James Fisher Offshore (JFO) are proud to have supported Sapura Energy and Chevron Thailand Exploration and
Production Ltd with the first ‘Rigs to Reef’ project in Thailand – an initiative where idle platforms are relocated to create
artificial reefs, serving as a valuable habitat for marine life.
Operating in the Gulf of Thailand, JFO successfully cut and removed 7 platforms and associated pipelines, completing
the project 3 weeks ahead of schedule.
JFO scope of service included:
• Cut and removal of risers and subsea spools
• Soil plug removal
• Cut and removal of subsea jackets
• Cut and recovery of associated pipelines

Project scope specified use of an internal cutting system with capability to cut the
piles to a minimum of 5mtr below seabed level. The piles were known to contain
heavy soils and these needed dredged prior to commencing cutting. Furthermore,
the risers and cross member braces required to be cut externally at very specific
locations, with challenging access, for optimal recovery and reef placement.
JFO created immediate cost and time savings for the client by mobilising from its
base in Malaysia. To further enhance project expediency JFO utilised a deployment
frame to deploy the cutting head, thus freeing up the vessel crane to simultaneously
carry out the pile dredging.
Excavation was launched on the soil plug inside the pile utilising JFO’s bespoke soil
plug removal tool to provide clearance for the AWJC to perform the clients required
severance.
For the external cuts some of the access points were more challenging than
anticipated and a combination of tools were required, including a chop saw and
diamond wire. This reactive adaptability proved critical in being able to overcome
the project obstacles.
The project was delivered without incident and ahead of schedule. The utilisation of
simultaneous operations with the dredging and internal cutting spread greatly aided
in this outcome, whilst JFO’s ability to deploy multiple external cutting tools
concurrently generated significant efficiencies.