GE Oil & Gas announced the official opening of its new innovation center in Newcastle, UK, designed to drive technology development for the subsea fields of the future. The center houses GE’s full suite of testing equipment for flexible pipelines, mimicking the underwater conditions of some of the world’s harshest offshore environments.
Nicholas Brown, MP for Newcastle upon Tyne East, joined customers and suppliers of GE for the official inauguration, hosted by Bruce Heppenstall, general manager of GE in Newcastle, where they acknowledged the business’ ongoing contribution to the local economy.
Along with a firm focus on research and development activity for the next generation of flexible pipelines for ultra-deepwater, high temperature/high pressure (HTHP) reservoirs, the center combines existing GE testing equipment alongside new investments in a single site, enhancing the business’ already rigorous testing and qualification operations.
R&D teams are already involved in a number of projects at the center, looking at extending the water depth capability of GE’s large bore risers, and qualifying a new polymer grade for HPHT markets.
The center is located close to GE’s existing manufacturing facility for subsea flexibles in Newcastle, itself the recipient of significant levels of investment. Most recently, the business unveiled two new storage carousels, the result of a US$23.5 million (£15 million) expansion. The new carousel equipment is helping the business to meet the demand for larger diameter pipelines for high pressure wells.
The Newcastle Innovation Center also joins a number of similar GE facilities located around the world, from the recently-opened Saudi GE Innovation Center in the Dhahran Techno Valley, Saudi Arabia, to GE’s Global Innovation Center in Calgary, Canada. GE also has nine global research centers, including the latest to join its global innovation network in the Ilha do Bom Jesus peninsula in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.
Image: Nicholas Brown and Bruce Heppenstall in the GE Oil & Gas Newcastle Innovation Center/GE Oil & Gas
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