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FEATURE
MAY 2014
360

THE ICEBERG

COMETH

Team safely manages icebergs offshore Newfoundland

As if rough waters, strong winds
Whether delecting relatively small spotted near our offshore installations, the

and powerful nor’easters weren’t enough, intruders called growlers and bergy bits experts review data from the Canadian Ice

Newfoundland employees Jason Melvin or towing icebergs heavier than the Service, which monitors the ice in the
and Brad Banton are also chasing icebergs.
Golden Gate Bridge, safety is always top country’s navigable waters. The team also

of their minds.
keeps a tap on iceberg sightings by
Every year, large chunks of ice break off N.L.-based Provincial Aerospace Ltd. (PAL)
glaciers or ice shelves and loat south from “Our key goals are to make sure that
and from the ive support vessels that
Greenland past the east coast of nobody gets hurt while doing all we can to service the offshore installations. These
Newfoundland. Here, they pose a risk to continue our operations,” Jason explains.
ships are strong enough to tow an iceberg
our Floating Production, Storage and “When the ice becomes a threat, we if needed. PAL and the three offshore
Ofloading (FPSO) unit on the Terra Nova follow detailed procedures to manage it.”
Newfoundland facility operators (Suncor,
oilield. While the icebergs usually drift Husky and Exxon Mobil) also form the Ice
slowly, winds and currents can change their Those procedures are anchored in the
Coordination Centre, which can be called
direction any time. This unpredictability Grand Banks Ice Management Plan. Home on to monitor ice on a 24-hour basis and
to Terra Nova and other oilields, the Grand
requires diligent ice management to avoid dispatch tow vessels as required in
a collision with the FPSO or the nearby Banks are near ‘Iceberg Alley,’ which consultation with the offshore facilities.
stretches from Labrador to Newfoundland’s
Henry Goodrich drilling rig.
northeast coast and gets its name from the Icebergs are usually spotted
Growlers, bergy bits and more
large number of bergs drifting in its
near Terra Nova from
currents every year.
mid-March to mid-June,
Jason, marine logistics co-ordinator, and
though it’s not
Brad, vessel lead onshore, are part of our Preparations start early. Months uncommon to
Ice Management team. They monitor ice before the irst bergs are
encounter a berg
conditions and dispatch ships to
in mid-February
move the bergs if needed.

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For more information,
go to the Core >
Departments > Exploration
and Production >
East Coast OEMS,
and search for the
‘Grand Banks Ice
Management Plan.’