Engineering simulation firm Akselos announced the successful deployment of a structural digital twin for Shell’s Bonga floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel 120 km southwest of the Niger Delta in Nigeria.
The digital twin is a physics-based model of the FPSO that accurately represents its entire physical counterpart. The model is updated with loading conditions and inspection data on a regular basis, providing the ability to conduct structural assessments based on the current condition from anywhere and at any time.
Shell said it selected Akselos’ digital twin because of its ability to realize a number of operational objectives. These include the identification of critical areas for prioritized inspection, maintenance, and repair; a reduction in personnel on board the FPSO; reduced necessity for physical inspections in hard-to-reach areas such as cargo tanks; and support for planning for extreme weather events and asset modification.
The deployment of the breakthrough simulation technology will also enable safe asset life extension by replacing overconservative estimates made with conventional simulation software with accurate assessments that reflect actual remaining fatigue life.
“The Bonga main FPSO heralded a number of innovative firsts when it was built back in 2004, so it’s fitting that it’s the first asset of its kind to deploy something as advanced as a structural digital twin,” said Elohor Aiboni, asset manager for Bonga. “It is … a great example of digitalization coming to life.”
The Bonga FPSO, which became operational in 2004, has a capacity of 225,000 BPD and weighs more than 300,000 tonnes, making it the largest asset in the world to be protected by a structural digital twin.
“To have the opportunity to deploy our breakthrough technology on a 300,000-tonne asset is the kind of technical challenge that Akselos was founded to solve,” said David Knezevic, chief technology officer and cofounder of Akselos.
Shell has been working with Akselos since its technology scouts were introduced to the company as a startup as part of the MIT Industrial Liaison program in 2015. Since then, the integrated energy company has supported Akselos’ technology deployment on many of its assets and become a minority shareholder through its venture capital arm Shell Ventures.