Veolia begins work on oil platform decommissioning

Veolia UK and project management firm Peterson say they have accepted a sizable offshore structure at their Great Yarmouth decommissioning facility in the United Kingdom.

The Shell Leman BH offshore oil industry accommodation block platform, known as the “topside,” arrived at the facility on July 11, 2017, and the 50-meter-high steel jacket structure that supported the topside is scheduled to follow later in July. The topside, which was previously used as living quarters for personnel working on the Leman BT and Leman BK drilling platforms, will be dismantled and recycled.

The contract was awarded to the Veolia UK-Peterson partnership by Netherlands-based marine services firm Boskalis, which is responsible for offshore removal and transport operations. With a target of achieving a 97 percent recycling and reuse rate, it covers the receipt and treatment of offshore assets in a defined portion of the North Sea.

The newly built Great Yarmouth decommissioning facility will manage the deconstruction and recycling of both topsides and jacket structures, which consist of around 1,600 metric tons of materials, according to Veolia.

“These are valuable assets in our seas, and by decommissioning these platforms we can unlock resources to give them a second, third or even fourth life,” says Estelle Brachlianoff, a senior executive vice president with Veolia UK and Ireland. “This latest project will continue to show how we can maximize the recycling of these platforms and drive sustainability in the industry.”

Peterson’s Regional Director Ron van der Laan comments, “This project is a positive sign for Veolia - Peterson in Great Yarmouth, and follows the award of two contracts late last year. It will build on the successes achieved so far and represents a further step toward establishing Great Yarmouth as a center of excellence.”

Saying it has created a setup to provide a full decommissioning service, Veolia-Peterson services include decontamination, deconstruction, waste management and environmental services together with associated integrated logistics, marine and quayside services. To date, the joint venture has recovered more than 80,000 metric tons of offshore materials.

Paris-based Veolia Environnement handles some 30 million metric tons of discarded materials for recycling and waste-to-energy purposes each year. Veolia UK was recognized in 2016 as Business in the Community’s Responsible Business of the Year and in 2014 was awarded the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development.