Sarens, a global leader in heavy lifting and transport, has successfully completed a major decommissioning project at Wergeland Base in Gulen, Norway.
The project involved lifting, transporting, and re-immersing four enormous footings, showcasing Sarens’ engineering expertise and ability to handle record-breaking lifts under tough conditions.
The highlight of the project was the use of Sarens’ LR12500-1.0 crawler crane, which lifted each footing weighing an astonishing 1,850 tonnes. This is an extraordinary achievement, as lifting such heavy loads with a single crawler crane is rare in Europe and could be a record-setting feat.
Commissioned by Wergeland, the project involved:
- Lifting the 25-metre-high, 27-metre-wide footings from the water
- Transporting them to a quay using Self-Propelled Modular Transporters (SPMTs)
- Re-immersing the footings.
Sarens ensured cost-efficiency by extending the contract of the LR12500-1.0 crane, already in use at the site, leading to seamless execution.
The crane was configured with an 80-metre main boom, a 35-metre superlift radius, and 1,240 tonnes of superlift weight. The transport involved SPMTs with multiple axle lines and a massive 2,000-tonne shackle to handle the load.
Despite facing challenges like rigging the floating footings in record-breaking rainfall, the Sarens team, led by Project Manager Willem Ditmer and Project Engineer Wim de Keersmaecker, completed the project on time and maintained high safety standards.
This decommissioning project also emphasised sustainability. The scrapped footings were recycled, promoting eco-friendly practices and benefiting the local economy.