Hartlepool port takes delivery of mammoth 31,000 tonne Shell Brent Charlie topside

The Brent Charlie topside platform has been delivered to Able Seaton Port, on Tees Road, where it will be broken down and recycled over the next 18 months safeguarding dozens of jobs.

Weighing 31,000 metric tonnes, it is the largest one of its kind to be lifted, transported and delivered to land.

The massive structure was delivered by the Allseas Pioneering Spirit off the Hartlepool coast, before being transferred onto cargo barge the Iron Lady for the final tow into Able Seaton Port on Friday.

The Brent Charlie is the fourth and final platform from the Shell Brent oil and gas field, located off the north-east coast of Scotland, to be decommissioned at Able Seaton Port.

Peter Stephenson, founder and executive chairman, said: “Able are very proud to be an integral part of the Brent Field decommissioning project.

"The arrival of the Shell Charlie to Able Seaton Port is happening through a well-coordinated effort with our partners Shell and Allseas to provide this ‘engineering first’ of receiving a single piece topside of 31,000 metric tonnes.

"Able Seaton Port infrastructure has helped to make this long-standing contract a success and we look forward to providing this service on future large scale projects.”

He added: “Brent is an iconic oil and gas field and our role in its decommissioning is testament to our commitment to undertake complex and challenging operations to the highest health safety and environmental standards.”

Able has previously decommissioned the Brent field’s Alpha, Bravo and Delta topside platforms in Hartlepool, recycling more than 97% of them.

Mr Stephenson said they hope to equal or better that with the Brent Charlie project which has safeguarded approximately 85 jobs.

During its decommissioning, a series of platforms and structures from the Lincolnshire Offshore Gas Gathering System (LOGGS) major natural gas project will also be loaded at Able Seaton Port’s Quay 1.

Mr Stephenson added: “This is all occurring with the backdrop of the Dogger Bank Offshore Wind Farm marshalling works (largest offshore wind farm in the world) at Able Seaton Port reinforcing Able as the project port of choice for the largest offshore projects.”