Tracerco continues to expand with significant contract win

Leading pipeline flow assurance specialist Tracerco, part of the Johnson Matthey Group, has been awarded a contract to provide a unique pipeline technology to Halliburton’s Pipeline and Process Services product service line (formerly PSL Energy Services) in a deal worth £250,000. The technique will be used during the laying of pipelines to a new installation off the coast of Egypt.

Tracerco’s pig-tracking device is not constrained by power supply and can provide unlimited tracking time. Tracerco developed the technique as part of its Precision Diagnostics portfolio of services. Pipeline pigs are used to clean deposits or remove water from pipelines and usually need to be tracked to prevent lengthy delays in locating them should they become lodged in the pipeline.

This latest contract award is another milestone in what has been a successful period of growth for Tracerco since the company’s acquisition by Johnson Matthey, which has seen annual turnover increase from £12M in 2002 to £40M this financial year. The announcement follows another recent contract award to provide similar services to KTN (Norway) for work in the UKCS in a deal worth £100,000.

Andy Hurst, managing director of Tracerco said: “This is an exciting time for the company. Through the use of our groundbreaking technology we have been able to build on our reputation for providing the most accurate flow assurance techniques that are currently available. We are delighted to have been awarded this contract and look forward to using our in-depth knowledge and experience of this area to assist with this project.”

Tracerco’s unique technique works by tagging the pig with a radioisotope, which can pinpoint its location to within 5cm and provides in-situ, real-time location of the pig. The technology will be used during the pipeline construction stages of the Burullus Gas Company’s West Delta Deep Marine project. Pigs will be used to remove water from the pipelines during the commissioning stage of the project.

The West Delta Deep Marine project is located off the Nile Delta in the Eastern Mediterranean. Tracerco is expected to commence work next month (October) with first gas from this phase of the project anticipated 2008.