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I N N O V AT I O N S • V O L . V I I , N O. 4 • 2 0 1 5
Offshore operators seek
to bypass hydrotesting
through alternative line
proving processes.
If it is approved by the governments involved, the proposed
US$5.6 billion Oman-India Deep-Water Multipurpose Pipeline Project
(OIDMPP) could become the longest and deepest offshore pipeline in
the world. The massive line will extend 1,600 km (994 mi) from Oman
to India along the bed of the Arabian Sea, moving natural gas and other
petroleum products from the Middle East to India at depths down to
3,400 meters (11,154 feet).
1
It’s an ambitious project, and one that will require meticulous line-
proving measures to identify defects before they can pose a danger to
human safety or cause widespread environmental and economic damages.
Operators typically conduct maximum allowable operating pressure
(MAOP) tests in new oil and gas pipelines by filling the lines with
inhibited seawater and pumping up the pressure to see if leaks or
failures occur. This process, known as hydrostatic pressure testing, or
“hydrotesting,” has been the standard for precommissioning pipelines
since the 1950s, required by regulatory organizations around the globe.
Decades later, hydrotesting is still considered highly effective and
valuable. But imagine the challenges associated with hydrotesting on a
subsea project the scale of the Oman-India line – from locating leaks
to disposing of the half billion liters of chemically inhibited seawater.
More Waivers Could Be On the Way for
DEEPWATER PIPELINE
HYDROTESTING
F U T U R E T H I N K I N G
Oman-India Deep-Water Multipurpose
Pipeline Project (OIDMPP)
Oman Landfall
Gujurat Landfall
Iran Landfall
PAGE 14:
Read more about
hydrotesting in the cover
article TEST AND TEST AGAIN.