Trelleborg and Saipem team up to launch LNG tandem offloading system
Highlighting its dedication to innovative polymer engineering in the offshore oil and gas sector, Trelleborg, the manufacturer of bonded hose solutions for the offshore transport of crude oil and petroleum products, has teamed up with oil & gas industry contractor, Saipem, to develop a new LNG tandem offloading system.
Derived from existing and proven technologies, the latest development in cryogenic LNG floating hoses is set to become a key component in offloading systems for future offshore FLNG projects. By enabling offshore transfer of LNG in tandem configuration, the cryogenic floating hose will pioneer a step change in the safety of this critical operation. This system will, it is claimed, also allow FLNG projects to be considered in harsher conditions, without excessive downtime due to offloading system availability, and with significantly reduced risk.
Flexibility, reliability and durability
Vincent Lagarrigue, marketing and project manager within Trelleborg Industrial Solutions, commented: “We wanted to partner with Saipem to develop a new solution which would not only meet LNG operator and contractor’s offloading requirements related to safety, flow rate capacity and operation availability, but also enable LNG transfer operations to take place in difficult environmental conditions by providing offshore operators with a highly flexible, reliable and durable system.”
Tandem offloading, where vessels line up stern to bow, allow vessels to keep more distance between them (328 feet/100 metre distance between FLNG and LNGC or more) and more easily cope with greater wave heights. This highly limits the risk of collision between the two vessels, enhancing safety, but also greatly simplifying naval operations in approach, berthing and residence.
Lagarrigue continued: “So, in the absence of any mature tandem offloading solutions using floating hoses, we took the initiative to work with Saipem to develop our own. As a key technical component of the tandem offloading solution, our cryogenic floating hose has been further enhanced to meet the parameters required for the new system. For example, the choice of a 20 inch / 50 cm inner diameter LNG hose was required as this enables operators to transfer LNG at least as fast as standard LNG loading arms on traditional jetties, for example, up to 423,776 ft3/h/12,000m3/h.”
The LNG tandem offloading system from Trelleborg and Saipem utilises three Cryoline LNG floating hoses, as well as a hose storage system, a connection head with a dedicated storage platform on the LNG terminal and bow loading platform on the LNG carrier, to provide a highly flexible, reliable and durable alternative to traditional technologies such as marine loading arms.
It is designed to operate in sea states with significant wave heights of up to 11.5 feet/3.5 meter at connection and 13 feet/4 metre during transfer and disconnection, even with non collinear wind or current directions. These figures guarantee very good offloading availability in almost any location in the world.
Key components
Trelleborg was responsible for the development of the 20 inch/50 cm inner diameter cryogenic floating flexible hoses, while Saipem developed the offloading system and equipment to store/handle the hoses. Derived from existing and field-proven technologies, Trelleborg’s new floating cryogenic hose is made up of the several key components, including an inner cryogenic hose, an outer protective hose, an efficient insulation layer and an integrated leak monitoring system.
The LNG tandem offloading system is currently undergoing a complete set of full-scale tests to ensure it qualifies for the EN1474-2 standard. Several reduced scale prototypes have been manufactured and tested since 2009 at ambient and cryogenic conditions in order to validate theories and demonstrate feasibilities.
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