Brazil is shaping up to be the proving ground for advanced applications of thermoplastic composite pipe, a lightweight, corrosion-resistant alternative to steel pipe and traditional flexibles.
Qualification programmes are under way in the country to demonstrate the technology’s suitability for deep-water riser applications, a goal long sought by the leading manufacturers of bonded thermoplastic composite pipe (TCP).
Netherlands-based Airborne Oil & Gas and Magma Global, of the UK, are each working with local and international service providers to prove the technology in deep-water applications — Airborne with Brazilian engineering company Simeros Technologies and Oslo-listed Subsea 7, while Magma has teamed with London-headquartered TechnipFMC and Brazil’s Ocyan on separate projects.
