Aker Solutions and FSubsea have agreed to create FASTSubsea to help operators increase oil recovery in a faster, simpler, and more environmentally friendly way.
Multiphase subsea pumping technology has the potential to increase oil recovery rates by more than 20%, but cost, space limitations, and sometimes complex solutions mean multiphase pumps are installed in fewer than 30 of the world's 1,500+ offshore fields.
The new company, FASTSubsea, combines Aker Solutions' multiphase hydraulic technology with FSubsea's Hydromag technology to create the world's first "topside-less" multiphase boosting system.
The pump-module solution being developed by FASTSubsea can cut Capex by half and enable subsea boosting at fields where there is no available topside space. Getting more out of existing wells reduces the CO2 emissions per barrel.
"Creating FASTSubsea enables us to increase our speed to the market, reduce risk, and reduce investment in multiphase test facilities," said Alexander Fuglesang, CEO of FSubsea, who will take on the role of managing director of FASTSubsea.
"Combining Aker Solutions' subsea systems expertise and multiphase test facility with FSubsea's Hydromag technology and lean mindset will benefit both companies,” said John Macleod, Aker Solutions' chief technology officer. "FASTSubsea has the potential to become a valuable addition to our portfolio of boosting recovery solutions."
The agreement is subject to approval from the Norwegian competition authorities.
Set up in Oslo, Norway, in 2013 as a spin-off from Fuglesangs Group, FSubsea has supplied more than 40 pumps that are currently operating in deep waters. In 2017, the company won the OTC Spotlight Small Business Award for its Omnirise boosting system.
Subsea Boosting
The spread of subsea boosting technology has been hampered by cost and complexity. Conventional systems require a large amount of topside equipment on a platform or FPSO, including electric variable speed drives and supply systems for barrier fluid hydraulic oils. They also typically require several kilometers of hydraulic umbilicals between the pumps and the platform. This increases cost in the form of engineering and hardware spend.
FASTSubsea’s pump-module solution leverages FSubsea's Hydromag technology, which is a combination of the world's most powerful permanent magnetic coupling with an embedded hydrodynamic variable speed function, and Aker Solutions' MultiBooster semi-axial impeller design, which has proven best-in-class pressure generation capabilities, said the companies in a press release. This system has built-in variable speed function and is barrier-fluid-less, which reduces Capex cost with up to 50%. It unlocks opportunities with platforms that have no additional topside space but still can reap the economic benefits of increased recovery with subsea boosting system.