The decommissioning project at the Wergeland base in Gulen, Norway, involved lifting and transporting. This project demonstrated Sarens' engineering expertise and ability to lift in difficult conditions and was a milestone in the company's history, with the lifting of an 1850-ton load using an LR12500-1.0 crane.
As a decommissioning initiative, the project emphasizes Sarens' commitment to sustainability. The footings were scrapped and recycled, supporting greener practices while contributing to the local economy.
Sarens, world leader in heavy lifting, engineered transport and crane rental services, has achieved, under rough conditions, one of the biggest challenges of their track record: the decommissioning project of this Wergeland base, which involved the lifting, transporting of four huge footings, highlighting not only Sarens' engineering expertise, but also the company's ability to execute record-breaking lifts in difficult conditions.
The Wergeland base, located in Gulen, Norway, is a multifunctional port hub that serves as a critical logistics base for maritime operations, offshore assembly and renewable energy off the coast of Vestland. It has approximately 800,000 m² of leveled platform area, a 1 km deepwater quay and a staff that manages to employ more than 40 people in the base's services.
In this project, Sarens was responsible for the heavy lifting of four 25-metre-long and 27-metre-wide footings, each weighing 1850 tons. Lifting them required deploying an LR12500-1.0 crawler crane. Although SGCs (Sarens Giant Cranes) are capable of lifting these weights with ease (up to 3.200 tons in the case of SGC-140 or even 5.000 tons with a SGC-250), the fact that a crawler crane supports this capacity demonstrates Sarens' ability to handle some of the heaviest loads in the world. Lifting that weight with a single crawler crane is an exceptionally rare feat in Europe and could be a record for lifting loads.
The project, commissioned by Wergeland, involved removing the pads from the water and transporting them to a dock with self-propelled modular transporters (SPMTs). Sarens was chosen by Wergeland company not only for its efficiency and expertise, but also for its cost efficiency, extending the LR12500-1.0 crane contract, already deployed at the site, therefore minimising the cost to the client.
Although equipped with the right technical tools, Sarens faced numerous challenges: the footings, floating in the sea, had to be rigged amid record rainfall, which tested the team's determination. Despite these obstacles, the experienced Sarens team, led by Project Manager Willem Ditmer and Project Engineer Wim de Keersmaecker, completed the operation on time, on budget and in compliance with all safety requirements.
At the same time, the Wergeland base project highlights Sarens' commitment to sustainability as a decommissioning initiative. Following their removal, the footings were scrapped and subsequently recycled, supporting greener practices while contributing to the local economy of this area.
With this project, Sarens consolidates its presence in Norway, a country where it has already participated in major projects in the energy sector. Among others, it collaborated with Allseas and Aker BP in the loading out process of a 5205-ton topside from this field at Aker Solutions' decommissioning yard in Stord. It also participated directly in the transport of decommissioned platform topsides from Valhall's Quarters Platform (QP) on behalf of Allseas, providing its barge Louis, capable of supporting topsides of more than 3,850 tons.
About Sarens
Sarens is the global leader and reference in crane rental, heavy lifting, and engineered transportation services. With state-of-the-art equipment, value engineering, one of the world's largest inventories of cranes, transporters and special rigging equipment, Sarens offers creative and intelligent solutions to today's heavy lifting and engineering transport challenges.
With more than 100 entities in over 70 countries operating without borders, Sarens is an ideal partner for small to large-scale projects. Sarens currently employs 5,000 highly qualified professionals who are ready to serve the needs of any client worldwide and in all market sectors. https://www.sarens.com/