Results from The World Floating Production Report,soon to be published by energy industry analysts Douglas-Westwood,indicate strong growth in FPS installations over the next five years.In this article the authors give some of the thinking behind their views.The first installation of a floating production system(FPS)occurred over thirty years ago when Transworld 58,a converted semi-submersible drilling rig,was deployed on the Argyll field in the UK sector of the North Sea in 1975.Since then,a number of different floating production systems have evolved and four main types can be identified:Floating Production Storage & Offloading vessels(FPSOs),Floating Production Semi-submersibles(FPSSs),Tension Leg Platforms(TLPs)and spars.Production barges have also been deployed in the benign environments of the Asia Pacific and West African regions.
展开▼
