Offshore contractor Allseas has released new footage showing the removal of the Ninian Northern jacket by its Pioneering Spirit vessel.
The 8,500 tonnes, 83-metre-high steel structure was removed from the field, around 100 miles north-east of Shetland, in mid-April together with the help of the Allseas Oceanic vessel.
It was then transported to a deep-water port in Lerwick for dismantling.
The process was the first commercial operation for the Pioneering Spirit’s new jacket lift technology.
The system eliminates the need for barges, offering greater capacity, stability and workability in hostile environments, Allseas says.
Indeed, the technology is the subject of a new mini-documentary produced by the company which highlights its capabilities and development.
The Ninian Northern jacket is one of the heaviest jacket lifts ever to have been condicted, but remains well within the Pioneering Spirit’s 20,000-tonne capacity.
Having arrived in Shetland, the structure was transferred from Allseas’ Iron Lady barge to the quayside at Lerwick Port Authority’s Dales Voe base.
It was then loaded-in to a heavy-duty pad, where it will be decommissioned by waste, water and energy management services firm Veolia and logistics company Peterson in what will be the largest project the port has taken on to date.
The dismantling process is expected to take around eight months.
Ninian Northern was installed in 1978 and started up production in 1980, peaking at 90,000 barrels a day, before shutting up shop in 2017.
The platform arrived at the Dales Voe yard for decommisioning in August 2020.