Perdido (oil platform)

The platform has three decks or topsides which support the oil and gas processing units, a drilling rig and living quarters for the workers.

The temperature difference between Finland and Texas posed a challenge in assembling the pieces as the components built in the cold of northern Europe expand in the heat of the Gulf of Mexico.

Operated by Shell, with JV partners Chevron (37.5%) and BP (27.5%), the spar acts as a hub for and enables development of three fields Great White, Tobago, and Silvertip.

At peak production, Perdido processes 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day, and 200 million cubic feet of gas.

These are connected via a 44 kilometre (27 mile) network of pipelines on the ocean floor the manifold below the platform, where the oil is pumped upwards in five flexible pipes called risers.