Malaysian oilfield services company Bumi Armada and its joint venture partner Shapoorji Pallonji Energy (SP Energy) have signed a bareboat charter contract with India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) for the Armada Sterling II FPSO.
The preliminary agreement between the parties was confirmed earlier this year, but the formal contract was not signed until recently. Under the latest contract, the Armada Sterling II FPSO will continue to be deployed at the ONGC Cluster 7 field, about 210 kilometers off the west coast of Mumbai.
The bareboat charter contract came into effect on March 8 for a period of three years, with an annual option to extend for up to three years. The total value of the three-year fixed term is MYR 451.4 million (approximately US$106 million).
The “Armada Sterling II” was built in 1998 and converted to an FPSO in 2014 by Keppel Shipyard in Singapore.The vessel had previously signed a nine-year charter that was due to expire in March last year, after which the contract was extended by another year.
In addition to the bareboat charter contract, Bumi Armada and SP Energy have signed a second contract with ONGC through its other joint venture, SPAOGSPL, for the operation and maintenance of Armada Sterling II.
The contract is for three years with a three-year annual renewal option. The contract is valued at MYR127 million (about US$29.8 million), also effective March 8th.