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DECOMMISSIONING Rig manager Rafal Iwanowski’s job description suddenly took a 180-degree turn, when he was asked to prepare Maersk Endurer for decommissioning. It was a case of learning by doing. An unexpected CHALLENGE By Nicolai Ostergaard Photo: Nikolaj Thaning Rentzmann 14 Maersk Drilling <strong>Newsletter</strong> 02·2015
One consequence of falling oil prices is that decommissioning has become a new reality in the oil industry. Rafal Iwanowski was among the first to experience the precipitous change from ‘the good old days’ to today’s ultra-harsh oil reality. Two years after starting a new assignment as rig manager on Maersk Endurer, overnight Rafal Iwanowski found himself dealing with an unexpected task: to prepare the rig for decommissioning! “My job description suddenly took a 180-degree turn,” says Rafal. “In 2014 I was in charge of the challenging process of turning Maersk Endurer into a highly effective oil rig. In 2015 the aim was quite the opposite: to close it down and prepare it for decommissioning.” “It was a peculiar situation. As the new rig manager on Maersk Endurer, I had fought hard to improve the rig’s performance. Now, suddenly, I was in charge of preparing the rig for recycling,” Rafal explains. In good shape Rafal Iwanowski and his team had managed to get the Endurer into good shape during 2013/2014, following years of minimum-level maintenance prior to the rig’s arrival off Cameroon, plus a period of poor performance: under his leadership, the annual overall KPI score leapt from 13 per cent in 2013 to well above 70 per cent in 2014. But now Rafal Iwanowski found himself rapidly confronted with unprecedented challenges. In the history of Maersk Drilling, the company had never sent a rig or drillship to the scrapyard. “So naturally there was no-one in the organization to call on for the relevant contingency plan. Add in the fact that we were situated in Cameroon, where routine tasks could suddenly turn complicated. It was a case of learning by doing.” One daunting task was to identify those components which were suitable for reuse or resale. “Soon we were confronted with multiple challenges. Much to our surprise, we discovered that it was almost impossible to buy containers for the components we wanted to keep. Despite the assistance we had from APM Terminals and Maersk Line, we were actually only able In 2014 I was in charge of the challenging process of turning Maersk Endurer into a highly effective oil rig. In 2015 the aim was quite the opposite: to close it down and prepare it for decommissioning. to buy seven containers out of the nearly 30 units we needed. It was so complicated that we ended up renting the rest, just to bring the process to an end,” says Rafal. Heavy Congestion The next problem cropped up in the harbour of the Douala container terminal in Cameroon. The terminal is heavily congested, which meant the team was unable to ship out the containers packed with equipment and spare parts from Endurer. In fact, some of the equipment is still in Cameroon awaiting a vessel departure that has already been postponed several times. On top of that, time pressure was an important factor. Endurer had to bring the valuable components of the rig onshore Photo: Sea2cradle before the arrival of the heavy-lift vessel assigned to take Maersk Endurer on its final voyage. The team had approximately one month to execute the scope of the removal procedures, which was a huge logistical task. Preparing for Nini and Siri “Among the things we’ve kept are the high-pressure valves, fishing and handling equipment, tubulars, and of course the top drive and the two BOP stacks. Overall, we secured equipment worth USD 9m before Endurer left for China,” explains Rafal Iwanowski. Currently Rafal is the rig manager of Mærsk Giant. He is preparing the rig for its next assignment with the Danish energy utility DONG Energy. The rig contract covers 150 days operating on the Nini and Siri fields in the Danish sector of the North Sea. He does not hesitate when he is asked about the hardest part of the process: “Some members of the Endurer team had to leave the company as a consequence of the shutdown of Endurer. Employment was found for some of the team members, but unfortunately not for all of them. We had a great team, and we achieved great results in 2013 and 2014. And saying good-bye is never easy. But Endurer is now history.” Maersk Drilling <strong>Newsletter</strong> 02·2015 Rafal Iwanowski and his team managed to get Maersk Endurer in good shape during 2013/2014. Then his job description suddenly took a 180-degree turn. 15
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