Esso Australia has spent more than US$2.5bn in early decommissioning works in the Bass Strait so far as it dismantles infrastructure in the area — with the Barry Beach Marine terminal as integral to future work as it was in the establishment of the region’s offshore industry decades earlier.
The spend so far includes the permanent plug and abandonment of more than 200 wells, according to Richard Perry, a project manager for the company.
“This work will continue through to 2027, when we will then be ready to decommission by removing the platforms and transporting them to shore for dismantling and recycling,” he wrote in a recent update.
The group’s work in the Bass Strait represents perhaps Australia’s biggest decommissioning project.
The Strait is home to 19 offshore platforms that have produced oil and gas that has played a vital role in powering Australian homes and businesses and supported the nation’s energy security since the late 1960s.
Today, it supplies much-needed gas to south-east Australia from only six of these facilities.
“While ongoing investments will see us maintain our reliable supply of gas from Bass Strait into the 2030s, we are also decommissioning the 13 offshore facilities that are no longer producing oil and gas,” noted Perry.
However, decommissioning an offshore platform is a complex, multi-stage process, he added in a community outreach note.
“It begins with well plug and abandonment, which permanently seals the wells underneath the platform that have provided access to the oil and gas resources below the seafloor. Some of our platforms have up to 37 wells, while others have only a few. We then carry out essential maintenance including cleaning and disconnecting all pipelines from the platform.”
The Pioneering Spirit, the world’s largest construction vessel, will cut, lift and transfer the topsides and jackets from offshore platforms, onto barges for transport to the Barry Beach Marine Terminal, where they will be offloaded for dismantling and recycling.
For nearly 60 years, the terminal has played a central role in supporting Esso Australia’s Bass Strait operations, and will continue to do so as the emphasis shifts to decommissioning.
“The terminal has played a critical role in our safe completion of over US$2.5bn in early decommissioning works, including the permanent plug and abandonment of more than 200 offshore wells,” said Perry.
That incudes the safe recycling and disposal over 10,000 tonnes of steel and concrete at the terminal — around as much as the Eiffel tower weighs.
“As we move into the next phase of decommissioning, the terminal will continue to serve as our primary marine base, supporting both ongoing gas production and the safe, environmentally responsible and efficient removal of offshore infrastructure.”
