BP orders fourth tanker

Petroleum News • Alaska

BP said Sept. 21 that it has ordered a fourth, state-of-the-art double-hull oil tanker for delivering Alaska North Slope crude oil to refineries on the West Coast. Three tankers were ordered in September 2000.

BP said design work is under way and construction of the 1.3 million-barrel-capacity tankers will begin early next year at National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. in San Diego, Calif. The first ship will be delivered in late 2003 with subsequent deliveries in 2004, 2005 and 2006. BP said it will complete conversion of its Alaska fleet to double hulls in 2006.

The four-ship order, with options for two additional tankers, has been matched to BP’s expected Alaska production rate for the next decade.

The ships have a design life of 35 to 50 years and carry crude oil in 18 cargo tanks. They will be operated by Alaska Tanker Co. of Portland, Ore. — formed in 1999 to operate BP chartered tankers used in the Alaska North Slope trade — and will make deliveries to West Coast ports, including BP refineries in Los Angeles and Cherry Point, Wash.