Technology Focus: Production/Facilities (December 2008)

Abstract

Technology Focus Subsea processing is one of the most interesting technologies being introduced to the oil and gas industry. Treating the production flow at the seabed opens up opportunities to more-remote oil and gas reservoirs around the world. This operation is especially important because the industry is running out of reservoirs that are easy to produce, meaning that the focus is placed on how to produce oil and gas from longer-offset offshore fields in deeper reservoirs with difficult bathymetry. A growing number of subsea multiphase pumps have been in operation around the world for several years to address less-than-ideal natural-reservoir-drive conditions. This growth has been followed by successful installation of subsea separation in the North Sea to address less-than-ideal flow characteristics and production of sand and unwanted byproducts. These technologies are being combined at a systems level to optimize reservoir recovery and management. Recent startups of combined subsea-separation, -boosting, and -injection systems offshore Africa, Brazil, and the deepwater Gulf of Mexico are adding to subsea processing's maturity and widespread acceptance. Subsea processing continues to take steps into the future with project sanctions that use gas/liquid separation and oil/water separation. The next generation of processing systems will focus on more-compact solutions that will be well suited for deepwater applications. In addition, considerable effort is being made in the area of raw-water injection, low-/no-oil-fraction discharge, and subsea gas compression, all promising great potential for greater hydrocarbon extraction, saving the costs for additional surface infrastructure. Production/Facilities additional reading available at the SPE eLibrary: www.spe.org IPTC 12377 • "Plant Integrity and Reliability are the Keys To Improving Profitability" by S.D. Kapusta, Shell, et al. SPE 115074 • "Corrosion and Hydrate Control in Wet-Sour-Gas Transmission Systems" by J.J. Moloney, SPE, Baker Hughes, et al.