GMC advances buoyant tower platforms on two major international developments
UK-based engineering specialist GMC Limited has cemented its position at the vanguard of buoyant tower platform solutions through two landmark projects: first, the delivery of a self-installing buoyant tower concept for Energean Oil & Gas’s Prinos field in Greece; and second, participation in the execution of the world’s first buoyant tower drilling & production platform (CX-15) for the BPZ Energy/Wison Offshore & Marine Ltd Corvina field offshore Peru. These projects demonstrate GMC’s ability to deliver flexible, cost-effective deep-sea infrastructure for oil and gas developments.
Self-installing buoyant tower for Prinos field, Greece
In April 2015, GMC completed the basic design of a self-installing buoyant tower for Energean’s Prinos offshore western Greece development. The design brief combined two key aims: extending the remaining life of the existing Prinos infrastructure, and providing a modular, flexible solution for the field’s green-field expansion.
GMC’s scope included evaluation and reinforcement of the existing wellhead platform (Prinos Alpha) and designing a concept that allows local fabrication and installation without reliance on heavy-lift vessels - enabling local supply-chain utilisation. GMC’s buoyant tower concept is described as self-installing and adaptable to modest water depths, designed to link into the existing Prinos Delta processing facility via retrofitted J-tubes and risers. This contract illustrates GMC’s capability to apply economical, locally replicable solutions to offshore developments, particularly in mature fields requiring cost control and infrastructure life-extension.
World first buoyant tower platform (CX-15) offshore Peru
GMC also contributed to the landmark CX-15 buoyant tower platform for BPZ Energy, the first of its kind in the world. The platform was loaded and transported to the Corvina field offshore Peru in 2012. The tower hull weighed 2,500 tons and the topsides 1,500 tons; it was fabricated in Wison’s Nantong, China facility under Wison Offshore & Marine’s EPC contract, and the design accounted for water depths between approximately 61 m and 213 m.
GMC (in association with other partners) designed the three-level topsides as well as the buoyant tower itself, delivering a facility capable of producing 12,200 barrels per day of oil, 12.8 MMcf/d of gas, and injecting 3,500 bbl/d of water. The platform also accommodated a drilling rig with 24 well slots. In March 2013 the installation of the CX-15 platform at Corvina was showcased via video by GMC, highlighting the 69.9 m tower hull consisting of four ring-stiffened cylindrical tubes including a central suction pile. This project underscores GMC’s ability to support pioneering offshore developments, combining novel structural solutions (buoyant tower) with topside design capability for drilling and production operations.
GMC buoyant-tower capability: strategic value and market relevance
GMC’s buoyant tower solutions offer several differentiators:
- Self-installing capability, reducing dependence on heavy-lift vessels and large installation spreads (as shown on Prinos).
- Scalability and redeployability, enabling the concept to be used for marginal fields or as satellite tie-ins in mature infrastructure contexts
- Capability to support both production and drilling (as evidenced on CX-15), thereby serving full field-development scope rather than only subsea storage or P&A.
- Adaptation to moderate water depths (61–213 m) as well as potentially deeper water contexts, thereby opening new opportunities for brownfield and greenfield developments.
Looking ahead
With these two significant references in hand, GMC is well-positioned to offer buoyant tower solutions to operators looking to tie into existing infrastructure, extend field lives, or cost-effectively develop satellite assets. The twin track of mature-field optimisation (Prinos) and pioneering deep-water execution (Corvina) gives GMC a unique story to tell in the offshore engineering marketplace.
GMC will continue to leverage its design expertise, fabricability focus and modular installation philosophy, as the industry increasingly looks to unlock stranded or hard-to-develop reservoirs with innovative platform solutions.
