Aker Solutions has been awarded a FEED (front-end engineering and design) contract from Statoil to design the world's largest Spar platform for the Aasta Hansteen field development in the Norwegian Sea.

With a total hull length of 193 meters and a draught of 170 meters, the Aasta Hansteen (formerly named Luva) Spar platform will be the largest of its kind. A Spar platform is a cylinder shaped floating offshore installation. Aasta Hansteen will be the first Spar platform on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS), and also the world's first Spar platform with condensate storage capacity - a so called Belly-Spar.

The Belly-Spar concept is an exclusive Aker Solutions design. The 'belly' refers to the increased diameter on part of the circular shaped hull, where the condensate storage tanks are located. This gives the Aker Solutions' Belly-Spar its characteristic shape.

Henning Østvig, head of Front-End & Technology in Aker Solutions says: "The Aasta Hansteen Spar will be the first production platform on the NCS with steel catenary risers. With a water depth of 1300 meters, this is probably the only riser technology that can meet the challenges on the Aasta Hansteen field".

Tags: Aker Solutions