Sarens, world leader in heavy lifting, engineered transport and crane rental services, continues to make progress on the logistics and transport tasks required to complete the Valhall PWP oil field in Norway, which will lead to the final transport of its topside in Stord during the month of July.
Weighing approximately 17 666 t, it will be necessary to mobilise a total of 560 SPMT (Self-Propelled Modular Transports) axle lines, as well as 24 Power Pack Units (PPU) and various advanced weighing and ballasting systems for this load-out operation.
Thus, in recent months, the Sarens team has worked on the mobilisation of elements assembled at various locations as a preliminary step for the alignment and assembly of all individual modules to form the topside. Among others, load-out tasks have been carried out for the utility section (4700 t) at Rosenberg Worley; the load-out of the MEG (Monoethylene Glycol) module, weighing 1055 t, in Grimstad, using 36 SPMT axle lines and two power units; the service section, weighing 4771 t at the Stord field, using 156 SPMT axle lines and a “jack and pack” system to raise the structure from 3.3 - 4.5 m; and the jacking of the 1000 t Valhall bridge and its subsequent loading.
Sarens has been directly involved in every stage of the Valhall PWP oil field development. During an earlier phase, the company took part in the decommissioning of the Quarters Platform (QP) and Drilling Platform (DP) atAker Solutions Decommissioning yard at Stord. Furthermore, Sarens provided a detailed engineering study to plan the load movements for the Valhall project, with on-site operations commencing in April 2025. Just one month later, Sarens executed the load-out of the 11,500-ton main jacket at the Aker Solutions facilities in Verdal.
According to Sindre Vandbakk, Sarens' Key Account Manager in Norway, “The fact that this major project has utilised massive modular construction, with sections manufactured in various locations, makes Sarens a vital part of its development as we have contributed through our logistics and transport tasks to the final assembly of over 11500 t. Now in the final stretch of the Valhall PWP development, we can only thank our clients Rosenberg, Nymo, Leirvik and Aker Solutions for trusting our expertise and working methodology on one of the most ambitious and high-impact projects in Norway's history.”
In parallel with the work being carried out in Stord for the development of Valhall PWP, Sarens is working on the logistics tasks required for the Hugin A project, also at the Aker Solutions facilities. This is the largest oil production and processing platform ever assembled at the Stord plant, with an estimated weight of 32 000 t. This project will set a new record for Sarens, as it is the heaviest project ever transported using SPMTs. So far, the load-out of the Utility module (8365 t) in Egersund and its load-in in Stord have been completed, as well as the load-in of the Wellbay module (1992 t) in Stord, and the load-out and load-in of the Living quarter (1943 t) in Leirvik and Stord respectively.
The Valhall PWP-Fenris project is one of Norway's most ambitious energy development initiatives. Led by Aker BP, it involves the installation of a new integrated infrastructure connected to the Fenris satellite field, with the aim of extending the lifespan of this oil field for another 30 years, thereby unlocking estimated reserves of 230 million bbls of oil and gas equivalent. This field is designed under a sustainability model that uses power from shore, which drastically reduces CO2 emissions during the process to minimal levels compared to the global industry average.