Saudi Aramco today signed a contract with J. Ray McDermott, S.A., a subsidiary of McDermott International, Inc., a U.S. oil and gas services company, to develop and construct platforms and a subsea pipeline at the offshore Karan Gas field. J. Ray McDermott won the turnkey contract that includes manufacturing and installation of four platforms and the construction of a 110-kilometer subsea pipeline to carry offshore sour gas from the Karan field to be treated and processed at the onshore Khursaniyah Gas Plant. The Karan gas field is Saudi Aramco's first offshore non-associated gas project to be developed, and responds to the growth of domestic demand for gas in Saudi Arabia. The Karan gas project is expected to process 1.8 billion standard cubic feet per day of gas, with the start-up of production scheduled for mid-2011. The offshore work awarded to J. Ray McDermott is in addition to three other contracts for onshore projects awarded earlier to Korea's Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co., Ltd., the UK's Petrofac, and Korea's GS Engineering and Construction Co. Ltd. The contracts were awarded after a review of the offers presented by the companies and following a successful round of negotiations by the Karan project team.
