A giant oil and gas production platform - the size of three football pitches - is preparing to travel down the River Tyne at the end of a 13,000 mile journey.

The Bonga is reaching the end of its voyage, which started in South Korea in June, for a refit at the Amec shipyard in Wallsend, North Tyneside.

It will take a team of two large and four small tugs three hours to tow the 300 metre-long, 300,000-tonne platform the last few miles of its journey up the Tyne.

It will be the largest vessel ever seen on the river, but its final arrival depends on weather and tide conditions, which means it could be days or even weeks away.

Bonga facts:

The Bonga is 56 metres longer than London's Canary Wharf building is tall It stands taller than Gateshead's Angel of the North landmark which is 20 metres high It weighs the same as 33,000 double-decker buses

The floating gas and oil production platform will be fitted with 22,000 tonnes of processing equipment at the Amec shipyard in Wallsend, before being towed to the Nigerian Bonga oil field.

Thousands of people are expected to watch the painstaking process of the vessel being towed slowly up the river.

The largest ship previously on the Tyne was the 253,000 tonne Esso Northumbria, built at the Swan Hunter yard in 1969, which attracted huge crowds.

The Port of Tyne Authority and AMEC has been in practice for the Bonga's arrival.

A computer simulation of the vessel's process down the river was carried out at South Tyneside College's multi-million pound Marine Simulation Centre.

A computer simulation of the Bonga's arrival was carried out

The college devised an exact computer model of the Bonga on a three-dimensional map of the river.

Chris Thompson, head of department for Marine Simulation said: "Preparation for bringing the Bonga to the Tyne has been meticulous, using our simulation technology to ensure that every detail of the navigation is covered.

"Shell and all the companies involved in this project have an absolute commitment to safety and the opportunity to realistically simulate the operation was invaluable."

The Bonga has become something of a local celebrity, with its own information hotline for interested spotters to keep up-to-date with its movements.

Northumbria Police has issued a warning to local drivers not to be distracted by the mammoth platform if they catch a glimpse of it on its travels.

The Bonga is due to stay on Tyneside for 12 months - bringing in �300m of business to the Wallsend yard - before it sets sail again.