Statoil's environmentally sensitive Snøhvit field in the Barents Sea was the first in the world to utilize exclusively dope-free casing and tubing. This milestone development was followed by yet another: ConocoPhillips’ Eldfisk Bravo project in the North Sea, featuring drilling with casing technology at an offshore platform.
Tomás Castiñeiras, whose career in Tenaris began in Argentina, continued in Houston and then in Norway, has been a key participant in these two projects.
How did Tenaris work to develop TenarisBlue® Dopeless™ premium connections?
When customers started to inquire about the potential of this technology – I was still in Argentina at the time – our R&D group had already run some preliminary tests with dope-free connections and found them to be very promising. Based on these results, Tenaris decided to launch a revolutionary connection with the potential to be the best in the market. Everything came together: the positioning of a line of extremely high-level products in the marketplace with a new premium-connection testing standard, the ISO 13679. After a year of product development and testing we were ready for the first field tests. The initial design was then adjusted after the field experience.
Why was the TenarisBlue® line of premium connections quickly accepted in the environmentally challenging Arctic region?
The Barents Sea contains great amounts of untapped hydrocarbon reserves. It is also an extremely environmentally sensitive location to drill. Companies operating in this area need to rely on the best available technology. The Norwegian government has imposed rigorous requirements on energy companies looking to exploit reserves in order to protect the environment and the local fishing trade. In this sense, the fact that TenarisBlue® Dopeless™ connections have no thread compound (a special kind of grease needed to make up OCTG connections) constitutes a great advantage. The TenarisBlue® Dopeless™ connection minimizes the development’s footprint, as it is a zero discharge product. This is aligned with the guidelines from the Norwegian Pollution Authority for E&P activities.
The Snøhvit Project was a milestone in terms of gas developments. How did Tenaris adapt to customer Statoil’s needs?
Snøhvit was a groundbreaking project that received lots of attention. It created infrastructure in the northernmost part of Norway, a scarcely populated area with very tough climatic conditions. Statoil had already been developing a dope-free program with their main OCTG supplier, but it did not meet their expectations. Statoil then decided to contact Tenaris, evaluated the TenarisBlue® Dopeless™ option and found it suitable for Snøhvit. At this moment we started with a series of full-scale tests to demonstrate the capacities of the TenarisBlue® connections and Dopeless™ products in particular. During the development we provided all the related OCTG services including stocking, preparation for offshore, repairs and qualification of a repair shop. The outcome of the project could not have been better: We achieved very good running indicators, consolidation of a working relationship with Statoil and other service providers. In the end, we had a satisfied customer, looking forward to the next project. The project gave us the critical mass to make the TenarisBlue® Dopeless™ line available to many customers. Today it is used in projects in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Russia, Argentina, New Zealand, Australia, Austria and Chile.
Another interesting project was the Eldfisk B-16 casing directional drilling project with ConocoPhillips. The customer choose TenarisBlue® connections in this challenging application.
Drilling with casing in an offshore development is brand new. The technology itself has not been around for more than five or six years and was previously used only in simple wells. The company faced the challenge of applying the technique at an offshore platform in the North Sea, in a corrosive environment. When installed, casing has to last several years. In the case of Eldfisk, the specifications were very demanding, with extremely high torques, couplings with special diameters and bevels. Fatigue testing had to be performed prior to the project. The long extended drilling periods brought materials to their fatigue limits. We are currently testing the TenarisBlue® Near Flush connection, for applications for different well profiles.
How did these challenges contribute to your professional development?
These projects were very important to my professional development. Not only were we supplying top of the line products for extreme applications in a North Sea environment, where most of the oilfield technology is developed, but also we needed to test and design products in a very short time period, with customer participation and with a specific technical need to be satisfied. The interaction with different cultures, both within the company and the different customers is enriching and challenging at the same time. I feel I am an important part of these developments and am proud to represent our company in these ventures.
