Spirit Energy wraps up UK North Sea decommissioning campaign

Spirit Energy completed a decommissioning campaign in the UK North Sea, plugging three wells and removing over 234 tonnes of infrastructure, with all materials to be recycled in UK yards.

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Spirit Energy has finished a decommissioning campaign in the UK North Sea, plugging and abandoning three subsea wells and lifting more than 234 tonnes of offshore hardware. The company reports the cost at $55 million, though two other sources put it at £40 million.

The work, carried out between April and July 2026, focused on the Seven Seas and Grove G5 production wells plus the Grove Deep exploration well. Seven Seas sits about 60km off the East Yorkshire coast, while Grove G5 lies 131km east of Norfolk. Together, the two production wells generated 56 billion cubic feet of gas over their lifetimes, enough to supply heat to more than 2.5 million homes for a year. Grove G5 produced from 2008 to 2019, and Seven Seas from 2012 until 2024.

Spirit says all recovered materials will be reused or recycled at UK yards, with work involving more than 30 domestic supply chain partners, including DeepOcean and Well-Safe. DeepOcean's vessel Edda Freya performed enabling tasks at both sites. At Seven Seas, crews removed the 100-tonne Wellhead Protection Structure, while at Grove G5, remotely operated vehicles disconnected subsea gear to ready the well for the next phase. Well-Safe's jack-up rig Well-Safe Protector handled reservoir abandonment at both locations before returning to Aberdeen.

The campaign consumed over 114,000 working hours. Ceri Wheaton, Spirit's decommissioning manager, noted that older infrastructure and the Southern North Sea's unpredictable weather posed major hurdles, making close teamwork across Spirit and its contractors vital. She also highlighted the complexity of having multiple vessels, including tugs, a rig, a construction support vessel, and ROVs, operating simultaneously alongside still-active assets. Frequent communication between shore and offshore teams, she said, enabled rapid decisions and a safe, efficient operation.

Matt Browell-Hook, Spirit's director of energy transition, decommissioning and projects, said decommissioning infrastructure that cannot be repurposed is a key industry focus, and supporting the NSTA's charter reflects the company's commitment. He expressed satisfaction that the campaign is on track to recycle or reuse all subsea materials in UK yards, calling it a strong example of operator-contractor collaboration and a testament to UK supply chain expertise.

Spirit and 16 other operators have pledged backing for the North Sea Transition Authority's Decommissioning Charter.