Invensys to supply Triconex Safety Instrumented Systems and Fire and Gas Systems for SonaHess at Gassi El Agreb oil field redevelopment project in Algeria

Triple modular redundant (TMR) technology to be used for emergency shutdown in four gas compression and re-injection facilities
 

Invensys Process Systems has been selected by Bechtel to supply Triconex (www.triconex.com) triple modular redundant (TMR) technology for safety instrumented systems in the SonaHess Gassi El Agreb (GEA) redevelopment project in Algeria. Bechtel has the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to construct the facilities for SonaHess. The Tricon TMR systems will be implemented for emergency shutdown and fire and gas applications at the El Gassi, Zotti, Al Agreb and Al Agreb West gas compression and re-injection lift facilities. Invensys will also provide project management, hardware integration, testing, and training services for SonaHess engineers and operators.

SonaHess is a joint operating company of Sonatrach and Amerada Hess. The GEA redevelopment project will enhance oil recovery from mature oilfields, to address continued growth in global crude oil demands. Oilfield rehabilitation methods include the installation of new gas re-injection lift systems, which compress gas that has been separated from the pumped crude, and re-inject the gas back down into the reservoir, increasing reservoir pressure and driving crude oil to the production wells. The redevelopment project is expected to be completed in 2007.

The Tricon systems were selected based on: the TMR architecture’s high availability and reliability; the extensive installed base of Tricon safety instrumented system installations in other gas injection and LNG applications, and the Invensys local support infrastructure.

The Triconex triple modular redundant (TMR) technology employs three isolated, parallel control systems and extensive diagnostics integrated into one system. The system uses two-out-of-three voting to provide high-integrity, error-free, uninterrupted process operation. The TMR architecture eliminates any single point of failure and enables on-line maintenance, on-line programming downloads, self-calibration and fault localization. The industry-certified Tricon TMR controller’s control functions and diagnostics are embedded and transparent, and the device behaves as a single control device to the operator or engineer.

About SonaHess

SonaHess is a joint operating company of Sonatrach and Amerada Hess, created in 2000 to rehabilitate and operate the Gassi El Agreb oil fields in Algeria. Sonatrach S.A. is Algeria’s government-owned natural gas and oil production and refining company, headquartered in Algiers. The company is involved in the exploration, production, refining, marketing and the distribution of oil, gas and derivative products for domestic and export markets. Amerada Hess, headquartered in New York, is a global integrated energy company engaged in the exploration for and the production, purchase, transportation and sale of crude oil and natural gas, as well as the production and sale of refined petroleum products.

About Invensys Process Systems

Invensys Process Systems, a business unit of Invensys plc, provides products, services and solutions for the automation and optimization of industrial process plants. In addition to its rapidly expanding Global Solutions group, Invensys Process Systems includes industry-leading brands such as Foxboro, Triconex, SimSci-Esscor, Wonderware, and Avantis, whose products are installed in more than 100,000 plants across the world. These range from small hybrid and batch plants to the world’s largest upstream projects, refineries, gas plants, petrochemicals plants, power plants, and pulp and paper mills.
The Invensys Group (www.invensys.com) is made up of five businesses: Process Systems, APV, Eurotherm, Rail Systems and Controls. The Group is headquartered in London and is listed on the London Stock Exchange, with approximately 30,000 employees working in 60 countries.