Technology evolves for Arctic development

Arctic polar view map of ice zones and existing oil and gas lease areas.

Local sea ice conditions such as seasonal first-year ice, multi-year ice and/or iceberg intrusions are a major differentiating factors for development schemes being used on existing and planned offshore fields in areas such as the Beaufort Sea, east coast of Canada, North Caspian Sea, and offshore Sakhalin Island. Jacket structures are suitable for relatively benign first-year sea ice environments such as in Cook Inlet and Bohai Bay. Gravel island structures can be used to resist multi-year sea ice loads in water depths up to approximately 15 m (50 ft) in areas such as the Beaufort Sea. Gravity-based structures (GBS) can be used in deeper water to resist multi-year ice and to limit iceberg loads. Example GBS applications include exploration structures used in the Beaufort Sea, and production structures offshore the east coast of Canada and Sakhalin Island. In deeper waters, FPSOs and other floating structure concepts may be preferable with extensive ice management support and may allow emergency disconnect in the event of extreme ice loads.

Another major differentiating factor is the availability of an export pipeline network versus the need for a dedicated tanker terminal and icebreaking shuttle tanker fleet. Subsea pipelines have been designed, constructed, and operated in arctic and subarctic regions. Challenges include burial for protection from seabed ice gouging and the limited time available for summer open water pipeline installation and trenching. Icebreaking shuttle tanker designs and year-round tanker loading terminals show significant advances in recent years. Environmental data collection programs covering multiple years, environmental restrictions, indigenous people’s use of the environment, and potential requirements to develop local support infrastructure also can impact the costs and schedules for future Arctic field developments.

The world demand for oil and gas will continue to drive Arctic development, which will, in turn, drive development of solutions for some of the unique technical issues and logistical impediments to Arctic hydrocarbon recovery. As technology advances, other Arctic development concepts are becoming feasible. Subsea tiebacks are now in excess of 100 km (62 mi) long, offering the possibility of Arctic subsea completions without a permanent host structure. Technical advancements in all-electric subsea control technology, full subsea separation and water re-injection, seafloor chemical storage and injection, and gas re-injection enable the concept of full subsea completions in the Arctic. Depending on reservoir conditions, some of these development options are currently at a high technology readiness level; some are even field-proven in non-Arctic regions. Research into improved leak detection systems continues to advance industry ability to detect potential leaks and supports the development of new systems for use in the Arctic.

Arctic offshore design, subsea equipment technology, operating strategies, and understanding of Arctic environmental conditions will continue to advance and, as a result, the options available for Arctic and cold regions field development will grow. It is important to note that all aspects must be considered integrally in Arctic development plans. The design philosophy must provide a framework to logically incorporate the elements of Arctic development into one overall life-cycle system design. This, in turn, will optimize levels of risk and ensure consistent personnel and environmental safety over the lifetime of an Arctic field development.