Technip expanding fleet, pipe capacity as deepwater goes global

Artist’s impression of Technip’s newly ordered reel-lay ship, currently under construction in South Korea.

“In parallel,” Marion adds, “we also looked at the requirements of the pipelay market, in particular in the North Sea and the Atlantic Deepwater Triangle. In 2007, we decided the time was right to launch two new pipelay vessels, one dedicated to flexibles for the Brazilian sector, the other operating globally and primarily a reel-lay ship – somewhere in size between theApache and the Deep Blue.”

Subject to a pending contract award from Petrobras, the first of these new vessels should be operational in 2009. Aker Yards is managing construction of the hull in Brazil, while the pipelay system will be assembled in Europe.

Last October, Technip contracted STX Heavy Industries in Korea to build the second (reel-lay) vessel, which is due for delivery in 2010. This will be 194 m (636 ft) long, with a 450 ton (408 metric ton) top tension capacity for installing rigid steel pipes and flexibles up to 18-in. (46-cm) diameter in up to 3,000 m (9,842 ft) water depth.

The vessel will be able to support twin reels carrying up to 5,600 metric tons (6,173 tons) of pipe conveyed through a lay tower positioned at the stern. IHC’s Engineering Business in northern England will design, install, and commission the pipelay system. The vessel also will be equipped with DP-3, a 150 ton (136 metric ton) crane, and a pipeline end termination handling system, plus accommodation for 140 personnel. A dedicated Technip team in Aberdeen is managing the project.

According to Marion, the vessel’s 20 knot transit speed will be “a step change on anything on the market. TheDeep Blue can manage 12 knots at best, the Apache a bit less, while our new DSVs travel at 13-14 knots. The speed will be achieved by a combination of the long hull and the dynamics of its shape.

Deep Blue at the Mobile spoolbase.

“For us, the issue is to minimize vessel days when transiting between different deepwater areas of the world. What we can save in non-productive days allows us to increase the vessel’s productivity. It will be aimed primarily at pipelaying, although it could do some construction work.”

Technip also has upgraded the equipment on its existing flex-lay fleet. “At the start of 2007, we commissioned a 350 metric ton (386 ton) portable flex-lay system for theDeep Pioneer, which was built in Europe and installed in Singapore. This worked fine – the vessel successfully installed the Kikeh flowlines for Murphy Oil off Malaysia, and then completed a similar job on BHP’s Stybarrow field in 850 m (2,789 ft) of water, probably the deepest installation of its kind so far, off Western Australia. This equipment has been used for standard diameter (8-10-in. [20-25-cm]) flexible pipes, although it can install pipe sizes up to 19 in. (48 cm).”

As for flexibles manufacture, Technip’s production currently is concentrated at its facilities in Le Trait, northern France, and Vitoria, Brazil. “Le Trait is also an offshore base,” Marion points out, “used for storing flexible pipe and laying equipment, and for mobilizing all our vessels. So it’s very active from an offshore operational viewpoint.

“Recently, we decided to commission a new large-capacity crane for vessel loading, which should be in service towards the end of next year. This crane will have a 400 metric ton (441 ton) capacity at a reach of 40 m (131 ft), which is quite substantial. For Technip, Le Trait is also a key site, as this is where we conduct all our R&D activities related to flexible pipe

“At Vitoria we have invested in new manufacturing equipment. And we are increasing the storage area by reclaiming land on the harbor front to accommodate an extra 80 reels of flexible pipe. That will allow us to increase production from 380 km to 450 km/yr (236 to 280 mi/yr).”

Asia venture

In January, Technip signed an agreement with a subsidiary of the Johor State Economic Development Corp. for a 20 ha (49 acre) land lease on the southern tip of peninsular Malaysia, close to Singapore. This will be the setting for the group’s third flexibles manufacturing complex, Asiaflex Products, with direct access to a deepwater quayside site.

The new facility, in the Tanjung Langsat industrial complex, will have capacity to produce up to 200 km/yr (124 mi/yr) of flexible pipes – raising Technip’s total output to 1,060 km/yr (659 mi/yr) of normalized 8-in. (20-cm) flexible pipe products. Asiaflex Products will serve operators in the growing subsea/deepwater sectors around India, Southeast Asia, and Australasia. Technip considered various other sites in Singapore, Indonesia, and India, as well as some closer to Kuala Lumpur in northern Malaysia.

“We took into account local market conditions and government incentives, but in the end, went for the option that we felt carried the least risk in terms of project execution and schedule compliance. Construction will be taken care of by our existing office in Kuala Lumpur, although the overall project will be managed from Le Trait.

“Berthing will be on a par with the facilities at our other bases, if not better. Part of the deal is that the port authority will construct a wharf for our vessels. There will also be plenty of space to store reels. For the time being, this plant’s scope will be to produce a complete range of flexibles up to 14 in. (36 cm) diameter, although the most sophisticated products – such as integrated production bundles – will still be engineered and manufactured in Le Trait.” The facility will also be designed to allow for future expansion into umbilical manufacture.

Asiaflex Products will employ around 300 people – “mostly Malaysians,” Marion says, “with some ex-pats. Recruitment must start very soon, as the plant should be ready for start-up in mid-2010. This will involve training sessions in France and Brazil.”

During the 1990s, Technip’s forerunner Coflexip had established a plant in Perth, but closed it down when the local market went into a steep decline. “We did consider Australia again,” Marion admits. “Today, Technip employs close to 500 people in its branch in Perth, so even with no plant, we are still very strong in the Australasia region. But the main growth today is more in Southeast Asia and India.”

This year, the group’s existing pipelay fleet is active in most of the major sectors. “The highlight is the Agbami installation contract off Nigeria for Chevron, which involves over 100 km (62 mi) of flexible pipe.Deep Pioneer is doing that job at the moment, with other vessels in support. Then we have a sequence of jobs off West Africa, namely Abo Phase 2, Gimboa for Sonangol, and Azurite for Murphy in 1,400 m (4,593 ft) of water offshore Congo.

“Elsewhere, we are working on deepwater flexible risers for Chevron’s Tahiti project in the Gulf of Mexico, leveraging our experience gained on Thunder Horse for BP. We are also working on our very first deepwater job in the Bay of Bengal – 1,400 m (4,593 ft) water depth – for Reliance’s MAD6 development. We have established a temporary base in northeast India to support this project.

“Offshore Brazil, we remain active for Petrobras – our Brazilian factory is mostly dedicated to that market. In parallel,Deep Blue has installed, end-2007, an 18-in. (46-cm) free-standing hybrid riser for the PDET development.

“As for new R&D, we are spending over €30 million ($47.4 million) on new subsea products, most of this dedicated to flexible pipe. At the moment we are qualifying systems for water depths down to 3,000 m (9,842 ft). In parallel, we are working on new lightweight products, including new-shape reinforcement wires as well as carbon fibers, and also a flexible version of our free-standing hybrid riser system.”