Pipeline and Flowlines

PIPELINE & FLOWLINES

Pipelines and Flow lines are pipes connecting the wells with the treatment plants. Flow lines are pipe lines that connect a single wellhead to a manifold or process equipment. Then a gathering line may transfer the flow from the manifold to a pre-process stage or to a transportation facility or vessel. Flowlines may be in a land or subsea well field and may be buried or at grade on the surface of land or seafloor. Gathering lines are similar to flowlines but collect the flow from multiple flowlines.

Several types of flowlines are listed below, all subsea unless noted:

• Single Tubular: Single, simple tube system (onshore or subsea). This is the standard type of flowline for on-shore applications.
• Bundled Line: these systems comprise of several export flowlines, injection and umbilical control lines of varying configurations.
• Coiled Tubing
• Riser: Flowlines carrying the hydrocarbon flow from the seabed to the surface facility
• Flexible Catenary Risers (FCR)
• Hybrid Riser: a riser bundle attached to a submerged buoyancy tank
• Jumper: short flowline connecting a subsea well back to its manifold
• Piggy-Back: an export line from the field carrying an externally attached import injection flowline to the wellhead
• Pipe-In-Pipe: An external pipeline carrying an internal flowline. Pipe-in-Pipe systems are used for protection near the shore and for insulation in deeper waters
• Steel Catenary Riser (SCR)