A proposal to increase capacity in the planned gas pipeline from the Statoil’s Kvitebjørn development in the North Sea has been submitted to the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.
According to a supplement to the recent plan for installation and operation (PIO) of the line, more capacity can be achieved without additional cost by simplifying the landfall route.
This runs into Statoil’s Kollsnes gas treatment plant near Bergen, which already handles gas from the Troll field.
The new solution will improve commercial opportunities for the new line by allowing it to carry gas from other fields near Troll and Kvitebjørn.
“That in turn will provide Kollsnes with more feedstock,” explains Morten Nesvik, business development manager for the Kvitebjørn project.
Statoil estimates that this part of the Norwegian North Sea contains some 200 billion cubic metres of unsold gas, but available capacity in the existing transport system is limited.
The revised proposal for the line cuts the cost of its landfall route by almost 50 per cent from the PIO figure, to roughly NOK 200 million.
Cash saved will be used to expand annual capacity in the gas line from 6.5 to 8.5 billion cubic metres, reports Mr Nesvik. That leaves total investment more or less unchanged.
Kvitebjørn contains an estimated 52 billion cubic metres of gas, and is due to begin deliveries under existing sales contracts by 1 October 2004.