Shell has initiated a new bid process to secure a Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel for its long-delayed Bonga South West-Aparo (BSWA) deepwater project offshore Nigeria. This marks the latest attempt in a project history spanning over 17 years, with previous bid processes, including one in 2022, having been cancelled. The current effort appears to have greater momentum due to positive legal and fiscal changes in Nigeria's exploration and production sector and political impetus, as President Bola Tinubu is keen to demonstrate progress on a major greenfield deepwater project ahead of the 2027 elections.

Bid Process Details

On 8 December, Shell issued an Expression of Interest (EoI) for a contract covering the engineering, procurement, construction, transport, installation, commissioning, and "reliability run operations" of a large FPSO. Interested parties confirmed their intent to respond by 11 December and were subsequently sent a pre-qualification questionnaire, with submissions due by 2 January. Following this pre-qualification stage, Shell is expected to select qualified contractors and launch a pre-front end engineering and design contest.

Project Specifications and Contractor Requirements

The BSWA field, holding an estimated 800 million barrels of oil, is located approximately 135 kilometres offshore in water depths up to 1,400 metres. The development requires a new spread-moored FPSO with a nameplate oil processing capacity of 150,000 barrels per day and a minimum storage capacity of 1.8 million barrels. The vessel will connect to an extensive subsea system including:

• 40 kilometres of subsea flowlines with two production loops
• One water injection line
• A 98-kilometre, 12-inch diameter gas export line
• Approximately 35 kilometres of static and dynamic umbilicals

Shell's bid requirements specify that contractors must possess:

• A "standard" hull and topsides design with the engineering capability to adapt it to project needs.
• Fabrication experience with very large crude carrier-sized FPSOs within the past decade.
• Proven "start-up and production ramp-up" capabilities on FPSO projects.

Preference, or "credit," will be given to respondents with a "long and strong" track record as a lead FPSO contractor. Market sources suggest these requirements favor major FPSO players over Asian shipyards that pursued the project in earlier iterations.

Field Ownership

The BSWA field straddles a Shell-operated licence and Chevron-controlled acreage, where the structure is known as Aparo.