Client:
National oil company
Year of Construction:
December 2018 + February 2019
Type of Construction Measure:
• Material supply
• On-site supervising
Our Services:
Delivery of the flexible Primus Liner DN 150 for gas Manufacturing and delivery of the flexible InField Liner (IFL™)
Situation:
Though built only in 2012, a pipeline for crude oil in Romania suffers corrosion in a way that a complete shut-down seemed likely. The latest intelligent pigging inspection report showed the need for an immediate reha-bilitation of about 12 km DN 300 (12”) pipeline. The steel pipeline in Romania transports heavy crude oil from the sources in the oilfields to the storage station, passing several pump stations and bends up to 45 degrees on its way. An inspection in summer 2018 had revealed that highly corrosive SR bacteria in the transported medium had considerably thinned the pipeline’s walls. Since having put the DN 300 (12”) pipeline into operation in 2012, operator and owner had repeatedly invested in its cleaning and maintenance, intending to prolong lifetime and to prevent both corrosion and internal erosion. But at that date, the situation was so critical that an immediate and complete rehabilitation of the pipeline was required.
Technical Details:
Material of Host Pipe: Carbon steel (steel grade L360N)
Transported Fluid: Heavy crude oil
Diameter of Host Pipe: DN 300 (12”)
Operating Pressure: 22 bar
Primus Line® System: DN 250 HD-O (10”)
Total Length: 11,900 m
Number of Sections: 15
Installation Time: 22 working days
Rehabilitation System:
Primus Line® is a flexible lining solution for the trenchless rehabilitation of pressure pipelines referenced in EN ISO 11295:2018-06. The system consists of a flexible Kevlar®-reinforced liner and specially developed end fittings. The liner is self-supporting and not attached to the host pipe – an annular space remains. Developed by experienced engineers, the system is suitable for different media such as oil, gas and water. The liner is installed into the host pipe with an annulus space, relieving the host pipe from the operating conditions. The product’s characteristics allow for long installation lengths of 1,000 meters and more, the possibility to traverse around bends of up to 45 degrees, a small installation footprint with liner installation speeds of up to 600 metres per hour. A wall thickness of only 8 millimetres minimizes cross-sectional losses.
Project Description:
The installation began in December 2018 and was executed by CIS GAZ, specialist and one-stop solution provider for pipeline construction and integrity, and Primus Line® partner in Romania. CIS GAZ carried out the installation works in two timeframes of two weeks each, including 15 individual sections with a total length of 11.9 kilometres. The first five sections were completed by the end of the year, the remaining ten at the end of February 2019. Though Primus Line® has a smaller diameter of DN 250 compared with the host pipe, the operating pressure of 22 bar can be maintained.
In this case, Primus Line® acted as “emergency responder” and scored with rapid installation and chemical resistance. Thus, it kept up operation of the crude oil pipeline and extended its lifetime. The renovation of another four kilometres of the same pipeline is yet to come.
