A contract totaling about $50 million has been awarded to a unit of Raymond International Inc., Henry F. LeMieux, chairman and chief executive officer, announced. The contract was awarded to Raymond Offshore Constructors (Overseas) Limited, a subsidiary of Raymond Offshore Constructors, Inc., by Esso Australia Ltd., a unit of Exxon Company, to install the West Kingfish and Cobia production platforms in the Bass Strait off Australia's southeast coast. Installation will begin early in 1981 and will take about one year to complete, Mr. LeMieux said.
Raymond's derrick barge Polaris will be towed from its Houma, La., base around the Cape of Good Hope, Africa, to the Bass Strait for the installation. The Polaris was constructed for Raymond in 1979 and is working currently in the Gulf of Mexico.