(WO) — Unity has launched an ultra-compact blowout preventer (BOP) valve designed to enable well intervention in space-constrained offshore environments where conventional BOP systems cannot be deployed.
The new Unity Qb valve measures approximately one-third the width of conventional BOP systems and is rated to 10,000 psi. The technology is designed for wireline, slickline and coiled tubing operations, with potential future applications in drilling.
Unlike conventional BOPs, which use rams that travel in a straight line from opposite sides of the wellbore, the Qb’s rams rotate around a central cartridge within the housing. Unity describes the design as a hybrid between a conventional BOP and a ball valve, allowing it to perform standard BOP functions within a smaller footprint.
The patented system has twice the pressure rating of Unity’s existing compact shear (CSS) valve while maintaining the same weight. It can also be stacked in single, dual or triple configurations, expanding its potential use on higher-pressure wells and in constrained platform environments.
Unity invested approximately £500,000 in research and development of the technology. The Aberdeen-based company said the new system expands its pressure-control offering beyond the coiled tubing applications that account for much of its existing CSS valve work.
“The future of well intervention will be defined by technologies that deliver more capability from a smaller footprint,” said Gary Smart, CEO of Unity. “We recognized that the size and complexity of conventional BOP systems were increasingly constraining operations in space-limited environments.”
Unity said its existing CSS valve will remain in its portfolio, with Qb intended to expand the range of offshore intervention operations the company can support.
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