First Commercial Twister Supersonic Separator Starts Up
24 February 2004
The Hague, 19th February 2004 - Twister BV announced today the successful start up in Malaysia of the world’s first commercially operated Twister Supersonic Separator system. The system, in operation since December, is on the Shell Malaysia B11 P–A development project offshore Sarawak, East Malaysia, and is designed to dehydrate 600 MMscfd of non-associated gas which is being supplied to the Malaysian LNG Dua plant at Bintulu.
The unique Twister technology treats produced gas at supersonic velocities, extracting water and hydrocarbon liquids. Compared to conventional technologies, the Twister process requires no chemicals, and hence reduces exposure to hazardous gas. It has no moving parts, facilitates unmanned operation, allows near instant start up and allows considerable project cost reduction, particularly for offshore installations.
The B11 system comprises multiple Twister tubes in two production trains. The Twister tubes were manufactured in the Netherlands with Inconel internals to resist the potentially corrosive action of the high CO2 & H2S content of the processed gas. Each train includes a multi-phase low temperature Hydrate Separator (LTX) which has been manufactured locally by KNM in Malaysia, in accordance with a proprietary Twister BV design. They are used for separating gas, water and condensate whilst controlling hydrate formation without the use of chemicals. The Twister system is considerably smaller and lighter than conventional technology.
Sim Kian-Hua, the B11 P-A Project Manager, recently stated that “Twister represents a groundbreaking advancement in offshore gas treatment. Shell Malaysia is proud to have worked with PETRONAS in pioneering this novel concept in Malaysia”.
The B11 P-A project is the first offshore commercial application of Twister technology, clearly demonstrating the Shell and PETRONAS commitment to developing and implementing new innovative and environmentally friendly products.
