Tuesday, June 05, 2012 -
Malaysian company Bumi Armada on Tuesday said it was awarded a contract to lay pipelines off the Caspian Sea coast of Turkmenistan.
The charter contract gives the Malaysian firm’s Turkmen unit Armada Marine Contractors Caspian Pte Ltd 30 days to lay a combination of pipelines on the bed of the world’s largest inland sea, the company said on its site on Tuesday.
Under the terms of the deal, work was to start at the end of May or early June and has a 15-day optional extension.
It signed the document with Dubai-headquartered firm Momentum Engineering (LLC) Turkmenistan.
Bumi Armada's chief executive officer noted that the Caspian region has ample oil and gas reserves and exports from the region could more than double over the next 25 years.
“Our Armada installer with its newly installed 825 tonne [909 ton] crane, is one of only two derrick pipe lay barges in the landlocked Caspian sea and we are optimistic of growth in the region,” Bumi CEO Hassan Basma added.
Momentum Engineering offers operations management for pipeline projects and well drilling and program engineering services.
Malaysian firms have been making inroads into the Turkmen economy, with state-owned petroleum firm Petronas investing up to $4.5 billion in Turkmenistan by the end of 2011.