Highlights
(850 miles)
directional drilling
Overview
Fast-tracked delivery with award-winning safety
Spanning throughout Texas from Orla to Sweeny, the Gray Oak Pipeline is a 1,368km-long, 900,000 barrel of oil per day (bopd) onshore crude pipeline system and one of the biggest shippers from the Permian Basin, the largest U.S. shale basin, to multiple delivery points from Freeport to Corpus Christi.
Wood successfully managed the project, designing and delivering approximately 1,368 km of pipelines to third party interconnects, associated pump and meter stations, truck receipts and various export terminals. During this period, first oil was achieved only 18 months following detailed design kick off, outpacing typical industry timelines by six to twelve months.
The project was celebrated for outstanding safety and performance, earning the prestigious American Petroleum Institute’s distinguished pipeline safety award.
Read on to discover how we got this system up and running in less than a year.
Challenge
Meeting the growing demand for Permian Basin crude transport
The Gray Oak Pipeline project was commissioned to meet the need for the Permian crude transport from the West Texas counties of Crane, Reeves and Winkler, along with crude from the Eagle Ford, to destinations near Houston and Corpus Christi.
The Permian Basin is the largest petroleum-producing basin in the US, vital to the country’s energy security. It is anticipated that by 2030 Permian oil supply will grow by around two million barrels per day, driving increased oil exports off the Gulf Coast. The Gray Oak Pipeline is an industry-leading solution to deliver Permian Basin oil to local Gulf Coast and global export markets.
The project called for 9,400 feet of horizontal directional drilling from land to land across Nueces Bay and efficient project management, meticulous front-end environmental studies and strong technical expertise. Wood was selected to deliver this complex project due to our track record in greenfield pipeline projects and history of predictable and safe project delivery.
Wood successfully navigated a tight schedule, strict permitting requirements, numerous information requests, coordination with multiple landowners and several tie ins, all within a remarkably short project timeline.
The Gray Oak Pipeline had tight schedule constraints and needed to be operational within 18 months, calling for robust mobilisation of resources for this transformational project. Throughout the project, Wood’s project and engineering teams took on the following challenges:
Tight schedule
Engineering phases of similar sized projects would usually need more than 18 months to execute, meaning the on and off-site project teams worked efficiently to diligently plan, follow and perform project deliverables and milestones.
Permitting and cultural resources support
To execute within the desired timeline for first oil, it was essential to plan and execute environmental surveys ahead of survey permission, starting early to accommodate the project timeline.
Obtaining information early
To allow for early issued for construction (IFC) drawings, there was a need to quickly obtain survey and right of way (ROW) information.
Landowner negotiations
Negotiations involving third parties were continuously ongoing to finalise facility locations.
Tie ins
Six storage terminals (4.1 million bopd current storage capacity and 1 million bopd future storage capacity; with 135,000HP total pumping capacity), three pump stations (with 90,000HP total pumping capacity) and 14 receipt / delivery metering locations were required.
Management of change
Significant scope changes were identified and delivered throughout the project, encompassing multiple facilities and alterations in delivery points.
Solution
Front-end excellence: Permitting and planning in record time
Wood was selected to execute this phase of the Gray Oak Pipeline due to our full spectrum of capabilities, availability of resources and unparalleled engineering and project management expertise. The team demonstrated exceptional performance in the early project phases, with subject matter experts demonstrating deep domain knowledge. Given the urgency to complete within 18 months, Wood’s access to resources enabled precise and effective resource planning.
Our front-end engineering experts completed field studies in less than four months and received five of six permits in nine months, ensuring the project was solid from the outset. Permitting also included:
- Six permits across three US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) districts
- Wetland/ waters of the United States (WOUS) delineation
- Habitat suitability assessment
- Biological assessment
- Cultural resource field surveys
- Section 106 consultation
- Endangered Species Act (ESA) Section 7 consultation (US Fish and Wildlife Services/US Army Corps of Engineers)
- Construction field inspection and related monitoring and response actions
Our team successfully collaborated with the Permian Basin for the environmental requirements, pushing through the necessary permit applications and maintaining pressure on regulatory agencies to successfully keep the schedule on track.
Production of first oil was completed in 18 months, significantly outpacing the typical engineering cycle.
Outcome
From concept to first oil in 18 Months
Wood’s comprehensive expertise across of all stages of engineering and full field services and permitting capabilities ensured that the project was delivered with the end in mind – delivering first oil in 18 months. The robust interface between engineering and field office was instrumental in driving the project’s success. Wood offered customised solutions to overcome project challenges, with a dedicated on-site project team prioritising safety and maintaining pace of delivery at every milestone.
Once complete, the project was awarded the American Petroleum Institute’s distinguished pipeline safety award in the large-operator category, recognised for its excellence in both safety and performance.
Wood’s seamless and timely delivery of this complex project underlines our ability to take on challenging concepts and deliver a quality, safe solution on-time and at-budget.