Flexible pipe has been used in a number of recent North Sea projects to upgrade existing platform facilities. This has been done by pulling flexible pipe up through J-tubes to create a new flow path to the top-side facilities. This has eliminated the cost of retrofitting a new riser caisson, and so it can be an economic alternative for the developments which involve a tie back to a host platform. With the increasing interest in this application of flexible pipe, this paper is put forward as an overview of some of the points that have influenced the pull-in projects completed to date.

Keywords:
winch, end fitting, flowline, pull-in operation, resistance, diameter, operation, inner plastic tube, pipe, platform
Subjects:
Pipelines, Flowlines and Risers, Risers
Copyright 1991, Society of Petroleum Engineers
You can access this article if you purchase or spend a download.