GE INTRODUCES NEW SUBSEA COMPRESSION TECHNOLOGY FOR DEEPWATER GAS FIELDS
The GE-Kvaerner Eureka development effort was among the projects approved for the DEMO 2000 program launched by the Norwegian government to support the development of subsea systems to economically recover natural gas from deepwater fields. Until now, it has not been profitable to exploit many natural gas subsea fields, particularly those at depths of 500 meters or more, largely due to the cost of conventional offshore platforms.
"Technological developments such as the Blue-C will lead to a significant increase in seabed oil field exploitation," said Claudi Santiago, president and chief executive officer of GE Oil & Gas. "Developing and implementing reliable subsea technology is clearly a tough challenge but it will produce huge benefits in the oil and gas industry in the years ahead."
The Blue-C compressor module is a turnkey system capable of handling natural gas at pressures up to 130 bar. It will be installed on the seabed and can transport the well stream to a central platform or directly to an on-shore site, at distances of up to 80-100 kilometers.
The new subsea compressor module includes a variable-speed electric motor, a planetary gear box and a centrifugal compressor. The booster station also includes a separator module, to divide the incoming fluid into gas and liquid; and a multiphase pump, for pumping the liquid. The entire module is pressurized at inlet pressure, eliminating the need for dry gas seals.
Because the new module is designed for deepwater installation, reliability is a critical requirement. To validate the innovative design and minimize any risks in the field for future systems, GE Oil & Gas and Kvaerner Eureka have completed rigorous thermodynamic, mechanical and endurance testing on a prototype, 850-kilowatt power unit in GE Oil & Gas test facilities.
The first 2.5-megawatt subsea module to be built will undergo a technological qualification process under actual operating conditions, on a subsea gas field. Initially the module will be installed on a platform to perform pre-qualification tests, then it will be submerged in a depth of approximately 300 meters to continue the testing. Feasibility studies with several oil companies have already been performed for several potential locations in the North Sea, for both gas boosting and gas re-injection applications.
The development of the 2.5-megawatt subsea module began with the refurbishment and testing of the 850-kilowatt experimental and prototype unit, originally built by GE Oil & Gas and Kvaerner Eureka in 1992. The earlier unit was tested to validate the concept and to identify technology gaps before completing the detailed design of the new, more powerful module. Plans to develop an even larger, 5-megawatt module also are under way.
GE Oil & Gas, a business unit of GE Power Systems, is headquartered in Florence, Italy, the home of Nuovo Pignone, a long-time global leader in gas compression and turbogeneration products. GE acquired ownership of Nuovo Pignone in 1994 and since then, has continued to expand its oil and gas business by acquiring or developing partnerships with other technology and experience leaders in the industry. Other companies that are part of the GE Oil & Gas family include Gemini, GE Packaged Power Odessa, Rotoflow, AC Compressor and Conmec, all based in the U.S.; Thermodyn in France; and PII Pipeline Solutions in the U.K.
Kvaerner Eureka is the Norwegian product and manufacturing center for Kvaerner Oil & Gas, based at Tranby near Oslo. The company has been performing engineering and manufacturing projects for the offshore, mineral, process and defense
industries for a quarter of a century. Its offerings include high-tech subsystems and niche products such as gun turrets, pump systems and industrial dryers. Today, Kvaerner Eureka is a powerful force in the international mechanical engineering industry, and part of Norway's largest privately owned enterprise.
About GE Power Systems
GE Power Systems (www.gepower.com) is one of the world's leading suppliers of power generation technology, energy services and management systems with 2001 revenues exceeding $20 billion. The business has the largest installed base of power generation equipment in the global energy industry. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, GE Power Systems provides equipment, services and management solutions across the power generation, oil and gas, distributed power and energy rental industries.
For more information, contact:
Dennis Murphy
GE Power Systems
+1 770 859 6948
dennis.murphy@ps.ge.com
Ken Darling or Howard Masto
Masto Public Relations
+1 518 786 6488
ken.darling@mastopr.com
howard.masto@mastopr.com