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InterMoor completes mooring operations in Angola

InterMoor has anchored a mobile offshore drilling unit and installed preset anchors for a tender-assist drilling vessel for Chevron subsidiary Cabinda Gulf Oil Company Ltd (CABGOC) offshore Angola.

InterMoor provided design, engineering, procurement and installation services for the permanent preset moorings at the Tombua Landana site and the Tombua South drill centre. The company also handled the fabrication of an 18-m suction follower and the various installation aids that were required for installing the suction-embedded plate anchors(SEPLA) at the Tombua–Landana site. This project was the first time SEPLAs have been used offshore Angola for CABGOC. Eight mooring anchors were installed at both locations. At Tombua–Landana, installing the eight SEPLAs at a water depth of 380 m took, on average, just over a day per anchor to complete.

Polyester lines specifically designed and fabricated for the Tombua–Landana site will be attached to the preset SEPLAs and the anchor chain using subsea mooring connectors in mid-2009. The preset system will then be used to hook up and moor the tender-assist drilling vessel. This polyester preset will be yet another offshore first for CABGOC in Angola. “Successful installation of the SEPLAs is an important milestone for InterMoor on a project that has included several challenges, including vessel availability, the investigation of various installation methods, the fabrication requirements and the limited installation windows,” said InterMoor project manager Michael O’Driscoll.