Malikai Malaysia's first tension leg platform
Shell Malikai is Malaysia's first tension leg platform, a vertical floating structure moored by groups of tendons at each corner.
The tendons are held upright in tension, giving the platform its name. Located 110 kilometers off Sabah, Malaysia, in waters about 500 meters deep, the facility will daily produce 60,000 barrels of oil and 50 million standard cubic feet of gas.
It was wholly designed and fabricated in Malaysia by TMJV, a joint venture formed by TechnipFMC, the JV lead, and MMHE, Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Sdn Bhd.
The topside design was carried out in TechnipFMC's Kuala Lumpur operating center, and hull engineering was performed by TMH, a joint venture between TechnipFMC and Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings Berhad in Kuala Lumpur. Topside and hull fabrication and integration were performed at MMHE's yard in Johor.
The 77.3 meter x 78.5 meter topside constitutes production decks and living quarters with a gross weight of 14,000 tons. The combined weight of topside and hull is about 27,500 tons. A "super lift" performed by a jack-up and skidding operation used to integrate the topside onto the hull was the largest-ever jacking and skidding operation for a platform of its size, reaching a height of 40 meters.
Shell Malikai sailed from MMHE's yard on July 11, 2016, after safely concluding the onshore fabrication and commissioning of the deepwater platform. It achieved first oil on December 11, 2016. The platform, which floats on the surface while moored securely to the sea floor, produces and pipes oil 50 kilometers (about 30 miles) to the shallow-water Kebabangan platform for processing.
A small amount of natural gas produced from the field powers the platform and is pumped into the production tubing to help oil flow from the reservoir, a technique known as "gas lift." Any extra gas will be sent out via the Kebabangan platform.
Malikai TLP is an important project for TechnipFMC and its partners, showcasing our capabilities in delivering complex deepwater projects in the Asia Pacific region.
Image caption: Malikai TLP, Malaysia's first tension leg platform.
Author: Serge Dominichini, Vice President Onshore-Offshore, Asia Pacific, TechnipFMC
