Technology Assessment of Alternatives For Handling Associated Gas Produced From Deepwater Oil Developments In The Gulf of Mexico
OBJECTIVE:
Complete a technical assessment of alternatives for handling associated gas produced from deepwater oil developments.
Associated gas must be produced and transported to shore. Currently, the only viable technology for handling associated gas is to process and transport the gas is a separate pipeline. Some deepwater fields, particularly those with smaller reservoirs or those located far from existing infrastructure, are not economically viable under this requirement, thus reducing potential domestic oil production.
This study will assess alternatives to either the production and/or transportation of associated gas. The assessment would include alternatives that are presently available as well as promising technologies now under development, and provide comparison of alternatives presently available and those that are expected to be available 5 years and 10 years in the future.
APPROACH:
Alternatives for handling associated gas production would be identified, characterized, and assessed. Alternatives considered will include export via pipeline (current base case), gas reinjection for later recovery; delayed gas production; processes such as LNG, GTL, CNG and export via shuttle tanker; conversion to products (e.g. methanol) for transport via ship; generation of electricity for transmission to shore; conversion to other forms of energy for use offshore or transport to shore. Other promising technologies now under development may also be included.
The assessment will address advantages/disadvantages, safety, efficiencies, economics, & technical maturity (present, +5 years, and + 10 years).
This study would be conducted through a series of workshops involving the oil and gas industry, government agencies, oil and gas processing companies, and other appropriate industry expertise. OTRC will organize and manage a project team that includes expertise in the following areas: petroleum engineering (TAMU PE department); process engineering (consultant); and workshop planning and facilitation (consultant). Government agencies will include the MMS and others with regulatory responsibilities and/or subject matter expertise. The Offshore Operators Committee will act as a focal point for organizing and coordinating industry input and expertise. Industry contributions to this study are expected to be “in-kind” contributions of staff time and information. OTRC will endeavor to reach a consensus between the regulatory agencies and the industry on the assessment of each gas-handling alternative.
The final results will be documented in a final report prepared for the MMS. The results will also be presented to the industry and other interested parties and stakeholders in a suitable public forum.
PROJECT PLAN FOR YEAR 1 (2002-2003)
Scope of Work: A steering committee will be formed to develop a detailed plan for the study. The steering committee will include representation from the OTRC, TAMU PE department, process engineering consultant, workshop facilitator, MMS, OOC, and several members from the oil and gas industry. The detailed plan will include:
· Gas handling alternatives to be considered.
· Detailed basis and common measures or metrics to be used in assessing the advantages/disadvantages, safety, efficiencies, economics, risks, & technical maturity of the various alternatives. A common economic model will be developed and used in this assessment.
· Objectives, processes, and general plans for the various workshops and forums that will gather information and develop consensus assessments on the various alternatives review the overall results
· Presentation of final results to the all interested parties.The detailed plan will also include a budget for the overall project. Industry funding (e.g. API) may be sought to supplement MMS funding.
The detailed plan will be presented to all interested parties in a suitable public forum to obtain further input, interest, and support for the study.
Begin holding workshops on the various alternatives.
Anticipated Results: Detailed plan and basis for assessment, government agency and industry consensus on plan, completed workshops for pipeline alternative.
PROJECT PLAN FOR YEAR 2 (2003-2004)
Scope of Work: Continue workshops on remaining alternatives -LNG, CNG, Injection, GTW, and GTL, complete workshop assessments of identified alternatives.
Anticipated Results: Completion of LNG, CNG and GTL workshops, workshop reports for all workshops held to date.
PROJECT PLAN FOR YEAR 3 (2004-2005)
Scope of Work: Continue workshops on remaining alternatives - Injection and GTW, complete workshop assessments of identified alternatives and compile overall project final report.
Anticipated Results: Final report and presentation to the industry and other interested parties and stakeholders in a suitable public forum
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR (S) & OTHERS INVOLVED IN PROJECT:
PI - E.G. Ward
Others: A J Wolford (A J Wolford and Associates), Martin Mick (Paragon Engineering)Technology Assessment of Alternatives For Handling Associated Gas Produced From Deepwater Oil Developments In The Gulf of Mexico
Date: June 2005Project Title: Gas Handling Options for DW Development
MMS Project: 443 TO Numbers: 85223/35993
PI: E. G. Ward
COTR: Andrew Konczvald
Estimated Completion Date: March 2006
Project Description:
Develop a technical assessment of gas handling alternatives for associated gas from FPSO-based deepwater oil and gas developments in the Gulf of Mexico. The alternatives for gas transportation being studied include pipelines, LNG, CNG, GTL, electric power generation (GTW), and reinjection. The assessment is addressing (1) Technical and Regulatory Readiness (years to project ready), (2) HSE Risks (human and environment safety), (3) Costs (CAPEX and OPEX), and (4) Process Efficiency for each alternative through a series of Workshops involving industry experts. The assessment addresses each of six “Process Step” required to get the gas (or gas product) to shore, i.e.• Gas Treatment
• Conversion to Transport State
• Offshore Loading
• Transport
• Offloading
• Conversion to Sales StateProgress:
Results of the preliminary assessment completed for the four alternatives studied to date – Pipelines, LNG, CNG, and GTL were presented at the 2005 Offshore Technology Conference.
Preparations are in progress for the Workshop on GTW.
After assessments of the GTW and Injection alternatives are completed, the final assessments for all alternatives will be documented and published.
Reports & Publications:
Alternatives for Transporting Associated Gas from Deepwater Gulf of Mexico Developments (2005); E.G. Ward, A.J. Wolford, M.B. Mick, W. Hauser, A.J. Verret, and L. Tapia; OTC Paper 17389, 2005 Offshore Technology Conference, May
Technical Assessment of Options for Handling Associated Gas from Deepwater FPSO Developments in the Gulf of Mexico (2005); E.G. Ward, A.J. Wolford, M.B. Mick, L. Tapia, W. Hauser, A.J. Verret; MMS Information Transfer Meeting, New Orleans, LA, January
Date: December, 2004
Project Title: Gas Handling Options for DW Development
MMS Project: 443 TO Numbers: 85223/35993
PI: E. G. Ward
COTR: Julie McNeilEstimated Completion Date: August 2005
Project Description:
Develop a technical assessment of gas handling alternatives for associated gas from FPSO-based deepwater oil and gas developments in the Gulf of Mexico. The alternatives for gas transportation being studied include pipelines, LNG, CNG, GTL, electric power generation, and reinjection. The assessment is addressing (1) Technical and Regulatory Readiness (years to project ready), (2) HSE Risks (human and environment safety), (3) Costs (CAPEX and OPEX), and (4) Process Efficiency for each alternative through a series of Workshops involving industry experts.Progress:
Preliminary assessment results have been completed for the four alternatives studied to date – Pipelines, LNG, CNG, and GTL. Preliminary results for Technical and Regulatory Readiness are summarized here for each of six “Process Step” required to get the gas (or gas product) to shore, i.e.• Gas Treatment
• Conversion to Transport State
• Offshore Loading
• Transport
• Offloading
• Conversion to Sales State
Figure 1 indicates that most of Process Steps for these four alternatives are “project ready”, or have challenges that can be resolved during the execution of a 3-year project. The readiness estimate for the LNG FPSO suggests that 1 to 3 years could be needed to plan and design an LNG facility on an FPSO operating in the Gulf of Mexico. The readiness estimate for LNG Transport indicates that 3 to 7 years may be needed to complete Jones Act LNG carriers. Similarly, the readiness estimate for CNG Transport indicates that 1 to 3 years may be required to secure Jones Act CNG carriers. The readiness estimate for the GTL Convert to Transport State suggests that 3 to 7 tears may be needed to develop and “marinize” a GTL process to place on an FPSO operating in the Gulf of Mexico. The category “Others” indicates readiness in 1 to 3 years to suggest the time that might be needed to pursue any items such as Environment Assessments or work on codes and standards that might be required.Other results indicate that
Assessments of the GTW and Injection alternatives will be completed in 2005, and the final assessments for all alternatives will then be documented and published.• All these gas handling alternatives can achieve acceptable levels of HSE risks.
• Service costs for a Pipeline are lowest, followed by CNG, and then LNG and GTL.
• The efficiencies of these processes seem acceptable.
Figure 1 - Technical & Regulatory Readiness
Reports & Publications:
Alternatives for Transporting Associated Gas from Deepwater Gulf of Mexico Developments (2005); E.G. Ward, A.J. Wolford, M.B. Mick, W. Hauser, A.J. Verret, and L. Tapia; OTC Paper 17389 to be presented at 2005 Offshore Technology Conference, May
Technical Assessment of Options for Handling Associated Gas from Deepwater FPSO Developments in the Gulf of Mexico (2005); E.G. Ward, A.J. Wolford, M.B. Mick, L. Tapia, W. Hauser, A.J. Verret; MMS Information Transfer Meeting, New Orleans, LA, January
Date: June 2004
Project Name: Technology Assessment of Alternatives for Handling Associated Gas Produced from Deepwater Oil Developments in the Gulf of Mexico
Project Number: 443 Task Order: 85223
Principal Investigators: E.G. Ward
Estimated Completion Date: June 2005
Project Description:
Develop a technical assessment of gas handling options FPSO-based deepwater oil and gas developments in the Gulf of Mexico. The options being studied include pipelines, LNG, CNG, GTL, electric power generation, and reinjection. The assessment will address (1) technical and regulatory readiness (tears to project ready), (2) HSE risks human and environment safety), (3) costs (CAPEX and OPEX), and (4) process efficiency for each option through a series of Workshops involving industry experts. Previous Workshops have addressed pipelines, LNG, and CNG.
Progress:
A GTL Workshop held on April 14 -15. A number of GTL experts participated and described several GTL processes. Although all GTL processes currently under development were not represented, the Workshop was successful in developing sufficient information to complete an assessment of GTL. The current focus of GTL development is onshore, and the marine application of GTL on an FPSO has received much less attention than other gas handling processes, e.g. CNG. The transportation system focused on barges since the expected volumes are low and information on shuttle tankers had been developed in previous Workshops. The industry continued to show interest through both the continued support by the OOC members on the steering team.
We met with the MMS and reconfirmed their interest in a Workshop on gas reinjection. Reinjected gas would ultimately be produced by one of the other gas handling options for processing and transport to shore.
We have initiated planning for a Gas to Wire (GTW) Workshop to address the generation and transport of electricity for associated gas produced on an FPSO.
We expect to hold these two Workshops later this year.
We have begun to develop a detailed outline of the technologies and assessments for the final report. We currently expect to complete the draft report in late 2004 and hold a forum to present the overall assessment to industry and get feedback before finagling the report.
Reports & Publications: None
Date: December 2003
Project Name: Technology Assessment of Alternatives for Handling Associated Gas Produced from Deepwater Oil Developments in the Gulf of Mexico
TEES Project Number: 32558-58880E MMS Task Order: 85223 MMS Project Number: 443
Principal Investigators: E.G. Ward
Estimated Completion Date: September 2004
Project Description:
Develop a technical assessment of gas handling options FPSO-based deepwater oil and gas developments in the Gulf of Mexico. The options being studied include pipelines, LNG, CNG, GTL, electric power generation, and reinjection. The assessment will address (1) technical and regulatory readiness (years to project ready), (2) HSE risks human and environment safety), (3) costs (CAPEX and OPEX), and (4) process efficiency for each option through a series of Workshops involving industry experts.
Progress:
Workshops addressing three of the gas handling options were held:
Pipelines (July 15)
LNG (November 5-6)
CNG (December 9-10)
Preparations for each Workshop included identifying and inviting an appropriate mix of subject matter experts to address the range of technical and operational aspects in each option, preparing appropriate formats to describe each option and capture the information provided by the invited experts during the Workshop, and develop pre-Workshop information (strawman) to initiate and facilitate working sessions in which the invited experts and steering team could reach a consensus on the four assessment metrics.The first Workshop (pipelines) built on the earlier CRA Study of FPSO’s in a straightforward manner. However, the LNG and CNG Workshops were more difficult due to the newness of these technologies and required the following adjustments to the format and approaches to the workshops:
o A 1 ½ day format was needed to better present, discuss, assimilate, and use the information to develop a consensus assessment
o There are a number of options within each gas handling system due to the newness of this evolving
o The approach to assessing HSE risks had to be changed from a quantitative approach to assessing the additional risk of the FPSO system due to the gas handling system to an approach that included a HAZID and a Risk Matrix
o Information on costs has proved to be difficult to obtain in the Workshops due to the newness of systems and components plus the competitive force in this emerging market
o Completing each technology assessment is requiring more post-Workshop time than originally planned.The Workshops have been successful in gathering a great deal of valuable and timely information. The industry has shown a great deal of interest through both the continued support by the OOC members on the steering team and the industry experts on the various gas handling options that participated in the Workshops.
Reports & Publications: None
Date: June, 2003
Project Name: Technology Assessment of Alternatives for Handling Associated Gas Produced from Deepwater Oil Developments in the Gulf of Mexico
Project Number: 32558-58880E Task Order: 85223
Principal Investigators: Dr. E.G. Ward, Dr. Stuart L. Scott
Estimated Completion Date: June 2004
Project Description:
A technical assessment of gas handling options deepwater oil and gas developments in the Gulf of Mexico. The options being studied include pipelines, LNG, CNG, GTL, electric power generation, and reinjection. The assessment will determine the (1) technical readiness, (2) HSE risks, (3) costs, and (4) process efficiency for each option through a series of workshops involving industry experts.
Progress:
The metrics for the assessment variables were finalized, and were summarized as
· Technical readiness – the probabilities that the option will be “project ready” in 2004, 2007, 2011, 2014, or beyond 2017. Will also examine commercial & regulatory readiness, and identify key needs and issues relative to the various readiness states.
· HSE Risks – incremental (over and above the normal oil production operations of the FPSO) for oil risks to human safety (life loss/20 years) and environmental risk (oil spill and gas product spill volumes/20 years)
· Costs – incremental CAPEX and OPEX(over and above the normal oil production operations of the FPSO)
· Process efficiency – BTU’s (or product value) delivered to sales point / BTU’s of the produced associated gasA common scheme to consider the different phases of each gas handling option was developed. The six phases are:
· Dehydration and treatment of produced gas to develop a standard feed to each gas handling option of 1000 psi, 100 degree F
· Convert to gas state
· Load
· Transport
· Unload
· Convert to Sales State
The assessment will consider the readiness, risks, costs, and efficiency of each of these steps.Standard production scenarios were defined for assessing each gas handling option. Variables include:
· The FPSO involved in the primary oil production
· Locations of FPSO and sales/transport sites for each gas handling option, which defines water depth and transport distances
· Gas production ratesInformation for the assessments will be gathered in a series of one day Workshops. Each Workshop will address one of the gas handling options. We plan to solicit pre-Workshop information from the invited subject matter experts, synthesize that information into a strawman assessment, and then hold the Workshop. At the Workshop, the invited experts will present their information to a panel of steering team members and others, and then the strawman will be reviewed and revised as necessary to reach a consensus assessment by all Workshop participants.
In preparing for the Workshops, our goal and challenge is to have a Workshop process in place that is both (1) effective in gathering the information needed for the assessments, and (2) efficient in gathering that information with a minimum investment of industry experts' time. We are developing a format for the pre-Workshop information that the invited subject matter experts could (and would) complete with a reasonable investment of their time. That has been a challenge, and we have made several iterations to simplify the format and reduce the amount of requested information. We had anticipated holding the first Workshop in late April or May, but these preparations have taken longer than anticipated. We now anticipate that we will be able to hold the first Workshop in July.
A kick-off meeting was held on March 25 to introduce that project to the industry. About 65 industry representatives attended the meeting, and about 4o people volunteered to attend one or more of the Workshops, and another 30 people were nominated by those in attending the meeting.
Reports & Publications:
The 87 slides used in the kick-off meeting have been posted on the OTRC web site.
Date: December 2002Project Name: Technology Assessment of Alternatives for Handling Associated Gas Produced from Deepwater Oil Developments in the Gulf of Mexico
Project Number: 32558-5888EE Task Order: 85223
Principal Investigators: Dr. E.G. Ward, Dr. Stuart L. Scott
Estimated Completion Date: September 30, 2003
Project Description:
This study will assess to handle the production and/or transportation of gas from deepwater developments. Both associated gas produced from deepwater oil developments and primary gas developments will be considered. Gas handling options will include export via pipeline (current base case); gas reinjection; delayed gas production; processes such as LNG, GTL, CNG and export via shuttle tanker; conversion to products (e.g. methanol) for transport via ship; generation of electricity for transmission to shore; conversion to other forms of energy for use offshore or transport to shore. The assessments will be completed through a series of workshops involving industry experts.
The project team involves OTRC (overall planning, administration, and management); Petroleum Engineering (gas injection and reservoir modeling, pipeline modeling, economic modeling); Paragon Engineering (gas processing expertise and experience); A.J. Wolford (planning, risks, workshops); Offshore Operators Committee (coordination with industry); and the MMS.Progress:
A Steering Committee has made considerable progress in identifying the basis, metrics, and issues for the assessments. A screening model for the assessment of all options has been developed that will treat all options consistently and result in uniform metrics that will facilitate understanding the strengths and differences of the various options. The metrics include:
BTU efficiency
Safety
Economics (CAPEX, OPEX)
ReadinessThe team is gathering information on the various gas handling options from a variety of sources. A literature review of the various technologies and projects has been completed, and work on an economic model was initiated. Steve Worley of Worley Engineering presented results from similar assessments he had previously completed to the team. The conference on Monitizing Stranded Gas was attended and provided useful information, data, and contacts for a variety of options. We are investigating the use of a generic deepwater reservoir model developed by DeepStar to study deepwater gas injection issues and problems.
Date: June 2002
Project Name: Technology Assessment of Alternatives For Handling Associated Gas Produced From Deepwater Oil Developments In The Gulf of Mexico
Task Order: 85223 Project Number: pending
Principal Investigators: E.G. Ward, S. Scott
Estimated Completion Date: September 2002
Project Description: Complete a technical assessment of alternatives for handling associated gas produced from deepwater oil developments. This study will assess alternatives to either the production and/or transportation of associated gas. The assessment would include alternatives that are presently available as well as promising technologies now under development, and provide comparison of alternatives presently available and those that are expected to be available 5 years and 10 years in the future.
Progress: A preliminary plan for the study has been drafted, and includes the make up of the project team. That plan was shar3ed with the Offshore Operators Committee, and the OOC has committed to support the study through providing industry expertise. Prospective members of the project team have been identified, and a meeting of that team, the MMS, and OOC representatives is scheduled for mid-July to develop a more refined project scope for the initial phase of the study.
