ABERDEEN, Scotland, March 9 (UPI) -- Norwegian energy company Statoil said Monday it ordered a special oil spill response ship to operate in the soon-to-be-launched Mariner field in the North Sea.
"This is an important contract award in our preparations for safe and efficient operations on Mariner," Gunnar Breivik, managing director of Statoil's production unit in the United Kingdom, said in a statement Monday. "The emergency and rescue vessel plays a key role in our safety and emergency preparedness plan."
Statoil awarded a contract to Scottish company Sentinel Marine Ltd. to build an emergency response and rescue vessel for operations in the British continental shelf. The 213-foot vessel, to be christened Mariner Sentinel, will carry oil spill response equipment and will be ready by 2017.
The Mariner field is located about 90 miles east of the Shetland Isles. The start of production is planned for 2017, and Mariner has an estimated peak production rate of around 55,000 barrels of oil per day.
Statoil is among the growing number of energy companies to trim its growth expectations because of the low price of crude oil. When awarding operational consent to the company in 2013, the British government said the Mariner project represents a $7.1 billion vote of confidence for the region.
No value of the contract for Sentinel Marine Ltd. was given.
