Decommissioning Specialist’s R&D Investment Paying Off With Greener Solutions for Oil and Gas Sector
A specialist engineering company has invested more than £700,000 to develop tools which provide greener, faster and safer solutions for decommissioning in the energy sector.
Decom Engineering’s latest R&D investment has updated their Pipe Coating Removal (PCR) equipment, which cleans decommissioned or surplus pipelines of multiple coatings, so they can be repurposed for use on other projects.
The Northern Ireland-based business has also upgraded its range of cold cutting saws which have been successfully deployed on international decommissioning projects as oil and gas operators replace or remove ageing infrastructure.
The latest modifications to its single blade cutter will allow Decom Engineering to target a new revenue stream, assisting clients in recovering conductors from decommissioned oil and gas rigs. The company also believe there are opportunities for its patented saws to be deployed on offshore wind farm repair and maintenance projects as well as onshore pile cutting.
Established in 2011 by Chief Executive Officer Sean Conway, Decom Engineering has completed contracts in mainland Europe and Asia Pacific, and is tendering for new work-scopes in Thailand, North America, Brazil and India.
The combination of a team of skilled engineer-fitters and an in-house design-and-build capability, gives Decom Engineering the flexibility to adapt its tools and equipment to bespoke client requirements and offer faster response times.
Decom Engineering CEO, Sean Conway, said: “Our ongoing commitment to R&D has put us in a strong position to be at the forefront of decommissioning projects as the oil and gas majors accelerate their move to energy transition.
“Mobility and portability means we can deploy to anywhere in the world to play a dual-purpose role of safely dismantling, in the most efficient and environmentally friendly manner, infrastructure which is no longer fit for purpose.
“Our PCR machines can then further reduce the carbon footprint and return value to the client, by cleaning and preparing steel pipelines so that they are suitable for use in other projects. For example, decommissioned pipelines can be used in piling and construction work, and in the last year our Dutch facility has processed and repurposed more than 20,000 tons of steel.”
Decom Engineering are holding a series of showcase demonstrations in the coming weeks in Aberdeen to provide key oil and gas clients with real-time knowledge of how the company’s technologies can benefit planned projects.
Nick McNally, Decom Engineering’s Commercial Director, added: “As an R&D led business, we continue to invest time and resources to provide green decommissioning solutions for the oil and gas sector which are more safer, efficient and environmentally friendly.
“Our technologies help recycle downgraded oil and gas pipes into a useable product instead of scrap steel, hugely increasing the value chain for our partners and decreasing the carbon footprint of the industry. We are now seeing the fruits of our labour with new contracts in Europe and Asia Pacific, and we expect that the latest upgrades to our tools and equipment will lead to further growth in the world’s major energy hubs.”
Source: Global Energy World