Record Pipeline Cleanout

In the fourth quarter of 2020, SBS Energy Services (SBS) successfully completed a multi-phase project to decommission approximately 29,000 ft. of 10-by-6-in. concentric insulated pipeline in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico (3,281-ft. water depth) in partnership with Helix Energy Solutions Group, setting a new offshore snubbing/hydraulic workover (HWO) unit world record. The project was completed successfully in 22 days, ahead of schedule and under budget. The operator had a four-part objective to meet the federal regulations for decommissioning the pipeline section and ancillary components. Here, Bray and Overstreet expound on phase two operations, which involved using a 340K snubbing/HWO unit to rig up and intervene inside the pipeline with an optimized drill pipe string to perform washing/flushing operations until reaching the second pipeline end termination.