Australian institutes are working on an A$11m project to unlock stranded offshore oil and gas reserves using subsea pipeline technology.
Australia’s largest scientific research agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), has joined forces with a group of research bodies and Australian universities to harness expertise from across the country to access remote offshore reserves.
According to the CSIRO, more than 80 percent of Australia’s gas resources exist in remote areas that lie as far as 300km offshore.
Oceans National Research Flagship’s Collaboration Cluster on Subsea Pipelines (CCSP) director Dr Kate Wilson believes realising the full potential of these resources requires the development of safe, economically viable and environmentally sound transportation technologies.
"Improved pipeline technology will also help achieve the flagship’s vision of replacing traditional oil and gas rigs with platform-free fields," says Dr Wilson.
The projects will investigate seabed characterisation and morphology, structural integrity, pipeline monitoring, geo-hazards and full-life reliability.
"This will involve everything from sophisticated computer modelling and sea-floor movement prediction to understanding tsunami effects and exploring the use of autonomous underwater and remotely operated vehicles," says The University of Western Australia’s professor Mark Cassidy.
By Ozge Ibrahim
