Shell’s Goldeneye wellhead platform topside weighing 1280 metric tons and the 3019 metric ton jacket have been removed by Heerema Marine Contractors’ semisubmersible crane vessel Thialf. The semi-sub giant initially installed the platform in 2003. The operation included the removal of the topside and the jacket as well as transportation to the AF Environmental Base in Norway for recycling and reuse.

The Goldeneye platform was located in the Central North Sea, in the United Kingdom Continental Shelf, around 100 km northeast of the Aberdeenshire coast. The platform included five platform wells in 120 metre water depth with a direct tie-back via the Goldeneye pipeline to the St. Fergus onshore facility. It was operational as a gas-producing field from 2004, and cessation of production was granted in 2011.

The Goldeneye removal for Shell, follows the removal of of Cassia compression (Cassia C) platform on behalf of client bp Trinidad and Tobago (bpTT). Thialf also did the heavy lifting during the the decommissioning and removal campaign of ExxonMobil’s Sable project off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada, earlier this year.

Removal and recycling campaign

The Goldeneye platform was removed using Heerema‘s reverse installation method, starting with removing the 1280 metric ton topside in a single lift. After removal, the topside was transferred to Thialf’s deck for transportation.

The Goldeneye jacket involved cutting skirt piles using Deco Subsea’s internal abrasive water jet cutting techniques at -3m below the seabed. After which, the 3019 metric ton jacket was removed and remained suspended in Thialf’s cranes for transportation to Vats, Norway.

The Goldeneye platform has been safely set down at the AF Environmental Base yard in Vats, Norway, to be dismantled for reuse and recycling. It is anticipated that over 97 percent of the material will be recycled.

Thialf will now undergo yard maintenance, including modifications to the vessel’s A-Frame to enable Thialf to expand its service area and deliver solutions in the Baltic and the Black Sea regions.