650ft rig ends its three-month stay in city’s harbour

A towering oil rig that has been part of the Aberdeen skyline for three months has now left the Granite City. The Noble Innovator jack-up, standing at more than 650ft, dwarfed highrise buildings and even the Northfield tower when it arrived in February, generating both awe and complaints.

It is now headed for work with BP on a contract to decommission North Sea oil and gas wells.

Maintenance was done while it was berthed at the new South Harbour.

When it arrived, Port of Aberdeen said it would boost the north-east economy by millions of pounds.

Although Aberdeen is a major hub for oil and gas activity, the rig was the first to dock in the city’s port.

This was possible due to the South Harbour expansion, a £400 million project that has paved the way for visits by bigger vessels from rigs to cruise ships.

A week before Noble Innovator’s arrival, Port of Aberdeen chief executive Bob Sanguinetti said he hoped to host many more oil and gas vessels, to capitalise on fresh North Sea investment.

He said floating production, storage and offloading vessels – a ship used for developing oil and gas fields – may also visit, alongside those supporting the offshore wind boom.

Trade body Offshore Energies UK described Noble Innovator and other rigs like it as “masterpieces of modern engineering” saying they helped to underpin the UK’s decommissioning capabilities and “homegrown energy”.

But not everyone welcomed the massive structure on Aberdeen’s skyline.

Residents of Torry, next to South Harbour, complained of a lack of community input prior to the vessel’s arrival.

SETTING SAIL: The massive Noble Innovator oil rig had been berthed at Aberdeen’s South Harbour since February.