A subsea pipeline pressure isolation operation was completed by TDW Offshore Services in the Gulf of Mexico in 370ft of water against 870psig. The isolation enabled the safe and effective tie-in of a piggable wye to the Mississippi Canyon Gas Pipeline, a 30in natural gas line running between the West Delta 143 platform – a hub facility for deepwater oil and gas production – and Louisiana’s Venice gas plant.
The isolation project used two remote-controlled 30in SmartPlug dual module pressure isolation tools to isolate 45 miles of pipeline. Each tool was composed of two plug modules and two pigging modules. One of the tools provided double block isolation on the high-pressure side of the tie-in location.
The first module on the second tool provided a hydraulic locked barrier of the high-pressure side for the divers installing the wye. The second module on the second tool was used to perform a leak test to verify integrity of the new wye after installation.
Following launch, TDW technicians aboard dive support vessel Norman Commander used the remotely-operated SmartTrack tracking and pressure monitoring system (below right) to monitor the locations of the SmartPlug tools as they traveled to their subsea set destinations. The SmartTrack system uses two-way, through-wall, electromagnetic communication between a transponder and a receiver to track tool progress.
Once the tools were set, the isolation period was approximately two and a half weeks.
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