PACT (Pressure control ACTuator) is a newly developed, all-electric wellhead- and production tree valve actuator for enhanced well control and fail-safe handling of emergency situations. The actuator was developed under a Joint Industry Project (JIP) by Equinor, Baker Hughes and TECHNI. PACT is designed for mission critical operations offshore and is subject to stringent safety design requirements. The actuator employs a patent pending fail-safe mechanism with extremely fast closing time to ensure containment during emergency shutdown. Opening time is 30 to 60 seconds (depending on valve size) and adjustable closing time of 4 to 8 seconds (valve closing in less than 1 second has been demonstrated). It is designed to be a drop-in replacement for NoBolt™ CHA actuator solutions and is suitable for most standard wellhead and tree designs, sizes and pressure ratings. Electric actuators offer significant CAPEX savings over hydraulic actuator systems by eliminating the need for costly hydraulic control systems (HPU), associated hydraulic lines and umbilicals as well as saving deck space and weight. Electric actuators also offer significant OPEX savings over hydraulic actuators by eliminating the need for specially trained personnel offshore during periodic testing and associated post-actuation flushing of hydraulic lines. Environmental impact is reduced by eliminating high-pressure hydraulic oil lines with associated risk of spills and removing the need to transport personnel offshore which reduce total CO2 emissions. The PACT development program was initiated in 2017 and has resulted in an actuator solution at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 4 (on 0 to 7 scale) with planned TRL 5 testing yielding it ready for field installation.
In the drive for remote operations, reducing operator costs and reducing emissions and CO2, digitalization of sensors and control systems is imperative. To date, valves on wellheads and trees have predominantly been controlled by hydraulic actuators that are not ideally suited for fully remote operations. A new, innovative, electric actuator has been developed under a Joint Industry Project (JIP) by Equinor, Baker Hughes and TECHNI. This actuator is designed for fail-safe, critical operations offshore and is subject to stringent safety design requirements. The key motivation is reducing CAPEX and OPEX for offshore installations, while increasing availability of wells while providing improved monitoring and condition based, predictive maintenance. The electric actuator that was developed in the program has a patent pending fail-safe mechanism with extremely fast closing time (less than 1 second) to ensure well containment during critical situations. The actuator is designed to be a drop-in replacement for NoBolt™ CHA actuator solutions and is suitable for most standard wellhead and tree designs, sizes and pressure ratings. In the new all-electric design, a multitude of sensors in combination with an OPC-UA architecture, enables data-driven insights from the systems in operation. The program was started in 2017 and has resulted in a system at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 4 (on 0 to 7 scale) with TRL 5 testing planned in 2020 yielding it ready for field installation.
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