# Dubai Offshore - early '70's



## pzulba

Fateh Field, used to work there in early '70's and occasionally wonder what happened to the 'storage system'?

At that time it consisted of 2 'hulks' - Maajma 1 & 2 (ex tankers with rear ends removed) and 1 later 3 Khazzan's underwater storage tanks
(inverted champagne glass shape)

K1 was originally a stand alone unit of approximately 500000bbls capacity that on surface appeared to be a stand alone tank of about 100bbls 

K2 & K3 were added later and again of nominal 500000bbl capacity but each supporting process/pumping modules

K!.2 & 3 were interlinked with a Quarters platform

There 1 later 2 SBM's

At some stage the Maajma's were dry-docked/scrapped (may have had temporary replacements?)

AFAIK the Fateh is still in production but unsure of status of the Khazzans - K! was installed about 1969

Would appreciate any info

PZULBA - Out of Africa (Retired)


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## Finally01

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## Bonchester

pzulba said:


> Fateh Field, used to work there in early '70's and occasionally wonder what happened to the 'storage system'?
> 
> At that time it consisted of 2 'hulks' - Maajma 1 & 2 (ex tankers with rear ends removed) and 1 later 3 Khazzan's underwater storage tanks
> (inverted champagne glass shape)
> 
> K1 was originally a stand alone unit of approximately 500000bbls capacity that on surface appeared to be a stand alone tank of about 100bbls
> 
> K2 & K3 were added later and again of nominal 500000bbl capacity but each supporting process/pumping modules
> 
> K!.2 & 3 were interlinked with a Quarters platform
> 
> There 1 later 2 SBM's
> 
> At some stage the Maajma's were dry-docked/scrapped (may have had temporary replacements?)
> 
> AFAIK the Fateh is still in production but unsure of status of the Khazzans - K! was installed about 1969
> 
> Would appreciate any info
> 
> PZULBA - Out of Africa (Retired)


I remember them well having dived them often. What a sight they were ,the life around them was amazing.


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## DxbBob

I'm also curious about these matters. I was there from 1973 to 1986.

As far as I know:
a) the three Khazzans are still in use, 
b) the two Maimaa floating storage tanks (as you say, modified tanker hulls) are gone, replaced in 1978 by the captive FSO *AL WASEL*, another tanker,
c) *AL WASEL* was, I think, refurbished in 2007 but I'm not sure if it's still there today,
d) I believe the two SBMs are still operating; again, I can't confirm such is the case.

I look forward to learning what, in fact, the situation is today.


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## DxbBob

*Dubai Khazzan Tow-Outs*

1.) Anyone remember what companies and which of their tugs towed out the three Khazzan subsea oil storage tanks (“K1”, “K2”, and “K3”) built in Dubai by Chicago Bridge & Iron Company (“CB&I”) for Dubai Petroleum Company (“DPC”)? There were two tow-out programs: K1 was completed and installed first, tow-out would have been in August 1969, and K2 and K3 followed later, probably in February and March 1973.
2.) Each Khazzan is a bottomless, all-steel welded subsea oil storage tank having the shape of an inverted margarita glass, or an onion if that’s more palatable to you. Khazzans are capable of floating on a minimum of 10’ or 11’ of water. Each tank is 270’ (90m) in diameter, 200’ (70m) tall, and weighs about 15,000 short tons excluding pin piles and any topsides structures or equipment. Storage capacity of K1 was about 490,000 bbls. K2 and K3 were each 500,000 bbls. (79,500 m3). All three Khazzans were fabricated by CB&I in Dubai at a then remote fishing camp called Jumeirah, situated several miles north of Shindagha at the mouth of Dubai’s six-mile-long sal****er creek. That fabrication site is now approximately where Madinat Jumeirah resort is located and the pier on which “Pierchic” restaurant sits today more precisely marks the actual point from which the floating tanks were pulled into the Gulf. 
3.) The Khazzans are installed in about 160’ of water 60 or so miles offshore in the cluster of platforms, risers, subsea pipelines, floating storage tanks, and CALM-type export buoys comprising DPC’s Fateh Field Central Complex. 
I assume K1 was installed by Ingram-ETPM Joint Venture (installation barge *ETPM 501*?). Is that correct? 
I assume K2 and K3 were installed either by J Ray McDermott or Brown & Root Wimpey. Is that correct? Which one? Which barge spreads?  
4.) Years ago I saw a photo of K1 in transit but haven’t seen it or any other photos since. It showed K1 under tow of two tugs in a breasted tug arrangement. The boats looked Dutch and I assumed they were L Smit Internationale tugs rather than Bureau Wijsmuller vessels. I thought the larger of the two might be the 9,000 ihp *Zwarte Zee* or *Witte Zee* and the smaller a 4,500 ihp or 4,000 ihp tug such as *Orinoco*, *Thames*, *Hudson* or *Mississippi*, but those are only my uninformed impressions. Does anyone know which tugs performed this tow? 
5.) I never saw a photo of the K2 or K3 tow-outs. Given the time elapsing between installation of K1 and of K2 & K3, I suppose by February or March 1973 it's possible a couple of oil patch AHTs or Port Rashid harbor tugs of sufficient bollard pull might have towed K2 and K3 to Fateh Field. Does anyone know about these tows?
I'll try to post a relevant picture or two. Thanks.


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## DxbBob

Does anyone remember the name of the lead tugboat in the attached 1983 photograph of DB27 inching her way up Dubai Creek? The picture was taken when DB27 made her first transit up the Creek after her conversion from center slot lay barge *McDermott Lay Barge No. 27* to combination derrick/lay barge *McDermott Derrick Barge No. 27*.
Obviously, I don’t remember that tug's name. I want to say she was newly arrived in the Gulf (from where?), had a German captain, and was operated by International Marine Service, Inc. (IMS). 
I recall DB27's arrival was quite a drama: dhows and abras frantically trying to dodge the unrelenting derrick barge flotilla.
The tail boat looks to me like *JARAMAC XXII* but I could be wrong.  If someone knows better, please let me know.
Thanks.


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## DxbBob

*Dubai Blowouts in 1973 and 1975*

AAA – I found the attachment in a shoe box of old photos. When I received it in the late ‘70s, I was told it was a wild well fire on a Dubai Petroleum Co. (“DPC”) platform. I have a foggy recollection of two, maybe three, DPC blowouts in the 1970s and don’t know which of them the photo depicts. In fact, I know very little about those blowouts and would like to know more. I’m setting out what I can remember and hope folks will correct my errors and fill in some gaps. 
BBB – 1973 events. In, I think, July or August 1973 I remember McDermott rigging up, to DPC’s and Red Adair’s satisfaction, cargo barges and a derrick barge for offshore wild well firefighting service. That urgent “force account” work related to a fire or threat of fire on a DPC platform. 
I only recently learned DPC had a platform fire in October 1973. I guess I forgot about the fire that occurred on “A” platform 17 October 1973 while SEDCO Rig 70 was drilling well A-1. I don’t know the extent of platform and rig damage, or how long it took to extinguish the fire. Given this “new” (to me) information, I’m now not certain when McDermott was rigging up its barges for wild well fire service, was it in July or August ’73, as I remember, or was it actually later that year, i.e. in response to that forgotten October fire? 
CCC – Questions re. 1973. Was there a DPC blowout in July 1973? If affirmative, did it catch fire? If so, about how long after the initial blow out was it before it ignited? 
Did the October 1973 fire cause serious damage? How long did it take to control the blowout and extinguish the fire? Was it extinguished using firefighting apparatus and marine equipment already available to DPC at that time? 
DDD – 1975 Events. I vaguely remember a blowout in the summer of ‘75. I believe it was more serious than the ’73 blowout(s): it ended up taking a long time (like seven months) and four or five relief holes to bring it under control. 
I also remember a jack up drilling rig was lost in February 1976 and I refer to it here because it just occurred to me that it might have some association with the summer '75 blowout. 
EEE – Questions re. 1975. Was the platform at which the summer ’75 blowout occurred a total loss? If affirmative, was it destroyed by fire or cratering-in of the seabed? 
At the time of its loss, was the jack up rig drilling a relief well to control the summer ’75 blowout? 

Sorry about the length. Thanks.

Note: attached photo was taken by a hand whose name I don't know. The photo is from my personal collection.


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## DxbBob

*J-U Rig W.D. KENT Loss – 1976*

Background: While working for DPC during a freak severe storm on 23 February 1976, the Reading & Bates’ jack up drilling rig *W. D. KENT *was struck by a drifting or anchor-dragging vessel. The collision caused the jack up to topple and subsequently sink. Although it, too, was damaged, the vessel that hit the jack up was deemed capable of reaching a port of refuge; however, it sank while under tow to Sharjah. Both the drilling rig and the vessel that struck it were actual total losses. Neither was salvaged.
Discussion. I believe the vessel that struck the drilling rig was a dumb barge notwithstanding that one UAE website currently calls it a “tug”. Most other sources identify the vessel as *NEPTUNE 6*, a Forex Neptune drill tender, but a U.S. National Academy of Sciences do***ent states the drill tender *NEPTUNE 6* was lost in 1973 (were that correct, *NEPTUNE 6 *could not have collided with *W. D. KENT* in February 1976). Furthermore, in a first notification of accident telexed to the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, the Dubai U.S. Consulate identified the drifting vessel as a McDermott lay barge named “WADICO-3”. Since McDermott neither owned nor chartered any such vessel at the time in question I assume the Dubai Consul was actually referring to Fluor’s (ex Western Offshore Drilling and Exploration Co.) drill tender *WESTERN OFFSHORE No. III*. 
Question. What is the correct name of the vessel that collided with *W. D. KENT* and what type of vessel was it? 
Thanks.


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## Frank P

Interesting stories Bob, it wood be better if you posted your photos in the gallery.

Cheers Frank


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## DxbBob

*for member "PZULBA" re. DPC Khazzan Dubai I*

In a preceding post I asked for the names of two tugs that towed DPC's "Khazzan Dubai I" the 60 miles from its fabrication site in Jumeirah to its installation location in DPC's Fateh Field back in August 1969. The answer is *ZWARTE ZEE* and *THAMES* of L. Smit Co. Internationale Sleepdienst. 
Having answered my own question, I didn't want to leave my earlier query 'open' in this forum, and because your post inspired my interest, I thought I'd let you know in case you're still checking in from time to time. 
Look, if you're interested, you might enjoy a film featuring Dubai back in 1969. After a general introduction to the emirate and appropriate recognition of Sheikh Rashid, there's footage of Khazzan I under construction, tow, and installation. The link is
YouTube.com/watch?v=qdbX-hukpgU
It might also be available at "www.huntleyarchives.com" as "film 14534", but I haven't tried this alternative.
Cheers.


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## DxbBob

An interesting note: on Saturday 13 February 2016 Reuters reported that Dubai Petroleum had had a gas leak at its offshore Fateh oilfield on Thursday 11 February 2016 in an area where a previous fire had occurred in 1975 (my preceding post applies). Quoting a Dubai Petroleum statement, state news agency WAM said (according to Reuters) the leak was dealt with immediately and in a safe manner, and operations have resumed. 

I wonder if this is attributable to the well known gas bearing formation at about 4,000 feet in the middle of Fateh Field, the one that caused the 1975 blowout and fire to which I referred in a preceding post? Drilling through that zone has always had to be done very carefully, great care being taken to avoid almost inevitable blowouts by masterfully managing mud weights and getting the hole behind casing before drilling deeper.


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## DxbBob

Follow up note regarding installation of Khazzan Dubai I: see Huntley file no. 14534 at YouTube.com/watch?v=qdbX-hukpgU. Towards the end of this 22 minute public relations film there's a few scenes showing load out and installation of an early Fateh Field platform. I believe that footage shows Ingram - ETPM Joint Venture fabrication in its Dubai Creek yard and installation by the French crane barge *ETPM 501*.


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## DxbBob

*Summer '75 Blowout and fire, follow-up*



DxbBob said:


> AAA – I found the attachment in a shoe box of old photos. When I received it in the late ‘70s, I was told it was a wild well fire on a Dubai Petroleum Co. (“DPC”) platform. I have a foggy recollection of two, maybe three, DPC blowouts in the 1970s and don’t know which of them the photo depicts. In fact, I know very little about those blowouts and would like to know more. I’m setting out what I can remember and hope folks will correct my errors and fill in some gaps.
> BBB – 1973 events. In, I think, July or August 1973 I remember McDermott rigging up, to DPC’s and Red Adair’s satisfaction, cargo barges and a derrick barge for offshore wild well firefighting service. That urgent “force account” work related to a fire or threat of fire on a DPC platform.
> I only recently learned DPC had a platform fire in October 1973. I guess I forgot about the fire that occurred on “A” platform 17 October 1973 while SEDCO Rig 70 was drilling well A-1. I don’t know the extent of platform and rig damage, or how long it took to extinguish the fire. Given this “new” (to me) information, I’m now not certain when McDermott was rigging up its barges for wild well fire service, was it in July or August ’73, as I remember, or was it actually later that year, i.e. in response to that forgotten October fire?
> CCC – Questions re. 1973. Was there a DPC blowout in July 1973? If affirmative, did it catch fire? If so, about how long after the initial blow out was it before it ignited?
> Did the October 1973 fire cause serious damage? How long did it take to control the blowout and extinguish the fire? Was it extinguished using firefighting apparatus and marine equipment already available to DPC at that time?
> DDD – 1975 Events. I vaguely remember a blowout in the summer of ‘75. I believe it was more serious than the ’73 blowout(s): it ended up taking a long time (like seven months) and four or five relief holes to bring it under control.
> I also remember a jack up drilling rig was lost in February 1976 and I refer to it here because it just occurred to me that it might have some association with the summer '75 blowout.
> EEE – Questions re. 1975. Was the platform at which the summer ’75 blowout occurred a total loss? If affirmative, was it destroyed by fire or cratering-in of the seabed?
> At the time of its loss, was the jack up rig drilling a relief well to control the summer ’75 blowout?
> 
> Sorry about the length. Thanks.
> 
> Note: attached photo was taken by a hand whose name I don't know. The photo is from my personal collection.


*Follow-up* With respect to 1975 Fateh Field blowout, former Conoco employee Lester Arnwine recalled that: "after a short period, the gas ignited and the platform and drilling rig collapsed and what remained was a large fire on top of the water." 
[from 01/12/2016 interview by Jane Goodsill © 2017 Fort Bend County Historical Commission]


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## Joseph gerardus

In 1975 I was a trainee operator with Halliburton, I went to dubai with 4 dutch and 4 German operators, my task was as interperator , we spend 6 weeks in a hotel whilst working on a barge in dubai Creek, the barge had 24 cementation pumps fitted, and we did a trial run every day, all the pumps were connected to a main controller , it was utter chaos as the chief operator barked instructions in a texas drawl, a good time was had by all, we never went on site and we're relieved by another crew 
2 months later I was asked to go again on my own, I was still a trainee so was not sure why they asked for me 
I flew into dubai at 2 am, rang the office, and was told to go to the hotel and stay on standby
I was on standby for 4 weeks, had 2 safari suits handmade , my beard trimmed everyday, layed around the pool, you get the idea, every week I went to the depot to claim my $100 US a day expence allowance, no one took any notice
When my 4 weeks were up i asked the office to arrange the return of my passport, which in those days got confiscated at arrival, the office said , who are you, when I explained the situation they said I could go offshore the next day
I was adamant that my 4 weeks were up and I was leaving, I obtained my passport with great difficulty from the ministry and flew home
I never heard any more about it , but found out that Halliburton had to have a certain number of personal on site
Overall my 3 yr with Halliburton were very rewarding in all ways


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## John Carrington Brooks

DxbBob said:


> *J-U Rig W.D. KENT Loss – 1976*
> 
> Background: While working for DPC during a freak severe storm on 23 February 1976, the Reading & Bates’ jack up drilling rig *W. D. KENT *was struck by a drifting or anchor-dragging vessel. The collision caused the jack up to topple and subsequently sink. Although it, too, was damaged, the vessel that hit the jack up was deemed capable of reaching a port of refuge; however, it sank while under tow to Sharjah. Both the drilling rig and the vessel that struck it were actual total losses. Neither was salvaged.
> Discussion. I believe the vessel that struck the drilling rig was a dumb barge notwithstanding that one UAE website currently calls it a “tug”. Most other sources identify the vessel as *NEPTUNE 6*, a Forex Neptune drill tender, but a U.S. National Academy of Sciences do***ent states the drill tender *NEPTUNE 6* was lost in 1973 (were that correct, *NEPTUNE 6 *could not have collided with *W. D. KENT* in February 1976). Furthermore, in a first notification of accident telexed to the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, the Dubai U.S. Consulate identified the drifting vessel as a McDermott lay barge named “WADICO-3”. Since McDermott neither owned nor chartered any such vessel at the time in question I assume the Dubai Consul was actually referring to Fluor’s (ex Western Offshore Drilling and Exploration Co.) drill tender *WESTERN OFFSHORE No. III*.
> Question. What is the correct name of the vessel that collided with *W. D. KENT* and what type of vessel was it?
> Thanks.





DxbBob said:


> *Dubai Blowouts in 1973 and 1975*
> 
> AAA – I found the attachment in a shoe box of old photos. When I received it in the late ‘70s, I was told it was a wild well fire on a Dubai Petroleum Co. (“DPC”) platform. I have a foggy recollection of two, maybe three, DPC blowouts in the 1970s and don’t know which of them the photo depicts. In fact, I know very little about those blowouts and would like to know more. I’m setting out what I can remember and hope folks will correct my errors and fill in some gaps.
> BBB – 1973 events. In, I think, July or August 1973 I remember McDermott rigging up, to DPC’s and Red Adair’s satisfaction, cargo barges and a derrick barge for offshore wild well firefighting service. That urgent “force account” work related to a fire or threat of fire on a DPC platform.
> I only recently learned DPC had a platform fire in October 1973. I guess I forgot about the fire that occurred on “A” platform 17 October 1973 while SEDCO Rig 70 was drilling well A-1. I don’t know the extent of platform and rig damage, or how long it took to extinguish the fire. Given this “new” (to me) information, I’m now not certain when McDermott was rigging up its barges for wild well fire service, was it in July or August ’73, as I remember, or was it actually later that year, i.e. in response to that forgotten October fire?
> CCC – Questions re. 1973. Was there a DPC blowout in July 1973? If affirmative, did it catch fire? If so, about how long after the initial blow out was it before it ignited?
> Did the October 1973 fire cause serious damage? How long did it take to control the blowout and extinguish the fire? Was it extinguished using firefighting apparatus and marine equipment already available to DPC at that time?
> DDD – 1975 Events. I vaguely remember a blowout in the summer of ‘75. I believe it was more serious than the ’73 blowout(s): it ended up taking a long time (like seven months) and four or five relief holes to bring it under control.
> I also remember a jack up drilling rig was lost in February 1976 and I refer to it here because it just occurred to me that it might have some association with the summer '75 blowout.
> EEE – Questions re. 1975. Was the platform at which the summer ’75 blowout occurred a total loss? If affirmative, was it destroyed by fire or cratering-in of the seabed?
> At the time of its loss, was the jack up rig drilling a relief well to control the summer ’75 blowout?
> 
> Sorry about the length. Thanks.
> 
> Note: attached photo was taken by a hand whose name I don't know. The photo is from my personal collection.


I was the Radio Tech on contract to DPC from IAL, was involved in the two blow outs as radio require were very much required. In 73 was on the Texaco Pacific and the Halliburton mud barge, when the Rig 70 blow out was resolved. In 75 for awhlie due to the gas whole field was evacuated, only after it was set on fire or self combusted, Did offshore personnel return every effort to put the solve the problem failed, but due to a tremendous storm the struture and possibly the formation under the Rig and sealed it off. I might be mistaken but I thought the Wodico 2 was a drill ship broke its anchors and sunk the WD Kent, losing the life of the tool pusher. I left 20 years later, but I do not believe there has never been as storm with that intensity since. Their was a complete electricity failure in Dubai at the time also. My two penneth!!
John Brooks


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## DxbBob

John Carrington Brooks said:


> I was the Radio Tech on contract to DPC from IAL, was involved in the two blow outs as radio require were very much required. In 73 was on the Texaco Pacific and the Halliburton mud barge, when the Rig 70 blow out was resolved. In 75 for awhlie due to the gas whole field was evacuated, only after it was set on fire or self combusted, Did offshore personnel return every effort to put the solve the problem failed, but due to a tremendous storm the struture and possibly the formation under the Rig and sealed it off. I might be mistaken but I thought the Wodico 2 was a drill ship broke its anchors and sunk the WD Kent, losing the life of the tool pusher. I left 20 years later, but I do not believe there has never been as storm with that intensity since. Their was a complete electricity failure in Dubai at the time also. My two penneth!!
> John Brooks


John, I remember prior to gas ignition, when the wind was "right", we smelled the gas onshore all over Dubai. I can remember a few power outages, one of them long enough to force the neighborhood to get together and have a "block party". So many BBQ pits fired up that Satwa ran out of charcoal . . . had to eat the frozen meat before it spoiled. Gulfco and Spinneys had a rather unsettling odeur for awhile . . . .


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## DxbBob

I would have included Choitram's with the other two grocers but I can't spell it.
Cheers.


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## Maarten_BW

DxbBob said:


> *Dubai Khazzan Tow-Outs*
> 
> 1.) Anyone remember what companies and which of their tugs towed out the three Khazzan subsea oil storage tanks (“K1”, “K2”, and “K3”) built in Dubai by Chicago Bridge & Iron Company (“CB&I”) for Dubai Petroleum Company (“DPC”)? There were two tow-out programs: K1 was completed and installed first, tow-out would have been in August 1969, and K2 and K3 followed later, probably in February and March 1973.
> 2.) Each Khazzan is a bottomless, all-steel welded subsea oil storage tank having the shape of an inverted margarita glass, or an onion if that’s more palatable to you. Khazzans are capable of floating on a minimum of 10’ or 11’ of water. Each tank is 270’ (90m) in diameter, 200’ (70m) tall, and weighs about 15,000 short tons excluding pin piles and any topsides structures or equipment. Storage capacity of K1 was about 490,000 bbls. K2 and K3 were each 500,000 bbls. (79,500 m3). All three Khazzans were fabricated by CB&I in Dubai at a then remote fishing camp called Jumeirah, situated several miles north of Shindagha at the mouth of Dubai’s six-mile-long sal****er creek. That fabrication site is now approximately where Madinat Jumeirah resort is located and the pier on which “Pierchic” restaurant sits today more precisely marks the actual point from which the floating tanks were pulled into the Gulf.
> 3.) The Khazzans are installed in about 160’ of water 60 or so miles offshore in the cluster of platforms, risers, subsea pipelines, floating storage tanks, and CALM-type export buoys comprising DPC’s Fateh Field Central Complex.
> I assume K1 was installed by Ingram-ETPM Joint Venture (installation barge *ETPM 501*?). Is that correct?
> I assume K2 and K3 were installed either by J Ray McDermott or Brown & Root Wimpey. Is that correct? Which one? Which barge spreads?
> 4.) Years ago I saw a photo of K1 in transit but haven’t seen it or any other photos since. It showed K1 under tow of two tugs in a breasted tug arrangement. The boats looked Dutch and I assumed they were L Smit Internationale tugs rather than Bureau Wijsmuller vessels. I thought the larger of the two might be the 9,000 ihp *Zwarte Zee* or *Witte Zee* and the smaller a 4,500 ihp or 4,000 ihp tug such as *Orinoco*, *Thames*, *Hudson* or *Mississippi*, but those are only my uninformed impressions. Does anyone know which tugs performed this tow?
> 5.) I never saw a photo of the K2 or K3 tow-outs. Given the time elapsing between installation of K1 and of K2 & K3, I suppose by February or March 1973 it's possible a couple of oil patch AHTs or Port Rashid harbor tugs of sufficient bollard pull might have towed K2 and K3 to Fateh Field. Does anyone know about these tows?
> I'll try to post a relevant picture or two. Thanks.


"Zwarte Zee" en "Thames", operation champagneglas, somewhere around 1969.


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## Maarten_BW

Accordintg to *Dubai Khazzan Tow-Outs* 

"Zwarte Zee" en "Thames", operaton champagneglas, somewhere around 1969.


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## DxbBob

Maarten_BW said:


> Accordintg to *Dubai Khazzan Tow-Outs*
> 
> "Zwarte Zee" en "Thames", operaton champagneglas, somewhere around 1969.


Yes. Khazzan Dubai No. 1 ( خزان ١ ) was floated out of the Chicago Bridge & Iron Co. fabrication yard in Jumeirah - back then about 20 km SW of Khor Dubai) in August 1969, THAMES and ZWARTE ZEE were engaged to tow the inverted 15,000 ton "champagne glass" structure without a bottom to the Fateh Oil Field about sixty miles off the coast where it was submerged in about 47m of water. (the Khazzan was about 61m tall during tow). Two additional Khazzans followed later, along with Phase II development that included various additional offshore platform situated process facilities (for gas lift and and increased separation capacity for an additional 300,000 barrels per day of produced liquids) and an additional catenary anchor leg export loading buoy rated at 100,000 barrels per hour, all of which - when Phase II went into operation in March 1973 - made the Conoco's Fateh Field central complex the world's largest self-contained offshore production complex. 
I imagine THAMES was most useful at the start of the towage, considering the shallow gradually sloping sea bed and the fact that she had a loaded (midships LBP) draft of 4.62m compared with ZWARTE ZEE's draft of 5.75m.


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