Sapurakencana joins several drilling companies that have opted to mothball their vessels off the coast of Trinidad. They are all sitting idly by, waiting for the global energy industry to recover. Cold stacking involves the partial decommissioning of the vessel when it appears that it will not be in use for an extended period of time. Sometimes called mothballing, the main features of the ship are reduced, in order to significantly lessen costs due to the asset being idle.
The Jaya rig is a semi-submersible tender assist drilling unit, which is owned and operated by SapuraKencana. It has been in Trinidad for a number of years, and has worked only for bpTT between September 2011 and August 2016. It has been in Trinidad since 2011 and worked for bpTT between September 2011 and August 2016. The contracts are now complete, but with no new work on the horizon, the decision was made to cold stack the asset.
Edward Brathwaite, the outgoing Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) manager at SapuraKencana, explained that the crew will be reduced to skeletal levels and will not be active. Special precautions are being taken for each piece of equipment, so as to ensure that it remains a viable piece of machinery; however, most of the systems will be shut down and be non-operational. In essence, the rig has been prepared to sit idle for 12-14 months.
This ship is the latest addition to the boneyard in the Gulf of Paria, offshore Trinidad, which offers a naturally sheltered harbour with winds coming from the northeast, and swells averaging under one metre throughout the year. Apart from its slate of marine service companies, two things sealed the site selection agreement for Trinidad and Tobago: its strategic location below the hurricane belt, and the country’s proximity to exploration work underway in the region.