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Aker Solutions wins design role on Qatar's Maydan Mahzam oil redevelopment

Aker Solutions wins design role on Qatar's Maydan Mahzam oil redevelopment

Built World

PTSC M&C hands the Norwegian engineer detail design for three topsides and four jackets on a project to extend the life of a field producing since 1965

Today: Aker Solutions receives design award

Overview

Updated 43 minutes ago

The Maydan Mahzam oil field has produced from beneath the Gulf since 1965. Its output is declining, and QatarEnergy is spending an estimated $4 billion to $5 billion to keep it running into the 2030s. On November 5, the engineering work took another step.

Aker Solutions received a letter of award from PTSC Mechanical & Construction, the Vietnamese contractor leading the main construction package. The deal covers detail design for three topsides, four jackets and brownfield tie-ins. Aker calls the award "sizeable," between NOK 0.5 billion and NOK 1.5 billion, and will book it in the fourth quarter if a final contract is signed.

Why it matters

Qatar is rebuilding a field that has produced since 1965 rather than retiring it, testing whether ageing offshore assets can stay economic.

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Key Indicators

>$3bn
PTSC M&C EPIC-1 contract value
Reported value of the main construction package, the largest PTSC M&C has won.
100,000
Combined weight of new structures
Eight new platforms and bridges under the EPIC-1 package.
25,000
Target production (barrels per day)
QatarEnergy aims to hold output near this level as the field ages.
NOK 0.5bn–1.5bn
Aker Solutions award size
The company's "sizeable" band; Upstream reported the contract could be worth up to $161 million.

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People Involved

GR
Guro Rausand
Executive Vice President of New Build, Aker Solutions
Leading Aker's engineering work on the Maydan Mahzam award
SA
Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi
Chief Executive, QatarEnergy
Leading QatarEnergy as it redevelops ageing offshore oil assets

Organizations Involved

QatarEnergy
QatarEnergy
State-owned energy company
Operator of the Maydan Mahzam field and sponsor of the redevelopment

Qatar's state-owned energy company and operator of the Maydan Mahzam field.
MC
PTSC Mechanical & Construction
Engineering, procurement and construction contractor
Main EPCIC contractor for the EPIC-1 package

Vietnamese contractor leading the platform-heavy EPIC-1 package.
Aker Solutions
Aker Solutions
Engineering contractor
Holds a letter of award for detail design on Maydan Mahzam

Norwegian engineering firm providing detail design for the Maydan Mahzam topsides and jackets.
CO
China Offshore Oil Engineering Company
Offshore engineering and construction contractor
Holder of the EPIC-2 subsea package

Chinese offshore contractor responsible for the subsea-focused EPIC-2 package.
Seatrium
Seatrium
Offshore and marine engineering company
Consortium partner with PTSC on EPIC-1

Singapore-based offshore and marine group partnering with PTSC on the main construction package.

Timeline

1965 November 2026

8 events Latest: Today
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Aker Solutions receives design award

    Today Award

    PTSC M&C issues a letter of award for detail design of three topsides and four jackets.

  2. COOEC confirms EPIC-2

    Award

    The Chinese contractor takes the subsea pipelines, cables and umbilicals.

  3. Contractor lineup reported

    Report

    MEED reports PTSC-Seatrium on package one and COOEC on package two.

  4. PTSC M&C wins EPIC-1

    Award

    The Vietnamese contractor takes the platform-heavy package, running through 2031.

  5. Commercial bids submitted

    Procurement

    Prices arrive after QatarEnergy extends the commercial deadline several times.

  6. Contractors submit technical bids

    Procurement

    Bidders file technical proposals for the two main EPC packages.

  7. QatarEnergy issues main tender

    Procurement

    The redevelopment is split into four packages, with two main EPC packages.

  8. Maydan Mahzam begins production

    Milestone

    The field comes online about 100 kilometres northeast of Qatar's coast.

Scenarios

1

Aker signs the final contract and books the order in Q4 2026

Likely Resolves by End of 2026

Discussed by: Aker Solutions, which said the award is subject to a final contract

Aker Solutions signs the final contract and reports the Maydan Mahzam design work as order intake in its fourth-quarter 2026 results. The company said the letter of award is conditional, so the booking depends on that signature. Its quarterly report will show whether the deal closed on schedule.

2

PTSC M&C starts fabrication of EPIC-1 structures

Possible Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: PTSC M&C, which says the package runs from Q4 2026 through the end of 2031

PTSC M&C begins cutting steel for the eight new platforms and bridges, moving the project from engineering into construction. The EPIC-1 schedule starts in the fourth quarter of 2026, so a fabrication start would mark the transition from design to build.

3

Redeveloped Maydan Mahzam slips past 2031

Unlikely Resolves by End of 2031

Discussed by: EPC Intel, which notes the heavy brownfield integration load

The redevelopment runs past its 2031 target. The EPIC-1 schedule already stretches to the end of 2031, and the package includes brownfield modifications and tie-ins to facilities that have operated for decades. Integration work on old infrastructure is where schedules tend to move.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

1965

Maydan Mahzam enters production (1965)

Qatar discovered the Maydan Mahzam field in the 1960s, about 100 kilometres northeast of its coastline, and brought it into production in 1965. It became one of the country's oldest offshore oil assets, alongside the nearby Bul Hanine field.

Then

The field produced steadily for decades.

Now

After six decades, output has declined, prompting QatarEnergy to plan a full redevelopment rather than shut it down.

Why this matters now

The current project exists because the original field life is running out.

2020s

Bul Hanine redevelopment (2020s)

QatarEnergy is also redeveloping the nearby Bul Hanine field, discovered in the same decade as Maydan Mahzam. The company selected Wood for offshore pipeline design work on that project.

Then

The work is part of a broader effort to extend the life of Qatar's older offshore fields.

Now

It shows the redevelopment model QatarEnergy is applying across its mature assets.

Why this matters now

Maydan Mahzam follows the same pattern: new platforms and pipelines bolted onto ageing infrastructure.

Sources

(7)
+1
Aker Solutions Upstream MEED PTSC M&C EPC Intel Finansavisen Construction Review