Patent ID: 7896081

Claim:
An apparatus for tying back a subsea well assembly to a surface platform, comprising: a sleeve; a mandrel adapted to be secured to a string of tieback conduit the mandrel installed within the sleeve and movable between an upper position and a lower position relative to the sleeve; a set of external threads on an exterior tapered portion of the mandrel, the threads increasing in diameter from a lower end to an upper end; a radially expansible load ring carried by the sleeve, the load ring having a set of internal threads that engage the external threads of the mandrel, and the load ring having an external profile adapted to mate with an internal profile of the subsea well assembly; the mandrel being rotatable relative to the sleeve and the load ring, causing the internal threads to advance upward relative to the external threads to expand the load ring and fully engage the external profile with the internal profile of the subsea well assembly; and a seal on a lower end of the mandrel that seals against an internal component of the subsea well assembly when the mandrel is in the lower position.