Statpipe
Encyclopedia
The Statpipe pipeline is a natural gas system, which links northern North Sea
gas fields with the Norway
's gas export system. It transports gas from Statfjord
, Gullfaks
, Heimdal
, Veslefrikk, Snorre
, Brage
, Tordis and Statfjord
gas fields.
. The development plan was approved by the Norwegian Parliament (Storting) on 10 June 1981. The rich gas pipeline from Statfjord became operational on on 25 March 1985 and the dry gas pipeline from Kårstø
to Ekofisk field
came on stream on 15 October 1985. The Draupner S riser platform
was installed in 1984 as part of the Statpipe system. In 1998, the Statpipe was connected directly with the Norpipe
. On 1 January 2003, the Statpipe was merged into Gassled partnership and Gassco
became the operator of the pipeline.
The first leg of the dry gas pipeline runs from Kårstø to the Draupner S riser platform in the North Sea. The length of this line is 228 kilometres (141.7 mi). The internal diameter of the pipe is 28 inches (711.2 mm) and capacity is 7.6 bcm of natural gas per year. The second leg runs for 155 kilometres (96.3 mi) from the Heimdal platform in the North Sea to Draupner S. The diameter of this pipe is 36 inches (914.4 mm) and capacity 11 bcm per year. The Draupner S riser platform ties the Statpipe lines from Heimdal and Kårstø together for onward transmission to Ekofisk. The internal diameter of this section is 36 inches (914.4 mm), and it runs for 213 kilometres (132.4 mi) further south, where a 15.8 kilometres (9.8 mi) bypass around Ekofisk complex takes the Statpipe directly into Norpipe.
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
gas fields with the Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
's gas export system. It transports gas from Statfjord
Statfjord oil field
The Statfjord oil field is an enormous oil and gas field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea operated by Statoil.It is a trans-median field crossing the Norwegian and UK North Sea Boundary with approximately 15% being in the UK Continental Shelf waters. At peak production it produced over of...
, Gullfaks
Gullfaks oil field
Gullfaks is an oil and gas field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea operated by Statoil. It was discovered in 1979, in block 34/10, at a water depth of 135 meters. The initial recoverable reserve is , and the remaining recoverable reserve in 2004 is . This oil field reached peak production in...
, Heimdal
Heimdal gas field
Heimdal is an offshore natural gas field in the North Sea located northwest of the Stavanger, Norway. Heimdal serves as a connection hub for processing and distribution of natural gas from satellite fields....
, Veslefrikk, Snorre
Snorre oil field
Snorre is an oil and gas field in the Tampen area in the southern part of the Norwegian Sea. The sea depth in the area is . Snorre is operational since August 1992. It was the first field developed by Saga Petroleum.-Production:...
, Brage
Brage oil field
Brage is an offshore oil field in the North Sea located northwest of the city of Bergen on the western coast of Norway and east of Oseberg Field Center. The field also contains gas. The water depth at the location is...
, Tordis and Statfjord
Statfjord oil field
The Statfjord oil field is an enormous oil and gas field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea operated by Statoil.It is a trans-median field crossing the Norwegian and UK North Sea Boundary with approximately 15% being in the UK Continental Shelf waters. At peak production it produced over of...
gas fields.
History
The Statpipe was developed by StatoilStatoil
Statoil ASA is a Norwegian petroleum company established in 1972. It merged with Norsk Hydro in 2007 and was known as StatoilHydro until 2009, when the name was changed back to Statoil ASA. The brand Statoil was retained as a chain of fuel stations owned by StatoilHydro...
. The development plan was approved by the Norwegian Parliament (Storting) on 10 June 1981. The rich gas pipeline from Statfjord became operational on on 25 March 1985 and the dry gas pipeline from Kårstø
Kårstø
Kårstø is an industrial facility located in Tysvær, Norway. The site features a number of natural gas processing plants to refine natural gas and condensate from the fields in the northern parts of the North Sea, including Åsgard, Mikkel and Sleipner...
to Ekofisk field
Ekofisk oil field
Ekofisk is an oil field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea about southwest of Stavanger. Discovered in 1969, it remains one of the most important oil fields in the North Sea. Production began in 1971 after the construction of a series of off-shore platforms by Phillips Petroleum Company...
came on stream on 15 October 1985. The Draupner S riser platform
Draupner platform
The Draupner platform is a complex consisting of the Draupner S and E riser platforms in the North Sea. It is located in the Norwegian North Sea block 16/11 offshore Norway. The complex consists of seven risers and two riser platforms standing in water depth and linked by a bridge...
was installed in 1984 as part of the Statpipe system. In 1998, the Statpipe was connected directly with the Norpipe
Norpipe
Norpipe is the undersea oil and natural gas pipeline's system in the North Sea. It supplies oil from the Norwegian Ekofisk and associated fields in the North Sea to the United Kingdom and natural gas to Germany.-Oil pipeline:...
. On 1 January 2003, the Statpipe was merged into Gassled partnership and Gassco
Gassco
Gassco is a Norwegian state owned company that operates of natural gas pipes transporting annually of 88.5 billion cubic meter of natural gas from the Norwegian continental shelf to Continental Europe and the United Kingdom....
became the operator of the pipeline.
Technical features
The total length of the Statpipe system is 890 kilometres (553 mi). It consists of both rich and dry gas pipelines. The 308 kilometres (191.4 mi) long rich gas pipeline runs from Statfjord field to the Kårstø gas processing plant. It has branch lines from Snorre and Gulfaks fields. The internal diameter of this pipe is 30 inches (762 mm) and capacity is 9.7 billion cubic metre (bcm) of natural gas per year.The first leg of the dry gas pipeline runs from Kårstø to the Draupner S riser platform in the North Sea. The length of this line is 228 kilometres (141.7 mi). The internal diameter of the pipe is 28 inches (711.2 mm) and capacity is 7.6 bcm of natural gas per year. The second leg runs for 155 kilometres (96.3 mi) from the Heimdal platform in the North Sea to Draupner S. The diameter of this pipe is 36 inches (914.4 mm) and capacity 11 bcm per year. The Draupner S riser platform ties the Statpipe lines from Heimdal and Kårstø together for onward transmission to Ekofisk. The internal diameter of this section is 36 inches (914.4 mm), and it runs for 213 kilometres (132.4 mi) further south, where a 15.8 kilometres (9.8 mi) bypass around Ekofisk complex takes the Statpipe directly into Norpipe.