VIDEO: 6700 Ton Valhall Platform Torn Down with Explosives

Aker Solutions has posted a video on its Facebook page showing the 6,700-ton Valhall drilling platform being torn down with explosives.

In a statement accompanying the video, Aker Solutions outlined that, as Aker BP is upgrading the “gigantic” Valhall field, its original platforms from the early 1980s have been removed and transported to Aker Solutions’ facilities at Stord.

“There, the old giants will be dismantled and as much as 98 percent of the structures will be recycled, giving new life to valuable raw materials such as high-grade steel,” the statement noted.

“Once the platform has been emptied, the next step of the recycling project is to topple the structure so that it comes within reach of the large cutting machines. In some cases, the preferred method is to use explosives,” the statement added.

Last month, Aker BP posted a video on its Facebook page showing the removal of modules from the Valhall field center.

“In order to further develop the area, a new central platform is planned on the field center and this also enables tie-in of the King Lear field,” Aker BP said in a statement accompanying the video.

“The coordinated development will contribute to extend the service life and increased value creation from Valhall,” the company added.

According to the website of Aker BP, the operator of Valhall with a 90 percent interest, the field has produced over a billion barrels of oil equivalents since it was opened in 1982. The ambition is to produce another billion barrels over the next 40 years, the company notes on its site.

“The Valhall field is located in the southern part of the Norwegian sector in the North Sea, and although the field has been in production for several decades, Aker BP sees enormous potential in the area,” the company states on its site.

“The work of modernizing Valhall is well underway, and involves removing old platforms, plugging old wells, investing in new wells and actively seeking new business opportunities in the area,” the company adds.

Net 2P reserves in the Valhall area stand at 291 million barrels of oil equivalent (net), according to Aker BP, which highlights that the area’s production level in 2021 reached more than 46,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com