Jascon 25 arrives off Australia for West Atlas removal project

Projects and Operations - October 4, 2010

Sea Trucks says Jascon 25 has recently arrived in Australia to start work on the removal of the West Atlas drilling rig.

For this particular project Sea Trucks Australia have formed a partnership with Svitzer Salvage Australasia.

The jack-up drilling rig, which is currently located at the Montara Wellhead Platform in the Timor Sea between Australia and Indonesia, requires removal following damage suffered during a blow-out of one of the Montara wells and subsequent fire in August and November 2009 respectively.

The contract includes the cleaning and removal of debris from the rig as well as the cantilever drill floor which is extended over the Wellhead Platform, followed by the jacking down of the rig and subsequent towing to Singapore.

Jascon 25 will be the primary support vessel in the removal operation. Jascon 25 is one of Sea Trucks Group’s newly built multi- purpose DP3 offshore construction vessels equipped with an 800 mt crane, large deck space and significant accommodation capacity.

Specifically for this project a hydraulically operated gangway has been installed for the safe transfer of personnel to and from the West Atlas rig.

The project follows the successful deployment of the Jascon 25 on the recent BHP Pyrenees Field Installation on which the vessel was employed for 10 months.

Removal works of the West Atlas rig are expected to run for approximately three months.

The project is being managed from Sea Trucks Australia’s Perth office by a combined Sea Trucks and Svitzer management and engineering team.