Scheduled replacement of single point mooring (SPM) hoses continues in the sea area of the CPC Marine Terminal (Yuzhnaya Ozereevka village, Krasnodar Krai). The work started in May 2017. By now, it has been completed on SPM-3 and in progress on SPM-2, with SPM-1 to follow.
The operations involve a specialized team of divers and Marine Terminal support vessels. The service life of SPM subsea and floating hoses, depending on their type and purpose, varies from 2 to 6 years, upon expiry of which, the hoses need to be replaced.
Such replacement requires major labor input, as each section of the hoses weighs about 7 tons. All in all, each SPM has 69 sections of hose equipment.
The SPM hoses replacement is scheduled to be fully completed in November 2017.
The work is carried out to ensure reliable and safe operation of SPM, as well as compliance with the environmental and industrial safety standards of the Consortium Marine Terminal facilities.
For reference:
CALM single point mooring:
1 — anchor chains; 2 — pipeline end manifold; 3 — buoy; 4 — swivel; 5 — mooring line; 6 — tanker; 7 — floating hoses; 8 — subsea hoses; 9 — subsea pipeline from shore
The picture shows the design of a single point mooring of CALM type (Catenery Anchor Leg Mooring) in the form of a floating buoy secured by anchor chains. Such SPM design allows to load large tankers at depths up to 450 m, which is impossible with fixed jetties due to their high cost. The advantage of CALM SPM is the ability of a moored tanker to turn freely around the mooring point on a non-rigid or flexible link and to take a position of the least resistance relative to wind load, currents and waves.
About CPC:
The CPC pipeline system is one of the largest investment projects with foreign capital in the energy sector in the CIS. The length of Tengiz-Novorossiysk pipeline is 1,511 km; more than two thirds of all export crude oil from Kazakhstan and crude oil from the Russian fields, including those in the Caspian Region, are transported by this route. CPC Marine Terminal is equipped with three Single Point Moorings (SPM) that allow to load tankers safely at a significant distance offshore, also amid poor weather conditions.
CPC Shareholders: Russian Federation (represented by Transneft – 24% and CPC Company – 7%) – 31%; Republic of Kazakhstan (represented by KazMunayGaz – 19% and Kazakhstan Pipeline Ventures LLC – 1.75%) – 20.75%; Chevron Caspian Pipeline Consortium Company - 15%, LUKARCO B.V. - 12.5%, Mobil Caspian Pipeline Company – 7.5%, Rosneft-Shell Caspian Ventures Limited – 7.5%, BG Overseas Holding Limited - 2%, Eni International N.A. N.V. - 2% and Oryx Caspian Pipeline LLC – 1.75%.