Membership in research program provides oil giant with tools to reduce risk, save operating dollars
PETRONAS’ participation in a research program at the CMC Research Institute’s Field Research Station will help the energy company reduce risk and avoid costly delays as it prepares to develop carbon capture and storage operations (CCS) in its offshore operations.
Malaysia’s fully integrated national oil company with global operations recently subscribed to the Field Research Station (FRS) program, a move the company says will enable it to prove technologies and protocols before they are installed at designated sites.
On PETRONAS’ agenda is the development and monetisation of high contaminant fields which include high CO2 gas fields. The development of these fields will help meet PETRONAS’ commitment in reducing GHGs, which is also in line with Malaysia’s commitment. The company’s main interest in work at the Field Research Station is to ensure the conformance and containment monitoring for re-injected CO2 that will be produced and separated offshore.”
Sandra Odendahl, President and CEO of CMC Research Institutes, welcomes PETRONAS as a subscriber. “We applaud PETRONAS for the action it’s taking to fight climate change. The International Panel on Climate Change has identified carbon capture and storage as a key technology to reducing CO2 emissions. With its plans to develop offshore CCS, and to work with us at the FRS to enable safe operations, PETRONAS is setting an example to the world of the direction in which energy companies need to move.
As PETRONAS has been increasing efforts in carbon capture and storage options in recent years, participation in the research program at the CMC Research Institute’s Field Research Station underpins its latest efforts to develop an off-shore gas field which has high CO2 content. It intends to separate CO2 from extracted gas and reinject it into a nearby reservoir.
It also has plans to build the world’s first offshore research lab for offshore CO2 capture and storage. Work at the Field Research Station will allow PETRONAS to derisk and understand the technology in a safe, onshore environment before it is tested it at offshore facilities.
Located on 200 hectares of land southeast of Calgary in Newell County, the research station is a state-of-the-art test centre for monitoring technologies that can be used for carbon storage, enhanced oil recovery, groundwater protection, acid gas, and other fluid disposal systems. The site provides geophysical, geomechanical and geochemical data for analysis and has a variety of measurement and sampling technologies for client use. It is also a test centre for validating and calibrating sensor systems for methane emissions in soil, air and surface water.
Don Lawton, director of the Field Research Station, says “Carbon capture and storage is a key technology for companies, especially those in the energy industry, to reduce their CO2 emissions in order to comply with international protocols and satisfy concerns of the public about safety. To meet regulatory requirements, companies will need to demonstrate that they know how CO2 is behaving when it is injected into a reservoir. We help develop the means to provide that assurance.”
PETRONAS is committed to addressing climate change while producing affordable and reliable energy. Investment in the CMC Research Institute’s Field Research Station is part of the company’s ongoing support for innovations that will help it, and Malaysia, transition toward a low carbon economy
About PETRONAS
Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) is one of the few national oil companies in the world that has transformed itself into a leading multinational of choice and ranked amongst the largest corporations on FORTUNE Global 500®. Since establishment in 1974, we pursue new solutions and push boundaries across the entire oil and gas value chain. PETRONAS continues to strengthen our portfolio through technological advancements, operational excellence and by being a responsible corporate citizen wherever we operate. Unlocking potential and amplifying value to oil and gas resources are what our diverse, resilient and competent workforce strives to deliver every day.