OFFSHORE

STRUCTURES

BY: Dr. HIMANSHU KESARWANI

 Offshore Production platforms Provides the base support for Oil and
Gas processing.
 The First Offshore platform was installed in 1947 off the coast of
Louisiana in 6M depth of water.

 Platform size depends on facilities to be installed on top side eg. Oil

rig, living quarters, Helipad etc.
 Classification of water depths:
• < 500 M Shallow water
• < 1500 M - Deep water
• > 1500 M- Ultra deep water
 OFFSHORE STRUCTURES

FIXED Directly attached with the sea bed

PLATFORM •Used for low water depth (< 500 ft)

These structures can be moved from

MOBILE one location to another very easily
PLATFORM •Can be used for ultra deep
water (>1500 ft)
 OFFSHORE STRUCTURES
1 Mobile Units 1.2.3 Floating production units
1.1 Bottom Supported (production)
1.1.1 Jackup 1.2.3.2 FPSO
1.1.2 submersible Eg: Complete ship
1.2 Floating shaped
1.2.1 Drill Ships (drilling) vessel loaded with
1.2.2 Semi submersible required
(drilling) equipments and facilities
1.2.3 Floating production units 1.2.3.3 FSO
(production) Eg: Ships and
1.2.3.1 FPS Barges
A Semisubmersible 2 Fixed Platforms
B SPAR 2.1 Compliant Tower
C TLP 2.2 Gravity based Structure
D Mini TLP 2.3 Jacketed Structure
Rig on Location - Close up

5
MAJOR PARTS OF JACK UP RIG
Rig Equipments
Hull

Hull
Legs & footings
Legs

Rig equipments
6
 HULL
 A watertight structure ( ≈ 25 ft. Thick ).
 Supports / Houses the equipment & personnel.
 When afloat, provides buoyancy and supports the
weight of legs / footings (spud cans) /equipment
/variable load.
 Generally triangular in shape. 7
BIGGER HULL : ADVANTAGE
 More variable load & equipments can carried,
especially in afloat mode (Increased deck space &
buoyancy).
 Roomier machinery space & more space on main
deck for pipes / clear work areas.
8
 BIGGER HULL :
DISADVANTAGE
 Negative effects of higher wind, wave and
current loads.
 Require elevating jacks of larger capacity to
elevate and hold Unit.
9
 Legs & Footings
 Steel structures
 Support hull in Elevated mode
 Provide stability to resist lateral - loads.
 Footings are at the bottom of the legs and
their purpose is to increase the legs’
bearing area, thereby reducing the
required capacity of the soil to provide a
solid foundation to withstand the weight
of the jack-up. There are two types of
footings: (a) spud cans/tanks and (b)
mats. 11
Leg entering Hull

Spud cans
12
Legs & Footings
 When rig is towed; Fully retracted legs may
extend over 400 feet above water.
 Footings needed to increase the soil bearing
area thereby reducing required soil strength.
 On the basis of the type of footings a jack-up
uses, these are classified into two basic
categories:
 Independent leg type
 Mat-supported type 13
Independent Leg
 Separate footing for each leg.
 Good for uneven surfaces.
 Used in firm soil, and coral
region.
 Legs are connected with the spud
cans at the bottom.
 Bearing pressure 5000-10000
lb/ft2.
 Preloading done for Stability and
Safety
 Each leg may have different
penetration.
Mat-Supported
 All legs are connected to
common support (mat).
 Good for smooth surfaces.
 Installed where lower bearing
pressure can be subjected.
 Bearing pressure 500-700
lb/ft2.
 Designed to operate in bottom
slope of 1̊ to 2̊.
14
Jack up : Mat Type

15
Mat type Rig

16
Mat type Rig : Advantages
 All the legs connected to one common footing called Mat.
 Designed to operate in bottom slope of 1̊ to2̊.
 Suits lesser bearing pressure 500-600 lbs/ft2.
 Can operate in soft sea bed bottom.
 Can operate in water depths ranging from 4-7 m to 75-125 m.
 Due to larger contact area with sea floor, mat footings exert a
lower bearing pressure on soil than units with spud cans.
 This is beneficial in areas where the soil cannot support high
bearing loads.
17
Disadvantages: Mat-Rig
 Cannot be used on uneven sea beds or those with
large slopes.
 Cannot be used on bottoms with obstructions e.g.
Pipelines, debris etc.
 Have more drag while under tow.
 Towing speed is less (Half).

18
Spud Cans

19
Spud Cans : Advantages
 Useable on variety of sea beds such as hard and soft soil
sea beds.

 Sloping bottoms (may be sensitive to large slopes on hard

soils) digs in for stability.

 Some rigs can retract spud cans flush into hull to permit
easy dry transport of unit.
20
Spud Cans : Disadvantages
 Exhibit larger bottom bearing pressure and
increased soil penetrations than mat Units.
 Due to this, spud cans leave impressions in soft soil
seabed.
 In areas where pipelines exist “spud cans” may
cause damage. 21
 Spud cans : Disadvantages
 When another Jackup comes on the same location
later, spud-can impressions may induce horizontal
forces on one or more legs {Unless the new can
slides into old impression}
 Maintenance lead to downtime/risk: Sagar-Samrat
accident. 22
Rig Equipments
Three main sub groups:-

1. Marine Equipment

2. Mission Equipment

3. Elevating Equipment
23
 Marine Equipments
 Equipment and systems not related to the Mission Equipment (i.e.
Drilling equipment).

 Similar to any sea vessel, regardless of its form or function such as

Diesel Engines, Fuel oil piping, Electrical power distribution
Switchboards, Communication equipments Radar, Lifeboats etc.

 Marine Equipments, while not directly involved with mission of the

Jack up rig, are necessary for supporting personnel & equipments
involved in the Mission. 24
 Mission Equipment
 The Equipment and Systems necessary for the Jack Up to
complete its Mission.

 Examples: Derricks, Mud-Pumps, Piping, Control

Systems, Production-Equipment, Cranes and Alarms
systems etc.
25
 Elevating Equipment
 Are the equipments and systems necessary for Jack up to
raise, lower, and lock-off the legs and hull.

 Usually air gap is kept more than 18-20 mtrs (≥50ft)

depending upon sea conditions at the location.

 Examples: Rack and pinion system; brakes; hydraulic

system to lift the platform and hold at its position.
26
 Movement of Jackup Platform
Jackup can be
Self-propelled;  Towing speed ~4 knots
Nonpropelled; in clam sea conditions
For nonpropelled; these can be towed by wet tow or dry tow.
Dry tow:
Jackup is mounted on the deck of another floating vessel (cargo).
Wet tow:
Jackup is floated on its hull.
Further classified into 2 categories:
Field tow  Extended field tow
(<12 hrs) (>12 hrs)
 Jack up rigs on Tow
 The Transit Mode occurs when a Jack Up Unit is being transported from
one location to another.
 The unit could either be afloat on its own hull (known as a “wet tow”), or
be carried as cargo aboard another vessel (a “dry tow”).
 The units legs will need to be raised so that they do not come into contact
with the seabed, but they do not need to be fully retracted in most cases.
 By keeping parts of the legs lower than the hull baseline, the jacking time
is reduced.
Dry Tow Wet Tow
 Installation of Jackup Platform
Jacking speed ~1
ft/min
40-90 ft of air
space between
hull and MSL
Rig arriving
on Location

Sea

Soil

31
Lowering
Legs

Sea

Soil
32
Legs Penetrating
Soil Below
Sea Bottom

33
Preloading
the rig

34
Full Air
Gap : Ready to
drill

35
Rig move: Jack up Rig

36
Rig move Jack up rig

37
 Punch through: Jack up rig
 Soil’s bearing capacity increases with depth. When a soil layer is
underlying by a relatively weaker layer, there is a rapid reduction of soil
strength.

 When spud can reaches this interface, weaker soil gives way and the leg
moves downward faster than jacking system is capable of lowering it, to
maintain hull level.

 When the leg moves downward at a speed greater than the jacking system
is capable of, the hull rotates, legs tilt and bend, causing hull to sway.
38
Punch through:
Jack Up Rig

39
 Punch through : Eventuality
 Severe Punch-thru’ can result in serious damage to legs,
hull and jacking system. In extreme cases, rig may
capsize.

 Process continues until either the soil bearing capacity or

hull buoyancy arising from the hull entering the water
increase sufficiently to reach equilibrium.
40
 Punch through : Precautions
 During preloading, preparedness in the event of rapid
penetration of one or multiple legs is necessary: Minimum
Air Gap (≈1-2mtrs).

 There are various preload techniques such as single-leg

preloading and jacking with minimum air gap that reduce
risk of adverse effects when rapid penetration occurs.
41
Jack-Up : Advantages Disadvantages
 Provides a fixed platform.  Difficult and risky to tow.
 Initial cost comparatively less.
 Too many moving parts in
 Can work in soft bottom areas. jacking system.
 Withstand hurricane type of storms.
 Can drill in water depth of ≈ 300  Water depth limitation.
feet.
 Operating rents much lower than
floater, but high end Jack-ups; day-
rates higher.
42
Bottom-supported units and floating units
 Bottom-supported units and floating units remain mobile or floating
above water during relocation or shifting from one location to the other
but the first one will have its support at the bottom, or at the seabed, at
the time of drilling while the second one remains floating even during
drilling mode.
 Thus, bottom-supported units will have the advantage of a fixed
platform during drilling operation and at the same time can be relocated
at any other place within a relatively short time with greater savings of
the cost. But the only limitation will be the depth.
 Bottom-Supported Unit: Submersible
 This is used in shallow waters such as rivers and bays (depth
~50ft). Specially used for swaps regions. It has two hulls.
 The upper hull, ‘Texas’ deck, is used to house the crew
quarters and equipment, and the drilling is performed through
a slot on the stern with a cantilevered structure.
 The lower hull is the ballast area and is also the foundation
used while drilling.
 Submersible: Installation
 The barge is flat from the bottom and hence it requires a flat
dredged surface to sit on. The surface should be pretty level.
 After floating the submersible to a location like a
conventional barge, it is ballasted to rest on the river
bottom.
 Submersibles are fading from the scene because of water
depth limitations only.
 Offshore Fixed Platform
 Platforms whose leg or base is fixed at the seabed forever either by way
of penetration to the seabed or by its own weight. Moreover, they remain
fixed at one place and cannot be moved to any location.
 Because of fixed base, these can have larger load bearing capacity.
 Higher initial cost and water depth poses a great challenges for its
application.
 Different types of fixed platforms are:
 Jacketed platform
 Gravity platform
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
 Jacket here means a steel structure in the
shape of a truncated pyramid that rises
from the seabed to above the water line.
 This is built from tubular steel members.
 Less resistance to waves and currents,
reducing the amount of steel and thus its
weight and cost.
 It consists of the ‘decks’ or the
‘superstructure’ on which the drilling,
Jacket production and all other equipment rest,
Structure and Piles which are driven through the leg
of the jacket for securing the platform to
the seabed.
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
 The jacket legs, are not vertical but
battered.
 Larger bottom base size gives the
advantage of stability by resisting the
environmentally induced overturning
moment.
 Typical superstructure comprises of a
drilling deck, a cellar deck, and
production/ wellhead deck.
 These decks are supported on a
gridwork of girders, trusses, and
columns.
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
 Space framed structure with tubular
members supported on piled
foundations.
 Used for moderate water depths up to
500 M.
 Jackets provides protective layer
around the pipes.
 Typical offshore structure will have a
deck structure containing a Main
Deck, a Cellar Deck, and a Helideck.
 The deck structure is supported by
deck legs connected to the top of the
piles. The piles extend from above the
Mean Low Water through the seabed
and into the soil.
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
 Underwater, the piles are
contained inside the legs of a
“jacket” structure which serves as
bracing for the piles against lateral
loads.
 The jacket also serves as a
template for the initial driving of
the piles. (The piles are driven
through the inside of the legs of
the jacket structure).
 Natural period (usually 2.5
second) is kept below wave period
(14 to 20 seconds) to avoid
amplification of wave loads.
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
 The jacket legs, which vary in sizes with large-diameter
corner legs and smaller diameter central legs, are not
vertical but battered, that is, they taper out from the top and
as a result at the bottom the base size becomes larger giving
the advantage of stability by resisting the environmentally
induced overturning moment.

 Important parts other than three decks are: skirt-pile

sleeves, drilling area deck substructure, deck modules,
drilling area, conductor/riser area, boat landing facility,
barge bumpers.
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
Skirt pile sleeves and bottles at the bottom of jacket leg.
• Used for driving skirt piles.

• Increase the capacity of the structure in

resisting the overturning moment.

• Do not get extended up to the top but up

to a certain height from the bottom.

• Are incorporated into the jacket structure

between the two lowest levels of the
horizontal bracing.
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
Bottle
• In deepwater designs, the lower portion
of the legs are constructed of very large
diameter tubes so that several piles may
be driven through pile guide tubes
provided in the large diameter legs. This
enlargement of the lower ends of the
jacket legs is called a bottle.
Installation
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
Types: Jacketed platform
1. Well-protector platform

2. Tender platform

3. Self-contained Platform

3.1 Template type.

3.2 Tower platform

 Well-Protector Platforms
 Platforms built to protect the risers on producing wells in
shallow water are called well-protectors or well jackets.
 Usually a well jacket serves from 1–4 wells.
 Such a platform may be either one large pipe or caisson, or an
open lattice truss template/jacket structure.
 Objective is to protect the well (or wells) from ship collisions
and environmental forces.
 Tender Platform
• Generally, the derrick and
substructure, primary power supply
and mud pumps are placed on the
platform.
• The drilling crew quarters, remaining
equipment and supplies are located
on the tender ship moored adjacent
to the platform.
• The two are usually connected by a
long walkway.
 Self-Contained Template Platform
• It is a large, usually multiple-decked, platform
which has adequate strength and space to support the
entire drilling rig with its auxiliary equipment and
crew quarters, and enough supplies and materials to
last through the longest anticipated period of bad
weather when supplies cannot be brought in.
• The bad weather period is normally 3-4 days so the
platform should accommodate supplies and materials
for approximately twice this time.
 Self-Contained Tower Platform
• Characterized by relatively few large
diameter legs and fewer diagonal
braces of larger size than those used
in regular template type structures.
• It can be floated to location using the
buoyancy of its larger-diameter legs.
FIXED PLATFORMS: JACKETED PLATFORMS
Installation
The installation procedure is classified as below:
I. Transportation
II. Removal of jacket from transport barge
III. Erection
IV. Pile installation
V. Super structure installation
VI. Grounding of installation welding equipment
FIXED PLATFORMS: CONCRETE GRAVITY
Fixed-bottom structures made from concrete
Heavy and remain in place on the seabed
without the need for piles
Used for moderate water depths up to 300 M.
Part construction is made in a dry dock adjacent
to the sea. The structure is built from bottom up,
like onshore structure.
At a certain point, dock is flooded and the
partially built structure floats. It is towed to
deeper sheltered water where remaining
construction is completed.
After towing to field, base is filled with water
to sink it on the seabed.
Advantage- Less maintenance
FIXED PLATFORMS: CONCRETE GRAVITY
• Concrete gravity structures rest directly on the
ocean floor by virtue of their own weight.
• These structures offer an attractive alternative
to piled steel template platforms in hostile
waters like the North Sea.
• They are designed particularly with storm
conditions in mind.
• Ideally, the platform is constructed close to
the shore.
• The whole thing is moved to its final location
through the use of ocean-going tugs.
CONCRETE GRAVITY : Important Parts
CONCRETE GRAVITY : Types of Design

 CONDEEP Platforms.

 SEATANK Platforms.

 ANDOC Platforms.

 CG DORIS Platforms.
CONCRETE GRAVITY : Types of Design
CONCRETE GRAVITY : CONDEEP Platforms
 CONDEEP means “concrete deep water structure”.
 It refers to a make of gravity based structure for oil
platforms.
 Main components are:
 Caisson
 Skirt
 Towers/columns/shafts/legs
 Deck structure
 CONDEEP Platforms: CAISSON
 Caisson is hexagon-shaped and
usually consists of 19 vertical,
interconnected cylindrical cells
with spherical domes at each end.
 Each cell has an outer-shell
diameter of 20 m and is >50 m in
height. The cells provide buoyancy
during construction and towing
and later serve as oil storage
volume.
 The cells provide buoyancy during
construction and towing and later
serve as oil storage volume
 CONDEEP Platforms: SKIRT
 The skirts serve three purposes, namely:
 penetration to the weaker soils
 transmitting the load to the stronger soil below
 protecting the foundation from scour
 Purpose of skirts is to improve the foundation
stability, make the structure less vulnerable to
erosion and facilitate the grouting process.
 The skirts prevent lateral movement of the
platform on the ocean floor.
 To prevent the platform from sliding and causing damage to the steel skirts as
touchdown is achieved, three steel pipe dowels are provided. These extend
down 13 ft (4 m) below the level of the steel skirts and penetrate the ocean
floor first.
CONDEEP Platforms: SKIRT
CONDEEP Platforms: COLUMS/ LEGS & DECK
These are slender, tapered cylinders
constructed by the slipforming technique.
As the shafts are extensions of the cells,
the lower shaft diameter is the same as that
of the cells, that is, 20 m.
DECK:
These are similar to the deck structures or
superstructure of template platforms.
It accommodate the drilling equipment and
production processing equipment along
with all the utilities and living quarters.
CONCRETE GRAVITY:ANDOC & Seatank Platforms
 It is a joint venture of Dutch & British firms. It means,
“Anglo Dutch Offshore Concrete”.
 Both are similar to the condeep platform having the
tower design with the same four components.
 The sea tank platforms have the steel deck structure
fastened to the tops of the concrete towers by a specially
designed steel transition joint.
 The towers on the Andoc platform change from
concrete shells to steel shells just below the lower
astronomical tide water level.
CONCRETE GRAVITY:ANDOC & Seatank Platforms

Concrete skirt Oil storage Tower

Oil storage
Steel skirt Ballast
Transition joint
Sea Tank Platforms
Andoc Platform

Top view
 CONCRETE GRAVITY:CG Dorris Platform
 The structure has a shape like a marine sea island and is
surrounded by a perforated breakwater wall.
 It is different from the previous three platforms in a way
that this is known as a manifold type platform whereas
those three are categorized as concrete tower type
platforms.
 It is made up of six vertical cylindrical shell panels, the
radii of which are less than the radius of the overall
body.
CONCRETE GRAVITY:CG Dorris Platform
 Advantages of Concrete Offshore
Structures over Steel Platforms
 Concrete structures, not relying on piles require great mass to
stay put in the face of sea storms even severe storms.
 The concrete structures are so massive that they include oil
storage tanks at little or no extra cost.
 They can carry heavy oil production platforms up top (higher
load bearing capacity).
 Advantages of Concrete Offshore
Structures over Steel Platforms
 Steel structures offshore tend to be harder to inspect than concrete, steel structures
consist of many tubes and joints, many of them at locations which are not easily
accessible. The few, large pieces in a concrete structure can be more easily inspected
visually from a diving bell or sub. (LESS MAINTAINENCE)
 Concrete vessel construction time is 18 months steel vessel construction time is 36
months. (LESSER CONSTRUCTION TIME).
 Concrete vessel costs U.S.$33 million based on 1975 cost proposals as against steel
vessel - $40 million, based on the same 1975 cost proposals. (RELATIVELY
CHEAPER).
 Advantages of Concrete Offshore
Structures over Steel Platforms
 Constructions of concrete vessel in a dry dock makes use of traditional civil
engineering materials and less skilled labor, steel vessel require skilled welders
and a lot of other costly materials for connections. (SKILLED & COSTLY
MANPOWER)
 Concrete itself performs well under low temperature conditions. It is well known
that the strength of concrete increases with lower temperature. This feature gives
concrete advantages as a building material for vessels carrying LNG (Liquefied
Natural Gas) or working in arctic areas.