Management of Flow Assurance Constraints in a Fast-Track Gas Development

In this presentation, we show how a flow assurance design of a gas Early Production System (EPS) matured from Concept to Execution, noting the key change of information and the impact on the design.
The project schedule was fast-track. In order to meet and accelerate the schedule, the EPS was developed with market-led solutions (i.e. custom designs but assembled from qualified off-the-shelf components). The main objective of the Flow Assurance analysis was to confirm the steady-state and transient operability of the system within the selected equipment design envelopes. From the Flow Assurance perspective, the key challenges encountered in this fast-track EPS development were:
• Lack of early fluid (PVT) definition;
• Thermodynamic behaviour of a HP/HT reservoir fluid (particularly inverse Joule-Thomson effects);
• Definition of the required fortified zone and HIPPS trip settings to protect the lower pressure rated existing facilities while maximising arrival pressure to avoid compression;
• Liquid holdup management becomes challenging during transient operations (particularly ramp-up) due to the limited handling capacity at processing facility;
• Impact on pipeline operation due to limitation in MEG storage
• Problematic wax deposition identified after the subsea design was finalised