BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The offshore jacket
destined for Romania’s Neptun Deep gas development has departed
from Saipem’s Arbatax shipyard in Sardinia following the completion
of load-out operations, marking a key milestone in one of the
European Union’s most significant energy projects.
“The jacket destined to Neptun Deep Gas Development project in
Romania has sailed away from Saipem’s shipyard in Arbatax,
Sardinia, following the load-out operations completed recently,”
the company said in a message on its website.
Neptun Deep—developed by OMV Petrom as operator together with
Romgaz—is the largest offshore natural gas project currently under
development in the EU, with total investments estimated at up to €4
billion.
The structure shipped from Sardinia is part of a massive
offshore system designed to unlock deepwater gas reserves in the
Black Sea. Weighing around 7,500 tons and standing approximately
135 meters tall, the jacket is one of the largest ever built at
Saipem’s Arbatax facility. It was constructed horizontally and will
be transported and installed in the same orientation before being
lifted into position offshore.
Once it arrives in the Black Sea, the structure will be raised
vertically by the Saipem 7000 crane vessel and installed on the
seabed, where it will be secured using eight steel piles, each
about 2.5 meters in diameter.
Beyond the jacket itself, the project scope covers the
Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Installation (EPCIC) of
a gas processing platform located at roughly 100 meters water
depth. It also includes three subsea developments—at around 1,000
meters in the Domino field and approximately 100 meters in the
Pelican field—along with a 30-inch gas pipeline stretching about
160 kilometers and a fiber-optic cable connecting the offshore
facilities to the Romanian coast.
The gas processing platform will be fabricated across Saipem’s
industrial bases in Italy and Indonesia, while offshore
installation activities will be carried out using the Saipem 7000
and JSD 6000 vessels. In addition, material testing and
technological analysis for the project will be conducted in Romania
through Saipem’s local entity in Ploiești.
According to the company, the project contributes to the
diversification of Europe’s energy supply sources while reinforcing
Saipem’s position as a leading global offshore engineering
contractor. It also highlights the technical expertise and
operational capacity required to deliver complex deepwater
infrastructure on an international scale.
Once completed, Neptun Deep is expected to significantly boost
Romania’s offshore gas output and play a strategic role in
strengthening the European Union’s energy security and supply
diversification.
