February 2020

58 n OFFSHORE, OIL AND GAS February 2020 www.drivesncontrols.com Subsea power breakthrough ‘signals new era for oil and gas’ F ollowing six years of research, design and development, a consortium that includes ABB, Equinor, Total and Chevron, has announced a “pioneering” subsea power distribution and conversion technology that, it says, offers “groundbreaking” potential for cleaner, safer and more sustainable offshore oil and gas production. For the first time, energy companies around the globe will be able to access a reliable power supplies of up to 100MW, over distances up to 600km, at water depths down to 3km, at pressures that could shatter a brick. This will all be achievable using a single cable that will need little or no maintenance for periods of up to 30 years, making oil and gas production feasible in ocean environments that have previously been considered too remote or too deep. The $100m Joint Industry Project (JIP) was initiated in 2013. The technology has been validated in a shallowwater facility at a sheltered harbour in Finland, in a test programme that lasted 3,000 hours. The partners say that the development means most of the world’s offshore hydrocarbon resources are nowwithin reach of electrification. “This milestone marks an outstanding achievement and is the culmination point of an inspirational technology development achieved through tremendous dedication, expertise and perseverance,”says Dr Peter Terwiesch, president of ABB’s Industrial Automation business.“It is the result of intensive collaboration by more than 200 scientists and engineers from ABB, Equinor, Total and Chevron, in a multi-year, joint effort.” By powering pumps and compressors on the seabed, close to subsea reservoirs of oil and gas, the power distribution and conversion technology will be able to reduce power consumption “significantly”. The technology could be connected to any power source, enabling future integration with land-based renewable sources, such as wind and hydro power. Using power from the shore will reduce carbon emissions, with the potential for substantial energy savings. Take, for example, an installation consisting of eight consumers – such as pumps or compressors – linked via a single cable over a distance of 200km to other forms of infrastructure. ABB estimates that such an installation could cut capital costs by more than $500m. The technology will also mean that fewer people will need to be based offshore, thus cutting costs, reducing risks and improving safety. Against a backdrop of the wider application of digitalisation and the increasing autonomy in offshore operations, the technology is expected to open up new opportunities in oceanic ecosystems. “Moving the entire oil and gas production facility to the seabed is no longer a dream,” says Terwiesch. “Remotely operated, increasingly autonomous, subsea facilities, powered by lower-carbon energy are more likely to become a reality as we transition towards a new energy future.” Previously, only the only technologies that had been proven to operate underwater were transmission cables and subsea step-down transformers. Now, it will be feasible to implement complete subsea power distribution and conversion systems, including step-down transformers, medium-voltage variable-speed drives, switchgear, control systems, low-voltage power distribution and power electronics. The new technologies were tested at the Finnish facility using ABB’s Ability System 800xA distributed control system. n In a $100m project, a consortium of offshore industry giants has developed a pioneering subsea power distribution and conversion technology that, they say, will save energy, reduce emissions and open up oil and gas production in areas previously considered too remote or deep. The new power distribution and conversion technology will make it possible to move entire oil and gas production facilities to the seabed The subsea power technology was tested in an extended trial conducted at a facility in Finland