Heerema coming back to decommission North Sea platforms it installed in the ’90s

Dutch offshore contractor Heerema Marine Contractors has been awarded a decommissioning contract by DNO for the integrated engineering, preparation, removal, and disposal (EPRD) of the Ketch and Schooner platforms located in the UK North Sea.

The Ketch and Schooner platforms are located in the Southern North Sea in the UK sector and were also installed by Heerema in the 1990s. Both platforms are tied-back to the Murdoch complex, which will also be removed by Heerema Marine Contractors.

Both Ketch and Schooner fields are located in the Southern Basin of the UKCS in license block 44/28a and license block 44/26a, respectively. The Murdoch installation acts as the Installation Control Centre (ICC) for both fields. The Schooner platform was installed in 1996 and the Ketch platform in 1998.

The Ketch platform is located in a water depth of 54m, and the Schooner platform is located at 71m of water depth. After removal, both structures will be responsibly disposed of and will be reused or recycled up to 97 per cent, according to Heerema.

Michel Hendriks, Heerema’s Decommissioning Director, said: “Heerema is proud to be the contractor of choice for the decommissioning of the Ketch and Schooner platforms. The EPRD award is the result of our ambition to remove offshore structures of all sizes in a safe and sustainable manner.

“We are especially pleased to contribute to the circularity of the project by being the installation and removal contractor, which is in line with our own sustainable circular ambitions.”