The Centre of Decommissioning Australia (CODA) has appointed six industry leaders to form the organisation’s Supervisory Committee to bring increased strategic focus and expertise to the efforts to address decommissioning Australia’s aging oil and gas infrastructure.
CODA, which was established in March 2021, is uniquely positioned to drive collaboration in Australia’s oil and gas industry to collectively answer strategic questions about decommissioning options based on technical, safety and environmental knowledge. CODA's research shows there is more than $50bn of necessary offshore decommissioning work to be done — over half of which is anticipated to be started within the next ten years.
Francis Norman, CODA General Manager Decommissioning and Strategy, said the committee’s appointment marked a change of gear for CODA. He noted, “The support and input from a group of such experienced and engaged industry leaders will help accelerate CODA’s ability to work across the whole of Australian industry to build our domestic capability to address our own decommissioning needs, as well as position Australia to become a significant partner in the region’s decommissioning work.”
The committee consists of:
• Richard Perry — Decommissioning Manager, ExxonMobil Australia
• David Banks — Chief Technical & Marketing Officer, Santos Ltd
• Jay Southwell — APAC Subsea Services leader, Baker Hughes
• Brian Matthews — Marine, Subsea & Automation Manager, IAS Group
• Ineke Reyboz — Contracts and Commercial Consultant (independent member)
• Harvey Johnstone — Environment Director, International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (independent member)
“By applying research from the National Decommissioning Research Initiative, we and our industry partners will ensure Australia's future decommissioning activity will be built on independent and sound scientific research, providing the best possible outcomes for industry, environment and community,” said Norman.
Richard Perry, Decommissioning Manager, ExxonMobil Australia, said, “After an extensive history of successful resource development and energy supply across Australia, our national fields are starting to reach the end of their productive life leading to the dawn of a new industry, and with it, some fantastic opportunities.
“With the broad geographical expanse between major basins in Australia, CODA will be a crucial conduit to enable growth of this industry to be optimised for all parties throughout the supply chain and it is very exciting to be part of this journey.”
Jay Southwell, APAC Subsea Services leader, Baker Hughes, added, “The decommissioning era within Australia is swiftly gaining momentum, but it’s a complex subject. Strategic complexity requires an evolution in the way we share project and service information.
“With the launch of CODA, we now have a great opportunity to collaborate, share best global practices and make a real difference to support the Australian decommissioning sector to permit the safe removal of assets without impacting the environment.”
Contracts for CODA foundation phase projects have been recently awarded. Due for delivery in early 2022, these projects will build knowledge and understanding of the local decommissioning and recycling capability, provide Australian industry with an easily accessible digest of international best practice that can be used locally, and set out a pathway for innovation and new technologies for the industry. These include:
• Understanding the opportunity for local disposal and recycling pathways — Advisian
• Development of a decommissioning innovation and technology roadmap — Linch-pin
• Global review of decommissioning planning and execution learnings — Advisian
Interventek, a subsea engineering business, has launched a new API 17G qualified, in-riser subsea landing string system, named the ‘Revolution-7’.
The landing string is an advanced, 7-inch nominal, 10,000psi rated system incorporating Interventek’s unique Revolution safety valve – proven to provide superior shear-and-seal performance. The system also includes Interventek’s PowerPlus technology, which is a unique arrangement of a locally integrated, gas-accumulated power source.
The landing string incorporates lower and upper subsea test tree valves, a latch, a retainer valve and lubricator valve. A slick joint, shear sub and project specific adaptors enable space out in the BOP and interface with the tubing hanger running tool and landing string tubulars. The system components are integrated via pre-loaded connections which provide high operational performance and fatigue resistance.
The Revolution-7 landing string is market-ready and the first systems have already been dispatched to a customer.
The company believes the system is a stand-out solution, offering industry qualification to the highest standard, combined with advanced shear-seal valve technology, rapid failsafe gas-accumulated actuation, plus a range of technical, functional and cost benefits. The valve performs both cutting and sealing functions, using separate internal components, in a single rotation, reducing the need for the usual secondary valve to provide a post-cut seal.
With fewer, simpler components, the landing string system is compact and lightweight, but stronger and more fit-for-purpose. Supply lead time, redress and maintenance are faster, which in turn reduce project and lifetime costs. The system is suitable for deployment in all BOPs and its modular nature allows additional or alternative valve functions to be incorporated.
Gavin Cowie, managing director at Interventek, said, “Historically, operators requiring subsea landing string services have relied on a handful of tier one, integrated service companies that have their own fleet of proprietary systems. We work with both the operators and service companies to supply our advanced safety valves as system upgrades, where enhanced performance and functionality is demanded.
“In developing our offering, we are now delighted to be able to supply a complete subsea landing string system to a variety of customers in this market. We see a large and collaborative opportunity in providing cost-competitive and technically advanced solutions, to improve safety and operational efficiency for the wider industry.”
For subsea well completion, intervention, workover or decommissioning operations, a landing string is deployed from a floating vessel, via a marine riser, to enable safe and environmentally secure operations. The landing string system includes a subsea test tree which provides the capability to close in the well, cut any medium in the bore and disconnect in the event of an emergency.
The shear-and-seal Revolution valve technology used in the in-riser system is also compatible with open water, tree-on-tree abandonment and surface applications. Interventek is also working towards the provision of a subsea control system to complement their advanced landing string package.
Cowie added, “Our technology is modular and universal, allowing it to be scaled up or down in its configuration and capability, and integrated with other third-party equipment. We can offer simplified landing string systems, spanner joint systems, ultra-deep water systems and high-pressure, high-temperature systems depending on the field application.”
EXCEED, an industry-leading specialist in delivering well management and performance improvement solutions to the energy sector, has announced the launch of EXCEED Australia, as it eyes the country’s burgeoning decommissioning sector and a revitalised offshore market.
The company continues to implement an unwavering strategy of international expansion with its fifth overseas entity, which builds upon recent expansion into Mexico and Norway
Brad Girdwood has been nominated to steer the ship, after his appointment as Operations Manager, Australia. He brings 30+ years’ local and international experience to EXCEED Australia.
Girdwood commented, “In the pipeline for some years, the time is now right for EXCEED to make its mark upon the region. In particular, significant legislative developments surrounding the decommissioning of Australia’s offshore and onshore assets have accelerated the sector’s timeline. Honed in the North Sea, EXCEED’s spectrum of decommissioning capability provides this evolving US$40.5bn market with critical experience and expertise.”
In with ICON
EXCEED’s entry into the local decommissioning and well management market is bolstered by the advent of a collaborative relationship with Perth-based oil and gas services provider, ICON Engineering.
EXCEED Managing Director, Ian Mills said, “ICON’s impressive track record in delivering unrivalled innovative, practical turnkey solutions to the offshore field development industry in both facilities and in support of drilling operations is entirely congruent with our approach across all stages of the well lifecycle.
“Since 2010, EXCEED has built upon its well management service through the development and implementation of efficient intervention and abandonment programmes, expertly executed in full compliance with all North Sea regularity requirements. Initially, our joint objective with ICON is to provide the emerging Australian decommissioning sector with the end-to-end project service it requires, with full focus upon compliance, safety and efficiency.”
To hear more about the blossoming opportunities presented by the Australian offshore market, be sure to attend OWI AUS, in Perth 23-24 November. To find out more information follow this link: https://www.offsnet.com/owi-aus/conference-brochure
At the OWI AUS Baker Hughes webinar, Michael Lewis, Service Business Development Leader at Baker Hughes, was joined by a panel of industry experts as they explored a number of challenges and opportunities being faced by the Australian offshore community.
Collaboration and local availability
Lewis opened the session by reflecting on light well intervention (LWI) which can bring tangible benefits to operators and suppliers in terms of reduced costs, faster operations and lower carbon footprint. The challenge, the host continued, is capturing these advantages and using global knowledge to do so. He asked how this can be achieved, and what is the importance of ensuring equipment is available locally for immediate deployment.
Mark de Castro, Business Development Manager at Sapura Energy Well Services,
was the first to respond, and explained that collaboration was a key part of this and suggested that information and lessons acquired from previous projects should be shared not just within organisations but with strategic partners, contractors, etc. The industry needs to share information from the start, rather than withholding or waiting to be asked.
The panellists echoed these sentiments with Grant Pierce, Subsea Completion & Well Intervention Consultant, Intervention Performance Ltd., adding that the withholding of information is not something companies actively pursue, rather it is just something traditionally inherent in the industry. Jay Southwell, APAC Subsea Services Leader, Baker Hughes suggested that altering this will require a change in mindset, something that needs to be challenged and which will ultimately help all players within the industry.
Turning to local availability de Castro said, “Local availability can be the difference between work going ahead or not. Preparation, shipping times etc are all major influences that can determine whether an operation goes ahead in light mode or rig mode which could add millions of dollars to cost. Having access to local engineering/facilities is a significant de-risker for these campaigns to take place both for the fast tracking it facilitates and how quickly unexpected events can be dealt with on a campaign.”
Fostering the next generation equipped with the latest technology
In the last 18 months, Lewis said, the industry has undergone a downsize with lots of experienced people retiring or leaving for other sectors. Attracting new talent has always been a challenge, but now more than ever it appears to be of paramount importance. Therefore, Lewis asked, could the industry ensure there is a competent new generation ready to enter the workforce and how can new technology support this?
Southwell pointed at the importance of working with universities, developing apprenticeship programmes and sponsoring graduate schemes as essential to foster the idea that it is an exciting time to join the industry. He also pointed at cross-training between product companies, something that Baker Hughes has been very successful in, which has helped ensure that a new, capable, workforce is ready to take the reigns in the future.
Francis Norman, General Manager Decommissioning and Strategy at National Energy Resources Australia (NERA), built on this by pointing at competency benchmarking as an area which can put people off companies. He said, “There is a tendency to think what we do is so different to what competitors do and so we end up building all these internal competency benchmarking and internal training which in fact mirrors what competitors do. This can be a significant cost to a lot of businesses.”
He advocated, instead, common competency frameworks which can make it much easier to identify where some shared skill gaps may be. He added, “If people move around you are not looking to completely rebuild them and make them forget everything they have learned before you hire them. When you look at the costs organisations expend on doing this it is astronomical.”
The panellists explored how the introduction of new technology, in the form of remote communication for example, can help to attract and train the next generation of engineers and commented on some advances which they will be working with, and which will surely help the industry.
De Castro commented that remote operations and remote control brings safety enhancements and cost enhancement and advances in the integration of machine learning, and machines becoming semi-autonomous will be a step forward. This will be bolstered by things such as low orbit satellite which will reduce latency and the cost of high bandwidth.
Returning to the conversation, Southwell also highlighted the importance of utilising the vast amount of data the industry holds and by introducing advanced software and AI this can really become a formidable weapon for operators to become more effective with diagnostics, monitoring wear and tear, and making decisions on interventions and performance etc.
Australian Decommissioning
Decommissioning has been a hot topic in Australia due the ongoing debate around the Northern Endeavour FPSO. With many more Australian assets coming to the end of their productive life, Lewis asked the panellists how the cost of decommissioning can be reduced and how can operators be encouraged to perform this work.
Norman took the chance to note that there was a staggering opportunity for decommissioning in Australia, highlighting that there was US$40bn+ worth of work that needs to be executed over he next 20-30 years. In order to being nibbling away at this, he suggested it was important to disseminate such information to ensure everyone understands the size of the challenge ahead. Once done, relatively simple ideas such as sharing equipment for campaigns can have an enormous cost reduction effect.
De Castro commented, “If we understand the scope of work and the timing of the scope it will help. In the past we have seen service providers make investment into the region on the expectation that work would follow and it didn’t. They therefore had to wear the costs on a gamble effectively. More clarity on timing and requirements of operators would be helpful.”
The panellists also noted the importance of learning lessons and best practices from around the world, especially from regions where decommissioning is more regularly carried out. Pierce added that an open mind about contracting models would be essential here. While it wouldn’t be advantageous to take a whole model from other regions and apply it in Australia, it would help to take pieces or ideas from contracts (such as West Africa’s contracting models regarding vessel shares) and change them to suit.
One of the biggest decommissioning challenges which is faced in Australian and global waters alike is the difficulties with entering older wells where, often, data and information is lacking. The panellists noted that in addition to this, the condition of equipment is continually degrading with every year that passes. Whilst this is enough to put operators off from conducting decommissioning work, in reality it should be an encouraging factor. As de Castro added, “Regulations are also becoming more onerous. The longer operators delay, the cost and risk are only going to go one way due to those three factors. It therefore presents a good case to move quicker.”
Despite this, Southwell commented, “I think the future of decommissioning in Australia is exciting and something that will be very prominent going forward. I would love to see it as an add on in the life of a field as well, as opposed to it being pushed after production ends. All operators know its coming; it was always on the cards and will always be there. If we can plan for it now, they can reap the rewards from a cost perspective. We are still fairly young compared to other regions, described as a teenager, we are still learning. We have a great opportunity to take lessons from other regions therefore.”
These topics, and more, will be discussed in further detail at OWI AUS, in Perth 23-24 November. To find out more information follow this link: https://www.offsnet.com/owi-aus/conference-brochure
ICON Engineering, an oilfield service company, and IK-Group, a supplier of specialist products and services for subsea and topside pipe and pipelines, have formed a strategic alliance to offer operators repair, decommissioning intervention services to the Australian offshore market.
The innovative provision of often bespoke solutions to offshore engineering problems was a common factor that led to the alliance. This partnership will combine IK-Group’s 30 year experience working in emergency repairs for offshore subsea equipment as well as ICON’s expertise installing and servicing offshore platforms, for which the company received an engineering award from the British Government.
IK-Group COO, Adrian Gamman, said, “With ICON’s local presence and IK’s track record, we believe this agreement will suit the Australian market very well. ICON’s head office is located in Perth WA, which will enable ICON to provide IK-Group’s solutions to the local market with a much quicker response time and a better understanding of the local market.”
“Specifically, this will be hugely beneficial to the end client when working on fast track deployment of emergency repairs that are synonymous with IK-Group. These are exciting times, and we are looking forward to growing this relationship in the years to come,” Gamman added.
David Field, ICON Managing Director, commented, "ICON and IK-Group have very similar innovative cultures. Our respective, and complimentary, product and services lines have all evolved from solving technically challenging and real problems, often when there simply isn't a solution anywhere.”
“At our respective Company's cores are very capable technical and management teams, experienced with execution in the field, and the proven ability to respond quickly.
“With Covid-19 restricting travel it makes a lot of sense for the two companies to collaborate by sharing our service offerings on either side of the planet. Nothing beats face to face meetings with Clients; the collaboration means there is a way to meet face to face to understand the problem and develop solutions using our combined technical horsepower.”
The Government of Australia has taken the next step in its plans to remove the Northern Endeavour FPSO facility by releasing a Request for Expressions of Interest (REOI) for Phase 1 decommissioning works, in spite of the debate that continues to rage over the decommissioning levy.
In 2019, the 170,000 bpd Northern Endeavour FPSO was shut down by the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) after an immediate threat to health and safety was found at the facility.
The task of decommissioning the infrastructure fell to owners Northern Oil & Gas Australia (NOGA) but, in late 2019 the company went into liquidation and so the facility has been abandoned, with the national government forced to maintain the facility. At the end of 2020, the government decided it was finally time to push the facility into retirement, announcing it would take on responsibility to decommission the FPSO and all related infrastructure.
In order to cover the estimated cost of US$200mn for this task, the Australian government issued a levy to the oil and gas industry to help foot the bill, which was met with disproval from many organisations such as the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA), ExxonMobil and Chevron.
Despite this, the Resources, Water and Northern Australia Minister, Keith Pitt, is pressing ahead and said that the release of the REOI was the next step in the process to disconnect and decommission the Northern Endeavour from oilfields in the Timor Sea.
A REOI from the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources has been published on AusTender, inviting qualified and experienced organisations to demonstrate their capability and capacity to undertake the Phase 1 works to decommission and disconnect the FPSO from the related subsea equipment.
“The Australian Government committed to decommission the Northern Endeavour last December to remove potential future risks to the environment,” Pitt commented. “The department intends to use this process to shortlist organisations for a more detailed request for proposal stage later in the year.”
Responses to the REOI are due before 2:00pm Australian Eastern Standard Time, 29 July 2021.
A report by Rystad Energy has predicted that with Australia about to see the largest-ever wave of offshore development wells reaching the end of their producing life, the decommissioning market in region is set for a huge uptick.
The report shows that Australia’s number of ageing wells nearing retirement will jump from 160 (today) to more than 440 by 2026, with a further 172 offshore exploration wells waiting in the queue.
As a result of this, the Australian decommissioning market may exceed a total of US$40bn a figure which could even double, depending on how many decommissioning projects materialise.
“Recent developments have made it more difficult for operators to sidestep decommissioning obligations by selling ageing assets, as the market appetite for such assets is drying up. Many producers will have to deal with the issue in coming years, with ExxonMobil having the lion’s share of liabilities in Australia,” said Jimmy Zeng, senior analyst at Rystad Energy’s upstream team.
Rystad Energy’s analysis of the P&A potential takes into account the production status of each operator’s offshore wells, the likelihood of producing fields ceasing output in the coming five years, wells that have been already suspended but not yet abandoned, along with partially abandoned wells. While development wells make up the bulk of the total, exploration wells are also in need of P&A to a lesser extent.
It is estimated that 890 offshore wells in total were drilled in Australia before 2015, of which 108 have been permanently abandoned. Of the 782 wells not yet abandoned, Rystad identified a group of wells that we consider good candidates for P&A activity in the years ahead. Filtering out wells that are more likely to be identified for upcoming P&A, 440 wells are P&A candidates, the majority of which are in the Gippsland Basin.
The report continues by noting that the dominance of the Gippsland basin is to be expected given the legacy of offshore development in the region, driven by ExxonMobil and BHP’s Gippsland Basin Joint Venture (GBJV). Within the Gippsland group, most wells are located on fixed platform facilities, while in other basins the distribution of facility types is more mixed. New resource developments in the Gippsland Basin are becoming more capital intensive, but the outlook for P&A opportunities in the area should prove attractive to service suppliers.
In the North Carnarvon Basin group, Rystad has identified an age distribution that shows non-producing wells are relatively ‘younger’ than those in the Gippsland, with the majority being no more than 20 years old. Even so, various measures intended to ensure operators fully decommission facilities and wells are likely to provide a tailwind for service suppliers seeking P&A mandates in the North Carnarvon basin as well – spurred by the industry controversy over Northern Oil & Gas’s inability to fund its decommissioning of the Northern Endeavour FPSO and associated wells.
ExxonMobil leads the way in its decommissioning liabilities, with a rapid increase in the number of wells likely to cease production over the next five years. While this is a high-cost endeavour, most of these wells are platform-based, where per-well abandonment costs are likely to be significantly lower than for subsea wells.
Furthermore, regulatory pressure on ExxonMobil to decommission these wells has increased significantly lately.
Outside of ExxonMobil’s high well burden, operators Santos, Woodside, BHP and Vermillion Energy will also experience growing decommissioning obligations in the next five years. Woodside and BHP have mostly subsea wells in this category, which could mean their decommissioning bills will be higher on a per-well basis. Woodside recently communicated its intention of starting abandonment of up to 18 subsea wells on the Enfield field from 2022 to 2024.
While this could be a very costly development for operators in the region, it opens up a huge opportunity for service providers and companies involved in decommissioning operations who could see many campaigns coming their way as these wells continue to age.
The Australian oil and gas industry is, unfortunately, making all the wrong headlines at the moment as a serious row over a decommissioning levy proposed by the Australian Government continues to rage.
The tinder for this firestorm is the Northern Endeavour floating production storage and offtake (FPSO) vessel, moored between the Lamarinaria-Corallina oil fields, which was shut down by the National Offshore petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) after an immediate threat to health and safety caused by structural corrosion was found at the facility. Since the former owners Northern Oil & Gas Australia (NOGA) went into liquidation in late 2019, the national government has been maintaining the vessel until, at the end of 2020, it decided to decommission the facility and all related infrastructure once and for all.
To help cover the US$200mn expected cost of doing so, in its 2021-22 budget, the Australian Government announced it would be enforcing a levy to the Australian oil and gas industry, a decision which has so far come under heavy criticism from the sector.
Last week, Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) Chief Executive, Andre McConville, led the criticism against the Australian Government calling it an outrage that many companies who were never involved with the project will have to help pay. He also noted that such a decision could potentially hold back the Australian economy as well as the 80,000 jobs that it supports.
Now ExxonMobil and Chevron have expressed their disapproval towards the Australian Government’s decision as well.
As reported by Reuters, a spokesperson for Chevron commented, "Chevron Australia is committed to working with the government on a decommissioning policy framework that would effectively preclude the need for this type of ad hoc, arbitrary action.”
Similarly, ExxonMobil noted that it had established a track record of executing successful decommissioning operations around the world and so shouldn’t have to shoulder the burden of covering costs for other companies as well. The company, therefore, was disappointed in the decision by the federal government, as detailed by Reuters.
While the debate will no doubt carry on for some time, the problem remains that at some point the Northern Endeavour and associated infrastructure will have to be decommissioned and dismantled. At this stage, however, who will pay for it is anyone’s guess.
The Australian government has come under fire after it announced, in its 2021-22 budget, a levy to cover the cost of decommissioning facilities around the Lamarinaria-Corallina oil fields in the Timor Sea.
In 2019, the 170,000 bpd Northern Endeavour floating production storage and offtake (FPSO) was shut down by the National Offshore petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) after an immediate threat to health and safety was found at the facility, caused by structural corrosion.
The task of decommissioning the infrastructure fell to owners Northern Oil & Gas Australia (NOGA) but, in late 2019 the company went into liquidation and so the facility has been abandoned, with the national government forced to maintain the facility. At the end of 2020, the government decided it was finally time to push the facility into retirement, announcing it would take on responsibility to decommission the FPSO and all related infrastructure.
The estimated cost of such an undertaking is an eye watering US$200mn and, to help cover this, the Australian government has now issued a levy to the oil and gas industry to help foot the bill.
The announcement has gone down poorly and the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) Chief Executive, Andrew McConville, has led the criticism against the government. McConville was outraged that many companies that have never been involved with or benefited from the project will have to help pay, and noted such a decision had the potential to hold back Australia’s economy and the 80,000 jobs the industry supports.
McConville said, “Tonight’s announcement of a new levy on the entire (offshore) oil and gas industry is a terrible precedent and could have serious repercussions to Australia’s economy and to jobs. Everyone agrees that the Northern Endeavour needs to be decommissioned and the costs managed, but there are a number of ways that the government can do so without risking undermining investment confidence in the oil and gas industry.”
The Chief Executive added that there were other options still available, such as making the government’s current management of the operations more efficient, reducing the cost of decommissioning through collaboration, and looking at alternative funding such as selling the asset or accessing PRRT credits.
While leading the charge, McConville did note that he was glad there will be extra consultation where APPEA will be able to put forward alternatives that the government should consider to meet the costs of decommissioning. He said, “We stand ready to work with the government to look at how best to manage the decommissioning of the Northern Endeavour.”
Cooper Energy have, in their most recent quarterly report, confirmed more details for the abandonment work they have organised with Helix Energy Solutions in Australia with the announcement that they have acquired the Q7000 light well intervention rig to decommission the infrastructure in the Basker, Manta and Gummy (BMG) fields.
Earlier this year, David Carr, Senior VP of International Business at Helix Energy Solutions was joined by a host of panellists for the OWI webinar on decommissioning in Australia, where discussions focused on the substandard state of decommissioning in the region. In the session, Carr said that Cooper Energy had selected the Q7000 to perform operations for them in Australia in 2022, a move which they hoped would be the catalyst for getting on top of the decommissioning project in the country.
Cooper Energy have now confirmed this work in more detail with the announcement that the Q7000 will enter Australia waters with the first task of carrying out the decommissioning of the BMG fields, located in the Gippsland Basin. This will involve the decommissioning of seven wells and associated subsea infrastructure (pipelines and control umbilicals).
The Helix Q7000 Safety Case, a key permissioning document, has been submitted to the regulator (NOPSEMA) and is currently under review. The plan is that other regulatory documentation, including the Environment Plan and Well Operation Management Plan, will be submitted in Q4 FY21.
The BMG abandonment project is currently in the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) stage, with activities focused on selecting optimal methodologies and technologies for safe and cost-effective delivery of the decommissioning objectives. Details of scope of works, timing of execution and cost estimates will be announced at the final investment decision (FID), which is being considered in FY22.
The Q7000
The Helix Q7000 light well intervention rig has been specifically designed and built for intervention on subsea wells and abandonment activities. It is one of the newest vessels of its type, and benefits from the latest technological advances in well intervention, bolstered by its participation in the Subsea Services Alliance and array of equipment provided by Schlumberger. Its features include:
-IMO-certified Class 3 Dynamic positioning System
-Intervention Riser System, IRS 6, designed by Helix which enables access to both vertical and horizontal subsea trees in depths from c.85m to c.3000m
-Variable load capacity of c.3,000t
-ITF (Integrated Tension Frame), IRS maintenance tower, allowing for walk-to-work and safe access to well control equipment
-Large flush deck with skidding system for well intervention support equipment and tubular storage. Increasing operability by reducing reliance on offshore cranes
-Below deck twin work class ROV systems with harsh weather deployment capability
-Bulk fluids storage and pumping systems
-Wireline, Slickline, coiled tubing and cementing pumping spreads (Schlumberger).
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