Hydratight Completes John Brookes Subsea Pipeline Project in Australia
Tuesday 7 June 2016
Hydratight has completed installation of an 18in Morgrip connector on the John Brookes subsea pipeline on the North West Shelf of Western Australia.
The pipeline is located 54km north-east of Quadrant Energy's Varanus Island facilities.
Quadrant selected Hydratight on behalf of the John Brookes joint venture to engineer, manufacture, deliver and support the subsea pipeline installation.
Hydratight engineer Mark Fisher said: "The component parts were of extremely high specifications and we had strict rules on forging and manufacturing.
"These included the use of a compliant biodegradable mineral hydraulic fluid used for activating the tensioners and flushing and cleansing all tooling. We ensured no other unassessed hydraulic fluid was used."
Prior to witnessing a second test and diver training on arrival in Australia, Quadrant's representative oversaw the factory acceptance test of the completed connector in the UK.
Customised features included on the engineered product were corrosion-resistant alloy cladding, and composite graphite seals.
Others features were Hydratight's ball and taper technology and also the subsea tensioning equipment.
Initially, the Morgrip series of connectors were installed in the 1980s as an alternative to welding. During repair, they require less manpower and fewer man hours.
Hydratight's Morgrip mechanical connector replaces the need for the welding of topside and subsea piping and pipelines in oil and gas, and petrochemical applications.
They can be used for all sizes and pressure ratings of carbon steel, stainless steel, duplex and super duplex pipes.