CCS to Cut Emissions from Offshore Oil and Gas Production Sites

offshore oil and gas carbon capture — CCS is available to integrate into offshore oil & gas production including FPSOs and FLNGs (Aker Carbon Capture)

A modularized carbon capture facility designed for use with offshore installations has been successfully qualified by DNV and is now ready to be deployed as a tool in the efforts to reduce carbon emissions at offshore oil and gas fields. Developed by Aker Carbon Capture and known as the Just Catch Offshore, the company says it provides a solution for a significant course of CO2 emissions.

To illustrate the urgent need for a solution to reduce or eliminate carbon emissions in offshore applications where gas turbines are used, the companies point to Norway where offshore oil and gas is one of the leading industries. According to Statistics Norway, the offshore oil and gas industry accounted for 25 percent of the country’s total emissions in 2021.

“CCS (carbon capture and storage) will be an important tool to help decarbonize the oil and gas industry, reducing emissions from gas turbines,” predicts Valborg Lundegaard, CEO of Aker Carbon Capture. “CCS can also offer the industry an energy- and cost-efficient way of utilizing the available energy resources by avoiding large electric transmission loss across the onshore grid.”

Aker Carbon Capture says it has been developing the Just Catch Offshore application since 2018 focusing on sites using gas turbines. During the process, Aker reports it developed concept studies with E&P and FPSO operators in the oil and gas industry globally. The solution has been designed so that it can be used either with bottom fixed or floating production facilities, such as FPSOs, FLNG, power hubs, and offshore power gas plants.

The application is based on a modularized design with two standard units of 120 and 180 kTPA as building blocks. The units are typically configured and installed into one module. By combining modules, Aker says the capacity can be increased and adjusted in accordance with the specific requirements, providing significant flexibility towards capture capacity and power demand.

“The CCS module will typically be prefabricated and be made mechanical complete before being lifted onboard onto the host facility at the integration yard for further hook-up to the gas turbine stacks, with a delivery time of 20-24 months. The CCS plant capacity is fitted to an offshore facility with several turbines in operation. Various gas turbine models are now considered compatible with our capture units,” said Jim Stian Olsen, Chief Technology Officer at Aker Carbon Capture.

DNV validated that Aker Carbon Capture’s modular technology can capture CO2 from flue gas stemming from turbines on floating offshore installations. According to the qualification from DNV, the offshore facility with Aker Carbon Capture’s proprietary technology is also considered fit for harsh weather conditions with severe motions.

The company announced that the Just Catch Offshore solution is now ready for a traditional field development project path, including a FEED phase, EPC delivery, and operational support. Currently, Aker Carbon Capture is delivering a Just Catch EPC project for Twence’s waste-to-energy facility in Hengelo, the Netherlands.