According to today’s gcaptain news article, the USCG has cleared Shell to tow KULLUK to Dutch Harbor whenever they think they have a weather window.
A new thread seems appropriate to track this new KULLUK adventure.
From Kodiak TV Channel 2
Coast Guard Lifts Order Restricting Kulluk Movements
Email
print
Comments
0
6
By Chris Klint Channel 2 News
11:18 a.m. AKST, February 21, 2013
ANCHORAGE, Alaska—
The U.S. Coast Guard lifted an order restricting the movements of the Shell drilling rig Kulluk Thursday, clearing the way for its tow to Asia for repairs in the wake of its New Year’s Eve grounding near Kodiak.
The Captain of the Port order was lifted by Capt. Paul Mehler III, the commander of Coast Guard Sector Anchorage and a member of the Unified Command formed to oversee responses to the incident. The command stood down last week, announcing plans (PDF) for the Kulluk to be towed to Dutch Harbor and placed in a special dock for “dry-tow” transit to Asia.
Topics
U.S. Coast Guard
Mehler, who also holds the title of Captain of the Port for Western Alaska, issued the Jan. 7 order requiring the Kulluk to remain at anchor in Kiliuda Bay off Kodiak Island, where it had been towed about a week after it ran aground on Sitkalidak Island. The grounding and refloating had caused officials to decide that the conical drilling unit presented a possible threat to personnel and the environment.
“I reviewed all of the relevant and available information and determined that Shell has met the requirements of the Captain of the Port Order,” Mehler said in a Thursday statement. “We will monitor the movement of the Kulluk to Dutch Harbor and will engage if needed.”
The Coast Guard says several steps were involved in the decision.
“In preparation for lifting the Captain of the Port order, written notification was provided from the vessel’s Flag State and/or Class Society that the Kulluk was safe to proceed to its port of destination, and Coast Guard personnel were provided an opportunity to review the final written tow plan for Kulluk’s departure from Kiliuda Bay,” officials wrote.
The Coast Guard statement directed questions on the Kulluk’s tow plan to Shell. According to Shell spokesperson Curtis Smith, the lifting of the order confirms that officials have examined the company’s plans for the estimated 10-day tow of the Kulluk to Dutch Harbor.
“Just that they have officially looked at the tow plan instead of having it in hand,” Smith said.
Smith says dates for the Kulluk’s move primarily depend on weather conditions, with no changes planned after two of the three tugs expected to tow it collided Friday in Kiliuda Bay. One of the vessels, the Ocean Wave, sustained minor damage in the collision, with no injuries reported.
Contact Chris Klint
By Chris Klint KTUU-TV
updated 2/21/2013 3:49:55 PM ET
[ul]
[li] Print[/li][li] Font:[/li][/ul]
The Coast Guard says two of the three tugboats expected to tow the damaged Shell drilling rig Kulluk to Dutch Harbor after its New Year’s Eve grounding collided last week.
According to Coast Guard spokesperson Petty Officer 1st Class David Mosley, the Foss Maritime tug Corbin Foss and the Crowley Maritime Corp. tug Ocean Wave were “maneuvering in close proximity” in Kiliuda Bay off Kodiak Island Friday, when the Corbin Foss struck the Ocean Wave at about 5:30 p.m.
Nobody was injured in the collision, and the Ocean Wave suffered only minor damage. The vessels subsequently headed to Kodiak for a Coast Guard inspection.
While drug tests were run on crew members, in accordance with standard Coast Guard policy for marine incidents, Mosley says no Coast Guard assets headed to the scene because the crash was a non-injury collision.
“It was a maneuvering issue – there was no response,” Mosley said.
Mosley says the Kulluk, which was refloated and taken to Kiliuda Bay roughly a week after its grounding off Sitkalidak Island, was not under tow at the time. The conical drilling unit remains at anchor, under a Captain of the Port order from the Coast Guard restricting its movement.
In a Feb. 13 statement announcing its stand-down, the Unified Command overseeing the response to the Kulluk’s grounding said that the rig would soon be towed on a 10-day trip to Dutch Harbor, where it would be placed into a special dock and taken on to Asia for repairs. A fact sheet accompanying the statement (PDF) said the Ocean Wave, the Corbin Foss and another Foss tug, the Lauren Foss, would be conducting the Dutch Harbor tow.
Advertise | AdChoices
A vessel [that lost power Dec. 28 while towing the Kulluk](http://www.ktuu.com/news/tug-towing-shell-drilling-unit-suffers-engine-failures-near-kodiak-112812,0,2271463.story) to Seattle, the polar icebreaker Aiviq, was reportedly not involved in the Dutch Harbor tow because the circumstances of its power loss were still under investigation. The engine failure left responders trying to take the Kulluk back in tow over the following weekend, but the rig eventually ran aground.
Mosley says any repairs to the tugs involved in Friday's collision will be overseen by the vessels' owners.
In an email to Channel 2, Shell spokesperson Curtis Smith says the company doesn't anticipate any delays due to the collision in its plans to move the Kulluk.
"(P)oor weather continues to delay the departure of the Kulluk from Kiliuda Bay," Smith wrote. "Fortunately, the dry tow schedule from Dutch Harbor to Asia remains viable."
Foss Maritime officials weren't immediately available for comment when Channel 2 called the companies Wednesday. Crowley refused comment on the matter, referring questions to the Coast Guard.
[I]Channel 2’s Mike Ross contributed information to this story.[/I]
Contact Chris Klint
The collision between the two tugs seems like a non-story.
As far as the three tug tow, it will increase redundancy, I wonder if three tugs will give them give the significantly more speed as well? Even a couple kts more would lessen trip time and exposure to weather.
Something like the kulluk is only going to go so fast, plus she’s full of water so it’s going to be a hard tow. Three tugs just increases the odds of a accident. Hopefully the wx is good and people pay attn on watch. It’s not rocket science but 115 page tow plan can make it that way.
Coast Guard Clears Kulluk to Depart for Unalaska
By Brianna Gibbs, KMXT - Kodiak and Stephanie Joyce, KUCB - Unalaska | February 21, 2013 - 6:30 pm
The Coast Guard lifted an order restricting movement of Shell’s Kulluk drill rig Thursday morning. Petty Officer David Moseley says the company had to provide information about assessments of the rig and their tow plan to the Coast Guard for review.
“The inspection, its seaworthiness, was done by industry class certification,” Moseley says. “They are the experts on those type of vessels. They inspected, they gave us their inspection for review, so we could understand what they found, if there were any concerns, or not, that needed to be addressed prior to its being transferred, or transported, from Kiliuda Bay.”
Now that the Captain of the Port order has been lifted, Shell is free to start towing the rig to Unalaska whenever it sees fit. It’s not clear when that will be, but Moseley says that the Coast Guard will be notified.
“We will know once they start that transit and we will monitor it as they make their transit to Unalaska.”
For now, the rig is anchored in Kiliuda Bay, on the south side of Kodiak Island.
That’s where two of the tugs that will be towing the Kulluk to Unalaska collided on Friday afternoon, as the Anchorage Daily News blog Progessive Alaska first reported. While working in close proximity, the Corbin Foss ran into the port side of the Ocean Wave. Petty Officer Moseley says there were no injuries and that the damage was minimal, but that the Marine Safety Detachment in Kodiak inspected both vessels.
“When we have an incident with reported damage that could impact the vessel, we, as the Coast Guard, want to ensure the safety of that vessel and the crew onboard so we will provide an inspection and an investigation into the incident to include things like drug testing of the crew, taking down statements of what was going on at the time, so we get a clear understanding of what was going on to see if there’s anything that needs to be addressed in the future with similar operations.”
The Ocean Wave is still tied up at the dock in Kodiak. The Corbin Foss is with the rig in Kiliuda Bay.
You can find more information about the Kulluk’s tow plan here.
Listen to the full story
[QUOTE=rshrew;100193]Something like the kulluk is only going to go so fast, plus she’s full of water so it’s going to be a hard tow. Three tugs just increases the odds of a accident. Hopefully the wx is good and people pay attn on watch. It’s not rocket science but 115 page tow plan can make it that way.[/QUOTE]
I don’t see how three smaller tugs with total combined horsepower somewhat similar to the AIVIQ, but spread out over 6 propellers and three tow wires (while they maneouver to avoid running afoul of with each other) are going to tow KULLUK any faster than AIVIQ did, if they can even tow it as fast.
[QUOTE=tugsailor;100246]I don’t see how three smaller tugs with total combined horsepower somewhat similar to the AIVIQ, but spread out over 6 propellers and three tow wires (while they maneouver to avoid running afoul of with each other) are going to tow KULLUK any faster than AIVIQ did, if they can even tow it as fast.[/QUOTE]
Makes sense. Speed of advance is a big deal dealing with weather, as you know.
Regarding the info on the Aiviq/Kullak, I don’ t think we are going to have to wait for the report. I suspect someone is going to write it up sooner then for in some publication. I’m looking forward to hearing the story of the Alert crew.
BTW ran into an Aiviq crew member at the TWIC waiting room in Portland Maine the other day, didn’t have a chance to talk to him. however. He did say he went to Maine M.