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CUSTOMER SITUATION:A major Canadian E&P company operates the 16-inch Pelican Lake Crude Oil pipeline in the Athabasca Oil Sands region of Northern Alberta. Transporting high volumes of heavy oil emulsion at slow flow rates, the Pelican Lake line is critical to keeping the entire production field online. Because Canadian regulators require comprehensive inspection data to ensure the integrity of major transportation lines, the line operator was seeking the most efficient method to perform an internal inspection. Inherent in this goal were the needs to overcome line configuration challenges and to avoid costly down time. One option was to install a series of line traps to allow inspection with conventional inline tools, but this would have required line shutdown and production loss.

TDW SOLUTION:TDW Services, Inc., which specializes in the inspection of in-service steel pipelines, successfully customized a version of its unique magnetic flux leakage (MFL) tool to facilitate accurate inspection of the Pelican Lake line without operational disruption. Edmonton-based TDW engineers assessed all aspects of the inspection, and then employed in-house technicians to tailor a solution that included cup, brush and battery modifications to allow the tool to cross fittings and navigate unique piping configurations. TDW also provided comprehensive project management and technical support during the seven-day inspection run, which resulted in acquisition of all the necessary data on internal line condition, including wall thickness, potential corrosion issues and overall line integrity. Because MAGPIE MFL tools are easily started and stopped using Palm® PDA technology – and are supported by GPS and Bluetooth® Above Ground Markers – the entire inspection process was simpler, more reliable and less expensive than other inspection methods.

CUSTOMER BENEFIT: By utilizing the inspection solution provided by TDW Services, the line operator realized considerable cost savings. Though the operator had initially believed the job would require multiple inspection runs, it ultimately took running one tool just once to acquire all the necessary data. The operator also avoided the cost of potential line modifications for traps and valves, as well as loss of production revenue had the line been temporarily taken out of service. The operator was so pleased with the results that its leadership commissioned TDW engineers to make a presentation on the success of the project at the annual meeting of NACE (National Association of Corrosion Engineers) International in late 2007. This presentation offered other E&P companies facing line inspection challenges the chance to learn about MAGPIE tools and the technical prowess of TDW Services.

Athabasca Oil Sands region of northern Alberta.

MAGPIE® MFL Tool.

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