OFZ gains traction as PCN delivers largest Egina pipe coating project

Pipe Coaters Nigeria Limited (PCN) last week celebrated the completion of the coating and cut back of the last pipe for the Egina UFR (umbilicals, flowlines and risers) project at the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone, Rivers State.

The completion represents a major milestone in one of Total’s flagship ultra-deep offshore projects in Nigeria. The Egina project, which most parts were developed locally to accelerate the pace of technology transfer and expand the local industrial fabric, is located 130 km off the coast of Nigeria at water depths of more than 1,500 meters.

At a reception to mark the successful completion of the coating at the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone, Ricardo Capria, PCN country manager said the Egina pipe coating is currently the largest in the oil and gas industry.

“The final pipe for the largest pipe-coating project the oil and gas industry has seen till date– consisting of 6,000 tons of material – has been coated. The work was performed by the only plant in Africa that has the capacity to apply the sophisticated coating technology on large diameter pipe in Nigeria.

The project was a major milestone because it took an extensive training of local employees, plant qualification and the development of full-scale testing of a specially formulated material to withstand the harsh conditions of the ultra deepwater application.”

According to Capria, PCN collaborated with Tenaris, a global supplier of steel pipe products, to develop a proprietary component to the formula for the coating material. “The specially formulated material- five Layer Syntactic Polypropylene (5LsynPP) Thermal Insulation coating, was tested and proven to have capacity to improve resistance to corrosion, flow assurance and prevent paraffin deposits.

PCN employees, he pointed received specialised training to carry out the production and advanced coating application while its plant in the Onne OGFZ, underwent a yearlong qualification process in 2014 to ensure the facility was capable of meeting the customers’ requirements from safety, quality to production.

He said that about 800,000 man-hours were worked, locally, on the challenging coating project with 90 percent of employees with PCN.

Patrick Bird, chief commercial officer, Intels Nigeria Limited, developer of the Onne OGFZ said it was gratifying to have provided the enabling environment for successful completion of the coating project. “This is a major accomplishment and we are happy to have partnered with PCN in achieving this milestone. Despite the present challenges in the economy, Intels is steadfast in its commitment to delivering maximum benefits to companies in the Onne OGFZ.”

“We strive to create an environment that makes the milestone being celebrated today possible by accelerating the pace of technology transfer and expanding the local industrial fabric in Nigeria. The Onne Free Zone offer numerous advantages and incentives for companies to invest in Nigeria.”

He however, urged companies to take advantages of the incentives available in the free zone because it was designed to encourage foreign direct investments, creating employment, transfer of technology and overall economic development in Nigeria.

The Egina field was first discovered in 2003 and is considered among the deepest offshore projects for the operator, Total, which is investing about $15 billion in developing the field, primarily with local content. Saipem was awarded the contract by Total Upstream Nigeria for the subsea development of Egina, handling the engineering, procurement, commissioning and installation.

Also in 2013, Saipem selected PCN to produce and apply the advanced coating required for the project. PCN is one of the largest pipe-coating companies in Nigeria, providing a wide range of products and services for the oil and gas industry since 1996. The company was formed as a joint alliance with Tenaris in 2011 to serve customers in West Africa with complete made in Nigeria onshore and offshore line pipe and coating packages.

Uzoamaka Anagor-Ewuzie