Plug and abandonment is the sealing of the wellbore at the end of its useful life to prevent the release of hydrocarbons. In offshore oil and gas, P&A operations are estimated to cost, on average, over US$6 million per well. Given the tens of thousands of wells which will need to be abandoned in the next 20 years, it is understandable that cost-effective rigless methods of P&A have come to the forefront of plug and abandonment planning & design.
For over 10 years Thunder Cranes have deployed our unique lifting solutions to support Rigless Modular offshore P&A operations and have helped our clients to resolve a number of key issues, save time, and reduce costs.
The TC90 modular crane is deployed to lift material and equipment to/from supply vessel and offshore platform deck, including the heavy lifting of modular HWU or RPU and associated components such as BOP. When on platform deck TC90 also provides the necessary lifting support for the assembly and dis-assembly of the HWU and RPU.
In addition, the TC90 modular crane system is perfectly designed to complement and support jacking units such as the RPU (rigless pulling unit). As the pulling unit for P&A and slot recovery developed in the Gulf of Thailand, it was realized that adding TC90 to the RPU package allowed for a more efficient operation. Platform cranes are too small for the most efficient RPU package. On some platforms where there was no platform crane or the platform crane was under-rated or not serviceable, a mobile crane was necessary to rig up the RPU.
Not only is our equipment a best fit option in specific scenarios, it is a complementary option in general when applying the logistics of leap-frogging to a project schedule.
Designed to overcome space constraints the TC Extension Deck is a steel deck assembled in modules, that can be placed on top of our TC Beams, providing a safe, stable surface for staging equipment and contractor packages while working on offshore platforms.
Over the past 10 years TC90 modular cranes have been deployed with consistent regularity to assist with tubing/casing pulling in the offshore South China Sea oil and gas industry. This is a reflection of the proven cost/time lowering effect of the concept.
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