Spain: Fairmount Marine Delivers Topside for Castor Project

Fairmount Marine’s powerful tug Fairmount Expedition has safely delivered a 18,000 ton topside for process, utilities and living quarters for the Castor project offshore Spain. The topside was loaded onto Heerema’s H-541 barge and towed from Corpus Christi towards Spain.

The Castor project is a 1,3 billion cubic meters submarine gas storage project at a depth of 1,800 metres, 12 miles offshore Valencia at the east coast of Spain in the Mediterranean Sea. The topside was build in Corpus Christi, US.

Fairmount Marine was hired for the towage across the North Atlantic by Heerema Marine Contractors. Tug Fairmount Expedition had to mobilize the barge H-541 from Flushing, the Netherlands, to the US first.

Upon arrival of tug and tow in Corpus Christi, the topside was loaded onto the barge, where after the barge was prepared for towage across the North Atlantic. On the morning of October 12th, the Fairmount Expedition crew started with preparations for the towage connection. After the towage connection was established the convoy left Corpus Christi around noon the same day.

In the meanwhile Heerema Marine Contractors crane vessel Thialf was brought into position in the Castor field in order to install the topside which was being delivered by Fairmount Expedition. Fairmount Expedition maintained stand-by in the Castor field. Once the topside was taken of the barge H-541, Fairmount Expedition commenced demobilization of the barge.

The total 12,068 mile voyage (Flushing/the Netherlands – Corpus Christi/US – Tarragona/Spain) took just 50 days, with a just in time delivery of the topside by Fairmount Expedition.

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Offshore Energy Today Staff, December 9, 2011; Image: Fairmount Marine