Korean yards bag offshore orders

Samsung Heavy Industries has obtained new orders totaling $2.41 billion including a $1.15-billion deal to build two semi-submersible floating drilling rigs for an undisclosed Russian client for delivery in September 2010. In addition African and American clients ordered two oil drilling ships worth $1.26 billion for delivery in May 2011.

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. received a record $2.1 billion order to build an FPSO for an unidentified European company with delivery scheduled by the end of 2011. The 325 metre facility will produce about 200,000 barrels of oil a day in the waters off western Africa and will be the biggest of its kind to be built according to Daewoo.

Oil companies, including Total and Exxon Mobil, are spending more money to explore and produce fuel as consumption increases in countries such as China. That’s leading to a fifth consecutive year of record orders for yards in South Korea.

A shipping company in Asia also placed an order for two cape sized bulk carriers and Daewoo also expects to win a contract for a drill ship from a company in the Oceania region. This would bring the total value of the orders to $3 billion. The shipyard didn’t disclose the names of the buyers. Daewoo now has a backlog worth about $36.5 billion, representing almost four years of work.

Daewoo Shipbuilding and its two biggest rivals, Hyundai Heavy and Samsung Heavy Industries, have been expanding their offshore businesses to take advantage of rising demand for facilities to explore and produce oil in deeper waters.