestion that Woodside was keen to handpick one contractor for each scope, but chose instead to retain an element of competition.

Woodside indicated last month that this type of move was likely.

Chief executive Peter Coleman said the company wanted to avoid “big open tender processes” and instead wanted to choose its own “dream teams”.

“We think the market is such that we can pick the very best contractors in the market today,” said Coleman.

Sources said the idea is that Woodside will engage with its handpicked contractors in the months ahead, and be in a position to begin the FEED work early next year for the three Scarborough packages.

The FEED contractors will also be endowed with the engineering, procurement, construction and installation contracts.

For the Pluto train, the FEED work has already been completed. About eight years ago when Woodside started planning for expansion at Pluto, two competing groups — Foster Wheeler (now part of Wood) with WorleyParsons versus KBR — completed dual FEED studies on a new train.

The foundation Pluto LNG train was built by Foster Wheeler and WorleyParsons.

Meanwhile, Wood Group is currently doing pre-FEED work, or concept definition engineering, for the Scarborough development, said sources.

A spokesperson for Woodside confirmed the company “is currently engaging major suppliers offering fully integrated engineering and construction solutions and standardised offshore subsea equipment” for Scarborough. “This approach is consistent with our previous offshore scopes for very large engineering, procurement and construction packages on major projects,” said the spokesperson.

“Woodside will seek to ensure contracts provide full, fair and reasonable opportunity for Australian entities to participate where capable and competitive.”

The same approach would apply to the Pluto expansion train, added the spokesperson.

The Scarborough project has developed at pace since Woodside increased its interest to 75% after it bought US supermajor ExxonMobil’s 50% operating stake — the only remaining joint venture partner is fellow Australian player BHP.

Woodside, which also has a 90% operator interest in the Pluto LNG facility, wants to be in a position to capture LNG supply opportunities in the mid-2020s.

The company wants the Scarborough field to be ready for start-up in 2023, and for the new LNG train to be ready the following year.

Offshore production will be brought on early to cater to a domestic gas supply agreement that Woodside has with Perdaman to provide 1 million tonnes per annum of gas for a urea plant.

Weekly

Woodside sharpens up for Scarborough and Pluto contracts