STATFJORD B

The largest oil discovery in the North Sea.

The Statfjord area is an oilfield in the northern part of the North Sea, covering the Norwegian and the United Kingdom sectors of the sea. The field was discovered in 1976 and has been established with three fully integrated concrete facilities: Statfjord A, B and C between 1979 and 1985.

Statfjord B was the second installed facility within the Statfjord area, standing in water depth of 145 meters at the southern end of the field. The development is of great symbolic significance, because it is considered as Norways starting point in participating in the oil industry. The development of the Statfjord field built up Norway’s competency within the petroleum industry and provided the economic base for the foundation of ‘Den Norske Stats Oljeselskap A/S’ (translated: Oil company of the Government of Norway), in short Statoil.

Norways participation in the oil industry on the continental shelf led to the grounds of a domestic petroleum industry creating great value for its society. The symbolic character of the field, and its relevance for the Norwegian community justifies the demand for consideration the statfjord area as industrial and cultural heritage site after its shut down.

Derrick

The characteristic derrick is installed on skids running between the northern and southern drilling shafts. The derrick can be moved both east-west and north-south due to a hydraulic system.

Modules

Thirteen integrated modules, spread on three levels, each with its own circulation system. The modules comprises process plants, workshops, storage- and control units. The continuous open air area on top of the modules, named Weather Deck, is used for storage and for positioning equipment being loaded from or discharged to supply ships.

Living Quarter

The living quarter comprises three modules for accomodation and offices, positioned on beams extending from the base of the MSF, and one additional module which consists a canteen, the kitchen, a cinema and further areas for recreation.

Module Support Frame

The Module Support Frame (MSF) is a massive two-level steel frame, resting on the top of the shafts. The structure provides space for special fitted equipment and is used as base for the Module Deck. The whole interior of the robust latticework module support frame is summarized as the Cellar Deck.

Flare Boom

The flare boom is a robust truss structure which extends from the MSF to permit safe burning of gas that is collected during the extraction of oil.

Shafts

The shafts rise about 30 meters above the sea level. The hollow design allows for additional installation of oil production equipment.

Ballast Tanks

The four-shaft ‘Concrete Deepwater Structure’ (Condeep) rests stably on the seafloor through its own weight and consists of 24 cells in a honeycomb configuration -19 are used to hold crude oil and diesel fuel, 4 cells are extended to form the shafts. The Norwegian Company ‘Norwegian Contractors’ introduced prestressed concrete as construction material for water depths down to 300 meters.