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Contractors prepare bids for Safaniya offshore field expansion

5 August 2025

Contractors within Saudi Aramco’s pool of offshore engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) service providers are preparing bids for three tenders that represent the next infrastructure expansion phase at the Safaniya offshore oil field development in Saudi Arabia.

The tenders are numbers 154, 155 and 156 on Aramco’s Contract Release and Purchase Order (CRPO) system. The Saudi energy giant issued these CRPOs to its offshore LTA contractors in February, and set an initial bid submission deadline of 31 July, MEED previously reported.

Aramco has now extended the bid submission deadline for CRPOs 154, 155 and 156 to 28 August, sources told MEED.

The brief scope of EPCI work on the three tenders are as follows:

CRPO 154:

EPCI of a water injection tie-in platform; two production deck modules (PDMs)/wellhead platforms; associated pipelines; hook-ups; and subsea valve skids

CRPO 155:

EPCI of four PDMs; intra-field and main trunklines to shore; and jackets

CRPO 156:

EPCI of a 48-inch trunkline covering a distance of 62 kilometres from the Safaniya offshore oilfield to the onshore processing facility; plus hook-ups and associated structures.

Aramco intends to award the EPCI contracts for CRPOs 154, 155 and 156 in January next year, as per sources.

The oil major's LTA pool of offshore service providers comprises the following entities:

  • Saipem (Italy)
  • McDermott International (US)
  • Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (LTEH, India) / Subsea7 (UK)
  • NMDC Energy (UAE)
  • Lamprell (UAE/Saudi Arabia)
  • China Offshore Oil Engineering Company 
  • Dynamic Industries (US)
  • Sapura Energy (Malaysia)
  • TechnipFMC (France) / MMHE (Malaysia)
  • Hyundai Heavy Industries (South Korea)

Aramco renewed its LTAs in April with the following contractors, whose contracts had either lapsed or were close to expiry:

  • Saipem
  • McDermott International
  • Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon / Subsea7
  • NMDC Energy
  • Lamprell
  • China Offshore Oil Engineering Company
Awards rebound

Concerns had grown in Saudi Arabia’s offshore market as EPCI contract awards stalled earlier this year.

Aramco spent a record $5bn on offshore EPCI contracts in 2024 and was expected to exceed that in 2025. However, it awarded no CRPOs in the first half of the year, fuelling concern among contractors and suppliers.

In July, Aramco eased speculation by selecting contractors for five CRPOs – numbers 150, 157, 158, 159 and 160 – worth over $3bn. These involve EPCI work and infrastructure upgrades at the Abu Safah, Berri, Manifa, Marjan and Zuluf offshore fields.

Furthermore, frontrunners have emerged for four more CRPOs that are part of a large-scale project to expand infrastructure at the Zuluf offshore field development. The tenders are CRPOs 145, 146, 147 and 148, and their combined value is estimated to be almost $6bn.

Although official contracts for these CRPOs have yet to be issued, Aramco is expected to formally award the jobs to the contractors it has selected from its LTA pool within the third quarter.

When these contract awards take place, Aramco will have almost doubled its capex on offshore projects this year compared to 2024, marking yet another year of robust upstream project spending.

Furthermore, it is understood there are at least seven more CRPOs – including 154, 155 and 156 – that LTA contractors are preparing bids for.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14405455/main2233.jpg
Indrajit Sen

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