Membrane system to cleanse gas streams at Catcher FPSO in North Sea

Aug. 20, 2014
BW Offshore has contracted Honeywell subsidiary UOP LLC to supply equipment to remove contaminants from natural gas aboard the FPSO that will serve the Catcher project in the UK central North Sea.

Offshore staff

DES PLAINES, Illinois – BW Offshore has contracted Honeywell subsidiary UOP LLC to supply equipment to remove contaminants from natural gas aboard the FPSO that will serve the Catcher project in the UK central North Sea.

The vessel, which will be leased to operator Premier Oil, will include a UOP Separex membrane system to remove carbon dioxide (CO2). This will be the first North Sea FPSO to deploy a membrane-based treatment system, UOP claims.

Additionally, the company will supply guard bed adsorbents to remove mercury and hydrogen sulfide. These contaminants must be removed to comply with export and end-user specifications and to protect downstream equipment. The technology involves no moving parts and no operator intervention.

Rebecca Liebert, senior vice president and general manager of Honeywell’s UOP Gas Processing and Hydrogen business unit, said: “By integrating UOP Separex membrane technology and guard bed adsorbents into a single system, we are able to create a solution that improves gas processing efficiency while reducing operating costs for FPSO operators.”

TheCatcher FPSO is expected to enter service in 2017. It will have an oil processing capacity of 60,000 b/d and a storage capacity of 650,000 bbl.

08/20/2014