The Oil & Gas Technology Centre (OGTC) and the University of Aberdeen have opened the new National Decommissioning Centre (NDC) in North-East Scotland’s Energetica Corridor.
The £38m global technology R&D hub will help the oil and gas industry deliver the cost reduction target set by the regulator Oil and Gas Authority in 2016.
It combines industry expertise with academic excellence and aims to work in collaboration with companies to focus on reducing costs, extending field and asset life, as well as transforming the traditional approach to decommissioning.
OGTC CEO Colette Cohen said: “The centre will partner with industry and academia to deliver technology, share knowledge and provide thought leadership to reduce costs, extend field life, and challenge the conventional approach to decommissioning.
“With the global decommissioning market set to grow to £80bn over the next decade, we will work with supply chain companies and technology developers in Scotland, and across the UK, to help them develop the capability to meet domestic demand and drive export growth across the world.”
The NDC builds on the University of Aberdeen’s R&D capability in various areas such as decommissioning technologies, predictive modelling, environmental assessment and the economics of decommissioning.
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By GlobalDataIt is also in advanced talks with several anchor partners to bring together academic researchers, industry experts and business partners for the creation of a unique environment for collaborative R&D.
The centre features a new digital visualisation and collaboration suite and a supercomputer cluster to enable the fast simulation and modelling of new decommissioning scenarios.
It has facilities to carry out technology trials and rapid prototyping with a hyperbaric testing vessel that is capable of simulating ocean conditions of 6,500m.
Other facilities include an indoor freshwater immersion tank, environmental chambers for temperature testing from -40°C to 180°C and hangar space to design and construct decommissioning technology.
The NDC will also collaborate with R&D institutions and innovation centres across the country active in late life asset management and decommissioning.