Wuhu Shipyard delivers first integrated fracturing vessel to Bohai

Wuhu Shipyard has delivered China's first integrated large-scale offshore fracturing vessel, the Offshore Oil 696, to the Bohai Oilfield, where it has begun operations — boosting the nation's deep-sea oil and gas development.

As a key national asset filling a critical gap in China's offshore oil and gas fracturing technology, the vessel was delivered in March and entered service just two months later — marking a shift to large-scale, intelligent development for the country's offshore low-permeability oil and gas resources.

The vessel leads the world in both main dimensions and total fracturing pump power, while its automation, intelligence and integration rank among the most advanced globally. Electrically powered, the ship measures 99.8 meters in length and 22 meters in beam, with an installed power of 28,700 kilowatts. It can sustain continuous operations with 600 cubic meters of sand and 6,000 cubic meters of liquid — making it the world's most powerful integrated large-scale fracturing vessel.

On its maiden mission, the vessel completed four-layer sand control packing on the target well. It operated for over 20 hours straight with all equipment running smoothly, completing a systematic validation of equipment and crew coordination that lays the groundwork for subsequent multi-platform operations and large-scale fracturing.

The vessel will help unlock hard-to-recover offshore oil and gas resources, break bottlenecks in developing low-permeability fields and bring Wuhu shipbuilding expertise to bear on the nation's energy security.