| Administrative History | The twin pipelines transporting gas from the Frigg Field to the processing plant at St Fergus are 362 kilometres long (225 miles) and 32 inches in diameter. In places the pipes lie in over 150 metres (492 feet) of water. At the time of their construction, the pipelines were the largest ever used at those depths. To withstand the incredible pressures and prevent corrosion, the steel walls of the pipes are ¾ inch thick and reinforced with between 2 and 4.5 inches (5 and 11.5 centimetres) of concrete. A combination of the great length of pipeline and short weather window (the period when the North Sea is calm enough for work to be carried out) meant that the work began in 1974 and was not completed until 1977.
The Norwegian pipeline was renamed Vesterled after work in 2001 to extend it to Heimdal riser platform in the Norwegian sector. Major works were carried in the summers of 2004 and 2005 to bypass MCP-01. The pipelines ran through the base of the platform needed to be rerouted by almost 2 kilometres, as they remain in use after the platform has been decommissioned. |
| Description | Records relating to the twin 32 inch pipelines. Comprises papers concerning the meetings of the committees, including minutes, drafts, annotations, correspondence (usually comments concerning the minutes), agenda or presentation handouts. Significant runs are available for most of the committees. Engineering and construction records including pipeline route surveys, design manuals and engineering reports. Inspection survey reports, and maintenance and safety procedures, manuals and reports.
It is unlikely that there are records dated later than 2000, with the exception of the pipeline bypass works. This is because the pipelines remain operational and the most recent records are still in active use by Total. |