Senior officials of Abu Dhabi Gas Industries Limited, GASCO, have concluded a four day visit to Shell gas plants in Europe, comprising a visit to the Ormen Lange gas plant and extension project in Norway, the Den Helder Gas plant facilities operated by Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij B.V. (NAM) in The Netherlands and Shell’s Amsterdam Technology Centre (STCA).
The GASCO delegation included Marwan Al Hammadi, Vice President of Asab Gas complex, Merza Abdul Aziz, Vice President of Habshan 5 Gas complex. The main objective of the visit was to gain insight into the latest technology developments in gas treatment and processing – both of which are implemented in Ormen Lange and NAM.
Ormen Lange is Norway’s second largest gas field and is located offshore, in an area with extreme weather conditions and sub-zero temperatures on the sea bed at a depth between 850 to 1,100 meters. The field has made Norway the second largest gas exporter in Europe, while NAM has been operating since 1947 and is by far the largest natural gas producer in the Netherlands, accounting for around 75 percent of all gas produced in the country.
Commenting on GASCO’s facilities in the U.A.E., Mr. Al Hammadi said, “GASCO was first born out of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan’s vision to utilise the U.A.E.’s associated gas resources. Today, GASCO is one of the largest and most complex gas processing and distribution companies in the world.” He went on to state that his visit “was an excellent learning experience”.
The visit to the gas plants and technology centre in Europe provided the visiting delegation with exposure to the latest developments on working systems such as the Electronic Permit to Work, implementation of operational excellence (in particular operating integrity and maintenance), as well as inspection execution. The visit was also an opportunity to share technological advances, such as robotics technology and future gas processing and treatment technology.
During the tour of Shell’s Technology Laboratory in Amsterdam, the delegates were also given a demonstration of the latest in robotic technology, specifically related to mobile robots to be used in sour gas fields to protect people against the risk of highly toxic hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas. The Sensabot, developed jointly with Carnegie Mellon University’s National Robotics Engineering Centre in the U.S., uses sensors and cameras to inspect oil and gas field equipment. The robot is already minimising risk in challenging environments such as Kashagan Field in Kazakastan. It can go anywhere people can, but is controlled remotely, reducing the exposure of people to potential dangers.
The GASCO senior delegation was accompanied by Nick Flinn, Projects and Technology Service Manager, Saeed Alzaabi, Shell Abu Dhabi’s Government Relations Manager and Cees Brummelkamp, Shell Abu Dhabi’s Technical Manager. The Shell team commented on the tour saying that Shell has been a partner in GASCO since its inception and knowledge sharing trips such as these form an important part of the company’s technical support for GASCO.
Source : WAM News Agency for United Arab Emirates
