Once there, Tordis will write a new chapter in Norwegian subsea technology. It is the world's first subsea installation to separate water and sand from oil wells and pump them directly into the bedrock, avoiding the energy-intensive route via a surface platform. This makes it possible to recover an extra 35 million barrels of oil.
"Tordis' journey marks the beginning of an intensive period of activity at sea," says Hans Kristiansen, project manager for Tordis.
"Once installed on the seabed, it will be tied back to the Gullfaks C platform with pipelines and control cables. When everything is tested and ready, we'll turn the start key for the world's first subsea separator."
Tordis is also the world's heaviest subsea template, requiring assistance from an offshore lifting leviathan, Saipem 7000, the biggest crane vessel in the world with enough muscle to lower Tordis safely to the seabed.
Plans call for Tordis to come on stream in the autumn of 2007.
Via: Scandinavian Oil & Gas
