Romanian giant invests in a modern container steam plant
Steam from the new facility will be used to stimulate oil production of OMV Petrom [1]. With this technique it is possible to increase the oil extraction rate by up to 50%.
Bakground
Since the 50’s oil and gas was recovered from underground formations by the use of steam. In a priming stage, high quality saturated steam or superheated steam is injected into the formation to raise the reservoir’s temperature and reduce the viscosity of heavy oil fractions. Then, high pressure "pushes" the oil from the wells and rock crevices. Thanks to this, oil reserves run down in the vicinity of the borehole. Such a process may be part of a cyclic steam stimulation or a steam flooding. These methods are particularly effective in areas where the deposit is located superficially, and its composition has a high percentage of heavy and viscous fractions. Such conditions occur in Romania, where national giant - OMV Petrom has more than 200 oil fields. The newest deposit revitalization program includes, in addition to performing hundreds of new wells, investment in the latest technology of field’s stimulation with hot water, steam and polymers.
Scope
IWT Intech in cooperation with Clayton of Belgium was entrusted in providing a containerized steam plant. This new contract included designing and manufacturing of mobile plant based on two Clayton SEOG-204 steam generators. Thanks to its revolutionaly design the whole boiler room installation was able to be fitted inside a standard 40 ft container because of its small footprint.
Steam container
Two generators including the necessary equipment were installed in the first container. Horizontal deaerator tank can hold 4,000 liters of water. Using booster centrifugal pumps and high pressure displacement pumps, boiler water is supplied to generators. This solution guarantees up to 6.262 kg of steam per hour and maximum pressure of up to 50 bar. To ensure safety, the entire installation was manufactured to withstand a 100 bar, which was confirmed by series of tests. It was necessary to use pneumatic controls with these operating parameters, the container was therefore equipped with an air compressor to make it possibile.
Water container
The complete water treatment system was installed in the second container to supply water of the highest quality. At such high pressure the water purity is the key factor. It prevents corrosion and limescale buildup, ensuring safe and highly efficient operation. To meet these requirements, in addition to standard softeners an reverse osmosis filter system was installed. The end part of this container was dedicated for service room.
Whole installation is designed for continuous operation on a trailer. On a site, the containers are connected to water and oil supply form trailer tanks. Electricity is ensured by a mobile genset. Standalone chimneys are mounted on the top of the steam container. After necessary connections and tests, the system is ready for steam production. To protect the system against frost, the containers were thermaly insulated with built in electric heaters and heat exchangers.
[1] OMV Petrom is the largest producer of liquid and gaseous fuels in South - East Europe, with a production capacity of 66 million barrels per year. The 2013 - 2015 years investment program, worth 550 million euros will allow for the extraction of an additional 100 million barrels of fuel. Oil coming from the the revitalization is now 25% of OMV Petrom total production.
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