Risk-based hydrate management: a new path to value creation for gas condensate developments
Stuart Kegg A * and Conor Sherrard BA
B
Stuart is an experienced flow assurance engineer at Woodside Energy, and has a professional background spanning over 25 years in projects and operations within the oil and gas industry. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Chemical Engineering from Curtin University. Joining Woodside Energy in 2009, Stuart has played a role in various projects in the North West Shelf region. His expertise encompasses engineering design, analysis, optimisation and operational procedures specific to the oil and gas sector. Presently, Stuart holds the position of Principal Flow Assurance Engineer. |
Conor Sherrard graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Western Australia in 2012. He has spent his career working in Flow Assurance and Digitalisation roles in Australia and the UK. Conor has extensive experience working on Australia’s largest gas condensate developments and supporting major gas projects internationally. |
Abstract
The move to risk-based hydrate management has facilitated the development of numerous projects worldwide that were previously rendered uneconomic by the cost of overcoming technical challenges. While literature is available for risk-based hydrate management approaches for oil systems, this paper focuses on the application of these approaches to gas condensate developments. A combination of engineering expertise, operational knowledge, laboratory analyses and modelling techniques is being leveraged to quantify hydrate formation and plugging likelihood in gas condensate fields. The potential for complete hydrate blockage is established by analysing the critical factors for stable hydrate formation and the conditions necessary for blockage. Incorporating the latest hydrate kinetics information provides pragmatic and capital efficient subsea designs for hydrate management. The insights and methodologies shared in this paper demonstrate ingenuity in flow assurance, guiding the implementation of effective solutions and driving project value.
Keywords: hydrate equilibrium conditions, hydrate nucleation, risk-based hydrate management.
Stuart is an experienced flow assurance engineer at Woodside Energy, and has a professional background spanning over 25 years in projects and operations within the oil and gas industry. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Chemical Engineering from Curtin University. Joining Woodside Energy in 2009, Stuart has played a role in various projects in the North West Shelf region. His expertise encompasses engineering design, analysis, optimisation and operational procedures specific to the oil and gas sector. Presently, Stuart holds the position of Principal Flow Assurance Engineer. |
Conor Sherrard graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Western Australia in 2012. He has spent his career working in Flow Assurance and Digitalisation roles in Australia and the UK. Conor has extensive experience working on Australia’s largest gas condensate developments and supporting major gas projects internationally. |
