Allseas’ Pioneering Spirit has offloaded a topside drilling platform onto the cargo barge Iron Lady on the River Forth in the UK.
With the cargo secured on the deck of Iron lady, Forth Ports’ tugs Craigleith, Inchkeith and Fidra towed the barge under the Forth Bridge, the Forth Road Bridge and the Queensferry Crossing before berthing at the port of Rosyth.
According to Forth Ports, the barge will remain moored at the port for around six weeks before being towed along the river to the Energy Park Fife in Methil where the platform will be unloaded for decommissioning.
Stuart Wallace, coo at Forth Ports, said: “It was a truly spectacular sight to see this huge vessel offloading its cargo within our deep water on the River Forth. Watching the Iron Lady towed safely into the port of Rosyth by our tugs against the backdrop of all three Forth crossings was a bit special too.
“However, we can expect to see sights like these more and more frequently as oil and gas decommissioning projects from the North Sea and elsewhere gather momentum. The Forth Estuary’s deep and sheltered water, alongside the decommissioning facilities on both the River Forth and River Tay, make this an ideal location for [these] operations.”
