Houtech Energy Inc. of Houston, and Bethlehem Steel Corporation's Beaumont shipyard recently commissioned a 73-foot water depth mobile offshore workover unit.
The rig was christened Houtech II by its sponsor, Mrs. Richard M. Kleberg III, wife of the managing director of SFD Investments. It is the second mobile workover rig to be built by the Beaumont yard for Houtech.
Houtech II is a mat-supported jackup designed primarily for offshore workover operations. It features a self-contained propulsion system plus a cantilevered substructure. The latter offers the capability of being able to position the rotary table over existing offshore production platforms. On location, the rig has a total variable load capacity of 400,000 pounds, which includes a maximum hook or rotary plus setback loading of 295,000 pounds. The rig has a maximum cantilever reach of 25 feet with a substructure load capacity of 245,000 pounds at the rig centerline.
The commissioning of this multimillion-dollar rig concludes nearly nine months of construction and outfitting in the Beaumont yard. The rig is scheduled to operate in the Gulf of Mexico for AMOCO Production Company.
Houtech II was designed and built to the Rules of the American Bureau of Shipping for the construction of mobile offshore drilling units. The rig consists of a platform measuring 115 feet by 74 feet supported by three 4.5-foot-diameter columns fixed to a steel barge-like mat that is 110 feet by 84 feet.
While in 73-foot water depths, the rig can withstand 70-knot winds and 26-foot seas. During hurricane season and while located in waters of up to 50 feet, the Houtech II can withstand 100-knot winds and 30-foot seas.