Deepwater oil operations are pushing technological creativity to the limits. The Eirik Raude drilling rig demonstrates the industry's ability to adapt to the planet's most rigorous conditions.
The world rig market can offer a large and diverse range of units, but relatively few of these are able not only to operate in deep water but also to tackle cold, stormy weather conditions.
So a group of Norwegian investors decided to construct the sensational new Eirik Raude rig, which has been specially designed to work in ultradeep water down to 3,000 meters.
This semi-submersible unit became operational in the autumn of 2002, and was hailed as "the world's most extreme drilling rig" by the Discovery popular science TV channel.
Eirik Raude was put to the test during its very first winter in an inferno of ice, waves and wind off the Canadian east coast.
During this season alone, it faced three 100-year storms. "The first of these blew up on February 27th," reports Halvdan P Strand, operations supervisor on the rig and now stationed in Canada on assignment for the Norwegian owner, Ocean Rig.
"We suffered 120-knot winds and waves 24 meters high. The rig heaved nine meters vertically. A normal unit would have had to abandon the well in weather that bad.
"But Eirik Raude's technology and design ensured that the riser was connected at all times to the blowout-preventer on top of the well."
Mooring to the seabed is extremely difficult when working in 2-3,000 meters of water during stormy weather. Eirik Raude has therefore been equipped with class 3 dynamic positioning.
"This DP3 system ensures that it's relatively easy to maintain the rig over the well, even in violent storms," explains Mr. Strand. More details
The world rig market can offer a large and diverse range of units, but relatively few of these are able not only to operate in deep water but also to tackle cold, stormy weather conditions.
So a group of Norwegian investors decided to construct the sensational new Eirik Raude rig, which has been specially designed to work in ultradeep water down to 3,000 meters.This semi-submersible unit became operational in the autumn of 2002, and was hailed as "the world's most extreme drilling rig" by the Discovery popular science TV channel.
Eirik Raude was put to the test during its very first winter in an inferno of ice, waves and wind off the Canadian east coast.
During this season alone, it faced three 100-year storms. "The first of these blew up on February 27th," reports Halvdan P Strand, operations supervisor on the rig and now stationed in Canada on assignment for the Norwegian owner, Ocean Rig.
"We suffered 120-knot winds and waves 24 meters high. The rig heaved nine meters vertically. A normal unit would have had to abandon the well in weather that bad.
"But Eirik Raude's technology and design ensured that the riser was connected at all times to the blowout-preventer on top of the well."
Mooring to the seabed is extremely difficult when working in 2-3,000 meters of water during stormy weather. Eirik Raude has therefore been equipped with class 3 dynamic positioning.
"This DP3 system ensures that it's relatively easy to maintain the rig over the well, even in violent storms," explains Mr. Strand. More details