Roughing it Out in the North Sea

FPSOs are floating production storage offloading units. The Wittig engineers have produced, delivered and successfully installed a customized offshore VOCR gas compressor in the North Sea.

Flaring is a contributor to the worldwide anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide.

Improperly operated flares may emit methane and other volatile organic compounds as well as sulfur dioxide and other sulfur compounds, which are known to exacerbate asthma and other respiratory problems. Other emissions from improperly operated flares may include aromatic hydrocarbons (benzene, toluene, xylene) and benzapyrene, which are known to be carcinogenic.

Flaring and burning of associated gas from oil drilling sites is a significant source of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Some 400 × 106 tons of carbon dioxide are emitted annually in this way and it amounts to about 1.2 per cent of the worldwide emissions of carbon dioxide. That may seem to be insignificant, but in perspective it is more than half of the Certified Emissions Reductions (a type of carbon credits) that have been issued under the rules and mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol as of June 2011.

Wittig's core competence are highly reliable, robust and low energy consumption rotary vane compressors.  The customized ROW 230 gas compressor sold here can deliver approx. 1300 Nm³/hr at 10 bar g working pressure. This equipment has ATEX certification as well as DNV approval and was completely mounted on a stainless steel  skid.