THE SOVEREIGN EXPLORER AND THE BLACK MARLIN

Back in April 2001 the Transocean Sedco Forex semi submersible Sovereign Explorer was loaded onto the heavy lift ship Black Marlin in the sheltered waters around Bikinu Fasu, an island off West Africa. The rig had been working in the waters off the Ivory Coast and was scheduled to go to work off the coast of Ireland, and the owners felt it was the best way of getting it back to the UK without hassle.

The chosen port of discharge was Falmouth.

It was necessary to unload the rig in Falmouth Bay and then bring it into the River Fal to have some maintenance undertaken before its next contract and the two ships involved in the task were the Maersk Seeker which had towed the rig out to Africa in the autumn of 2000 and remained with it out there and unusually the Havila Clever. This ship which had once been the Torbas and although fitted with a tow winch had not actually worked in anger for a number of years.

Here is a montage of pictures, the first few taken in Africa and the later ones in Falmouth bay and the River Fal.  We have Paul Love of Stewarts Shipbrokers Aberdeen to thank for the African pictures. The Falmouth pictures taken by Vic Gibson.

So there we have it. Tantalisingly we do not have a photograph of the ship and the rig during the loading, or the ship and the rig during the unloading, but we are close.

During the movement of the rig in and out of the River Fal the pilots were at full stretch, with one on each ship and one on the rig. The picture above of the Havila Clever shows the Pilot Boat at work.