Signet and Crowley Tugs Get Big Foot Underway from Corpus Christi [IMAGES]

In a joint effort final evening by Crowley and Signet Maritime, 8 tugs hooked as much as Chevron’s Big Foot semi-submersible manufacturing platform in Corpus Christi to soundly maneuver the rig outbound by the channel on its option to the Walker Ridge Area of the Gulf of Mexico.

This included six tractor tugs owned by Signet and two of Crowley’s Ocean-class tugs. Chevron spokesperson Cam van Ast notes the tow will take 8 to 10 days.

According to AIS knowledge, it seems the rig is within the means of hooking as much as the Crowley Ocean-class tugs for the tow out to the sphere. Four of Crowley’s tugs, the Ocean Sun, Ocean Sky, Ocean Wind and and Ocean Wave are within the neighborhood.

Once safely anchored to the ocean ground roughly 5,200 ft beneath the rig, Chevron says the offshore hook-up and commissioning work will begin, adopted by the event nicely drilling and completion marketing campaign. First oil and fuel is predicted this yr.

The Big Foot discipline was found in 2006 and is estimated to comprise whole recoverable assets in extra of 200 million oil-equivalent barrels. Chevron estimates the sphere will likely be in manufacturing for about 35-years.

The $4 billion challenge was sanctioned in 2010.

About the Big Foot platform

The Big Foot platform is a dry-tree Extended Tension-Leg Platform (ETLP) with an on-board drilling rig and manufacturing capability of 75,000 barrels of oil and 25 million cubic ft of pure fuel per day.

Chevron subsidiary, Chevron U.S.A. Inc. (operator), has a working curiosity of 60 % within the Big Foot improvement, with co-owners Statoil (27.5 %) and Marubeni Oil & Gas (12.5 %).

The following photographs are courtesy Chevron USA: