Clean electricity for ofshore oil & gas platorms

LUNDIN ENERGY NORWAY IS COLLABORATING WITH OCEAN HARVESTING TECHNOLOGIES THROUGH A STUDY ON HOW INSTALLATION OF WAVE ENERGY CONVERTERS COULD PROVIDE CLEAN, STABLE, AND COST-EFFECTIVE ELECTRICITY TO AN OFFSHORE OIL & GAS PLATFORM.

ALL IMAGES COURTESY OF OCEAN HARVESTING. In a future aligned with a two-degree pathway, oil stll plays an important role and is estmated to account for around 23% of the global energy mix in 2040, compared to 31% today. But to meet both future energy demand and climate targets, it is critcal to decarbonise the producton of oil and gas as much as possible. Lundin Energy’s carbon intensity per barrel of oil produced is approximately a sixth of the industry world average, and the company will be one of the frst oil & gas companies to achieve carbon neutrality from 2025 onwards.

To achieve carbon neutrality across operatonal emissions, Lundin Energy Norway’s key focus is on decarbonising extracton and producton actvites, and this one-year project that will run untl February 2022, will provide valuable data and informaton on how to electrify major ofshore operatons with wave power, as well as setng both Ocean Harvestng Technologies and Lundin Energy Norway at the forefront of decarbonisaton of oil & gas producton in support of the shif to a lower carbon and sustainable energy future.

Kristn Færøvik, Managing Director of Lundin Energy Norway, says, “Lundin Energy Norway is a leader in decarbonisaton. Our assets are already highly efcient and low in carbon. However, the challenges to the wider sector in decarbonising producton can be signifcant, especially ofshore. We are therefore excited to work with Ocean Harvestng Technologies to identfy new ways of powering ofshore actvites with their innovatve wave energy convertor soluton.” Mikael Sidenmark, CEO at Ocean Harvestng Technologies, comments, “This case study, aiming to develop a specifcaton and system design for a wave power installaton at an oil & gas platorm, will provide valuable input for Ocean Harvestng Technologies in beter understanding the requirements for such an installaton. The project will guide us through the early validaton stages of our commercialisaton. We are very excited for the opportunity to work with Lundin Energy Norway on this project.”

Ocean Harvestng Technologies’ InfnityWEC is a novel point absorbing wave energy converter (WEC). It is both highly efcient in capturing energy through its ability to adjust to the sea state, and robust enough to operate reliably and survive the harshest marine conditons. Cost efciency is further improved by its modular design and the easy handling, allowing for road transportaton and requiring a minimum of ofshore operatons. InfnityWEC uses advanced reactve force control technology to tune the system to capture the optmal amount of energy in every wave, which greatly increases the annual output. A two-stage end-stop handling system holds the buoy submerged through the crest of large waves and then returns the system to normal operaton, protectng the system from excessive forces and allowing energy to be produced even in the most severe wave conditons. Optmal force control on the buoy is provided throughout the full wave moton.

The basic functon of the InfnityWEC device can be described as: • The waves lif the buoy and the pre-tension cylinder together with the ball nuts. • The vertcal moton of the ball nuts causes the ball screws in the PTO hull to rotate, driving the torque motors (generators) directly connected to the ball screws. • The torque applied by the motors controls the actve part of the force, providing up to about half of the available control force. • The pre-tension cylinder is connected to a piston accumulator and applies a constant spring force, providing the other half of the available control force. • The level cylinder below the PTO hull adjusts the positon of the PTO hull to the tdal variatons. • The buoy is held submerged through large waves with a two-stage end stop cushion system and then returns to normal operaton capturing power in the next wave.