The Haiji-1 deepwater jacket measures 340.5 metres in total height and over 40,000 tonnes in weight, and this is the first time for China to install a fixed jacket in a water depth of nearly 300 metres.

Before Haiji-1, China had more than 300 offshore jackets, but all working at a water level of no more than 200 metres.

Jackets are structures pinned to the seafloor to support offshore oil and gas production facilities.

“Haiji-1 is designed to withstand the worst conditions in sea in a century. Our team overcame a series of challenges including strong internal waves in the South China Sea, giant sand ripples and sand ridges at the bottom of the sea, and accurate positioning of a giant structure under water. Many technologies were adopted for the first time and our design, manufacturing, operation maintenance and management abilities have been improved in an all-round way,” said Wu Yiming, general manager of Lufeng oil fields, China National Offshore Oil Corporation(CNOOC).

The successful installation indicates that China’s key technology and installation capacity in ultra-large deepwater fixed jackets has reached the world-class level, which will promote the storage and production of offshore oil and gas.

Haiji-1 will start with a daily output of 2,700 tonnes and then increase to 5,000 tonnes after all oil wells are completed.