Tension-leg platform
type of offshore platform used in production of oil or gas
A tension-leg platform (TLP) or extended tension leg platform (ETLP) is a vertically moored floating structure normally used for the offshore production of oil or gas, and is particularly suited for water depths greater than 300 metres (about 1000 ft) and less than 1500 metres (about 4900 ft). Use of tension-leg platforms has also been proposed for offshore wind turbines.
The platform is permanently moored by means of tethers or tendons grouped at each of the structure's corners. A group of tethers is called a tension leg. A feature of the design of the tethers is that they have relatively high axial stiffness (low elasticity), such that virtually all vertical motion of the platform is eliminated. This allows the platform to have the production wellheads on deck (connected directly to the subsea wells by rigid risers), instead of on the seafloor. This allows a simpler well completion and gives better control over the production from the oil or gas reservoir, and easier access for downhole intervention operations.
TLPs have been in use since the early 1980s. The first tension leg platform was built for Conoco's Hutton field in the North Sea in the early 1980s. The hull was built in the dry-dock at Highland Fabricator's Nigg yard in the north of Scotland, with the deck section built nearby at McDermott's yard at Ardersier.
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