Tendeka cable-free control and monitoring system successful in North Sea trial

Tendeka has successfully tested its PulseEight wireless control and monitoring device with an operator in the North Sea. The PulseEight uses pressure pulse telemetry to communicate wirelessly between downhole monitoring and the wellhead control system, and is suitable for multi-phase flow.

With its partners the Oil & Gas Technology Centre (OGTC), Tendeka has successfully completed phase one of a project to install and test PulseEight as an insert safety valve. The device successfully detected a number of simulated emergency events and reacted as planned. The company says that further development is ongoing.

Testing included operations in a live producing offshore well. The operator believes the technology could allow more than £5 million (€5.7 million) in annual savings per well in the North Sea and provide ‘increased capability’.

The North Sea trial follows a successful field test with OMV Group in Austria earlier in 2018. The OGTC has provided funding support for both projects.

Tendeka CEO Brad Baker said in a statement: “We are always encouraged when the industry embraces pioneering innovation.  To secure two field trials in such a short space of time shows the real appetite for PulseEight.”

The company says that, by eliminating control lines, the PulseEight is simple to install and is a cost-effective solution for oil, water, and gas control in greenfield, brownfield, extended reach, and multi-lateral applications. The downhole device is also able to operate autonomously.

Based in Aberdeen in the UK, Tendeka specialises in completion systems and services to the upstream oil and gas industry. The company was founded in 2009 through the merging of SwellFix, Sensornet and Well Technology; the companies Flotech and FloQuest were acquired by the newly-formed Tendeka in the same year.