A decade-long project to monitor drilling operations on subsea wells in harsh environments has delivered interesting results.
Subsea production and exploration wells are subjected to loads from the drilling riser and subsea blowout preventors (BOP). The latter have grown in size and weight over time, resulting in larger wellhead loads.
The main task of a subsea conductor is to transfer these loads into the seabed. The bending load applied on the wellhead is transferred into the conductor, which again transfers the loads through the cement and into the soil.
In cases where the load exerted on the soil and cement exceeds the capacity, the soil around the conductor might fail. The cement filling the cavity between the conductor and the soil can also crack and consequently lose its intended function. This support degradation reduces the conductor’s ability to support the well.
4Subsea’s Subsea Wellhead Integrity Monitoring (SWIM) service for operations on subsea wells has now been in action for more than a decade.
