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5 Most Common Offshore Oil and Gas Production Facility Types (You Can See Today)
Edvard

O ffs ho re O il and G as Pro d uc tio n Fac ilitie s (o n p ho to : O ffs ho re o il and g as c o mp any in the UAE; c o ns truc tio nwe e ko nline .c o m)

Introduction to Of f shore
Of f shore, depending on sizeand water depth , a whole range of dif f erent structures are used. In the last f ew years, we have seen pure sea bottom installationswith multiphase piping to shoreand no offshore topside structureat all. Replacing outlying wellhead towers, deviation drilling is used to reach dif f erent parts of the reservoir f rom a f ew wellhead cluster locations. 5 most common offshore structures are described below:

1. Shallow Wat er Complex

Characterized by a several independent platformswith dif f erent parts of the process and utilities linked with gangway bridges. Individual platforms will be described as: Wellhead Platf orm, Riser Platf orm, Processing Platf orm, Accommodations Platf orm and Power GenerationPlatf orm.
Eko fis k was No rway' s firs t p ro d uc ing fie ld and is als o o ne o f the larg e s t o n the No rwe g ian c o ntine ntal s he lf. Pro d uc tio n s tarte d in 1971. With the p ro je c ts no w und e r d e ve lo p me nt, the life time o f the fie ld is p re p are d fo r p ro d uc tio n to ward s 2050.

T he picture shows the Ekofisk Field Centre by Phillips petroleum. Typically f ound in water depths up to 100 meters. Go to Index

2. Gravit y Base
Enormous concrete fixed structures placed on the bottom, typically with oil storage cells in the skirt that rests on the sea bottom. T he large deck receives all parts of the process and utilities in large modules. Typical f or 80s and 90s large f ields in 100 to 500 water depth. T he concrete was poured at an at shore location, with enough air in the storage cells to keep the structure f loating until tow out and lowering onto the seabed. T he picture shows the worlds largest GBS platform, the Troll Aduring construction. Go to Index

3. Compliant Towers
Compliant towers are much like fixed platforms. T hey consist of a narrow tower, attached to a foundation on the seafloorand extending up to the platf orm.
The wo rld s larg e s t G BS p latfo rm, the Tro ll A d uring c o ns truc tio n

T his tower is flexible, as opposed to the relatively rigid legs of a f ixed platf orm. T his f lexibility allows it to operate in much deeper water, as it can absorb much of the pressure exerted on it by the wind and sea. Compliant towers are used between 500 and 1000 meters water depth. Go to Index

4. Float ing Product ion

Floating production, where all topside systems are located on a floating structure with dry or subsea wells. Some floaters are:
The c o mp liant to we r d e s ig n was c ho s e n fo r its ab ility to withs tand hurric ane c o nd itio ns and o p e rate in d e p ths o f 2,000ft (610m) // Pho to b y o ffs ho re te c hno lo g y.c o m

4.1

The He lix Pro d uc e r I DP2 mo no hull flo ating p ro d uc tio n unit is d e s ig ne d to p ro d uc e hyd ro c arb o ns and e xp o rt to s ho re via p ip e line o r tanke r.

Float ing Product ion, St orage and Of f loading (FPSO)

Typically a tanker type hull or barge with wellheads on a turret that the ship can rotate f reely around (to point into wind, waves or current). T he turret has wire rope and chain connections to several anchors (position mooring POSMOR), or it can be dynamically positioned using thrusters (dynamic positioning DYNPOS). Water depths 200 to 2000 meters. Common with subsea wells. T he main process is placed on the deck, while the hull is used f or storage and of f loading to a shuttle tanker. May also be used with pipeline transport.

Go to Index

4.2 Tension Leg Plat f orm (TLP)

A Tension Leg Platform (TLP)consists of a structure held in place by vertical tendons connected to the sea f loor by pilesecured templates. T he structure is held in a fixed position by tensioned tendons, which provide f or use of the T LP in a broad water depth range up to about 2000 m. Limited vertical motion. T he tendons are constructed as hollow high tensile strength steel pipes that carry the spare buoyancy of the structure and ensure limited vertical motion.

The hull fo r She ll' s d e e p wate r te ns io n le g p latfo rm Brutus arrive d at Ake r' s Ing le s id e yard in Te xas (the inte g ratio n s ite ) in J anuary 2001.

A variant is Seastar platformswhich are miniature f loating tension leg platf orms, much like the semi submersible type, with tensioned tendons. Go to Index

4.3 SPAR

T he SPAR consists of a single tall floating cylinder hull, supporting a f ixed deck. T he cylinder however does not extend all the way to the seaf loor, but instead is tethered to the bottom by a series of cables and lines. T he large cylinder serves to stabilize the platf orm in the water, and allows f or movement to absorb the f orce of potential hurricanes. Spars can be quite large and are used f or water depths f rom 300 and up to 3000 meters. SPAR is not an acronym, but ref ers to its likeness with a ships spar. Spars can support dry completion wells, but is more of ten used with subsea wells. Go to Index
Similar to an ic e b e rg , the majo rity o f a SPAR fac ility is lo c ate d b e ne ath the wate r' s s urfac e , p ro vid ing the fac ility inc re as e d s tab ility

5. Subsea Product ion Syst ems

Subsea production systems are wells located on the sea floor, as opposed to at the surf ace. Like in a f loating production system, the petroleum is extracted at the seafloor, and then can be tied-back to an already existing production platf orm or even an onshore f acility, limited by horizontal distance or of f set.

T he well is drilled by a moveable rig and the extracted oil and natural gas is transported by undersea pipeline and riser to a processing f acility. T his allows one strategically placed production platf orm to service many wells over a reasonably large area.

The Marlim s ub s e a s e p aratio n s ys te m o n Pe tro b ras larg e s t fie ld in the Camp o s Bas in s e p arate s he avy o il, g as , s and and wate r. The s ys te m d e b o ttle ne c ks the flo ating p ro d uc tio n fac ility and inc re as e s p ro d uc tio n b y re mo ving unwante d wate r fro m the p ro d uc tio n s tre am at the s e ab e d .

Subsea systems are typically in use at depths of 7,000 feet or more, and do not have the ability to drill, only to extract and transport. Drilling and completeion is perf ormed f rom a surf ace rig. Horizontal of f sets up to 250 kilometers, 150 miles are currently possible. Go to Index Reference:Oil and gas production handbook ABB ATPA Oil and Gas