Strohm partners up with Petronas for TCP commercialization

Strohm has signed an agreement with Petronas’ technology commercialization arm, Petronas Technology Ventures Sdn Bhd (PTVSB,) to commercialize thermoplastic composite pipe (TCP) in the industry and scale its utilization across Petronas facilities.  

According to Strohm, the partnership has ensured that the products are available in the market with immediate effect. 

The company believes that the agreement will be instrumental in expanding the knowledge of the design, production and qualification standard from its technology backbone – DNV (standard ST-F119), allowing operators to qualify and utilize TCP, instead of metallic pipes, creating substantial cost reduction potentials in all stages of an oil and gas project lifecycle. 

“We are very excited to take this next step together with PETRONAS,” said Fabienne Ellington, Strohm’s vice president, Middle East and Asia-Pacific. “Their visionary spirit recognised at an early stage the potential for TCP and this extended commitment will build on our existing footprint with them in Asia Pacific and provide further robust business opportunities across the sector.”

Strohm and PETRONAS have been collaborating since 2012 when they kicked off a qualification program for TCP, followed by a pilot installation project for a full well stream production pipeline on the West Lutong field in Sarawak waters.  

TCP is said to have many benefits compared to steel alternatives, including zero corrosion, reduced weight leading to improved transportation and installation costs, and lower carbon footprint.  

For flowlines, an added benefit is the reduction in pressure drops and improvement of multiphase flow conditions, thanks to a smooth bore, bonded pipe, immune to any gas permeation risks. 

“Another recent key development has been the confirmation that the cost-effective glass fibre polyethylene material used for the PETRONAS pilot project is now complemented by carbon fibre polyamide and carbon fibre PVDF materials, which are fully qualified for full hydrocarbon well stream fluid applications,” Ellington added.

“These materials are not susceptible to corrosion, blistering or embrittlement from CO₂, H₂S or hydrogen, making them particularly suitable for highly sour service applications, carbon sequestration projects and hydrogen transportation.”