PORT ANGELES — When the giant oil drilling rig presently parked in Port Angeles Harbor departs, it is not likely to return, according to the Port of Port Angeles.
The Polar Pioneer’s failure to find much oil in the Chukchi Sea killed the Port of Port Angeles’ hopes to become a staging center for Arctic drilling operations, port executive director Ken O’Hollaren told about 60 members of the Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce on Monday afternoon.
The port had been in talks with Shell Oil, which leased the oil drilling platform Polar Pioneer and the oil drilling ship Noble Discover, to become a supply and support staging area for Arctic drilling operations, O’Hollaren said.
“They were looking seriously at Port Angeles Harbor to locate their base of operations. We are disappointed to hear they will not be coming back,” he said.
O’Hollaren said the Polar Pioneer, which first visited Port Angeles in April and May while preparing to drill for oil in the Chukchi Sea, will be heading back to the North Sea off the European continent, where it operated for 30 years, according to O’Hollaren.
The 355-foot tall oil platform is owned by Transocean Ltd., of Zug, Switzerland, and was specifically built to operate in extreme conditions, he said.
The Polar Pioneer was leased to Royal Dutch Shell, the parent company of Shell Oil.
Information on whether Shell still holds a lease for the drilling rig was not available Monday.
It arrived in Port Angeles in October to resupply and to off-load equipment from its summer in Alaska.
The MV Dockwise Vanguard, a 902-foot semi-submersible heavy-lift ship, was initially scheduled to arrive in Port Angeles Harbor on Monday to pick up the Polar Pioneer for transport.
The Dockwise Vanguard is the largest ship of its type in the world, and can lift more than 120,000 tons of cargo.
Due today
On Monday afternoon, the ship tracker feature at www.MarineTraffic.com estimated the Dockwise Vanguard’s arrival at Port Angeles Harbor will be at about 5:45 p.m. today
The 738-foot long semi-submersable heavy-lift ship MV Blue Marlin remained in the harbor awaiting the arrival of the oil drilling ship Noble Discoverer, which remained in the Port of Everett on Monday. The Noble Discoverer is headed next to the South Pacific on the deck of the Blue Marlin, O’Hollaren said.
Operations for loading the two drilling vessels onto the heavy lift ships are expected by the end of the week, O’Hollaren said.
The Noble Discoverer was built in 1976, and is owned by Noble Corporation, of Baar, Switzerland.
Both the giant transport ships are owned and operated by Dockwise Shipping of the Netherlands.
Airports
In other developments, O’Hollaren said the port’s William R. Fairchild International Airport is expected to begin new airline service to SeaTac beginning March 1.
SeaPort Airline plans five flights per day between the two airports, and seats can be booked online at this time, O’Hollaren said.
There is no Transportation Security Administration presence planned at Fairchild at this time to screen passengers directly through to SeaTac flights, he said.
O’Hollaren said the port is working with TSA officials to organize either screening at Port Angeles or an expedited service at SeaTac.
The port also operates Sekiu Airport.
Marine trades
Also, the port is nearly done with its environmental cleanup at the former K-Ply property. O’Hollaren said it will be ready to enter the market as a site for a marine trade industrial park.
The Alaskan fishing fleet is aging, and will soon need to replenish their boats, he said.
Many of the replacements will come from Puget Sound area, he said, and Port Angeles is in a position to take on much of that work, he said.
O’Hollaren said he believes the site could host boat builders who can help supply those boats.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.
