Statoil has secured authorisation from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) to operate new subsea wet gas compressor and umbilical on the Gullfaks oil field in production licence 050.
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In July, NPD granted consent for the start-up of Åsgard subsea compression, and the Gullfaks project is said to be the second major seabed gas compression project after that.
NPD principal engineer Astri Fritsen said: "Technology development is a key to improved recovery and extended lifetime for fields on the Norwegian shelf.
"For Gullfaks, this gas compression means extended lifetime and an increase in the gas recovery rate from Gullfaks Sør Brent from 62 to 74%."
According to NPD, the compressor station, as well as the umbilical installed on Gullfaks’ seabed will push up the well stream from templates D, L, M, and N.
Production from the field is expected to commence by October.
The new infrastructure will increase gas production and extend the period when the gas capacity on the Gullfaks C facility is used.
It would also boost the gas and condensate reserves from the reservoirs on Gullfaks Sør Brent and Rimfaks Brent enabling the realisation of additional resources in Gullfaks.
Fritsen noted that the technology can be used on other new and existing fields.
The oil and gas field Gullfaks in located the Norwegian sector of the North Sea operated by Statoil and was discovered in 1978, in block 34/10, at a water depth of 130-230m.
Image: Oil from the Gullfaks field. Photo: courtesy of Bjoertvedt.
