A 'desk top' or FEED study is an extremely effective, and often essential, tool to focus early planning and engineering of any marine project. ETA has experience in every stage of project development from site identification and cable route planning through installation and service to decommissioning.
A ‘desk top’ or FEED (Front End Engineering Design) study is an extremely effective, and often essential, tool to focus early planning and engineering of any marine project. The study will gather and analyse existing data from public domain, scientific and commercial databases, and available project sources.
Outputs will inform environmental and engineering surveys, permits and consents, EIA activities, and construction planning, enabling an integrated approach.
Perhaps most significantly, the study will identify risks and opportunities at an early stage prior to commitment of costly resources. A clear understanding of the issues relevant to development is necessary to focus the study and to present clear and useful conclusions.
ETA has experience in every stage of project development from site identification and cable route planning through installation and service to decommissioning.
As such we place emphasis on presenting data relevant to subsequent project activities, with clear justification of conclusions, traceable to data sources and archived information.
Desk studies are performed with the aid of GIS and CAD software, with outputs available in most common file formats.
Reports are produced in both hard copy and electronic formats.
To discuss ETA’s desk top and FEED study options, please call us on:
Desk Top Studies Clients and Project Examples
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ETA were contracted by the Meygen Consortium to provide expertise and a range of studies focussed on the cable design and connection to input into the FEED stage of the project.
ETA conducted studies relating to field lay out options, connection strategies, cable stability and detailed cable route design.
Export Cable Study
ETA conducted a detailed study and offered advice relating to the proposed route selection; installation and protection of the marine cables; as well as on suggested landfall sites. ETA’s recommendations dealt with many difficulties surrounding the cable including: limited access to land fall beaches; protection in hard, and rocky seabed; high risk of damage due to ship anchoring; and adverse weather during installation.
Outfall Feasibility Study
ETA were contracted to provide a site survey, and analysis of route options and recommendations on construction lay down areas. As well as this, ETA also provided an unbiased report of a range of pipeline installation methodologies covering all aspects relating to cost, safety and the environment.
Subsea Cable Route Study
The project required investigation of six mainland grid connection points, the routing of subsea and land cables, and identification of potential sites for converter stations. Options for short length AC crossings and longer HVDC interconnectors were presented. The route study took account of all factors relevant to the construction and operation of the cables, including existing infrastructure, land ownership, consents, oceanography and coastal processes, geology, fisheries, and environmental factors.
Preliminary consultation with stakeholders was also undertaken to identify relevant issues.