Abu Dhabi National Energy Company PJSC (TAQA) has announced that it has completed the topside removal of the Brae Bravo platform.
The removal was completed by two of the world’s largest semi-submersible crane vessels, Thialf and Sleipnir, TAQA noted. Up to 500 people worked on the project at its peak, the company highlighted.
The 36,000-ton Brae Bravo structure has been sent to the AFOD Environmental Base in Vats, Norway, and is now being processed with the aim of reusing or recycling 95 percent or more of the material, TAQA revealed. The only remaining visible element of Brae Bravo is the top of the jacket above the sea surface, although a dedicated navigational aid has been installed on the remaining structure and a 1,640 foot safety zone will remain in place until the jacket is decommissioned in 2022, the company revealed.
“The Brae Bravo decommissioning project is a landmark moment for both TAQA and the North Sea offshore industry,” Donald Taylor, TAQA’s managing director for Europe, said in a company statement.
“The scale of this engineering feat cannot be overstated. Despite the challenges faced by the on and offshore team of the Covid-19 pandemic, this was completed on schedule and without any major incidents recorded – highlighting our commitment to health and safety,” he added.
“Decommissioning and late life management of offshore assets will play a major role in our journey to a lower carbon future, and Brae Bravo will be the blueprint for all future TAQA decommissioning programs in the North Sea,” Taylor went on to say.
TAQA posted a video of the Brae Bravo topside removal on its Twitter page.
With more than 500 people and nearly 400,000 man-hours, TAQA has completed one of the last stages in the decommissioning of Brae Bravo. https://t.co/OkDHWokp51 pic.twitter.com/7Pxn4OiYxB
— TAQA (@TAQAGroup) August 13, 2021
The company announced back in May that it had commenced what it called “one of the largest topside removal projects of its kind in the North Sea”. The Brae Bravo platform has produced more than 500 million barrels of oil equivalent since it was first commissioned in 1988, TAQA highlighted, adding that the structure is widely recognized within industry as an iconic asset in the pioneering Brae fields.
TAQA describes itself as one of the largest listed integrated utility companies in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The company traces its roots back to 1998 with the privatization of Abu Dhabi’s power and water sector.
To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com
What do you think? We’d love to hear from you, join the conversation on the
Rigzone Energy Network.
The Rigzone Energy Network, a new social experience created for you and all energy professionals to Speak Up about our industry, share knowledge, connect with peers and industry insiders and engage in a professional community that will empower your career in energy.