OIL AND GAS FACILITIES
Oil and gas facilities are integral to the energy sector, facilitating the extraction, processing, and transportation of hydrocarbons. They are primarily divided into three sectors: upstream, midstream, and downstream.
Upstream: This sector is dedicated to the exploration and production of oil and natural gas. Essential facilities include drilling rigs, offshore platforms, and production wells, all aimed at locating and extracting hydrocarbons from the earth.
Midstream: Focused on transportation, storage, and wholesale marketing, this sector manages the movement of crude oil, natural gas, and their derivatives. Key infrastructures include pipelines, storage tanks, and natural gas processing plants. Midstream operations are critical for ensuring that extracted hydrocarbons reach refineries and distribution centers efficiently.
Downstream: This sector handles the refining of crude oil and the processing of natural gas for consumer use. Key facilities feature refineries, petrochemical plants, and distribution terminals, producing a variety of products such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, lubricants, and various petrochemicals.
Upstream Oil and Gas Facilities
Also called upstream oil sector or Exploration and Production (E&P) sector. These facilities are involved in the initial stages of locating and extracting hydrocarbons from the earth is covered in upstream Oil & Gas facilities. Refer Fig. 1.
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Here are some key components and processes:
Exploration:
Seismic Surveys: Geologists use seismic surveys to map underground formations and identify potential oil and gas reservoirs. This involves sending shock waves into the ground and analyzing the reflected waves to create a subsurface image.
Drilling Exploratory Wells: Once a promising area is identified, exploratory wells are drilled to confirm the presence of hydrocarbons. These wells provide valuable data on the size and quality of the reservoir.
Drilling and Extraction:
Drilling Rigs: These are used to drill wells into the earth to reach hydrocarbon reservoirs. Drilling rigs can be onshore or offshore, depending on the location of the reservoir.
The drill rig may be self-contained on a single truck for a shallow well or transported to the well site for assembly for deeper wells.
Almost all drilling rigs and production wells have a vent and flare to release pressure. Storage areas would be established to house construction equipment, vehicles, pipe and pipe welding materials, and so forth.
Wellheads: The wellhead is the surface equipment installed on top of the well to control the pressure and flow of oil and gas from the reservoir. Wellhead refers to the topmost point of a well and the structure built over it. Wellheads include control equipment such as outlets, valves, blowout preventers, casing heads, tubing heads and “Christmas trees.”
Well pad: is relatively flat surface work area or location that is used for exploration or drilling a well or wells, and producing product from the well once it is completed.
Production Wells: Once a reservoir is confirmed, production wells are drilled to extract oil and gas. These wells are equipped with various tools and technologies to optimize production.
Production Facilities:
Separators: These devices separate the well stream into oil, gas, and water. Vertical separators are used for gas separation from large liquid volumes, while horizontal separators handle larger fluid volumes and are more efficient for high gas-oil ratios.
Storage Tanks: Crude oil and natural gas liquids are stored in tanks before being transported to refineries or processing plants. These tanks are crucial for storing crude oil, natural gas liquids, and other hydrocarbons prior to transportation or processing.
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Flow Control Devices: These devices regulate the flow of hydrocarbons through pipelines and other infrastructure, ensuring safe and efficient operation.
Support Facilities:
Offshore Platforms: These platforms are used for drilling, production, and processing of oil and gas in offshore areas. They are equipped with facilities to handle the harsh marine environment.
Workover Rigs: These rigs are used for maintenance and repair of existing wells to enhance production or extend the well’s life.
Upstream facilities are essential for discovering and extracting hydrocarbons, which are then transported and processed in midstream and downstream facilities to produce marketable products.
Pumping Equipment: If natural pressure is not adequate to force the oil, gas, or water to flow naturally, pumping equipment would be required. The power to operate these pumps would be supplied by gas or diesel engines or by electric motors.
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Pumping Station: Their are different types of pumps used but usually centrifugal pumps are commonly used to maintain movement or transfer of product within oil pipelines.
Waste and Evaporation Pits: A number of surface impoundments, or pits, could be constructed during drilling and at the production stages, such as a mud pit which is used to collect used drilling mud and cuttings prior to disposal, a skimming pit which reclaims residual oil removed with produced water, a sediment pit which stores solids that have settled out in storage tanks, or a percolation or evaporation pit to dispose of produced water.
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