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Subsea 7 completes pipeline bundle for Buzzard field after 'tremendous collective effort'


By Alan Hendry

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The Buzzard bundle being prepared for launch from Caithness. Picture: Subsea 7
The Buzzard bundle being prepared for launch from Caithness. Picture: Subsea 7

Subsea 7 has completed the installation of a 5km pipeline bundle made in Caithness for the Buzzard field in the North Sea.

The company’s 88th pipeline bundle in 40 years is ready to link new northern area wells back to the existing platform as part of the CNOOC International Buzzard Phase II (BPII) project.

Subsea 7 was awarded a contract in 2018 for the project management, engineering, procurement, construction and installation of the bundle, along with associated well and platform tie-ins.

Bundle technology is described by the company as "an ideal fit" for the project. It provides all subsea production, water injection and gas lift flowlines, as well as control functions and end manifolds, in a single integrated system which is fully fabricated and tested onshore.

The BPII bundle system also incorporates a large drill centre manifold, 36m long and weighing 300 tonnes, allowing for up to 12 wells to be tied in.

Fabricated and launched from Subsea 7’s Wester site north of Wick, the complete 5500-tonne system was towed 150km to the Buzzard field using a specialised mid-depth tow method.

It is the latest in a series of major achievements for the project which is being delivered using an innovative Alliance model. June saw the installation of the new topside module, with Subsea 7 working closely with Allseas and fellow Alliance members CNOOC International and Worley.

Willie Geddes, Alliance delivery manager and project director for Subsea 7, said: “It’s fantastic that we can celebrate the arrival of the subsea pipeline system into the field, taking us another major step towards the completion of this project.

"Thanks to a tremendous collective effort by the Alliance companies, everything is in place to proceed with the final hook-up and commissioning of the subsea and topside systems.”

Steve Wisely, senior vice-president of Subsea 7's UK and global IRM (inspection, repair and maintenance) region, said: “With each Buzzard milestone we see the value that this Alliance partnership offers our client.

"Using this integrated, flexible and mutually beneficial approach creates a greater degree of collaboration, while enhancing project execution agility and performance.

"We are proud to be part of Team Buzzard, and in doing so provide another opportunity to demonstrate how effective a unified supply chain collaboration can be.”


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