ICON Engineering has announced the first of its patented ARTP (Advanced Riser Tension Protector) heave compensated tension lift frames has been exported for use in a client’s drilling programme in offshore West Africa — a deployment that reduces “locked-to-bottom” heave compensation safety risks and builds on ICON’s recent conductor tensioner sales in the Gulf of Mexico.
The ARTP C-Series being readied for transportation ahead of shipping to West Africa.
ICON said the export of one of its ARTP C-Series was recognition that its work in designing and field testing this range of deepwater drilling heave compensators is proof that mitigating operational risk to As Low As Reasonably Possible (ALARP) is good business for operators and drilling companies.
ICON Managing Director David Field said he saw the growth of Africa’s offshore sector as promising: “We’ve seen international operators pick up technical advances from markets such as the North Sea and Australia. We’re very happy to now offer African operators this same level of ALARP risk mitigation.”
Why ALARP Risk Mitigation Matters for Deepwater Drilling
ALARP — reducing risk to a level that’s “as low as reasonably practicable” — is the same standard used in UK offshore safety regulation, and it’s the benchmark ICON designs its heave compensated tension lift frames against. For West African operators adopting deepwater drilling technology already proven in the North Sea and Australia, that’s a track record they can inherit rather than have to build from scratch. For a fuller explanation of the ALARP principle, see the UK Health and Safety Executive’s guidance.
ICON has been developing its range of heave compensated tension lift frames since 2009 and finished field testing its latest designs during 2016 with successful operations on the Ichthys, Wheatstone and Tidepole (North West Shelf) LNG projects in Western Australia.
As of May 2025, the company was also closing in on its 100th sale of its popular range of conductor tensioner units, with a recent sale to Mexican operator Oro Negro for use in the Gulf of Mexico. In 2025, ICON marked its 20th year of operation.
ICON’s Broader Track Record
ICON has installed more offshore platforms with jackup drilling rigs than any other company worldwide, and is expert in minimal facilities installation techniques such as Minnowpods, Monopods and Annex platforms. That track record includes a British Government engineering award for the innovative North Sea design and installation method of Shell’s Skiff oilfield, and installation of the first fixed platform in the Timor Sea. ICON has also carried out the deepest and lowest cost deployment of flexible flowlines from a semi-submersible drilling rig in Australia, and has pioneered mini-floatover technology for installing small topsides in weight ranges up to 1200 tonnes.
On the equipment side, ICON is world leader in the supply of conductor tensioning systems for jackup drilling rigs, from the Gippsland Basin to the Gulf of Mexico, and is renowned for completing difficult upgrades to drilling rigs outside shipyards in remote offshore locations. ICON’s growing equipment division sells and rents equipment internationally, with a focus on developing niche equipment to support construction and drilling operations. The company dominates the Australian market for heave compensated systems and for drilling locked-to-bottom well test conditions — the area of compensation that demands the highest level of reliability.
The ARTP export to West Africa reflects the same approach behind ICON’s broader Equipment Solutions and Heave Compensation Solutions work: engineering hardware that’s already proven in demanding environments like the North Sea, Western Australia, and the Gulf of Mexico, then applying it to new markets as they open up. ICON’s equipment division continues to supply and support this kind of technology internationally, from initial specification through to in-service operation.
