Hilcorp operation managers were in Kenai Friday to speak at an Alliance luncheon. Cook Inlet Offshore Operations Manager Stan Golis updated the pro-oil industry group on recent oil and gas leaks.
Golis said repairs to a gas pipeline that supplies heat and power to two oil platforms should be complete. That leak was initially stopped in April, but the fix was only temporary. Golis said divers were set to finish installing a permanent clamp Friday morning.
“I’d like to point out that this is not a corrosion issue,” Golis said. “What we believe is actually happening here is there is tidal action that moves this pipe back and forth across the rocky outcrops and essentially wears a hole in the pipeline.”
After the meeting, Golis explained that the line will be tested at nearly double its normal operating pressure to detect any leaks. Hilcorp also plans to use what’s called a smart pig to further assess the line.
“It is basically a tool that will get wall thickness readings and other things and will allow us to accurately assess the condition of the pipeline,” Golis said.
Golis said Hilcorp will continue to assess its infrastructure as it always has. He says it inspects 20 percent of all its oil and gas systems annually.
Golis also outlined a new initiative to lay about three miles of new pipeline. The $75 million project will connect to the existing pipeline system to carry oil across the inlet instead of tankers. The project will eliminate the need to store oil at the Drift River Terminal near the base of Mount Redoubt.
Golis says two oil platforms will be taken off line and dismantled as part of the project. Hilcorp hopes to begin early next year and finish by September.
