Norway authorizes equipment for improved recovery on Gullfaks

STAVANGER, Norway -- The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted the licensees of Gullfaks Sør consent for start-up and operation of a new subsea wet gas compressor and umbilical on the Gullfaks field in production licence 050.

The Gullfaks project is the second major seabed gas compression project that will be initiated, after the NPD granted consent for the start-up of Åsgard subsea compression in July 2015.

"Technology development is a key to improved recovery and extended lifetime for fields on the Norwegian shelf," says principal engineer Astri Fritsen of the NPD. "For Gullfaks, this gas compression means extended lifetime and an increase in the gas recovery rate from Gullfaks Sør Brent from 62% to 74%."

The compressor station and the umbilical installed on the seabed on Gullfaks will push the well stream from templates D, L, M, and N up. Production is scheduled to start no later than October.

In addition to accelerating gas production and extending the period when the gas capacity on the Gullfaks C facility is utilized, the new infrastructure will increase the gas and condensate reserves from the reservoirs on Gullfaks Sør Brent and Rimfaks Brent. This also enables the realization of additional resources in the greater Gullfaks area.

According to Fritsen, the technology can be used on other new and existing fields in the future.