Business Profiles Featured

SMB Offshore: Leading Deepwater Innovation

As the energy demand continues to soar across the globe, companies such as SBM Offshore are working to create new and innovative solutions which hope to make energy more accessible. However, SBM Offshore is doing this by harnessing the ocean to move the world towards a future of renewable energy. SBM Offshore utilises its vast expertise across the sector to bring energy to some of the world’s biggest cities whilst constantly working to protect to planet and its people.

To achieve carbon neutrality across the energy sector, SBM Offshore uses its technological expertise to design, build, install, and operate offshore floating facilities across the worldwide energy industry. According to SBM Offshore, two-thirds of the world’s cities are located near a shoreline, therefore the need for energy solutions on coasts has the potential to bring significant local prosperity. However, a key focus for SBM Offshore is harnessing the natural power of the ocean to bring energy to local communities whilst not putting these communities or the environment at significant risk. This attention to protection and energy infrastructure building is what positions SBM Offshore as such a significant player in the future of energy development.

SBM Offshore specialises in a range of offshore deepwater solutions including floating production storage and offloading (FPSO), oil and gas production operations and installation services, offloading terminals, TMS LNG, wave converters and floating offshore wind terminals. It has positioned itself at the top end of the FPSO market and deals with some of the largest and most complex projects in the sector. SBM Offshore focuses on using innovation to deliver high-performance solutions which always aim to meet and exceed its client’s expectations, often going beyond what is available across the market. Its deepwater systems work to tackle unique sets of engineering challenges and make energy infrastructure possible through its comprehensive research and development teams.

A key pioneering strategy of SBM Offshore’s operations is its Fast4Ward program which includes its Multi-Purpose Floater (MPF). The MPF is a generic hull which can accommodate an internal turret, external turret, or spread-mooring solution to facilitate topsides for increased production capacity. The Fast4Ward program has been designed to transform its operations by reducing the cycle time to energy delivery by de-risking projects and improving the quality and safety of its solutions. Therefore, the resulting energy solutions produced by SBM Offshore are paving the way towards future generations of FPSOs across the energy sector.

The Fast4Ward program hopes to add value to its clients’ operations by improving the economics of their deep-water projects which in turn will lower break-evens. To achieve this, SBM Offshore has leveraged its experience by standardising its designs to improve execution of multiple projects which has knock-on benefits across the deepwater solution industry due to their repeatability. In addition to this, SBM Offshore has worked to seamlessly incorporate digital solutions into its offshore solutions, which allows its models to constantly improve their performance whilst also remaining continually optimized for the specific needs of its client’s operations. At present, SBM Offshore has completed the construction of two Fast4Ward hulls with more planned in the future.

In addition to this, SBM Offshore has its Ocean Infrastructure program which delivers value platforms that are safe and sustainable, whilst also creating a more affordable energy solution. This includes a fleet which has been made increasingly efficient by SBM Offshore to lower the carbon footprint of its solutions and produce a leading uptime and safety track record. Therefore, SBM Offshore leads the market with its leased FPS solutions and currently has multiple units in operation across the globe which continue to provide the company with a unique breadth of operations experience across the energy sector.

However, everything that SBM Offshore does is framed by climate change mitigation which can be seen throughout its operations with its strong commitments to net-zero by building facilities and infrastructure in a carbon-reduced way. A key way SBM Offshore does this is through its emissionZERO program which aims, as the name suggests, to achieve near-zero emissions from its operations. To do this SBM Offshore has set targets in line with the net-zero emission of its key stakeholders and continues to develop products in an emission-reducing way. This is seen in its continued product developments which not only provide a platform for stakeholder engagement but uses the development of its FPSOs to show the energy industry what is possible when strict emission targets are put into place across such a global company. Its Fast4Ward programs are the foundation of this for SBM Offshore.

Furthermore, SBM Offshore remains committed to these carbon-neutral goals through its 3 key strategy pillars of environment, social and governance. As we have seen, in terms of the environment, SBM Offshore is continually investing in energy-efficient technologies whilst also working to bring environmentally friendly solutions to a global market. In addition, the company continues to work closely with its suppliers to encourage innovation and ensure that sustainable solutions encompass its supply chains at every level. We see this in its zero-emission solution for hydrocarbon production which, as the company moves towards the future, is hoped to continue to create value for all of its stakeholders as it leads the market with carbon-zero energy solutions.

Additionally, SBM Offshore fosters a safe and inclusive environment where the people are at the heart of its every function. The company aims to inspire and empower people by focusing on strict guidelines on workplace health, safety and security, community relations, human rights, diversity, and inclusion. It is this keen focus on its people that has earned SBM Offshore global recognition as a responsible corporate citizen. In turn, those who choose to use SMB Offshore as their energy solutions provider, know they are working with a company that has a reliable reputation as a reliable and supportive partner across international markets.

Throughout SBM Offshore there is a strong commitment to achieving high operation performance which focuses on a value-based approach. This approach prioritizes strong leadership, clear decision-making processes, effective communication between management and stakeholders, as well as strong ethics and compliance. All of these factors are part of the company’s ongoing commitment to continuous improvement which helps it achieve operational excellence and consistently high-quality solutions. As the company moves towards the future, it has continued to incorporate digitalization into its operations and governance to help it remain ahead of the curve. However, what remains the same about SBM Offshore is its central values of integrity, care, entrepreneurship, and ownership which can be seen throughout every single aspect of its operations.

As SBM Offshore looks towards the future its key focus is on its new-build FPSOs with oil production volumes of up to 250,000 barrels per day which previously was the focus of the Fast4Ward FPSO. The large conversion FPSO with an oil production volume of up to 150,00 barrels per day will rival traditional FPSO markets as it continues to convert oil tankers to FPSOs. Furthermore, SBM Offshore will continue to take a selective approach to market opportunities with a key focus on the main FPSO markets in Brazil and Guyana where the majority of low breakeven oil-price prospects are concentrated. In addition, SBM Offshore continues to develop its business across the globe which hopes to see up to 35 FPSO projects reach a Final Investment Decision (FID) between 2021 and 2023.

Overall, SBM Offshore continues to strive to keep pushing the boundaries across the energy sector to produce solutions which respect the planet whilst also bringing essential energy infrastructure to coasts across the globe. What separated SMB Offshore from its competitors is it commitment to sharing its experience with the industry to continually deliver safe, sustainable, and affordable energy solutions from the oceans which can provide essential energy for many generations to come. We look forward to seeing how SBM Offshore continues to develop the offshore energy industry and continues to show the industry how crucial sustainability is in the energy sector.