Spar
Introduction
The SPAR is a deepwater
drilling and production platform. The structure comprises a vessel
with a circular cross-section that sits vertically in the water and
is supported by buoyancy chambers at the top and stabilized by a
midsection structure hanging from the hard tanks. If necessary,
stability may be supplemented by solid ballast placed in
compartments at the keel. The vessel is held in place by a taut
catenary mooring system, providing lateral station keeping. The SPAR
platform uses ‘‘dry-tree’’ technology, where the wellhead equipment
is principally located on the platform rather than on the seabed,
reducing the cost and time involved in common maintenance work.