Proserv in Japan...

Proserv Offshore has been awarded a subsea cutting contract from SapuraAcergy for decommissioning the Iwaki Platform jacket offshore Japan.

“The Iwaki project, scheduled for next year, will involve some of the most sophisticated cutting operations ever carried out in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Robert Finch, Proserv Offshore’s chief operating officer.

Proserv Offshore will cut the jacket, which weighs almost 16,000 metric tons, so the Sapura 3000 can lift and deploy to the seabed and create an artificial reef. Iwaki is located in 154 metres of water. The operation will be a regional first for the size and type of equipment used, Proserv Offshore says in a press release.

The project will begin in March 2010.

Proserv's contract is with Sapura Acergy Malaysia and Nippon Steel Engineering. Iwaki Petroleum Co., Ltd. operates the field.