More decommissioning at Dales Voe

TWO large structures from the Spirit Energy’s ST-1 platform have arrived in Shetland for decommissioning.

The 45-metre high 1,300 tonne steel jacket and 1,200 tonne topsides structure arrived into Dales Voe in Lerwick today (15 July).

The structures will be dismantled and disposed of by partners Veolia and Peterson.

The companies have a recycling target of 97 per cent.

The ST-1 platform, which had come to the end of its life, was installed in 1994 in the Greater Markham Area 160km off the coast in the southern North Sea.

It comes after the Buchan Alpha platform was taken to Dales Voe in 2017 to be decommissioned.

Topsides from the Ninian North platform, meanwhile, are expected to be taken to Dales Voe in 2020.

Veolia decommissioning director Martin O’Donnell said of the ST-1 job: “This work follows the successful recovery operations carried out at the facility, and really demonstrates how collaboration across the supply chain can deliver greater sustainability.

“We have already recycled over 80,000 tonnes of materials and created new job opportunities to meet the growing demand for decommissioning.”

James Johnson, decommissioning manager at Peterson, added: “This project is a great showcase of how our collaboration with Veolia is enabling us to provide a full decommissioning service which provides a better customer experience.

“We are pleased to be involved in the ongoing development of Dales Voe as a centre of excellence for decommissioning for the North Sea.”

Last year the Scottish Government announced it had picked Dales Voe as its preferred location for the UK’s first ultra-deep water port.