Successful nearshore mooring installation near Indonesian shoreline

22 Jul 2021

Reel lay vessel used at Bintan Offshore Marine Centre (BOMC) for reeling operations

Project overview

Project name

Nearshore mooring at BOMC

Location

Bintan Offshore Marine Centre (BOMC), Riau Islands, Indonesia

Water depth

Shore to 30 m

The rigid reel lay vessel was to be moored at BOMC for reeling operations. Using their experience in mobile and permanent mooring installation, Intermoor, Acteon’s Moorings and Anchors business line, had to consider several challenges during the planning and operations stage. 

Overcoming logistical and operational challenges 

Project challenges included: 

  • Availability and readiness of installation vessel: the candidate Anchor Handling Tug Supply (AHTS) vessel qualified at bid stage was confirmed unavailable.
  • Operations near to the shoreline: some of the mooring legs were to be installed near to shore in shallow water depths. The vessel’s heading would be oriented towards the shore during pre-tensioning, posing a significant risk of vessel grounding or collision in case of anchor slippage.
  • Crewing of personnel: due to COVID-19 related restrictions imposed by Singapore, only Singaporean and permanent residents crew would be able to sign off in region upon completion of the project.

End-to-end pre-lay mooring solution

An offshore mooring system needed to be pre-laid at the site to later hook up to it. Intermoor provided a complete nearshore mooring solution, including: 

  • Project management, engineering and crew for transportation and installation of the mooring pre-lay system
  • Charter of an AHTS vessel for transportation and installation of the mooring system
  • Managing manpower and logistics for the transportation and installation phase
  • Engineering of the mooring design for catenary checks and buoyancy optimisation
  • Procurement and preparation of mooring equipment 

Ensuring project timelines were met without compromise on safety or performance

  • A thorough market search and rigorous technical/commercial evaluation ensured the selection of the most suitable vessel. Timely resolution of inspection findings and proactive coordination with the vessel owner guaranteed readiness by the charter date. Transparent planning and communication with the client, built confidence in the vessel choice, minimising operational risk and delays.
  • Collaborative risk identification and mitigation planning with all stakeholders enhanced safety of the nearshore mooring operations. Daylight installation of mooring legs improved visibility and control, reducing risk to nearby assets. Real-time monitoring and safety protocols, including HIRA reviews, ensured high safety standards throughout and minimised operational risk in a complex nearshore environment.
  • Seamless crew deployment, enabling uninterrupted project execution and cost efficiency. Intermoor’s Singapore team leveraged local networks to assemble a qualified, locally-based crew within the required timeframe.- This avoided delays in vessel mobilisation and demobilisation.

The result

Following this scope of work successfully completed in 2021, Intermoor was entrusted again by BOMC to design, supply and install a quayside pre-lay mooring system comprising of nine mooring lines for a pipelay vessel, and to recover the mooring system nine months later.

The operational challenges were handled through detailed discussions amongst all key stakeholders involved in the operation to carefully identify the risks and the best controls to mitigate them.

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