Shared electrification of offshore oil and gas industry and wind farms aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions has taken a step further by the Oil & Gas Authority (OGA).
Areas identified with the most significant opportunities are West of Shetland, the Outer Moray Firth, Central North Sea and Southern North Sea.
The OGA stated that the technology, already used in the Norwegian sector, should be operational on at least two operational projects by the mid-2020s.
Discussions on joint power generation on the Central North Sea platform were held in the first in a series of workshops for the Energy Integration project which identifies ways of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Representatives of power generation, oil and gas, and wind farm sectors discussed platform electrification, power supply from wind farms and transmission infrastructure.
Future workshops will invite potential investors, including infrastructure operators, in transmission concepts and wind farms as well as supply chain companies.
The four most significant opportunities identified are:
– windpower supply and transmission link with the mainland enabling electrification of new oil and gas projects West of Shetland
– existing oil and gas facilities in the Outer Moray Firth could be electrified through connection to wind power developments in the area, and ScotWind Leasing opportunities
– electrification of Central North Sea platforms at a greater distance from the UK shore could benefit from a cross-border power supply (eg Norway) and floating wind
– several cross-industry opportunities in the Southern North Sea, due to closer proximity between wind farms and oil and gas operations, and Windfarm licence Round 4 as future expansion
“We are very pleased to see real engagement on this from operators, and collaboration with the power sector and investors and are keen to see activity move at pace, ” said OGA director of operations Scott Robertson.
“The OGA is doing a number of things to support increased pace, including facilitating introductions to develop a critical mass of participants and collaboration across oil/ gas, wind and power sectors and identifying barriers where the OGA can play a role in finding enablers.”
The OGA recently published its UKCS Energy Integration report which concluded that the integration of offshore oil and gas, renewables, hydrogen and carbon capture and storage (CCS) could contribute to delivering around 30% of the UK’s total carbon reduction requirements needed to meet the 2050 net zero target.
The report found that oil and gas platform electrification was essential for cutting emissions and for preserving the industry’s ‘social licence’ to operate.