Being first isn’t easy, as the massive Prelude has demonstrated. Since being commissioned in 2018, the world’s largest vessel has suffered a series of setbacks and has now halted production for an indefinite period of time.
成为第一并不容易，正如庞大的“序曲”所证实的那样。自2018年投入使用以来，这艘世界上最大的船遭遇了一系列挫折，目前已无限期停止生产。
January 4, 2022 By Trent Jacobs
2022年1月4日，作者Trent Jacobs
Journal of Petroleum Technology
石油科技杂志
浮式液化天然气工厂项目“序曲”来源：壳牌
Once heralded as an engineering marvel, it has now become one of the biggest engineering disappointments in recent history. This is the story so far of Shell’s Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) plant which suffered a new setback last month after it was ordered to halt production following an onboard fire.
曾经被誉为工程奇迹的它，现在已经成为近代历史上最大的令人失望的工程之一。本文是迄今为止的壳牌浮式液化天然气(FLNG)工厂“序曲”的故事。上个月，“序曲”遭遇了新的挫折，由于船上发生火灾，该工厂被勒令停产。
According to multiple reports, the fire occurred in the late evening hours of 2 December and caused a complete power outage on the facility where around 200 personnel live and work. Over the next 3 days, the crew made multiple attempts to regain power but were successful only in restoring intermittent power.
根据多份报告，火灾发生在12月2日深夜，造成约200人生活和工作的设施完全停电。在接下来的3天里，机组人员多次尝试恢复动力，但只是成功地恢复了断断续续的动力。
The incident prompted an onboard inspection and investigation by Australia’s National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA), which on 23 December ordered the supermajor not resume production.
这一事件促使澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局(NOPSEMA)进行了船上检查和调查，并于12月23日下令该超大型油轮不得恢复生产。
Shell must now prove to the regulator that Prelude can safely recover from such power losses in the future before it can resume gas production.
壳牌现在必须向监管机构证明“序曲”能够在未来安全地从这种能源损失中恢复，然后才能恢复天然气生产。
Based on its initial investigation, NOPSEMA concluded that “the operator did not have a sufficient understanding of the risks of the power system on the facility, including failure mechanisms, interdependencies, and recovery.”
根据最初的调查，澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局得出结论，“操作人员没有充分了解电力系统对设施的风险，包括故障机制、相互作用及恢复。”
The regulator noted that the power loss directly impacted critical safety systems along with the ability to safely evacuate crew by boat or helicopter. Additionally, the quality of life on board the Prelude suffered from a loss of lighting, communication systems, potable water systems, sewage treatment systems, and ventilation and air conditioning systems.
监管机构指出，电力损失直接影响到关键的安全系统，以及船只或直升机安全疏散船员的能力。此外，“序曲”上的生活质量也因为照明、通讯系统、饮用水系统、污水处理系统、通风和空气调节系统的损坏而受到影响。
NOPSEMA said seven people onboard were treated for heat-related problems during the incident.
澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局表示，在事故发生期间，机上有7人因为与供热有关的问题接受了治疗。
The ability to operate the processing equipment associated with the LNG stored inside Prelude was also compromised as a result of the power loss.
同时，由于功率损耗的影响，使得与配备在“序曲”中的 LNG 相关的加工设备的操作能力也受到了影响。
Shell is conducting its own investigation into what happened on Prelude; however, NOPSEMA argued that Shell’s internal investigation is lacking a “thorough review of the evidence and root cause analysis of the entire series of events experienced during the incident.”
壳牌公司正在对“序曲”事件进行自查; 然而，澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局认为壳牌公司的内部调查缺乏“对整个事件经历的证据和根本原因分析的彻底审查”。
The regulator also noted that Shell’s investigation as proposed does not include a review of the risks that could lead to a similar repeat accident, nor the mitigation of such identified risks.
监管机构还指出，壳牌拟议中的调查不包括对可能导致类似事故再次发生的风险进行审查，也不包括降低已识别的风险。
At 488 m (1,601 ft) in length, the Prelude is not only the world’s largest FLNG plant but it also the largest floating structure ever built. It is also the first FLNG plant to ever be built, which might help explain its growing pains.
“序曲”长488米(1601英尺) ，不仅是世界上最大的浮式液化天然气工厂，也是迄今为止建造的最大的浮式结构。这也是有史以来建造的第一座浮式液化天然气工厂，解释了其发展初期存在一些困难。
Following a series of precommissioning delays, the Prelude achieved first production in December 2018 about 475 km (295 mi) north-east of Broome, Western Australia, in the Browse Basin. Prior to its commissioning and ever since, the facility has struggled to operate without incident.
在一系列的试运行延迟之后，“序曲”于2018年12月在布鲁姆东北部475公里(295英里)的 Browse 盆地完成了首次生产。在试运行之前和之后，该设施一直在全力运行，没有发生事故。
August 2018: Prior to coming on stream, NOPSEMA put Shell on notice for what it classified as a “dangerous occurrence” when the Prelude lost power after an electrical trip shut down the pumps that feed its steam generators. NOPSEMA determined that there was no risk to the onboard personnel or environment as a result.
2018年8月: 在投产之前，澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局一度将壳牌列为“危险事件”。在“序曲”在一次电力故障后关闭了供给蒸汽发生器的泵后，澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局才确定机上人员和环境不会因此而受到危害。
September 2019: While preparing a marine loading arm for maintenance, there was an apparent loss of hydrocarbon containment which prompted an emergency shutdown. NOPSEMA determined that Shell reacted with appropriate actions but that there were lapses in the facility’s safety protocols which contributed to the accident.
2019年9月: 在准备维修海上装载臂时，碳氢化合物密封装置明显丢失，导致紧急关闭。澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局确定壳牌公司采取了适当的行动，但该设施的安全规程出现了疏漏，导致了这次事故。
December 2019: In what Shell said was a misidentification of process equipment, work crews broke containment of equipment containing high-pressure liquid. NOPSEMA noted the equipment was not properly isolated.
2019年12月: 壳牌公司称事故原因是工作人员错误识别了加工设备，打破了装有高压液体的设备的安全壳。澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局注意到设备没有被正确隔离。
January 2020: Another loss of hydrocarbon containment occurred during an operation to reinstate a relief valve. The release promoted a general alarm on board and crew were mustered as a result. NOPSEMA inspectors were on board Prelude to investigate the December 2019 incident. NOPSEMA determined that in both incidents there were lapses in safety protocols and training, including how to correctly identify which equipment needed to be worked on.
2020年1月: 在恢复安全阀的操作过程中，又发生了一次碳氢化合物容器的破损。这次泄漏引起了船上的总警报，结果船员被召集起来。此时澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局的调查人员在“序曲”上调查2019年12月的事件。澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局确定，在这两起事故中都存在安全规程和培训方面的疏漏，包括如何正确识别需要操作的设备。
February 2020: Shell voluntarily halted production following a series of electrical trips that once again impaired Prelude’s steam generators. Production was subsequently shut in for 11 months.
2020年2月: 壳牌公司在一系列电气故障后自愿停止生产，这再次损害了“序曲”号的蒸汽发生器。随后，生产被关闭了11个月。
Prelude has a nameplate capacity of 3.6 mtpa of LNG and was designed with an operational lifespan of 25 years. Although Shell has not disclosed its construction cost, analysts have pegged the figure at around $17 billion.
“序曲”的液化天然气标定容量为3.6 mtpa，设计使用寿命为25年。尽管壳牌没有透露其建造成本，但分析师估计数额在170亿美元左右。
Last year, Shell announced that Prelude represented a significant share of a $22-billion write down. Along with its QGC venture, the value of the Prelude project was trimmed by between $8 and $9 billion, the company said.
去年，壳牌宣布“序曲”在220亿美元的缩减中占有相当大的份额。该公司表示，除了旗下的 QGC 合资企业，“序曲”项目的价值缩水了80亿至90亿美元。
The project partners include operator Shell (67.5%), Japan’s Inpex (17.5%), South Korea’s Kogas (10%), and Taiwan’s CPC Corp (5%).
该项目的合作伙伴包括运营商壳牌(67.5%)、日本Inpex (17.5%)、韩国Kogas (10%)和台湾中油公司(5%)。
总结：曾经被誉为工程奇迹的长488米(1601英尺) 的壳牌公司的浮式液化天然气工厂“序曲”由于是有史以来建造的第一座浮式液化天然气工厂以及最大的浮式结构，属于浮式液化天然气工厂的探索性产物，所以在发展初期存在一些困难。自2018年投入使用以来，“序曲”发生了3次事故，其在澳大利亚国家海上石油安全和环境管理局的检查下，发现了一系列的安全疏漏，目前已无限期停止生产，这也导致了“序曲”项目的价值缩水了80亿至90亿美元。
原文来源于The Journal of Petroleum Technology,
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