Type:
Gas
Facility:
Production
Water Depth:
24
Installed:
1967
meters
Block:
48/6
Design:
Fixed steel
Sub Structure:
1039
Topsides Wgt:
2556
tonnes
tonnes
Intro
The West Sole WA main platform is a fixed steel jacket drilling and production platform in the West Sole gas field (Block 48/6) of the UK Southern North Sea, installed in July 1966 with first gas in March 1967. It historically served as a primary wellhead and export hub.
Field
The West Sole gas field was discovered in 1965, producing natural gas and associated condensate from a Permian Rotliegendes sandstone reservoir. It was the first commercial UK offshore gas field to deliver gas onshore, starting 1967, and remains active under Perenco operation.
Facilities
The WA platform hosts multiple well slots (e.g., four drilled slots) that initially carried production wells feeding its topsides. Drilling and production duties were combined with export metering and pipeline interfacing. Historically, WA exported gas via a 16-inch pipeline (~70-km) to the Easington gas terminal (onshore), while produced condensate was managed by separators. Over time, additional wells and satellite tie-ins (e.g., Hyde, Hoton, Newsham) joined the West Sole network with flowlines converging on WA, WB and WC installations. WA’s facilities include structural legs supporting a steel jacket, drill slots, wellhead manifolds, flowlines, basic separation/preconditioning equipment, utility systems such as power generation (typically diesel or gas turbine), control systems, chemical injection, safety (fire/gas), and export metering. Connectivity into the wider West Sole infrastructure ensures integrated production and export.
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