Clear weather window allows oil rig to leave

COLIN SMITH/Nelson Mail

OFF AT LAST: Nelsonians watch as the Ensco 56 departs Thursday morning.

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The hulking form of the Ensco 56 oil rig slipped out of town Thursday morning after a nine-week stay at Port Nelson.

The 143m-high, 53m-wide self-elevating rig arrived in Nelson at the end of May for a six-week refit.

It had previously been drilling in the Pohokura gas field off Taranaki.

It is now heading for the Awakino South site, which is being operated by Asian Drilling Services, about 10 nautical miles off the New Plymouth coast.

It was originally expected that the rig would leave in mid-July but bad weather in the top of the south and off the coast of the North Island delayed its departure by more than three weeks, rig manager Stuart Johnstone said.

The rig needed a three-day window of clear conditions to make the two-day journey north.

Mr Johnstone said that while the rig had been delayed in port, staff carried out general maintenance on board.

He would not comment on how much keeping the rig in Nelson had cost.

It was being taken by tug to Tasman Bay Thursday morning before continuing its journey on Friday.

Mr Johnstone said the rig's time in Nelson had been a success but the company was keen to get it to its new location.