6 / 8
Business World |
March 2015
50
which are both free of hazardous chemicals.
Their equipment is also “all rigged up” with
an Emergency Shut Down (ESD) system
that automatically shuts the engine down if
a leak occurs at any point during the opera-
tion − which is unlikely to happen due to the
thick insulation in their tubing − thus negat-
ing any potential contamination.
ONE STOP SHOP
In addition to beingmore cost-effective, safer
and environmentally-friendly than conven-
tional well abandonment methods, the Nu-
Wave system is also much simpler and tidier.
Tim explains the seamless process in detail.
“When we get to the site, we pull up to the
well, break the top of the well off, unload our
equipment and lower our tool down into the
well,” he says. “Once it’s in place, we kick the
high-pressure water on. When it gets up to
pressure, we turn the sand on. Once it kicks
in and we pierce through all the casings, we
turn the hydraulics on, which starts rotating
the tool down below. Once it reaches full ro-
tation, we shut the sand off and wait a few
minutes before shutting the water off.”
“We then pull our tool out and use a hoe to
hook onto the wellhead to pull it out,” he
adds. “At that point, we insert the capping
mechanism − called a centralizer − which
is approved by the board. It’s then lowered
down into the wellbore with the location
welded on it. Once it’s in place, we basically
fill the hole in with the hoe and load up all