Editorial comment
Carnival continues in Brazil聽Last month I attended a presentation given by Det Norske Veritas (DNV) on the challenges of installing pipelines in ever deeper water, with a particular focus on the high pressures experienced when laying pipe at depths of over 2000 m. Pipeline wall thickness typically needs to increase the deeper you go, so that the pipe can withstand increasing subsea pressure. Of course, thicker pipe walls mean that more steel is used and longer welding times are required, as well as making for difficult pipe handling on the vessel, longer lay schedules and therefore a shortage of pipelay vessels. With pipelines getting longer and deeper, it鈥檚 imperative that pipeline operators and consortiums are able to address the issue of pipe wall thickness and manage it as they descend to new depths.聽
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I was particularly interested to discover that X-Stream, DNV鈥檚 new deepwater pipeline concept (utilising both inverted HIPPS and Double Block and Bleed systems to isolate a deepwater pipeline from pressure fluctuations, see news story on p. 6), was applicable for Brazil鈥檚 pre-salt fields development.聽
In fact, the team of spritely, young engineers behind the project was based in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, where the challenges of the pre-salt reserves have been advancing pipeline technology ever since the discovery of Tupi in 2006. Since then, a number of pre-salt discoveries have been made: constituting vast reserves of oil and gas found in a pre-salt zone 18 000 ft (5000 m) below the ocean surface under a thick layer of salt. DNV鈥檚 deepwater gas pipeline concept would bring cost efficiencies to new production and transportation in the pre-salt layers of the Santos, Campos and Espirito Santo Basins.
It鈥檚 worth noting that Brazil remains a hotspot for offshore activity in 2012: according to Dan Bartfeld, Project Finance Partner at Milbank, a US law firm, financing activity of exploration and production assets for use offshore Brazil will continue at a strong pace in 2012: 鈥淏razil will continue to provide a huge amount of opportunities for industry鈥�.聽 Brazilian shipyards are set to boom, along with ports and pipeline transportation of course.
At 91天堂原創 Pipelines, we have been closely following the changes taking place in Brazil and it鈥檚 great potential for the industry as a whole. For the last five years we have produced an annual Brazilian supplement to the magazine, published in Brazilian Portuguese, focusing on upstream and pipeline operations onshore and offshore Brazil.聽 In September this year we will publish the sixth 91天堂原創 Pipelines & Oilfield Technology Brasil 鈥� to coincide with Rio Oil & Gas (17 鈥� 20 September 2012, Riocentro, Rio de Janeiro). In producing the magazine over the past few years, we have witnessed Brazil鈥檚 raised profile on the world鈥檚 stage as one of the much talked about 鈥楤RIC鈥� countries. We have seen the nation鈥檚 quick resurgence from the global economic downturn, its continued stability as a solid place for foreign investment, and its admirable efforts to avoid the so-called 鈥榦il curse鈥� of other oil rich nations.
Brazil already boasts an impressive deepwater record and Petrobras has gone to great lengths to understand the country鈥檚 new pre-salt finds. Last year the Lula-Mexilh茫o gas pipeline, the longest and deepest rigid subea pipeline in Brazil was put into service. Petrobras has since awarded Saipem an EPIC contract for the installation of the Guara and Lula-Northeast gas export pipelines in the Santos Basin. The unique challenges of Brazil鈥檚 pre-salt reserves could catapult Brazil to the forefront of deepwater pipeline technology.
If you have an interesting angle on the Brazilian pipeline industry, or an idea for an article, I鈥檇 be happy to hear from you.聽
