Saipem Wraps Up Pipeline Job at Equinor’s Norwegian Sea Project

(Credit: Saipem)

Italian energy contractor Saipem has completed the installation of the subsea pipeline for the Irpa project, developed by Equinor in the Norwegian Sea.

Offshore operations were carried out by the pipelay vessel Castorone, one of Saipem's flagship vessels.

The project encompassed the installation of a Pipe-in-Pipe pipeline of approximately 80 kilometers at a depth of 1,350 meters, making Irpa the deepest subsea field development in Norway to date.

The pipeline will connect Irpa's underwater production system to the Aasta Hansteen platform.

Pipe-in-Pipe technology represents an advanced and highly reliable solution for transporting hydrocarbons in extreme environmental conditions and consists of a dual-pipe system, in which an internal pipeline transports the fluid while an external one protects it.

This design maintains the fluid's temperature along its path on the seabed, preventing the risk of obstruction caused by the formation of hydrates or waxes, phenomena that are particularly critical in cold, deep waters like those of the Norwegian Sea.

Installation activities of the 20-inch diameter pipeline were completed on July 22, after 84 days of uninterrupted operations.

Complex logistics supported operations from the Norwegian port of Sandnessjøen, where the prefabricated joints and equipment were loaded, onto support vessels and transferred to the Castorone.