UNDER / BELOW - GROUND STORAGE

UNDER / BELOW - GROUND STORAGE OF CRUDE OIL

Advantages: Strategic storage Storage of high vapor pressure products When large volumes are to be stored, investment costs are lower Fire & explosive risks are reduced Capacity for high filling rates, especially when unloading tankers at high discharge rates Insurance costs are reduced O&M costs are lower than for equivalent above ground storage Low heat conductivity of rock reduces heating costs high pour point crudes Disadvantages: Disposal of rock cuttings & salt solution etc.

UNDER / BELOW - GROUND STORAGE

Principally under / below ground storage is of following types: Salt Cavern Storage Caverns constructed in non-porous rock by conventional mining Caverns developed by conversion of depleted coal, limestone or salt mines Depleted reservoirs
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Solution Mined Cavern

Majority of existing u/g cavern storage is made of solution mined caverns in salt because of: Solution mining is relatively inexpensive as compared to conventional mining Salt has good structural properties & low permeability Large, accessible salt deposits usually are located near O&G deposits It is constructed by drilling a well or wells into salt & circulating low-salinity water over a salt interval to dissolve salt. Figure shows a typical solution mined cavern.

Conventionally mined caverns can be constructed any place on a nonporous rock is available at an adequate depth to withstand product pressures. Before selecting the site, it should be properly evaluated for the feasibility of constructing U/G storage. Most product caverns are constructed in shale, limestone, dolomite or granite. This type of cavern is operated DRY (i.e. product is recovered by pumping).
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OPERATION:
Cavern may be operated by brine displacement of product or pumpout methods. Most solution mined caverns are operated by brine displacement technique (Slide 4). A suspended displacement of string of casing is installed near the bottom of cavern & product is injected into the annulus between product casing (casing cemented at cavern roof) & displacement casing, forcing brine up the displacement casing. The procedure is reversed for product recovery. In this type of operation, a brine storage reservoir is usually provided. Some solution mined caverns are operated dry by installing a pump at cavern depth either within the cavern or in a well connected to cavern by fracturing. Both ESP & deep-well vertical multistage pumps may be used for this purpose.
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Mixed Caverns Converted Mines

The conversion of existing mineral mines to store crude oil involves considerably more effort since no attempts are made to insure pressure tightness and other pertinent factors. The mine itself would normally satisfy all or most of the requirements set forth for rock caverns. However, most mines do not have the required stability or they were purposely designed so that water drained away from them rather than toward them. There are literally thousands of mineral mines. But for storage purposes, typical limiting criteria is as follows: Storage volume: a minimum of 20 million barrels Proximity to existing petroleum distribution systems Technically suitable for storage: mines having simple geometrical shapes such as room and pillar, with drainage towards a central shaft A rock mass of low permeability With these criteria only a few existing mines could be converted to crude oil storage. Salt and limestone mines are good candidates to fulfill most of the necessary long-term storage criteria with little or no modifications.
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