In focus: Oil and gas electrification gains ground as offshore energies forge closer ties

Offshore energy industries, which up until recently had little in common, are becoming increasingly intertwined as governments and private sectors step up their game to combine the new and already existing infrastructure with established and emerging energy sectors into a more integrated energy industry that should ensure the safe and sustainable energy mix of the future.

Being part of one of the most important industries in the energy sector, the oil and gas giants are tirelessly trying to distance themselves from the fact that they are still the greatest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale by pursuing innovative ways to reduce their carbon footprint.

The electrification of oil and gas fields is one of those approaches, whereby the energy is sourced through electricity provided from onshore power stations or renewable energy units at sea, to avoid the gas turbines traditionally used to for power generation for the platforms.

This method is being explored by two oil and gas firms operating on the Norwegian continental shelf – OKEA and Equinor – who have agreed plans to electrify the Draugen field and Njord A platforms with the power provided by the Norwegian electricity grid.

Though not specifically sourced only through renewable energy, the project is expected to reduce emissions by 330,000 tonnes of CO2 per year and contribute to the Norway’s goal of decreasing them by 55% until 2030, according to OKEA.

Across the North Sea, the innovation in the field of electrification of oil and gas assets has taken more prominence as the Scottish government’s initiative to decarbonize the industry using offshore wind gains momentum.

Namely, the Scottish seabed manager Crown Estate Scotland said it received a total of 19 applications for its Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) offshore wind leasing process.    

The main goal of INTOG, which received significant support considering the level of interest from the industry, is to help decarbonize the North Sea using renewable energy produced by offshore wind farms to electrify the oil and gas infrastructure, therefore reducing the carbon emissions associated with fossil fuels production.

The Crown Estate Scotland said it would now proceed with the assessments of applications, with the offer of Exclusivity Agreements for INTOG projects anticipated by the end of April 2023.

Scotland is thinking outside the box when it comes to clean fuels, like hydrogen, as well. Called the clean fuel of the future, it has already become the underlying element connecting the offshore energy industries more closely as its great potential is evident to most active in the energy sector.

In that regard, a consortium of international partners has launched a new project that aims to establish a hydrogen export route from Scotland to Netherlands, more specifically Rotterdam, via liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC).

The project, shortened to LHyTS, seeks to demonstrate that LOHC can be successfully transported at scale, providing an export route to the Port of Rotterdam and other European destinations, which goes in line with the European Commission’s targeting of importing 10 million tons of hydrogen by 2030. 

Like Scotland, the Netherlands is also exploring innovative ways to ensure its sustainable energy mix, as well as export opportunities within Europe and further, as it looks into the development of offshore energy hubs, more floating solar, and reuse of gas pipelines for offshore-produced hydrogen by 2050.

The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy (EZK) is currently actively working to make this ambition a reality through the development of comprehensive 2050 plan, whose draft is expected to be published by the end of next year.

The potential of clean fuels spans beyond hydrogen and its contribution to the energy mix. Such fuels also have a major role to play in the decarbonization of the maritime industry as well, which has seen an important milestone achieved this week.

Though not fully green and renewable, the ‘world’s first certified cargo’ shipment of blue ammonia was completed from Saudi Arabia to South Korea.

Viewed as a low-carbon alternative to conventional fuels, the blue ammonia is produced from natural gas feedstock, with the carbon dioxide by-product released during the production captured and stored, while green ammonia is derived from hydrogen electrolysis produced with the use of renewable energy.

The cargo of 25,000 metric tons was independently certified marking the first shipment of its kind as the world pushes forward to make the transition to clean energy and abandon fossil fuels.

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