Transocean Winner ‘set for refloat’

Salvors are planning to attach a second towline today (Thursday) to the grounded drilling rig, Transocean Winner off the Isle of Lewis.

The Transocean Winner rig was blown ashore in severe weather conditions on the western side of the Isle of Lewis last week when it detached from its tug en route from Norway to Malta.

Hugh Shaw, the Secretary of State’s Representative (SOSREP) for Maritime Salvage & Intervention said: “We appreciate that there remains huge interest in the rig but we’ve put the exclusion zone in place for safety of the salvage teams and the public too”. The drilling rig was carrying some 280 metric tons of diesel when the incident occurred.

The remaining 200 tonnes of hydrocarbons, mainly diesel oil with small amounts of base oil and brine, were transferred from the rig to the supply vessel Olympic Orion on Saturday.

The Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s (MCA) counter pollution branch said no pollution has been detected in the area of the rig, despite four diesel fuel tanks being breached and an estimated 53 tonnes of fuel lost.

During the past 24 hours further equipment for the refloat operation has been placed on the rig.

Once in Broad Bay, underwater inspections of the rig will be made to check for damage.

It initially stated that “no pollution has been reported or observed” but said in a subsequent update that a survey carried out on Sunday found a sheen of 200ml that was broken up using vessels from Briggs Environmental.

A 300-metre sea and air exclusion zone is in place around the semi-submersible which grounded at Dalmore beach near Carloway.

“Dave Walls, operations director with Transocean, told the meeting in nearby Carloway: “‘Once we’re ready to float we then need the ideal conditions to float – and that’s a suitable weather window, no wind, the right tide.

He vowed that no trace of the rig would be left when the salvage operation – including a sweep of the seabed – is complete.