Integrity Partners in Mexico

The event brought stakeholders from the Mexican natural gas midstream sector together, including pipeline operators, representatives from the construction sector, services providers, and others, to discuss integrity challenges during the different stages of a pipeline’s lifecycle. The seminar consisted of a combination of speakers, lectures, and a panel discussion. In attendance were professionals involved with or responsible for ensuring pipeline integrity and safety.

The keynote speech was presented by Mr. Robert Jones from TransCanada Mexico. Mr. Jones spoke about construction planning and how, for any pipeline project, integrity management begins months or even years in advance of the actual construction of the pipeline. The keynote speech provided a perspective and experience, and highlighted the importance of integrity management decisions and considerations during the front-end engineering and design phase of a pipeline project. It also showcased TransCanada projects in Mexico.

The panel – consisting of Antoine Olivier (ENGIE Mexico), Bryce Brown (ROSEN Group), Eckhard Hinrichsen (DNV.GL), Alejandro Gochicoa (Arendal), and moderated by Jan Frowijn (ROSEN Group, Mexico & Central America) – discussed the importance of getting pipeline construction right and the potential impact on the short- and long-term integrity of the pipeline should it not be designed and constructed to the highest standard. They also discussed what the sector is doing to prevent or resolve pipeline construction issues, communicate experiences and maintain best practices. Eckhard Hinrichsen congratulated ROSEN on “an interesting and successful event.”

ROSEN SEMINAR 2016 - Panelists

In the lecture by Dr. Phil Hopkins, participants learned more about the various types of pressure testing, and how pressure testing is used to establish the maximum pipeline operating pressure, as well as to detect large defects in the pipeline – in addition to the use of smart pigs during or shortly after commissioning a pipeline, or during operation, to determine the pipeline's condition. This baseline inspection can then be used as a reference for future inspections. According to Dr. Hopkins, “It is a credit to the ROSEN Group in Mexico that they were able to attract such a good audience in Mexico, at a time when the industry is going through much change.”

Pedro Guillen, Oscar Ruiz and Jozef Soltis of MACAW Engineering provided a review of defects found in pipelines and the best approach to assess them based on industry guidelines and experience. They also explained how the results from this assessment process could be linked to Corrosion Management Strategies. “ENGIE people learned a lot from the different presentations. Of course, it’s a question of specialists, but it’s very good to know that there is always some specific solution for specific problem,” said Antoine Olivier of ENGIE.

Michelle Unger, head of the Education Systems and Services business line at the ROSEN Group, presented a framework for managing and assessing competencies, explaining that the future of the industry not only relies on the latest technological advancements but also on competent people.

The event was attended by close to 100 people and was a great success. The ROSEN Group in Mexico was recognized for its important role as a leading integrity service provider, and for bringing together stakeholders in the natural gas midstream sector. According to Bryce Brown of the ROSEN Group in the USA, “The workshop demonstrated, very well, our comprehensive approach to asset care – specifically pipeline integrity – as well as our way of open, honest and humble communication on the topics, specifically given the fact that many of the people we are interfacing with are new to the industry and are still learning a great deal about the related subjects.”

The day was closed by Mr. Francisco López from CENAGAS, who provided an update on recent developments and an outlook on Mexico’s natural gas midstream sector. The energy reform includes expansion of Mexico's natural gas pipeline network to 18,000km by 2019. Privately held pipelines have been integrated into the grid, and both Mexican as well as international companies have already invested millions. The event was attended by and received positive feedback from several CENAGAS engineers. Mr. López commented, “Thanks for inviting us to the event!”

On behalf of the ROSEN Group, we thank all those who made this event a success, and we look forward to seeing you at a ROSEN Seminar in 2017!