Tugboats ready for action in the North Sea

Text: Sveinung W. Jensen, Tellus Kommunikajon

With important work underway on the Snorre A oil platform, FFS Arion and FFS Athos are on emergency standby.

“A construction vessel is set to perform an installation job at the platform. Should the vessel experience engine failure, there is a risk of collision. Our boats will then step in and push the vessel away from the platform,” says John W. Nilsen, Managing Director at Farmar.

ALTHOUGH SUCH maintenance operations usually proceed smoothly, the risk of incidents is always present.

“That’s why it’s crucial for us to be nearby and able to respond immediately. Our tugboats provide extra security for everyone involved in the work,” says Nilsen.

FARMAR HAS has made significant investments in recent years to to handle such assignments.

“We have to go through extensive approvals in advance, where our equipment is thoroughly inspected,” says Nilsen.

Initially, the tugboats are hired for three weeks, with the possibility of extension.

“Later this summer, we will perform the same type of job at the Visund field, located in the Tampen area in the northern part of the North Sea. The plan is to have a two-week break between the two jobs,” says Nilsen.

SNORRE A ER an oil platform located around 150 kilometres west of Florø in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.

The platform, which is a combined drilling, production, and accommodation platform made of steel, has been operational since August 1992. It produces oil from the Snorre field, which is then transported to Statfjord-A for processing and subsequently loaded onto tankers.

This is not the first time FFS Arion and FFS Athos have been on standby duty. Last year, the tugboats served as emergency response tugs for a similar maintenance job on the Snorre B platform.