OptaSense, a real-time intelligence company, has received a contract from Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) to protect the Bijwasan pipeline in India.
The pipeline owned by BPCL runs from Kota in the Indian state of Rajasthan to Mathura, in Uttar Pradesh.
OptaSense has acquired the contract as part of its Third Party Intervention (TPI) application, which has been awarded through Optilan, the Indian subsidiary of OptaSense’s distribution partner.
As a part of the deal, the company will protect about 200km of pipeline, while BPCL will implement the system on further pipeline lengths, upon completion of the phase.
OptaSense will provide its fibre sensing solutions, which use existing fibre-optic cables running alongside pipelines and other installed infrastructure to act as virtual microphones.
The microphones are monitored and analysed in real-time to hear any activity near the pipeline or if it is under threat.
The real time nature of the system will enable BPCL to prevent damage to their pipeline, while enhancing the guarantee of product supply.
Once the system is completed, the pipeline will have about 20,000 virtual microphones, taking the total amount of pipeline monitored in India by the company to about 1,000km.
OptaSense managing director Magnus McEwen-King said the latest contract reflects the Indian government’s confidence towards OptaSense for pipeline protection.
"We look forward to providing BPCL with real-time intelligence data which will help to protect this important pipeline, and to bringing in and securing new jobs and investment locally," McEwen-King added.