EnvironmentEuropeOffshoreRenewables

UK North Sea operator taps TechnipFMC and Floating Power Plant for platform electrification study

TechnipFMC and its Danish partner, Floating Power Plant (FPP), have been selected by an undisclosed UK offshore operator to look into how an offshore oil and gas facility in the North Sea could be powered by a renewable energy system using wind, wave, and hydrogen.

A new concept select study will build on a previous feasibility study, which showed that Floating Power Plant’s system could supply renewable energy to an oil and gas platform, the company said, adding that it will focus on determining the optimum setup to use renewable energy from its hybrid design of floating wind and wave energy with TechnipFMC’s hydrogen-based energy storage system to minimise the intermittency normally associated with renewables and maximise usable power.

The two companies will collaborate with other consultants to examine the necessary brownfield infrastructure upgrades in order to improve the interaction between the renewable energy system and the platform. The partners added that the project will not only focus on developing the technical concept but will also provide an economic and CO2 abatement assessment and look at suitable commercial delivery models adapted to the oil and gas market’s needs.

Anders Køhler, CEO of FPP, explained: “This concept select study provides significant progress in the development of a reliable renewable energy solution for the offshore oil and gas sector, allowing us not only to develop the technical solution towards a well-defined, real need, but also to develop the commercial solution to suit the needs of the market.”

“While the combination of wind and wave will supply renewable energy, another significant factor enabling the oil & gas platform to reduce emissions will be the hydrogen solution onboard the floating wind platform. When the power production exceeds the platform’s needs, the surplus power will be stored as hydrogen and saved for later usage in fuel cells, dramatically reducing the need for running fossil-fuelled generators.”

Luana Duffé, executive vice president, New Energy Ventures at TechnipFMC, added: “Our hydrogen solution is ideal to work alongside FPP’s wind and wave platform to reduce the potential greenhouse gas emissions produced on oil and gas platforms. Using our technology and iONE, our execution model utilised specifically for renewable energies, we can safely and efficiently produce, store, and re-electrify hydrogen. This allows us to then export incremental electricity to the platform when wind and wave power are lower than the demand.”

Adis Ajdin

Adis is an experienced news reporter with a background in finance, media and education. He has written across the spectrum of offshore energy and ocean industries for many years and is a member of International Federation of Journalists. Previously he had written for Navingo media group titles including Offshore Energy, Subsea World News and Marine Energy.
Back to top button