Kishorn Port, on Scotland’s west coast, has formally landed a contract to decommission the Northern Producer oil rig, formerly used by EnQuest.
It marks the first major decommissioning contract for the refurbished drydock in Wester Ross, which was once a construction site for major oil platforms like the Ninian Central in the 1970s.
The floating production vessel, owned by Northern Offshore, has been sitting outside Kishorn’s docks for more than two years after leaving the EnQuest Dons fields in April 2021.
Though long-expected to be broken up in Scotland, the contract has only been confirmed today and work will now begin in earnest.
“This has been a long time coming and we are delighted to have landed the contract to receive the vessel in for decommissioning and recycling,” said Kishorn Port Limited.
It comes after Kishorn received permissions from the EU to break up offshore vessels in April 2022.
The move also follows a series of similar vessels, like the Balmoral FPV operated by Harbour Energy and the Teekay-operated Foinaven FPSO, heading to Denmark for recycling.
The Northern Producer moved into the Kishorn drydocks on Sunday (October 8) after the exit of the Noble Intrepid rig.
Kishorn added: “We believe that this will be the first time that works of this nature, will be carried out in a dry dock, with a semi- submersible FPV, a first for KPL and Kishorn Port under the EU recycling license.
“Some survey work will follow once high and dry and the necessary steps in our EU Licensing process will follow, working closely with SEPA, HSE the asset owner.”
Liberty Industrial, a contractor headquartered in Syndey, Australia, is leading on the decommissioning of the Northern Producer.
The same firm is involved in decontamination and demolition work at the former Nigg oil terminal in the Cromarty Firth.
Northern Producer
In the coming days, the dry dock gates will be sealed again and preparation will get underway for “decommissioning, recycling and any possibly use” of the vessel.
The Northern Producer was built in Norway by Tosvik Framnaes and bought by Northern Offshore, based in Westhill in Aberdeenshire, in 1996.
From May 2009 until April 2021 it was stationed at the EnQuest Dons fields, around 320 miles north-east of Aberdeen.
