Wester pipeline launch going to plan
A 7.2 kilometre pipeline, which was constructed at Subsea 7’s Wester site, was being launched yesterday.
The pipeline – one of four being fabricated by the company for the BP Andrew Field – is part of the biggest project Subsea 7 has undertaken in Caithness.
The first bundle was successfully launched on Sunday and the other two are scheduled to be ready by late summer or early autumn, according to site manager Willie Watt.
He said the weather conditions were good for yesterday’s operation and added that everything was going to plan.
Mr Watt pointed out that the four bundle pipelines measure 27.5 kilometres in total and will be daisy-chained together to link BP’s Arundel and Kinnoull development to the Andrew platform.
He explained that staff numbers peaked at around 170 people during the construction phase and he paid tribute to those who were involved.
“I would like to publicly acknowledge the Wester site crew who worked extremely hard to achieve what is the most significant contract we have had here by a big margin. The winter weather was tough and when shops and schools were closing because of the adverse conditions our workforce was turning up every day to work on the pipeline,” Mr Watt told the Caithness Courier yesterday.
He also praised the public for its patience when pipe and towheads were being transported through Wick to the Wester site.
“They played their part in what is a success not just for the company but for Caithness as a whole. We now have more work to look forward to and more projects to carry out,” said Mr Watt.
Once Subsea 7 completes its pipelines for BP it will start work on a 2.2km bundle for the Hess company’s South Arne project in the Danish sector of the North Sea.
It also has a contract for two pipelines for ConocoPhillips’ Jasmine project.
“We will be fully occupied until April 2012 and are bidding all the time for future projects. We are confident we will get our share of the work,” added Mr Watt.