Cost-Effective Design and Development of Hub Platforms

Abstract

Abstract El Paso Energy Partners, L.P. ("EPN") has developed a portfolio of shelf and deepwater hub platforms with access to the flextrend and deepwater regions of the Gulf of Mexico. These hub platforms serve as production facilities for local and off-lease production and as gathering, pumping and compression stations for EPN's oil and gas pipelines. This paper discusses the key technical considerations and strategies involved in the cost-effective design and development of these hub platforms. The paper addresses the design of new platforms and the re-development or expansion of existing platforms. Both fixed and floating facilities are considered. Introduction Hub platforms serve as central points for gathering, redistribution, and transportation of oil and gas. These platforms can also serve as primary processing facilities for local or off-lease production, pumping stations for oil pipelines, and/or compression facilities for gas pipelines. This paper describes various strategies that can be employed to optimize the design of new hub platforms and the development of existing hub platforms. These strategies are intended to:ensure operability and reliability,preserve flexibility for future expansion, andoptimize current and future costs. EPN's Hub Platforms EPN owns various hub platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, as displayed on the map in Figure 1. These platforms are an integral part of EPN's infrastructure, since they host pumps and compressors and also act as portals for supply into the downstream pipelines. Figure 1: EPN's Hub Platforms (Available in full paper) EPN owns the following hub platforms in the Gulf of Mexico: VK 817. The VK817 platform is located in Viosca Knoll Block 817 in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. The platform is situated in a water depth of 671 feet and was installed in 1995. The platform is designed to process gas and condensate production at maximum rates of 150 million cubic feet of gas per day ("MMCFD") and 5,000 barrels of condensate per day ("BCPD"). The platform serves as a junction platform for EPN's Viosca Knoll Gathering System and hosts a Taurus 60 driven gas compressor and a slug catcher for the Ram Powell gas pipeline. The platform processes production from EPN's VK817 field and from the Walter Oil & Gas deepwater field in Viosca Knoll Block 862. The platform was designed to:accommodate future tie-backs from the flextrend and deepwater, andhost additional compression for the incoming pipelines. SS 332A. The SS332A platform is located in Ship Shoal Block 332 in the Central Gulf of Mexico (Figure 2). The platform is situated in a water depth of 438 feet and was acquired by EPN from Arco Oil & Gas Company in the early 1990s. Arco's production from the SS332 field had ceased, and the platform was of value to EPN to support the Leviathan Offshore Gathering System, the predecessor of the Manta Ray Gathering System. SS332A became a cornerstone in the Poseidon oil pipeline system ("Poseidon") when EPN constructed Poseidon in 1995 and the Allegheny Oil Pipeline in 1999.