MOORED ICE-DRILLING BARGE A drilling barge of new concept developed by Dome Petroleum Ltd. for use in Arctic waters where floating or moving ice is a danger to conventional drillships or barges. The new barge has a 16-anchor mooring system attached to a swivel directly beneath the drilling derrick. At the approach of advancing ice on the barge's beam, the vessel weathervanes until its bow is headed into the ice flow. This maneuver reduces the tension on the mooring lines to a small fraction of that on a vessel moored in a fixed position.
