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Produced water transportation and disposal costs pose the biggest challenge to shale producers’ financial bottom line. According to IHS-Markit, produced water management can represent half of a shale well’s operating expenses and these costs will rise as focus shifts to growth. To put a lid on these inflating costs, shale producers are building their own production and salt water disposal (SWD) facilities instead of relying on third-party waste management companies.
SWD systems can employ a variety of pipe-joining methods, including threaded, welded, flanged, and grooved, in addition to several non-metallic methods. Threaded piping has been the traditional pipe-joining method for small-diameter pipe in the upstream oil and gas industry, but this joining method is not ideal for SWD assemblies. On average, 50% to 60% of threaded pipe joints leak. These leaks and seepage are common due to varying tolerances between connections. Flanged assemblies also are not ideal because headers are expensive due to the make-on and make-up processes.
Welding does not provide ease of access for the continuous maintenance required on SWD systems. In addition, the fabrication of welded fusion-bonded epoxy-coated systems increases installation time. Prior to assembly, the pipe must be fabricated and internal weld joints ground to create a smooth surface. The spools must be shipped out for coating and then joined in the field using flanges. If the system goes down and requires cutting and re-welding, there is no guarantee of a sound system. Welding internally plastic coated (IPC) pipe can harm the coating, affecting its corrosion resistance and potentially leading to a break in the system.
For some shale operators in North America, the selection of grooved high-density polyethylene (HDPE) coupled with Victaulic’s Refuse-to-Fuse line of mechanical couplings, fittings transitions and accessories in the construction of SWD facilities is proving a quick and cost-effective solution in the building of these facilities on budget and in record time.
Historically, fusion, which requires the use of expensive equipment, tools and trained personnel, has been the common method used in water and slurry HDPE lines. The Victaulic system, which require only commonly used hand tools for assembly, eliminates the need for fusion, providing a faster, simpler joining method, for the oil drilling and saltwater disposal industry. This game-changing solution is helping operators in shale plays across North America construct these facilities in significantly shorter time frames and with lower overall installed costs.
Piping systems play an integral part of every stage of the oil and gas extraction industry, from drilling to completions to production and transportation. Over the past few years the appreciation for the benefits that grooved mechanical piping provide in terms of increased profits, compressed schedules, and worksite safety, has increased as operators seek to deploy solutions that not only help them drill faster but also minimize operational risks. The future will almost certainly bring more technological advancements in this area setting new standards in speed and efficiency.
See the full NextShale 2017 program here.
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