Allseas has won the contract to remove the topsides of the 45-year-old EnQuest (LON: ENQ) Heather platform in the North Sea.
The Pioneering Spirit will be mobilised for to remove the topsides, weighing nearly 13,000 tonnes of the platform, around 245 miles north-east of Aberdeen.
EnQuest said the single-lift operation is expected to take place in 2025, with preparation work to begin next year.
The contract covers all of the engineering, preparation, removal and disposal of the asset topsides.
No details have been disclosed on where the topsides will be taken for dismantling.
A separate contract will be awarded “in due course” for the Heather jacket.
First installed in 1977, a fire in a compressor module in October 2019 ultimately saw EnQuest call time on Heather the following March due to the cost of repair.
EnQuest has a 37.5% decommissioning liability after acquiring the asset in 2010.
Ithaca Energy and Shell each hold 31.25% in the asset.
Farewell to 45-year-old platform
Shetland is the nearest UK coastline for Heather, which lies 58miles to the north-east.
Production began in 1978, reaching a peak of 36,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 1982.
For a time, post-cessation of production, Heather was being used as like an “Airbnb” as part of upmanning plans for northern North Sea neighbour platform Thistle.
In the UK sector, the Pioneering Spirit vessel has recently been working on the removal job for the CNR International Ninian Northern jacket, which was landed at Dales Voe in Shetland.
It has also been involved in installation of a new production module at the CNOOC Buzzard field.
Over in Denmark, it has also been used to remove the jackets in the huge the TotalEnergies Tyra field.
In total the Pioneering Spirit, the largest construction vessel in the world, has removed more than 35,000 tonnes of offshore facilities from Tyra.
The vessel is capable of lifting up to 48,000 tonnes via its topside lift system capabilities.
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