World’s largest offshore drilling platform to set sail

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China’s domestically-made ultra-deep-water semi-submersible drilling rig Blue Whale 2 is going to set sail in Yantai City, east China’s Shandong Province, according to the local media.

Blue Whale 2 is as tall as a 37-storey building with its deck as large as a football field. It is able to operate in sea areas at a depth of over 3,000 meters, and the maximum drilling depth is 15,240 meters, ranking first among sea oil rigs in the world.

The sea voyage will last for 18 days, a period which requires 20 barrels of engine oil weighing four tons and 4,500 barrels of diesel weighing 765 tons. It is loaded with more than 27,000 pieces of equipment, twice as much as a normal drilling platform.

China’s ultra-deep-water semi-submersible drilling rig Blue Whale 2 is going to set sail in Yantai City, east China’s Shandong Province. /CCTV Photo

There are a total of eight propellers whose thrust is automatically calculated and controlled by a computer based on a collection of parameters, such as wind power and ocean current, in order to ensure the stability of the rig under wind speeds of up to 50 meters per second.

China is also the first country in the world to install the propellers at the wharf, which could only be conducted in the deep sea in the past, reducing the installation cost to 10 percent of the previous one.

Blue Whale 2 is as tall as a 37-storey building with its deck as large as a football field. /CCTV Photo

One decade ago, China still lacked the capability to build the offshore drilling platform, but now it can not only make it domestically but also lead the world in the construction.

“I have been here for nine years. Most of the staff onboard were foreigners nine years ago,” said Cheng Cheng, production manager of Blue Whale 2. “But now, everyone can see Chinese people are the strong power that leads the development of this industry.”