No single crane in the world could lift the Tyra TEG module on its own. At 17,000 tonnes — the equivalent of two Eiffel Towers, according to Heerema Marine Contractors — the biggest topside in the Tyra II redevelopment exceeded the capacity of any individual crane afloat.

The solution was to use two cranes as one system: both 10,000-tonne Huisman revolving turret cranes on the semi-submersible vessel Sleipnir, lifting together in a single coordinated tandem operation, 220 km off the Danish coast in the North Sea.

17,000 t
Total lift weight
2×10,000 t
Crane capacity, tandem
47 m
Module height
260+
Offshore workers involved
Phase 1 — Long-distance module transport
From Indonesia to the North Sea
The Tyra TEG module travelled from Indonesia aboard the heavy transport ship GPO Emerald, arriving on site on 3 October — the final leg of a journey that had to deliver a 17,000-tonne structure intact and ready for same-week lifting.
Phase 2 — Sea-fastening removal
Preparing a 47-metre module for lift-off
More than 260 offshore workers were involved in removing the sea fastenings that had secured the module to its delivery vessel during the voyage — the first of two major crew-intensive phases before the lift itself could begin.
Phase 3 — The tandem lift
Two cranes, one coordinated system
At 08:27 on 4 October, Sleipnir's two 10,000-tonne Huisman revolving turret cranes lifted the module together off its delivery vessel, sharing the 17,000-tonne load between two independently controlled hook points.
Phase 4 — Positioning onto the jacket
Setting the topside in place
With the module clear of the delivery ship, the crane operators lined it up over its jacket and lowered it into final position, completing what Heerema claimed as the heaviest crane lift ever undertaken at sea.

Seventeen thousand tonnes, the weight of two Eiffel Towers, lifted by two cranes acting as one — the heaviest crane lift ever claimed at sea.

The Tyra TEG lift stands as a reference case for tandem crane operations at the extreme end of offshore capacity: where no single crane can do the job, the engineering problem shifts from raw lifting power to precisely coordinating two independent systems around a single load.

For further reading on offshore lift capacity, see What is Heavy Lift Engineering?

Related case studies: Gullfaks C · Bullwinkle Platform · Perdido Spar

Sources: Heerema Marine Contractors — installation contractor's record announcement, giving the module weight as 17,082 mt; Heavy Lift & Project Forwarding International; Offshore Energy. The record is as claimed by Heerema and TotalEnergies.

Frequently Asked Questions

The lift weighed 17,000 tonnes — described by Heerema as the equivalent of two Eiffel Towers — and was claimed as the heaviest crane lift ever undertaken at sea.

The lift was performed by Heerema Marine Contractors' semi-submersible vessel Sleipnir, using both of its 10,000-tonne-capacity Huisman revolving turret cranes acting together in a tandem lift.

The Tyra TEG module travelled from Indonesia aboard the heavy transport ship GPO Emerald, arriving on site roughly 220 km off the Danish coast in the North Sea on 3 October, ahead of the lift the following morning.

At 17,000 tonnes, the module's weight exceeded the capacity of either of Sleipnir's cranes individually. Both 10,000-tonne cranes had to lift together, sharing the load between two independently controlled hook points, which required more than 260 offshore workers to prepare the module and coordinate the tandem lift safely.