Drilling and producing deep water subsea wells

• US 7,240,736 B2
• Filed: 09/21/2005
• Issued: 07/10/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Vetco Gray Incorporated (Baker Hughes Company)
• Original Assignee: Vetco Gray Incorporated (Baker Hughes Company)
• Inventors: Michaelsen, Jarle, Sollie, Lars-Petter, Fenton, Stephen P., Dezen, Francisco, Langford, Gawain, Soelvik, Nils Arne
• Primary Examiner(s): Beach; Thomas A
• Application Number:
  US11/231,503
• Publication Number:
  US 20060011348A1
• Time in Patent Office: 657 Days
• Field of Search: 166/358, 166/366, 166/348, 166/360, 166/382, 166/380, 166/357
• US Class Current: 166/358
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/00 Separation of liquids, not provided for elsewhere, e.g. by thermal diffusion devices for separating or removing fatty or oily substances or similar floating material from water, waste water, or sewage C02F1/40; cleaning or keeping clear the surface of open water from oil or like materials E02B15/04; arrangements for separating lubricants from refrigerants F25B43/02
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/0208 by sedimentation
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/0211 with baffles
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/0214 with removal of one of the phases
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/0217 by centrifugal force
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/045 with coalescers
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/06 Separation of liquids from each other by electricity
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 17/12 Auxiliary equipment particularly adapted for use with liquid-separating apparatus, e.g. control circuits
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/40 Devices for separating or removing fatty or oily substances or similar floating material cleaning or keeping clear the surface of open water from oil or like materials E02B15/04; devices in sewers for separating liquid or solid substances from sewage E03F5/14, e.g. for use in drains leading to the sewer E03F5/16
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/48 with magnetic or electric fields C02F1/46 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2101/32 Hydrocarbons, e.g. oil
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2103/06 Contaminated groundwater or leachate
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2103/10 from quarries or from mining activities
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 33/038 Connectors used on well heads, e.g. for connecting blow-out preventer and riser
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/017 Production satellite stations, i.e. underwater installations comprising a plurality of satellite well heads connected to a central station
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 43/36 Underwater separating arrangements E21B43/38 takes precedence

Abstract

Subsea wells are drilled and completed with an offshore floating platform in a manner that allows simultaneous work on more than one well. A first well is drilled and casing. Then a tubing hanger is run through a drilling riser and landed in the wellhead housing. Then, with the same floating platform, the drilling riser is disconnected and moved to a second well. While performing operations on the second well, the operator lowers a production tree from the floating platform on a lift line, and connects it to the first wellhead housing. An ROV assisted subsea plug removal tool is used for plug removal and setting operations required through the production tree.

Claims

1. A method of drilling and completing a plurality of subsea wells, comprising:

(a) with a floating platform, connecting a drilling riser to a first wellhead housing, and drilling and casing a first well;

(b) running a string of tubing and landing a tubing hanger in the first wellhead housing;

then

(c) perforating the well, then setting a plug in the tubing hanger;

(d) disconnecting the drilling riser from the first wellhead housing;

then

(e) with the floating platform, connecting the drilling riser to a second wellhead housing, and drilling and casing a second well; and

(f) while performing at least part of step (e), lowering a production tree on a lift line from the same floating platform and connecting the tree to the first wellhead housing.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

lowering a plug removal tool on the lift line and landing the plug removal tool on the tree;

removing the plug with the plug removal tool;

then

disconnecting the plug removal tool from the tree and retrieving the plug removal tool on the lift line.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

step (b) comprises providing the tubing hanger with a tubing annulus valve;

step (c) further comprises circulating fluid between the tubing and a tubing annulus when the valve is open, and closing the valve prior to disconnecting the drilling riser of step (d); and

the tree has an actuator that selectively opens the valve.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising providing the tree with a flowline connector and rotating the tree while it is landing on the wellhead housing to place the flowline connector in a desired orientation.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising moving the platform after step (d) and before step (e), and step (e) is performed by deploying the lift line from the platform after the platform has moved.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising after step (d)

connecting the tree to a subsea well fluid separator, the separator being connected to a subsea choke, which in turn is connected to a subsea manifold that has flowlines that lead to a surface processing facility;

and

flowing well fluid from the tree, separating heavier and lighter components of the well fluid in the separator, then reducing the pressure of the flowing well fluid product and flowing at least some of the well fluid through the manifold and the flowlines to the surface processing facility.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

step (b) further comprises providing the tubing hanger with a tubing annulus valve that closes due to a spring bias prior to disconnecting the drilling riser from the first wellhead housing; and

step (e) further comprises providing the tree with a hydraulically powered actuator, and opening the tubing annulus valve with the actuator after the tree lands on the wellhead housing.

7. A method of drilling and completing a plurality of subsea wells, comprising:

(a) with a floating platform, connecting a drilling riser to a first wellhead housing, and drilling and casing a well;

(b) running a string of tubing and landing a tubing hanger in the wellhead housing;

then

(c) perforating the well, then setting a plug in the tubing hanger;

(d) disconnecting the drilling riser from the wellhead housing;

(e) providing a tree with a flowline connector, lowering the tree into the sea, and rotating the tree to a desired orientation while it is landing on the wellhead housing; and

(f) connecting a flowline jumper to the flowline connector and to additional subsea equipment.

8. The method according to claim 7, further wherein after step (f), the method further comprises:

lowering a plug removal tool on a lift line and landing the plug removal tool on the tree;

removing the plug with the plug removal tool;

then

disconnecting the plug removal tool from the tree and retrieving the plug removal tool on the lift line.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein:

step (b) further comprises providing the tubing hanger with a tubing annulus valve and closing the tubing annulus valve prior to disconnecting the drilling riser from the wellhead housing; and

step (e) further comprises selectively opening the tubing annulus valve after the tree lands on the wellhead housing.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein step (b) further comprises:

providing the tubing hanger with an orientation member and rotating the tubing hanger to a desired orientation; and

step (e) further comprises;

providing the tree with an orientation member and engaging the orientation member of the tree with the orientation member of the tubing hanger to rotate the tree in a desired final orientation.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein step (f) comprises:

providing the flowline jumper with an arcuate portion that is buoyant, and causing the arcuate portion to float in a vertical plane after installation.

13. The method according to claim 7, wherein step (f) comprises:

connecting a subsea fluid separator to a subsea manifold having flowlines leading to a surface processing facility;

connecting the flowline jumper from the tree to the subsea fluid separator;

connecting a choke between the separator and the subsea manifold; and

flowing well fluid from the tree to the separator, separating heavier and lighter components of the well fluid in the separator, and reducing pressure of the flowing well fluid product as the well fluid flows through the choke to the manifold for transport to the surface facility.