Baker Hughes has been working alongside AGR Well Management, COSL Drilling Europe AS, Subsea 7 and Worley as part of a supply chain alliance to deliver CNOOC Petroleum Europe Limited’s (CPEL) Buzzard Phase II (BPII) development, which commenced production on Sunday November 21, 2021. 

Located about 100 kilometers (km) northeast of Aberdeen in approximately 96 meters of water, the CNOOC International-operated Buzzard platform is the largest UK North Sea oil discovery in the past two decades. BPII is a subsea development of the Buzzard northern area. 

The BPII supply chain alliance was formed to offer an integrated and outcome-focused approach for the development. The partners, along with CPEL, have worked collaboratively to safely achieve first oil within the sanctioned budget and ahead of the revised schedule, which was significantly impacted by COVID-19.  

This achievement is the result of a collective effort over a four-year period by the BPII supply chain alliance, as well as a long list of key suppliers and sub-contractors. More than 2.6 million hours were expended, working under an innovative contracting model which provided greater flexibility to quickly adapt to changes, including the global pandemic, and allowed teams to combine strengths.   

“Baker Hughes has a long track record of successfully delivering complex projects, however we’ve also seen the challenges associated with projects of this scale,” Romain Chambault, vice president services and offshore, Europe and key accounts, Oilfield Equipment at Baker Hughes said. “Working collaboratively with the other companies in this alliance has helped to safely and successfully deliver the Buzzard Phase II development and created a model we hope to see replicated across other major energy projects.”