TDW conducted the operation on behalf of a Malaysian company. The isolation was carried out in order to prepare for the tie-in of a new gas pipeline to an existing gas export pipeline attached to a platform offshore the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
To formulate a solution that would make it possible to safely and efficiently perform the eventual tie-in, the Malaysian company worked closely with TDW, which specializes not only in pipeline pressure isolation services, but in assessment and repair, inline cleaning and inspection and related offshore services.
“This operation was like a synchronized pit stop tire change on a Formula 1 race car during a Grand Prix,” said Regional Business Development Manager-Asia Pacific for TDW Rolf Gunnar Lie. “Our goal was to keep downtime to a minimum while maintaining the highest possible safety standards, so we planned every isolation down to the smallest detail. It’s extremely satisfying that our joint efforts produced such an impressive result, without a single safety incident.”
One of the primary challenges faced by TDW was the narrow operating window of 26 hours. Because the platform is a producing platform owned by another major operator, the Malaysian company was required to complete the installation of the tie-in tee as quickly as possible, so as not to disrupt production through the platform for an extended period.
TDW completed the two double-block pressure isolations with its SmartPlug® isolation technology in just 18 hours. From mobilization to demobilization, the entire offshore operation took only seven days.
