Any old iron?

Abstract

Beyond the confines of the European continental shelf, old platforms are being re-used in new fields. There exists a thriving business in the buying and selling of second-hand kit in the USA. One example of a rig sale is the Maureen platform of Phillips Petroleum. Maureen is a steel gravity base structure with integral storage contained in three large underwater tanks. Maureen was designed from the outset for just this eventuality, with its integrated storage/buoyancy tanks being among the features which facilitate re-floating and subsequent redeployment. The notion of re-using platforms in not yet commonplace in Europe, yet it may catch on.