Oil rig order brings jobs boost

Work will begin at the Hartlepool yard in early 2004

A Teesside firm is creating 250 jobs after winning a multi-million pound order to build part of a North Sea oil platform.

The Hartlepool-based Heerema yard will build a 9,500-tonne deck for the structure, which will be used in the new Buzzard oil field.

The company says the order, from Canadian multinational EnCana, will sustain work in Hartlepool until mid 2006.

In November, the UK Government approved the development of the Buzzard oil field - the largest of its kind discovered in the North Sea for a decade.

Heerema Hartlepool director Brian Dixon said: "We are absolutely delighted to be awarded this prestigious contract, as it is the first large integrated deck to be awarded to a UK contractor for over five years.

'Important contract'

"It is not only a reward for our skilled and loyal work force, but also a terrific accomplishment for Heerema to be awarded this contract against strong European competition.

"It will ensure continued employment for our excellent workforce after the completion of the Clair Drilling Facility in early 2004."

Construction will begin in early 2004, with completion and delivery scheduled for the summer of 2006.

It is estimated that the Buzzard oil field will deliver more than 400 million barrels of oil, with an average of 180,000 barrels of oil per day by 2007.

The Buzzard is about 100 kilometres (62 miles) northeast of Aberdeen.