A significant share of the world’s undiscovered oil and natural gas resources are assumed to lie under the seabed of the Arctic Ocean. Up until now, the exploitation of the resources especially under the European Arctic has largely been prevented by the challenges posed by sea ice coverage, harsh weather conditions, darkness, remoteness of the fields, and lack of infrastructure. Gradual warming has, however, improved the accessibility of the Arctic Ocean. We show for the most resource-abundant European Arctic Seas whether and how a climate induced reduction in sea ice might impact future accessibility of offshore natural gas and crude oil resources. Based on this analysis we show for a number of illustrative but representative locations which technology options exist based on a cost-minimization assessment. We find that under current hydrocarbon prices, oil and gas from the European offshore Arctic is not competitive on world markets.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13280-017-0957-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Today, the demand of natural gas from offshore fields is on a high level and still increasing. Floating turret moored terminals receive gas directly from the field via risers and liquefaction is achieved by on-board processing plants. The LNG (liquefied natural gas) is transferred to periodically operating shuttle carriers for onshore supply. This paper presents an innovative offshore LNG transfer system, based on newly developed flexible cryogenic pipes of 16″ inner diameter, which allow fast loading/offloading procedures in tandem configuration (see Fig. 1), even in harsh environmental conditions. The motion characteristics of the proposed concept are investigated in detail by the potential theory programmes WAMIT and ANSYS AQWA, respectively, with the focus on the dynamic behaviour of the multi-body system in waves. Each vessel is generating its own radiation and diffraction wave field affecting the motions of the adjacent vessels and vice versa. Results from calculations in the frequency and time domain are compared and show good agreement. Tolerable relative motions between terminal and carrier are limited by maximum torsion and bending of the flexible transfer pipe. Based on given limiting parameters, the operational range of the system and the annual expected downtime is exemplarily calculated for a location in the north sea. Finally, second-order forces — induced by drift motions — on the mooring lines between carrier and terminal are presented as time series for a three-hour sea state.
One of the most challenging questions with regard to the technical part of the LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) supply chain has not been answered satisfactorily yet: How can LNG be safely and reliably transferred between a floating terminal platform (Floating Production, Storage and Offloading -FPSO or Floating Storage and Re-gasification Units -FSRU or comparable) and a shuttle tanker in harsh environmental conditions?The problem consists of two main technical issues: The first is the vessel mooring configuration (e.g. side-by-side (SbS), tandem); the second is the type and appropriate handling of the transfer lines for the cryogenic liquid. As both problems are interacting, no convincing solution has been developed until now. .The innovative offshore LNG loading system "Maritime Pipe Loading System 20" (MPLS20) is proposed by the project partners Nexans and Brugg, leading manufacturers of vacuum insulated, flexible cryogenic transfer pipes, IMPaC, an innovative engineering company that has been involved in many projects for the international oil and gas industry for 25 years and the Technical University Berlin, Department of Land-and Sea Transportation Systems, with great expertise in numerical analyses and model tests.The new concept is based on a unique tandem mooring configuration (see Fig. 1). In comparison to standard operations used in the oil business for about 40 years, the concept introduces a mooring bay for the shuttle tanker. Extensive numerical simulations are conducted to determine the envelope of motions and mooring forces.As the Nexans/Brugg corrugated metal pipes provide a double containment system all relevant safety issues are well addressed, as required by EN1474-2/-3. Thus, LNG transfer can take place even under severe environmental conditions which makes this new concept superior to other approaches such as side-by-side configurations using composite hoses. Fig. 1: Impression of the new offshore LNG transfer system with a LNGC moored to the LNG terminal for loading
In turn of the global warming and driven by the constant need for resources an increasing number of commercial and scientific activities conquer the Arctic in order to benefit from almost untouched resources like oil and gas but also from the overwhelming nature. These activities are accompanied by a steadily increasing number of vessels transporting goods but also operating personnel, scientists or tourists. Especially the number of tourists visiting the Arctic can reach far more than 1000 per vessel, resulting in growing headaches for the responsible safety and security authorities in the Arctic surrounding countries. Up to now no suitable Escape, Evacuation and Rescue (EER) concept is in place to cope with these challenges when it comes to hazardous situations. In this context IMPaC ([1]) developed a new and appropriate EER concept for the Arctic, exceeding the currently dominant small and isolated settlements along the coastlines in Denmark (Greenland), Norway, Russia, Canada and the US. One question seems to be central: Is there any requirement and benefit beyond the currently used small rescue station? Yes, we strongly believe that there is a growing demand for suitable infrastructure coming from various industries. Beyond rescue objectives there is a demand for people working and living in this area all year long, for a few days, weeks or months using these settlements for their specific needs. This led us to the idea of the provision of a common-use infrastructure for multiple industries. The commonly used infrastructure maximizes the use of the remote and very expensive infrastructure and minimizes the impact on the environment in this part of the world. Potential users of this infrastructure would be: • Oil & Gas Industry, driven by the increased world energy demand • Marine Transport & Tourism Industry, driven by declined arctic ice and new sea routes via the Arctic sea • Fishery Industry • Scientific community Any EER concept for the Arctic has to cope with several specific environmental and spatial challenges as addressed by the EU joint research project ACCESS ([2]), where IMPaC participates. The paper introduces the new EER concept and focuses especially on its beneficial, efficient and safe operability in the Arctic recording an increasing number of commercial and scientific activities.
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