BJ services expands nitrogen tank fleet

Enhancing Services in Australia

BJ Services recently purchased 16 new tanks, valued at $1.2m, in Perth, WA. The tanks are used to support commissioning service contracts for several major clients currently operating in Australia and have already carried out a variety of services on Australia's North West Shelf. Each tank can store up to 2,000 gal of liquid nitrogen, and function safely in pressures ranging between 3 to 16 barg. BJ ensured that each tank is fully accredited and registered in accordance with the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations 1996 of the Department of Consumer and Employment Protection of the Government of Western Australia.

The additional nitrogen tanks increases BJ's fleet in Australia to 41 units, making it one of the largest in Australia. "The addition of these new nitrogen tanks nearly doubles the size of our fleet, meaning that our customers can rest assured their assets will receive superior pre-commissioning services as and when required," said Lindsay Link, general manager of Process and Pipeline Services for BJ Services Company.

BJ Services has also designed new equipment to support pipeline services operations in Australia. Two new Pacemaker® triplex pumps were custom-built to carry out pipeline hydrotesting. The pumps operate at a maximum pressure of 12,500 psi, with a maximum flow of 1,056 L/min. In addition, two new flooding pumps, which operate at a maximum flow of 300 m3 per hour and to pressures of up to 32 barg, were designed and built to carry out pipeline flooding operations in the region.

Dubai Base Adds Powerful Nitrogen Pump Unit to Fleet

BJ Services also added its largest nitrogen pump unit to its Middle East fleet. Based permanently at the BJ base in Dubai, the 660,000 scf/hr trailer-mounted nitrogen pump unit features a tractor unit and integral 3,000 USG LN2 tank. The LN2 tank can pump and vaporise nitrogen at flows of 11,000 scfm, which is a major benefit. Previously, 16 personnel using smaller pumps were required to pump at this rate. With the new LN2 tank, only four crewmembers are required to achieve this level of flow, which translates to reduced labour and equipment mobilisation costs.

The unit can also discharge nitrogen gas at high temperatures in excess of 200°C, making it ideal for drying out plants or stripping hydrocarbons from sieve beds. It is the perfect tool for satisfying clients with high volume nitrogen requirements, including large process systems, running intelligent pigs in lines with insufficient product, purging and packing pipelines, and large well service operations.

BJ Services Company (BJS-NYSE, CBOE) is a leading provider of field development and production enhancement services to the energy industry. Other oilfield services include industrial chemicals and commissioning, and inspection services to refineries, pipelines and offshore platforms. With more than 17,000 employees in 50 countries, the Company operates in virtually every major oil and gas-producing region of the world. For more information visit the Company's web site at www.bjservices.com.