Frank Hartley • Houston
VetcoGray applies ModPod to Sequoia field
VetcoGray will supply its control system technology to the development of a new gas field in the West Delta Deep Marine (WDDM) area offshore the Nile Delta for Burullus Gas Co. of Cairo.
The company has received a contract worth more than $15 million to supply subsea and topside production control systems for three wells in the Sequoia gas field.
Previously, VetcoGray provided similar equipment for several other WDDM gas fields including Sinbad, Simian, Sienna, and Sapphire. Sequoia will be linked into these systems.
Burullus Gas is a joint venture of BG, Egyptian General Petroleum Corp., and Petronas formed to explore and develop the WDDM area, Egypt’s first deepwater development. WDDM produces gas for both domestic consumption and to feed the country’s growing LNG industry.
“The technology to be provided by VetcoGray will enable Burullus to expand and develop a new gas field by using the expansion capacity designed into the existing control systems. The requirement for additional infrastructure is therefore greatly reduced,” says Dean Arnison, vice president Subsea Controls Systems for VetcoGray.
The production control systems for Sequoia will feature VetcoGray’s ModPod technology, which has been installed in deepwater projects worldwide including the Esso Exploration Angola Ltd.’s Mondo and Saxi-Batique projects.
Modifications to the existing back-up intervention and control system will also be undertaken. The project also includes integration of flow assurance management tools.
The equipment will be manufactured at VetcoGray’s Nailsea facilities in Bristol, UK, for installation in 2009.
SmartShim technology protects conductors
SmartShim technology has been installed on StatoilHydro’s Oseberg Sør platform in the North Sea to protect against conductor damage as part of an underwater repair program.
This technology from Furmanite is designed to prevent damage to conductors or caissons when the lateral forces of wave movement cause them to impact the conductor guides, resulting in fatigue or fracturing. StatoilHydro has experienced conductor problems due to wave induced displacements inside the guides. The subsea installation of SmartShims aims to protect the conductors from sustaining any further damage.
PVC-proofed nylon SmartShim slips are filled with a specialized Furmanite-developed polyurethane resin engineered with sufficient elasticity to absorb the wave effects while holding the riser or caisson firmly in place within the guides. Because they are cast in-situ, the slips form to fit the gap between conductor and guides.
To apply the slips subsea, additional factors to be considered include external water pressure and increased distance over which the resin has to be pumped from the deck of the vessel. A specialized resin for subsea application has been developed, as well as purpose-designed equipment such as support frames to help keep the slips in place subsea while being filled with resin.
On the Oseberg Sør platform, 27 slots were SmartShimmed, at 15 m (49 ft) depth, involving a total of some 4 km (2.5 mi) of hoses, 9 tons (8 metric tons) of resin, and 30 tons (27 metric tons) of equipment. This was deployed from the diving support vessel by Acergy with Furmanite technicians on board to ensure correct pumping of the resin and to direct the divers.
“Subsea SmartShim installation involves some considerable added challenges, but this was successfully achieved, and the installation will now extend the conductor fatigue life by minimizing the movement caused by wave loading,” says Mike Tucker, Furmanite International head of sales.
“The effect of wave loading on the conductors is amplified the higher up you go, so it’s advantageous to be able to install as low as possible, as was done here, helping to minimize movement topside.”
StatoilHydro’s Oseberg field has been producing for two decades, and is characterized as a safe, highly regulated, cost-effective operation. StatoilHydro’s objective is a recovery rate of 72%. The company aims to ensure Oseberg field life beyond 2030.
Oselvar discovery well
Revus Energy says the preliminary results from the Oselvar appraisal well 1/3-10 proved oil/condensate and associated gas. A production test was performed proving a flow rate of 530 cm/d (3,334 b/d) of oil. GOR was 476 cu m/bbl (2,668 cu ft/bbl) and was without water.
The Oselvar discovery is in PL 274, which is operated by DONG E&P Norge AS. The well was drilled by the MærskGuardian jackup in 72 m (236 ft) of water.
“The preliminary drilling results are definitely encouraging, but it is too early to conclude whether Oselvar is a commercial discovery. We will now do a sidetrack which will hopefully give us more information on the size of the discovery. Based on the results we will do further analysis,” says Harald Vabø, CEO of Revus Energy ASA.
“Oselvar is the fifth exploration and appraisal well in our extensive NCS drilling campaign in which we plan to participate in 12-16 wells over a two year period. So far we have announced discoveries in three out of five wells, which is ahead of prognosis,” adds Vabø.
The 1/3-10 well objectives were to investigate reservoir deliverability and to acquire fluid samples for fluids characterization. It was drilled to 3,288 m (10,787 ft) TD to Early Paleocene age sediments.
The reservoir thickness and the expected reservoir characteristics were confirmed. The data collected proved oil/condensate and associated gas.
INTEQ drills deepest 12¼-in. hole
INTEQ Sakhalin Island has successfully sidetracked and drilled the deepest 12¼-in. (31.1-cm) hole in the Sakhalin ERD project. The 12¼-in. hole in the Z-16 ST well is 5,588 m (18,333 ft) in length and is the deepest at 9,788 m (32,112 ft) MD. The record was achieved using an AutoTrak G3.0 system with CoPilot service and Hughes Christensen HCR 506ZX drill bit. Due to a fish in hole at 8,197 m (26,893 ft), the well was sidetracked at 7,800 m (25,590 ft) – inclination 82.2° – from a cement plug. The well path was steered past the fish and landed horizontally in the target at TD in a single run. The 9 5/8-in. (24.45-cm) casing was then successfully run to bottom.
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