Norwegian energy company Statoil said it awarded two new contracts to help build the processing platforms for the giant offshore Johan Sverdrup oil field.

Engineering companies Dragados Offshore and Kvaerner Verdal landed contracts to help build parts of the platform network for Johan Sverdrup. For engineering and construction company Kvaerner Verdal, it's the third such contract for work in the first phase of operations for the offshore field.

The first phase of development at the North Sea field will consist of four installations, including living quarters, alongside processing, drilling and riser platforms. Engineering work for the jacket for the drilling platform is under way at Kvaerner Verdal offices in Oslo.

Once in full swing, the field, the fifth largest ever discovered off the Norwegian coast, should account for up to 25 percent of all Norwegian petroleum production.

Peak production is expected to be up to 650,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. First phase operations represents a $14.2 billion investment from field development partners.

The Norwegian government in July opened a research center aimed at improving resource recovery rates from offshore fields. Statoil said it already has measures in place to reach a 50 percent recovery rate. The company aims for a recovery rate of 70 percent at Johan Sverdrup.

At a time when low oil prices are crimping export revenues for Norway, the government estimates each 1 percent increase in recovery rate translates to $48 billion for the economy.