Intelligent Pigging Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Oil & Gas pipeline infrastructure is expected to grow globally at a CAGR of nearly 3.5%, during the forecasting period. The growth in pipeline infrastructure is expected to create an opportunity for the intelligent pigging market to grow during the forecast period. One of the most eminent flow assurance problems faced by the oil & gas pipeline operators is the build-up of deposits in pipelines. Any disruption to the internal pipe surface, such as paraffin wax or a build-up of scale, hydrate, asphaltenes, or other corrosive materials, significantly impacts cost borne by the operators to maintain desired flow rates. Intelligent pigging is a smart solution getting used by the oil & gas industry as part of its pipeline inspection and maintenance program. Smart pig uses nondestructive techniques such as magnetic flux, ultrasound, and caliper to inspect for erosion-corrosion, metal loss, pitting, weld anomalies, and hydrogen-induced cracking, among others. The primary drivers for the market are the existing, newly developed, and proposed oil & gas pipeline around the world. However, ambiguity caused during data interpretation of the pipeline inspection process and, in some cases, the extra cost associated with the operation of the second pig, due to the unavailability of necessary data during the first pigging process data would act as a restraint for the market to grow in future.

Key Highlights

• Among all the intelligent pigging services, caliper pigging is one of the prominent pigging processes, that have greater importance in gas pipeline. Gas pipeline has much higher velocity than oil. Any disruption on the inner surface may cause large turbulence, that can be mitigated by using caliper pigging.
• Oil & gas pipelines are an integral part of hydrocarbon infrastructure. Pipelines are required to transport oil or natural gas from the point of origin to the point of consumption. It has been estimated that during 2018, nearly 189 pipeline projects are proposed and have been expected to get commissioned in the near future. Among the proposed pipeline projects, North America is estimated to have the highest number of oil & gas pipelines. An increase in pipelines is expected to create an opportunity for the intelligent pipping market in the coming years.
• North America is one of the prominent regions for oil & gas pipeline networks. It is excepted that the region is expected to dominate the intelligent pigging network, with its under construction and proposed pipeline networks.

Key Market Trends

Caliper Pigging as a Significant Intelligent Pigging Process

• Caliper pigging provides valuable and detailed data about the pipeline, such as ovalities, dents, locations of valves, and girth welds & t pieces. Apart from that, the caliper pigging tools can be used in liquid and gas pipelines and can pass through high angle 1.5D bends, and long-distance pipelines.
• In addition, the new pipelines, particularly gas pipelines, are equipped with sophisticated equipment, such as the advanced and large number of valves and fluid flow and pressure sensors. The equipment is intended to attain better control over the production. But with a complicated pipeline structure, it is important to acquire detailed data. Caliper pigging is the most suitable type of pigging for these kinds of operations. Hence, are preferred by gas pipeline operators.
• During 2018, nearly 65% of the global pipeline network transport natural gas, and it is expected that more than 270 gas pipelines projects are proposed and are under construction. With an increase in gas pipeline projects, there is much possibility of an increase in caliper pigging process, to have a safe and uninterrupted supply of gas.

North America to Dominate the Market

• As the demand for energy produced in North America continues to grow, the exploration and production would continue to move further towards harsh environments. In particular, the recent discovery of certain new extraction techniques has opened multiple oil & gas shale regions in extremely remote areas.
• In the United States, approximately 70% of crude oil and petroleum products are shipped through pipelines. In 2018, the United States crude oil production was 10.9 mb/d, an increase by 1.6 mb/d from 2017. Furthermore, it is expected to reach 12.1 mb/d in 2019 and 12.9 mb/d in 2020. Most of the increased production is expected to be generated from Texas and New Mexico.
• More than 60% of electric generating capacity installed in 2018 was fuelled by natural gas. Almost 90% (19.3 GW) of the natural gas-fired capacity in the United States added in 2018 were combined-cycle generators, the most efficient natural gas-fired generating technology. Pennsylvania accounted for almost 25% (4.4 GW) of all 2018 domestic natural gas additions, and three other states namely Maryland, Virginia, and Florida accounted for about 30%.
• Unlocking the hydrocarbon resources in low permeability shale formations, the United States becomes one of the leading producers of oil and gas across the world and is expected to remain the same during the forecast period.
• In Canada, approximately 97% of natural gas and petroleum products are shipped through pipelines.
• Therefore, transportation of the produced crude oil & natural gas from remote locations is expected to drive the overall intelligent pigging market during the forecast period.

Competitive Landscape

The intelligent pigging market is fragmented. Some of the key players in the market include Enduro Pipeline Services Inc., NDT Global Services Ltd., Pigtek Ltd, Romstar Group, SGS SA, and A.Hak Industrial Services B.V among others.

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