RCS - Plexus Holdings Plc - Development of Replacement Tubing Hanger Neck Seal

Plexus HoldingsAnnouncement

26/02/2024 07:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20240226:nRSZ3291Ea&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 3291E  Plexus Holdings Plc  26 February 2024

 

 

 

Plexus Holdings PLC / Index: AIM / Epic: POS / Sector: Oil equipment &
services

 

RNS REACH

 

26 February 2024

 

 

 

 

Plexus Holdings PLC ('Plexus' or 'the Company')

 

Development of a Replacement Tubing Hanger Neck Seal ("HG-R") for workover
applications

 

Plexus Holdings PLC, the AIM quoted oil and gas engineering services business
and owner of the proprietary POS-GRIP® friction-grip method of wellhead
engineering, known for its time and cost saving capabilities, is pleased to
announce that it has successfully completed a customer sponsored R&D
project to develop a bespoke lifetime leak-proof replacement tubing hanger
neck seal assembly ('HG-R'), to upgrade and extend the field life of existing
surface production wellheads.

 

Plexus' HG-R technology has been designed to address a key challenge facing
oil and gas production operators, namely, the systemic failure of conventional
annular seals, as a result of pressure and temperature induced interface
movement, known as fretting.

 

Particularly on natural gas applications, it can be statistically shown that
most conventional wellhead annular and neck seals will at some point fail,
causing integrity and safety concerns, which may result in environmental
consequences, costly repairs, and lost production.

 

In the case of tubing hanger neck seals, maintenance intervention involves
externally applied temporary injection procedures, or the substitution of
leaking seal components and perhaps even the replacement of worn out tubing
hangers and tubing heads.

 

It should be recognised that external seal injection services are generally
provided by several international specialists and a host of local maintenance
providers, who work with unregulated proprietary injection materials for which
positive results are claimed, although the service invariably comes with
warnings that integrity is temporary because injected seals are subject to the
same dynamics that caused the original seals to fail.

 

Plexus' bespoke HG-R maintenance intervention solutions are exclusively
available from Plexus Ocean Systems Ltd and its licensees and are
scientifically based on Hertzian Stress Theory, and which in respect of
interface stress management features match what we believe to be the
unrivalled capabilities of Plexus' "HG" lifetime guaranteed annular seals.

 

Commenting on this new Plexus Product, Plexus' CEO Ben Van Bilderbeek said:
"The HG-R R&D design project is in line with our long-standing ambition to
supply the oil and gas industry with a portfolio of NetZero compliant sealing
solutions, which, in addition to our lifetime guaranteed wellheads, can in
certain instances be used to upgrade and make secure decade-old production
systems. Importantly, this new bespoke solution allows permanent upgrades to
be carried out as part of planned "workover" activities for existing wells,
without having to remove tubing hangers. This means ageing wellheads can be
safely and affordably repaired, to address future neck seal failures, which in
turn lengthens their economic life, reduces the periodic cost of maintenance,
and helps hydrocarbons maintain the role as a responsible transition fuel,
until the world can rely on alternative energy sources. We will be actively
marketing this new product and look forward to reporting further progress"

 

**ENDS**

 

For further information please visit www.plexusplc.com
(http://www.plexusplc.com) or contact:

 

 Plexus Holdings PLC                Tel: 020 7795 6890

 Ben van Bilderbeek, CEO

 Graham Stevens, CFO
 Cavendish Capital Markets Limited  Tel: 0131 220 6939

 Derrick Lee

 Adam Rae
 St Brides Partners Ltd             plexus@stbridespartners.co.uk

 Isabel de Salis

 Ana Ribeiro

 

Notes to Editors

Plexus Holdings plc (AIM: POS)

Plexus is an IP led company focussed on establishing its patented leak-proof
POS-GRIP® wellhead and associated equipment as the go-to technology for
energy markets whilst making a genuine contribution to the oil and gas
('O&G') industry's ESG and NetZero goals by championing "through the BOP"
(Blow-out Preventer) designs, and lifetime leak-proof HG® metal-to-metal
sealing systems. Having protected the environment for many years through these
technological innovations, the Company was awarded the London Stock Exchange's
Green Economy Mark in July 2021 and continues to place emphasis on its ability
to reduce harmful methane emissions and unnecessary maintenance and
intervention costs.

 

Headquartered in Aberdeen, the Company has provided leak-free wellhead
performance in over 400 wells worldwide and worked with an array of blue-chip
O&G company clients.  As well as generating direct revenues from securing
orders for surface production wellheads in the UK and European North Sea
regions, the Company has several licencing/collaboration agreements with major
partners including SLB and TechnipFMC.

 

Notably, the agreement with SLB was expanded in December 2023 (see RNS
2.1.2024) for a cash consideration payable to Plexus of US$5.2m to enable SLB
to use certain POS-GRIP technology including HG® seal technology for standard
surface wellhead applications for all pressure and size ranges on a worldwide
basis. The in-perpetuity royalty free licence scope includes O&G surface
production and storage applications, as well as CO(2) storage ('CCS') and
hydrogen storage, and water and cuttings injection. The Agreement also
includes a non-exclusive licence to SLB for Adjustable Surface Production
Wellheads, and HG Trees with the potential to generate royalties for Plexus
from such special applications of the POS-GRIP technology.  Plexus may also
quote customers for SLB Valves and Trees combined with Plexus wellheads on a
project basis subject to SLB approval where a full package of equipment is
required. Plexus retains the original IP, and the intention is that Plexus
continues to operate in the surface production wellhead sector on a limited
basis, as an innovative and specialised wellhead equipment supplier, whilst
also pursuing opportunities in exploration rental wellheads from Jack-up rigs,
subsea, connectors (such as metal sealing HP/HT Tie-Back applications),
P&A, special applications, geothermal, hydrogen and all non-oil and gas
applications.

 

The Company also has a separate exploration wellhead equipment related
licensing arrangement with SLB subsidiary Cameron, which has enabled Plexus to
re-enter the Jack-up Exploration (Adjustable) Rental Wellhead market, with
Cameron providing manufacturing support and assisting in sales leads
generation in return for a licence royalty fee.

 

Plexus' current suite of products include Exact-15 exploration rental
wellheads, Adjustable HG surface production wellheads, which combine POS-GRIP
technology with gas tight leak free metal-to-metal sealing; the Python®
subsea wellhead, developed in a Joint Industry Project with several industry
leaders; the POS-SET™ Connector for the de-commissioning and P&A market;
and Tersus-PCT, an innovative HP/HT tie back connector product.

 

Having proved the superior uniquely enabling qualities of POS-GRIP Technology
both organically and with licencees, Plexus is now focused on establishing its
technology and related equipment in other markets and sectors both in the
UKCS, ECS and around the world where the directors believe it can play an
important role in reducing harmful fugitive methane emission risks as
operators strive to deliver on ESG commitments and NetZero goals in a safe and
cost-effective way.

 

For more information visit: https://www.plexusplc.com/
(https://www.plexusplc.com/)

 

 

 

This information is provided by Reach, the non-regulatory press release distribution service of RNS, part of the London Stock Exchange. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  NRAEASADAAFLEFA