The Minister for Energy and Petroleum, Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah has commended Ghanaian workers who have contributed in the on–going construction of the Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel in Singapore.

The minister who led a delegation to visit the construction site said he was impressed with the skill of the Ghanaian worker which could measure up to their foreign counterparts.

“I am delighted to see these components made by Ghanaian companies Seaweld and Orsam installed here on the deck of the TEN Project FPSO. It gives me a great sense of pride to see Ghanaian companies and workers producing world-class components for the oil and gas industry.This is a fantastic example of how our emerging oil industry is creating work for Ghanaian companies and jobs for Ghanaian workers,” he stated after a tour of the project site.

To recognise the contribution of Ghanaian companies to the construction of the FPSO, the Minister unveiled a plaque designed by Tullow, which expressed the company’s commitment to local participation.

“The stools were built at their premises in Takoradi and Tema, respectively and then shipped to the vessel conversion yard in Singapore for installation onto the deck of the FPSO,” the plaque said in part.

The deck of the vessel is lined with hundreds of module and pipe rack support stools which were fabricated in Ghana, in-line with the TEN Project’s commitment to contracting Ghanaian companies where possible.

When completed, the FPSO will produce oil from Ghana’s Tweneboa, Enyenra and Ntomme (TEN) oilfields, which lie 60 kilometres off the coast of Takoradi. First Oil from the TEN fields is expected in mid-2016. The visit was timed to coincide with the vessel’s entry into dry dock, an important milestone for the project

The TEN Project, Ghana’s second major oil development, is being led by Tullow Oil with partners GNPC, Kosmos Energy, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and PetroSA. The FPSO is being constructed by MODEC in Singapore on behalf of the TEN Project partners and will have a nominal capacity of 80,000 barrels of oil per day.

Mr Buah expressed his delight over the extent of work done so far on the vessel and added that “I am very impressed with the progress of work so far. The TEN Project Partners and MODEC are doing an excellent job of ensuring the project remains on track to deliver First Oil by mid-2016.”

The Minister’s delegation included representatives of TEN Project partners Tullow Oil, GNPC and Kosmos Energy. Also present were the CEO of the Petroleum Commission, Theo Ahwireng, and a representative of the Ministry of Finance. The delegation was accompanied by Singapore’s High Commissioner to Ghana, Dileep Nair.

The delegation was also introduced to three GNPC employees who have just begun secondments with Tullow Oil in Singapore. The secondees will remain with Tullow until the vessel leaves Singapore, gaining vital experience in project managing an FPSO.