Boskalis carries out tandem tows dozens of times a year. This is a type of transport in which the cargo is towed by two powerful oceangoing tugs. Sometimes a third vessel joins, turning it into a triple tow to its final destination. But even that can be surpassed, and that is exactly what Boskalis recently did.
With the BOKA Centre, BOKA Defender, BOKA Guard, and BOKA Striker, no fewer than four tugs were connected to the Scarborough Floating Production Unit (FPU). In addition, Boskalis‘ BOKA Winger sailed alongside as an escort vessel during this “quadruple tow” to Western Australia.
Five vessels for a single cargo, isn’t that excessive? Not at all. Weighing 70,000 tonnes, this four-legged offshore giant is a complex structure to transport. High bollard pull is essential, as are excellent communication and navigational skills on the part of the captains and crews involved.
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Scarborough project
The Scarborough gas resource lies about 375 km offshore from the Burrup Peninsula and forms part of the Greater Scarborough fields. Woodside Energy plans to develop the Scarborough and North Scarborough fields using new offshore subsea wells tied back to a semi-submersible floating production unit in around 900 metres of water. Gas will be transported via a 430 km export pipeline to the existing Pluto LNG facility onshore, where it will be processed through a brownfield expansion.
The destination is familiar territory for Boskalis. In recent years, the company has carried out various activities for the extensive Scarborough project. Using its subsea rock installation vessels Seapiper and Seahorse, backhoe dredger Baldur, construction support vessel BOKA Tiamat and trailing suction hopper dredger Gateway, Boskalis has carried out a wide variety of activities for the installation of the gas pipeline.
Picture: The Scarborough FPU being towed by the BOKA Centre, BOKA Defender, BOKA Guard, and BOKA Strike (photo by Boskalis).
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