Fugro has recently been awarded a five-year maintenance contract by Shell, which will see the Dutch company provide 24-hour technical support and maintenance for Shell’s Pearl gas-to-liquid (GTL) facility in Ras Laffan, Qatar.
Fugro is also to supply the services of experienced engineers as well as provide needed updates to the weather monitoring system. The system is designed to monitor temperature data from the 60km of pipeline linking two offshore platforms to the onshore facility.
The temperature data is required because when the seabed temperature falls, hydrate crystals can form in the pipeline, restricting gas flow and sometimes causing severe damage.
Anthony Gaffney, director of Fugro Geo’s offshore systems division, said “Monitoring the seabed water temperature has contributed to maintaining a steady flow of feed gas from the offshore platforms to the onshore facility.