Faulty Hose Halts Goliat Production

Eni Norge has suspended production from the Goliat field in the Barents Sea off Norway due to a faulty offloading hose.

Output was stopped on December 26 after a routine inspection found some damage on segments of the hose.

According to a company statement: “The repair will be conducted as soon as bad weather conditions, affecting operations on several parts of the Norwegian continental shelf, permit work to be carried out. Production will be closed until repairs have been completed.”

The Goliat field is located in the south west Barents Sea, 80 kilometers from the coast of Hammerfest, Northern Norway. Production from the field started in March 2016. 

Production was also stopped in August 2016 after the platform experienced a power outage. This resulted in a partial evacuation of the platform. Goliat gets its electrical power via a subsea cable from shore, which was at the time of construction the longest ever installed. The platform also experienced a problem with its electrical systems in May.

Goliat is the first oil field to come on stream in the Barents Sea and is being developed using the largest and most sophisticated floating cylindrical FPSO concept in the world. Eni owns 65 percent of Goliat while Norway's Statoil holds the remaining 35 percent. The field will produce 100,000 barrels of oil per day and is estimated to contain about 180 million barrels of oil.