Identifying Challenges in the Maintenance of Subsea Petroleum Production Systems

Abstract

Abstract. Maintenance strategies for subsea oil and gas production installations entail the use of specialized equipment and vessels to carry out subsea interventions. The costs for carrying out preventive maintenance are significantly lower compared to the costs of unpredicted failures where in some cases it is necessary to reduce or stop the oil production. Based on a literature review and inputs from industrial experts, this paper discusses maintenance challenges for subsea oil and gas facilities.Keywords: Subsea petroleum production facilities, Maintenance challenges. IntroductionOil companies are trying to improve their performance to carry out more effective strategies in order to reduce interventions due to failures. Identifying some of the factors impacting the subsea production systems during the exposure on the seabed will allow them to maintain the integrity of facilities according to safety regulations as well as environmental and quality requirements. Maintenance strategies for the infrastructure of platforms in earlier projects were produced as an afterthought [1]; however, subsea facilities entail identifying alternatives to carry out preventive and corrective maintenance before the exploitation begins in order to plan individual maintenance activities and establish frame agreements with qualified service providers. Moreover, challenges are focused on reducing the possibility of failures in subsea production systems during the field life cycle. Subsea components are affected by the stress, environmental issues and individual conditions resulting from the geographic location where the production system has been installed. Environmental and reservoir factors are always impacting the equipment's performance, even though equipment is designed to work under extreme conditions. The deterioration of subsea equipment will be faster after it is deployed on the seabed and begins to work. Therefore, maintenance strategies should analyze the factors which could further affect the performance of subsea installations in order to identify possible solutions.The inspection of installations without the use of divers in fields located in deeper water has made for more complex interventions. Hence, the strategy to carry out integrity programs using ROVs (remotely operated vehicle), AUVs (autonomous underwater

Mapping Factors Influencing the Selection of Subsea Petroleum Production Systems

“…Fields have different characteristics and vary according to the geographic location and reservoir complexity; hence, field development may involve several challenges for each case [8]. Exploitation can be carried out with several solutions, and earlier analysis will determine the best technical and economic option.…”

“…Selecting the best production system will lessen the risk of cost overruns and delays. Analyzing and defining the health, safety, environmental and quality (HSEQ) requirements, as well as maintenance and spare parts' availability at an early stage, will increase the possibility for achieving the installation's integrity and reduce the risk of failure [1].…”

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“…In some cases, companies send the oil to land facilities for further processing [15]. Occasionally, new equipment failures occur in the design, fabrication or installation phases [16].…”

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“…Planning and schedul-sciENcE aNd tEchNology ing of subsea tree maintenance can be considered as one of the most difficult tasks in offshore activities. Multi-restrictive factors such as weather, transport resource, heavy intervention vessel, technicians, repair time, and spare parts have significant impacts on maintainability [10]. These factors are usually inter-related.…”