Boskalis’ semi-submersible heavy transport vessel Forte recently backed the SapuraOMV’s Jerun-A topside into place offshore Malaysia. The vessel, as the company noted sailed backwards to install the 14,000-ton platform off the coast of Sarawak. 

Initially, the platform was skidded onto the vessel at the MMHE West Yard in Pasir Gudang, Malaysia, before the heavy transport vessel headed to the installation location.

The float-over installation was carried out with surgical precision. Before this transport and installation project, the dynamic positioning system (DP2) was installed on the Forte, which automatically controls the vessel’s position and course with great accuracy during the installation activities. This allowed the Forte to manoeuvre precisely between the foundations on which the topside rests.

The vessel is no stranger to such projects as it completed a similar one a few years ago at the Bokor field offshore Borneo. It completed a float-over installation of the 11,238-ton Bokor CPP-A topside.