Collapse resistant pipes for Offshore Use in the Black Sea

The South Stream offshore pipeline for the supply of natural gas across the Black Sea to southern Europe is an extremely challenging project from a technical perspective. The challenges in engineering and design are resulting from a water depth up to 2,200 m in combination with a large pipeline diameter, geo-hazardous risks and a corrosive subsea environment. As a leading pipe manufacturer EUROPIPE GmbH was contracted to deliver line pipe material and related components for the first offshore pipeline. The paper describes EUROPIPE´s activities from a project-related and technical point of view: In the beginning a general overview of the project organization with all relevant sub-sections is given. Due to the fact that all required components of the pipeline can be delivered by a single supplier the contractual partner profits from a centralized and experienced project management. Together with its sub-contractors, EUROPIPE GmbH covers all business activities from line pipe material, buckle arrestor assemblies, bends, 3-layer PP/CWC coating to transportation and logistics. Subsequently, the pipe manufacturer provides an insight into material selection, -testing and quality control to achieve the advanced mechanical and dimensional properties for that project. For the mechanical properties the exceptional demand for collapse resistance in the as-coated condition can be named as an example in that context. In this paper it is explained how EUROPIPE GmbH ensures to guarantee these desired requirements. With respect to dimensional checks this paper highlights the importance of high measurement accuracy for deep water offshore pipelines, i.e. by laser devices.