Decommissioning Insight 2018

The average forecast costs for removal of topsides and substructures in the central and northern North Sea and west of Shetland continue on a downward trend. The most notable change is in substructure removal, where average forecast expenditure has dropped from £4,722 per tonne to £3,953 per tonne. However, the larger error bar shows that some operators do anticipate an increase in costs within this area.

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The southern North Sea area has seen a slight increase but is more or less consistent with the reported figure over the last three years.

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Operators have indicated that they are looking to reduce the costs of removal by:

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• Consolidating decommissioning activity as part of a longer-term programme — Aggregating the removal of several platforms in a single campaign spreads mobilisation costs across assets. This may involve leaving some assets in place until their removal aligns with activity for other assets. • Allowing the market to drive the removal method — Rather than demanding a particular approach, operators are increasingly looking to the supply chain to specify the optimum solution, including being open to integrated packages of services and contracts.

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• Being flexible about when activity takes place — This allows the removal contractor to carry out the activity when the vessel is available.

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• Exploring the potential for cross-operator campaigns — This is already proving a valuable approach in the southern North Sea where platforms are smaller and the cost for removal per tonne is therefore higher.

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