We were awarded the order as a supplier for the fabrication of 15km of 16" diameter Raw Gas Pipeline heat insulation by North Caspian Operating Company. The 1BCMA Project is a strategic initiative aimed at increasing the resource base and supporting natural gas supply to Kazakhstan's regions. Upon successful completion, the project is expected to increase oil production at the Kashagan field by approximately 25,000 barrels per day. 

Integrating Diverse Material Streams for a Complex Upstream Project

For NCOC's 1BCMA project, a key challenge was managing the simultaneous supply of a wide range of technically distinct materials including welding consumables, 3 block valve stations, a pipeline cathodic protection system, and junction boxes with accessories for the local equipment room. Each product category had different certification requirements, lead times, and quality standards. Coordinating these diverse streams while ensuring compatibility with NCOC's site installation schedule and strict corrosion protection criteria demanded a highly integrated approach.

To overcome this, we established a dedicated project coordination team that aligned procurement, QA, and logistics under a single delivery plan. All materials were pre-qualified with NCOC's engineering and integrity teams before fabrication. For long-lead items like the block valve stations and cathodic protection system, we used phased manufacturing with interim factory acceptance tests (FAT) to avoid last-stage surprises. Welding consumables were batch-traceable and stocked locally to prevent site downtime. Junction boxes and accessories were pre-assembled and labelled to match the local equipment room layout, reducing on-site electrical rework. As a result, we achieved on-time, defect-free delivery of all material categories, enabling NCOC to maintain construction mometum and meet the 1BCMA project's mechanical completion targets.

North Caspian Operating Company (NCOC) is the operator of the North Caspian Project, managing the first major offshore oil and gas development in Kazakhstan. Based in Atyrau, NCOC operates under a Production Sharing Agreement (NCSPSA) consisting of KazMunayGas, Eni, ExxonMobil, Shell, Total S.A., China National Petroleum Corporation, and Inpex.

Updated: March 2026