Technical Aspects of Decommissioning Offshore Structures

The options for decommissioning offshore facilities and structures are many and various. They are driven by environmental protection, cost, health and safety, available technology and politics. This chapter examines the range and type of facilities and structures which will be decommissioned; the framework of legal requirements; the onshore sites at which the work can be done; the possibilities of reuse and materiel recovery; the methods available and possibly requiring development for cutting, toppling, lifting and transportation, and the particular problems associated with the larger fixed structures.