OFFS403 Offshore Operations

Thursday s Room 16 Point Lisas Campus, Couva

A course that considers offshore operations, platforms, jack-up rigs, floating systems and
dynamic positioning ship-based systems offshore environmental aspects sub-sea completions
sub-sea wellhead, manifold and riser systems servicing of sub-sea equipment product
transportation, platform operations and supply.

1) History and Background

a) First offshore drilling units (Mitchell)

b) Offshore structures (Chakrabarti-ch. 1)

2) Fixed Platforms (Leffler)

a) Types

i) Steel platform

ii) Concrete platform

iii) Compliant tower

(1) for 1000’-3000’ depth

b) Operations-

i) The Offshore Installation Manager (OIM) duties

ii) Simultaneous operations

(1) Drilling

(2) Production

(3) construction

c) Installation (Chat. Ch.14.2)

d) Supply

i) Vessels in different seas

ii) Logistics planning

3) Jack-up rigs (Mitchell, pp 609-614)

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4) Semisubmersible (Mitchell, pp. 614-616; Chak. Ch. 7.5)

a) Installation (Chat., ch. 14.3.3)

5) Ultradeepwater Units (Mitchell, pp. 616-619)

6) Floating systems (Leffler, Ch. 7)

a) Installation (Chat., ch. 14.2)

7) Tension leg platform (Chak. Ch. 7.6)

a) Installation (Chat., ch. 14.3.4)

8) Floating production system (FPS) & Floating production, storage, & offloading (FPSO)
(Chak. Ch. 7.4)

i) Dynamic positioning

b) Ship-based systems

9) SPAR (Chak., ch. 7.7)

a) Installation (Chat., ch. 14.3.5)

10) Product transportation

a) Submarine pipelines (Gerwick Ch. 15)

i) Laying

(1) Conventional S-Lay barge

(2) Reel barge

(3) J-Lay barge

(4) Protection of Pipelines

ii) Cryogenic pipelines for LNG/ LPG

iii) Pipeline design and construction (Chat., ch. 11)

11) Offshore environmental aspects (Gerwick Ch. 2, 3)

a) Geotechnical aspects

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 i) Soils of the seafloor

(1) muds and clays

(2) piles and anchors (Chat., ch. 14.4)

(3) short-term bearing strength

(4) sampling

(5) penetration

(6) consolidation of clays

(7) seafloor oozes

(8) seafloor instability and slumping

(9) turbidity currents

(10) sediment transport, scour and erosion

b) Geotechnical techniques (Chat., ch. 16.9)

c) Geophysical techniques (Chat., ch. 16.3)

d) Ocean Environment (Chak., Ch. 3)

i) Waves

ii) Wind

e) Ecological and societal aspects

i) Toxic discharge

ii) N.P.D.E.S. permits in U.S. waters vs. Trinidad general permitting

iii) Contaminated soils

iv) Air pollution

v) Third party vessels

12) Sub-sea completions

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 a) Drilling riser systems (Chak., ch. 9.2; Harris, ch. 12?)

b) Servicing sub-sea equipment

Class Project

1. Select a topic from the list above and prepare a series of presentations on same:
a. Presentation 1 - Technological description characterizing particulars –due 10
February

b. Presentation 2 - Safety issues associated with same

c. Presentation 3 - Environmental and regulatory issues (as per Ministry of Energy)

which may include pollutant discharge permitting, allowable levels, operation
near shipping lanes. Compare governmental regulations with a second country,
e.g., Norway, Canada, U.S., Venezuela, Australia.

d. Presentation 4 – Case history including costs if available, specific equipment in

use, e.g., name of drill ship and any mentors you utilized from local operators at
BG, BP, Petrotrin, etc. This mentor should be sought for their knowledge of the
process of developing deepwater prospect, costs, lead and planning timing for
company & governmental approval.

Grading
2 tests (mid-term and final) 50%
Project
Presentation 1 5%
Presentation 2 5%
Presentation 3 5%
Presentation 4 25%
Total presentation 40%
Class participation, preparedness, attendance 10%

Sources: library books, periodicals, internet, journals, electronic on line magazines (see
librarian).

References

Arnold & Stewart, Surface Production Operations: Design of Oil-Handling Systems and
Facilities, Vol. 1, 2nd ed., 1999.

Chakrabarti, Subrata K. ed., Handbook of Offshore Engineering, 2 volumes, Elsevier Pub., 2005.
ISBN: 978-0-08-044568-7 (vol 1)
ISBN: 978-0-08-044569-4 (vol 1)
ISBN: 978-0-08-044381-2 (set comprising of vols 1 and 2)

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Gerwick, Construction of Marine and Offshore Structures, 3rd ed.

Harris, L.M. “Sig,” An Introduction to Deepwater Floating Drilling Operations, 1972.

Lake, Ed., Petroleum Engineering Handbook-Drilling Volume II (Mitchell, R.F., Ed.), 2008.

Leffler, Pattarozzi, and Sterling, Deepwater Petroleum Exploration & Production-a

Nontechnical Guide, 2003.

Nomenclature
FPS - Floating production system; FPSO - Floating production, storage, & offloading ; MODU
Mobile offshore drilling unit; VDL – variable deck load
TAD Tender assisted drilling

Lecture Plan:
1 September Offshore platform
10 Jacket launching and transport
Class01 exercise Jacket loadout, transport, and installation
2 17 History of MODU
Marine riser
Class02 exercise-rig selection (distributed)
3 Saturday Field trip to TOFCO <http://www.morrisonenergy.com/tofco.cfm> at La Brea
19rd

, & Pitch Lake

24 Republic day (Holiday)

4 October 2 Floating Vessel positioning

Geotechnical
SPE paper summarization technique
Class02 continued-rig selection (quiz bowl)
Part 1-Introduction of Project Presentation
5 Oct 8 Submarine pipelines
Presentations by groups on setting jackets and soil strength
Cake Celebration for debate team members
Part 2-Safety of Project Presentation
15 Project day-prepare presentations- no official meeting per se
6 P/L installation Part 1

7 22 P/L installation Part 2

Part 3- of Project Presentation
8 29 P/L Design after Chakrabarti p907ff
Student group 6 of 6 on safety
9 Wednesday Field trip: tour of Fluor facility, PDS 3D software demonstration, Invaders
November
4th

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 Bay, Port of Spain <www.fluor.com> Fluor Tel.
624.5406
10 November 5 Lecture by Pipeline design engineer, David Vogel
11 12 Presentation #4 and brief exam ( ½ hr. covering lecture8-9-10)
Student Part 3 Enviro presentations, short lecture on Lubricity Pipelines
12 19 Lecture: Corrosion
Part 4 of Project Presentation
Mid-semester exam 1(take home) due
13 26 Spars, TLPs, Extended TLPs, Compliant towers (Last class)
November
30- Study week
December 4
7-18 Final Exam Period

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