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Would the last rig to leave the Cromarty Firth please turn on the lights?

Would the last rig to leave the Cromarty Firth please turn on the lights? by ccgd.
The Cromarty Firth is almost empty of rigs - this is the Frontier Driller, ex KNV, ex Transocean Explorer being towed by the tug "Fairmount Glacier" to Pascagoula in the Gulf of Mexico. This rig has been parked in the firth for years, dark and rusty. I understand that she has been only been "readied" for the Atlantic tow , and will require extensive mobilisation work (aka rebuilding) in the Gulf.

Shows how the oil price can affect even the oldest bit of kit....

Rigs tend to be lit up and Christmas tree like - it's very strange to see one being towed out of the firth dark and almost derelict.

A long exposure shot using a Tripod (I was in the sitting room and saw the lights of the tug, so ran down to the shore with camera and tripod) 

Comments

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rg250871  Pro User  says:

Interesting hearing about the inside story...
Posted 38 months ago. ( permalink )

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nonky  Pro User  says:

Good composition, with that lonely tree on the hillside. Haunting story.
Posted 38 months ago. ( permalink )

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fooflington says:

I'd never seen an Oil Rig up as close as we did driving down the A9 past the firth on Monday. We saw one on the horizon further north and then two right close in in quick succession.
Posted 38 months ago. ( permalink )

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jim_moore  Pro User  says:

Interesting dialogue Calum... I've always been in awe of these hulking structures... quite fascinating how they can shift them about too.

Good on you for grabbing your gear and getting down there!
Posted 38 months ago. ( permalink )

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brockvicky  Pro User  says:

Wow - they've shifted the Transocean Explorer? I thought that was destined to be a permanent fixture, or a floating hotel ;-)

That rig needs some serious work!

Fewer Cromarty Firth Christmas trees for us then this year!
Posted 38 months ago. ( permalink )

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NowPublic says:

Thank you for sharing your photo!This photograph appears in a NowPublic news story:Mexico clears oil rigs as hurricane nears.
Posted 29 months ago. ( permalink )

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trueuntil says:

The Frontier Driller under went extensive rebuilding at Signal International shipyard in Pascagoula, MS. It was christened on November 1, 2008. If anyone is interested, to see how good the Frontier Driller now looks, you can go to www.signalint.com/mississippi.htm and see the pictures. I was the safety clerk for this rig while it was being worked on from Jan 2007 to Dec 2008. The Frontier hands were some of the best people I have dealt with in a long time. I will miss them much and hope to maybe one day see and or hear from them again. Migdalia Negron (Maggie)
Posted 11 months ago. ( permalink )

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