KTH Develops Submersible Actuators for Caspian Sea Rigs..................7BACK ____________________________________________________________________________________

Halifax’s KT Hydraulics has secured a large contract with Glasgow hydraulic systems specialist Amclyde Norson to develop and supply submersible actuators for platforms in BP’s new Azeri oil field in the Caspian Sea.

KT Hydraulics has already fulfilled the first order to supply 14 submersible ball valves and actuators. The order has been air freighted directly to Baku in Azerbaijan where the first of four oil platforms is under construction.

“We’re always delighted to be associated with prestigious projects such as this,” commented KTH’s contract manager Richard Ellis. “Reported to be worth around $11bn, the Azeri project is the largest in the world. When complete, the platforms will be responsible for producing more oil than the whole of the North Sea. We’re proud that KTH actuators have a part to play in all this.”

KT Hydraulics was awarded the contract on the strengths of quality and price. In the Caspian Sea, the actuators are required to operate at a depth of 128 metres. KTH’s submersible KS and KSF actuators are tested and proven to 200 metres. This meant that no modifications were necessary and that no accumulators were needed to compensate for pressure.

The actuator and valve assemblies will be used to control ballast in the platform jacket legs to accurately site the jackets on concrete templates on the seabed. Once sited, the jacket ballast and the actuators have no further purpose. A further advantage of the standard KSF actuators is that they feature a spring closure that ensures the valves will close in the event of a hydraulic system failure.

In securing the contract, KTH satisfied stringent criteria for quality of manufacture and demonstrated an ability to design to exact specification. The contract is the first KTH has gained from Amclyde Norson, itself a sub-contractor to consultants Kellogg Brown and Root.

A specialist in the design, manufacture and refurbishment of hydraulic systems, KTH has a long-standing track record in the development and repair of hydraulic systems for the petrochemical and processing industries. The company is also the sole UK distributor for Kracht pumps, flowmeters and hydraulic equipment.

Tested and proven to a depth of 200 metres the KS and KSF actuators developed by KT Hydraulics require no modifications to compensate for pressure at the depth of operation in the Caspian Sea.