Peter Brotherhood has been asked to construct the turbines for Maersk Contractors for use on floating oil platforms in the oil fields off the coast of South America.

The order is the first the Peterborough company has secured from Maersk, which is a leading drilling contractor and supplier of floating platforms for the oil industry.

Peter Brotherhood's managing director Stephen Fitzpatrick said: "This is the first contract we have secured from Maersk Contractors.

"Winning this order has strengthened the company's position as a world-class supplier of steam turbines for floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels worldwide.

"The combination of Peter Brotherhood technologies and our floating platform experience provide an exclusive and superior solution for our customers."

The turbines will be used in the Peregrino oil field, about 85 kilometres from Brazil, in about 100 metres of water, and the technology is expected to be able to deliver between 300 million and 600 million barrels of oil.

The three 24 MW condensing steam turbine driven generator sets, designed and manufactured by Peter Brotherhood, will be delivered to the FPSO vessel later this year. Engineers from Peter Brotherhood will be employed to commission the machines on board the vessel.

Peter Brotherhood has extensive experience in manufacturing steam turbine driven generator sets for installation on FPSO vessels. The company has installed 36 turbines on board 22 FPSO vessels.

News of the impressive order is another boost to manufacturing in Peterborough, coming a week after Perkins Engines announced that it is to spend £19 million to create a state-of-the-art laboratory that will put its engines through stringent emissions tests.

The success of the two firms – both major employers in Peterborough, with Perkins providing work for 4,000 people – will help offset some of the gloom caused by Hotpoint owners Indesit's decision to close its manufacturing centre in Morley Way with the loss of 420 jobs.