Helix Secures Deepwater Well Intervention Contract in West Africa

U.S.-based oil and gas services firm Helix Energy Solutions has been awarded a deepwater well intervention contract award by Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Esso) at Erha and Usan fields, offshore Nigeria.

The project is expected to start in September 2024 with the vessel scheduled to be in Nigeria into 2025.

The Erha and Usan fields - developed by Esso, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil Nigeria - are located approximately 97 kilometers offshore of Nigeria in water depths ranging from 700 to 1,500 meters.

Under the contract, Helix will provide the Q4000, a DP3 riser-based semi-submersible well intervention vessel, a 10k Intervention Riser System (IRS), remotely operated vehicles, project management, and engineering services to cover fully integrated well intervention services from production enhancement to plug and abandonment.

“We are pleased to announce this contract for the Q4000. We are eager to strengthen our relationship with Esso and to further establish our presence as the leader for well intervention services in West Africa,” said Scotty Sparks, Helix’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

The Q4000 serves as an offshore platform for a diverse array of tasks such as subsea well intervention, field and well decommissioning, subsea equipment installation and recovery, well testing, and emergency well containment with dedicated service areas to increase safety and vessel efficiency.