Hydratight and CSS complete subsea pipeline repair

A 4 in. pipeline that was pressure rated to 400 bar and was located at 830 m required urgent repair. Due to its pressure and location, the pipeline required a customised solution. Therefore, Hydratight and CSS designed, manufactured and installed a diverless structural deepwater pipeline repair clamp for the project.

Prior to installation of the clamp, the companies also prepared the pipe using a new, high performance ROV-based coating removal tool.

After successful testing and real life completion of the project, the companies can now offer similar services worldwide to increase the lifespan of subsea installations. The clamps are DNV-approved and will last up to 25 years in service.

The clamp has been designed without the use of bolt tensioning to activate. All activation technologies and hydraulics are in an external installation tool, which is removed on completion. This significantly reduces the overall weight of the equipment left as a permanent repair on the pipe, lowering project time and costs.

James Rowley, Global Subsea Market Development Manager at Hydratight, said: “Projects at such subsea depths require comprehensive pre-planning, strong co-operation between contractors and clarity with the operator. We have worked with CSS many times before and they bring ingenuity and align with our own objective to solve complex problems. “Now that we have completed this high profile repair in deepwater using our international resources, we look forward to making this a key offering to major subsea oil and gas asset owners and operators wherever repairs are required. “We have managed to lower operational costs and installation times by removing the activation system into a separate retrievable tool. Operators can now rely on a safe, tried and tested solution for fractures in hard-to-reach areas.”

Pål Magne Hisdal, Chairman of CSS, added: “There is a growing trend of utilising new methods to repair pipelines in deepwater and ultra-deepwater scenarios. We are proud of our success with Hydratight and we expect a growing demand for this latest service as subsea assets age and require effective repair.”

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/25042017/hydratight-and-css-complete-subsea-pipeline-repair/