The concept shows technological solutions, most of which are already within reach, can be combined to produce a 20% reduction in operating costs, with only a few percent increase in capital expenditure.
“Solitude has been developed with maintainability foremost in mind,” said Elisabeth Tørstad, DNV GL ceo oil & gas. “By changing the focus from maximum efficiency to maximum reliability, and selecting robust processing options with built-in redundancy, we were able to develop a solution that ensures production levels and boosts the economic viability of FLNG projects.”
Some of the innovations would include the use of fuel cells for power, robots for routine maintenance and inspection, wireless sensors for monitoring. Being unmanned it would reduce the safety risk to personnel.
The design would include a docking system for offshore support vessels.
“Existing frontier oil and gas projects have resulted in tremendous technological developments, particularly in the subsea realm, and Solitude draws on this,” said Tørstad. “Operators are already controlling subsea installations and simple, fixed offshore installations from shore. Given the on-going advances in autonomous systems and remote operations, unmanned offshore installations are a natural development over the next few decades.”
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