The offshore oil and gas industry is navigating a major transformation, driven by rising global energy demand, the need for secure energy supplies, stricter environmental regulations, and the push for more sustainable operations.
Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) units and Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) vessels will play a critical role in enabling this transformation by connecting hydrocarbon producers with a growing range of geographically diverse consumer markets worldwide. As a result, the demand for floating production systems is increasing. The global FPSO market is projected to grow to USD 34.56 billion in 2032. The pursuit of efficiency, supply stability, safety, and sustainability has accelerated the demand for more advanced solutions to optimize FPSO and FLNG performance.
FPSOs and FLNGs are highly complex structures that integrate various production, processing, storage, and offloading technologies. The challenge is to ensure all systems operate efficiently under harsh conditions, including extreme weather and corrosive environments. Floating production systems often operate in remote locations, making access to maintenance and repairs difficult. Downtime due to equipment failure can result in significant production losses. Ensuring the reliability of critical systems is essential.
Increasing national and international environmental rules is an additional challenge. Regulations such as the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), and Environmental Impact Assessments have been joined by new and evolving compliance laws that must be followed by vessel operators.
Moving floating production systems forward
Advanced materials technology will help propel floating production systems toward improved performance. Lighter, stronger, and more durable materials will empower operations to be more efficient, profitable, and sustainable.
At Alleima, we’re fiercely devoted to giving our customers the absolute best in materials technology. And why we work hand-in-hand with them to move innovation and societies ever forward.
Every day, all over the world, Alleima tubing is used to advance productivity, quality, and sustainability. In addition to advanced alloy tubing solutions, we bring more than 160 years of materials expertise to the table. In the floating production sector, our industry-leading materials are enabling operators to make innovative changes that bring about a real difference.
Our Hydraulic and Instrumentation tubing (H&I) comes in a comprehensive range of corrosion-resistant stainless steels and nickel alloys to withstand even the harshest conditions at sea. An important grade for H&I tubing is Sanicro® 35, our award-winning super-austenitic stainless steel alloy that combines the best features of stainless steel and nickel alloys. This grade has excellent corrosion resistance for use in applications such as crude distillation unit overhead condenser tubes, seawater, and other highly corrosive environments. Its extreme critical pitting and crevice temperatures combine with excellent mechanical properties to provide advanced performance.
Alleima can also offer coiled tubing of many grades including Alleima® 3R60 for key applications like hydrogen, offshore and marine.
Our seamless high-pressure tubes are also used in a variety of applications, including FPSO and FLNG vessels. They deliver high yield and tensile strength combined with high elongation. A very smooth inside surface guarantees pressure resistance.
Engineering as a force for sustainability
Demand from industry and society for ever more sustainable materials is only set to grow. But that’s not a new trend for us. Continuously evolving materials is what we do at Alleima. By using engineering as a force for sustainable good we pave the way for industry-wide breakthroughs.
We’re dedicated to sustainability - from product design to manufacturing processes. Over 80% of our products incorporate recycled materials and we support our customers in meeting their decarbonization targets.
Always moving you forward
FPSO and FLNG vessels will be vital in developing and delivering secure and safe energy worldwide as part of the transition to renewable sources. Innovations in advanced materials can push these sectors forward by generating incremental benefits that pave the way for industry-side breakthroughs. At Alleima, we recognize that in supporting the FPSO and FLNG sectors our own possibilities for progression are radically increased. Because when we advance, so do our partners and their customers.
Dragon Hao, Technical Marketing Manager at Alleima China, presented at FFG 2024 event earlier.