Well-Safe Debuts Saturation Dive Spread Capability on Well-Safe Guardian

Well-Safe Solutions has unveiled a D300 saturation diving system aboard the Well-Safe Guardian, making the semi-submersible rig the only one of its type in the North Sea with this capability.

The custom-built dive spread, with capacity for up to 15 persons, enables safe access to legacy subsea wellhead and Christmas tree systems from the 1970s onwards which were originally designed for diver intervention.

Phil Milton, Chief Executive Officer at Well-Safe Solutions, said: “With 48% of overall decommissioning expenditure in 2022 focused on well abandonment alone, Well-Safe Solutions has identified a clear market in mature basins such as the UK Continental Shelf for this technology.1

“The dive spread system installed on the Well-Safe Guardian is a cost-effective, flexible alternative to the industry standard, which typically sees a light well intervention vessel (LWIV) used to plug and lubricate the well before completing decommissioning operations with a standard semi-submersible mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU).

“Our ‘single asset solution’ offers an alternative to the conventional approach and does not require multiple vessel mobilisations and demobilisations. This results in lower operating costs, minimises the risk of weather-related disruption and boosts overall project efficiency.

“Recent engineering and comparative analysis studies have demonstrated the value this solution can bring to the wider decommissioning industry as it seeks to streamline processes and costs alike as part of the transition to net zero carbon emissions.

“Our data shows that the use of the Well-Safe Guardian to plug and abandon (P&A) five wells over three fields in the North Sea generates a 15% total cost reduction and is 44 days quicker than using a LWIV and MODU pairing.”

“We are delighted to be able to bring this solution to market as part of our vision to become the industry’s well decommissioning partner of choice.”

The manufacture, transport and fitment of the dive spread was carried out at Burntisland, Rosyth and Methil ports on the east coast of Scotland.

Equipped with an environmentally-friendly electric bell-handling system and two hyperbaric lifeboats, the system is designed to enable diving operations to be carried out in support of well decommissioning.

Typical operations supported include cleaning, deconstruction, barrier testing, manual tree cap removal, reconfiguration of hydraulic controls and flowline removal.