Newsletter

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 Newsletter 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.
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