Accelerating Electrification

(Translated from Norwegian, original story by NORCE)

The aim will be to reduce carbon emissions by minimising the use of gas turbines and increasing the use of wind turbines.

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The Bergen region has long been a key hub for Norway’s petroleum sector, allowing it to cultivate an extensive subsea knowledge base and highly specialised competencies. As Norway embarks on the green shift, these transferable assets will be paramount in streamlining and ensuring the country’s transition towards net zero.

A major focus for this endeavour will be on investing in and developing Norway’s emerging offshore wind industry.

“We want to build a system where gas turbines can either be completely shut down or used when necessary. This is how we can eliminate excessive emissions when the gas turbines are not being used. It will involve combining wind turbines with a battery and hydrogen system,” said Yngve Heggelund, Senior NORCE Researcher.

ELOGOW

These efforts are part of the ELOGOW (Electrification of Oil and Gas Installation by Offshore Wind) project, a three-year collaborative research endeavour led by the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE). Along with NORCE, collaborative partners include the University of Oslo, Equinor, Conoco Phillips, Aibel and Energy Valley.

This project will incorporate the latest advances in offshore wind turbine, battery and hydrogen technologies.

Read more on offshore energy

“It’s unrealistic to electrify all oil and gas production from land, so using offshore wind turbines to drive this production seems like a viable solution,” said Heggelund.

For this project, simulations will also be developed to predict weather conditions, enabling operators to plan when to activate wind turbines.

“We will use these simulations to find out how the energy system can be controlled in an optimum way, using gas turbines, wind turbines and batteries,” explained Heggelund.

The project will also research how to optimise various other aspects. These include ideal battery dimensions and location, optimum wind conditions and cost.

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