Airborne Oil & Gas has today (March 15th, 2019) announced the addition of Aker Solutions to its strategic shareholder base to further strengthen, integrate and diversify its range of thermoplastic composite pipe (TCP) solutions for the international subsea sector.
The global engineering company joins Airborne Oil & Gas’ prestigious shareholder base of Chevron Technology Ventures, Evonik Venture Capital, Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures, Shell Ventures, Subsea 7, Sumitomo Corporation and the private equity investor, HPE Growth Capital. Aker Solutions has an extensive track record in developing offshore oil and gas fields with capabilities in front end engineering design (FEED) and subsea production systems. The collaboration will see the firm utilising TCP to improve field development economics globally.
TCP has been proven to outperform steel and other pipeline materials in terms of durability, corrosion resistance and total installation costs. It is manufactured from a composite of fibres and polymers making it flexible and spoolable with continuous lengths up to 4km and above. It is built to handle design pressures up to 15,000 psi/1,050 bar and temperatures up to 121˚C/250˚F. Its long length and low weight allow for much faster and cheaper installation, creating more options in the overall project development schedule.
Oliver Kassam, Airborne Oil & Gas CEO said: “Today’s announcement demonstrates the growing confidence and the long-term value our qualified and field proven thermoplastic composite pipe (TCP) technology can bring to the oil and gas industry. “We have a very strong portfolio of organisations invested in the business and the addition of Aker Solutions is significant as there are several areas where we can optimise the benefits of TCP to offer the sector an enhanced range of integrated products, including subsea production solutions.
“We also look forward to working closely with Aker Solutions to explore synergies for collaborative manufacturing and producing the next generation of TCP solutions for deepwater developments in line with our overarching strategic goals.”
Chief technology officer at Aker Solutions, John Macleod, said: “At Aker Solutions, we constantly work to improve the performance and cost-efficiency of our technology and the materials we work with. Acquiring a stake in Airborne Oil & Gas positions Aker Solutions at the forefront in the development of next-generation pipeline materials. We are excited to work with Airborne to introduce existing and new applications of thermoplastic composite pipe solutions into our subsea portfolio.” TCP’s current applications are suitable for both greenfield and brownfield developments in all regions and water depths.
Issued on behalf of Airborne Oil & Gas by The BIG Partnership.
