The Statoil-operated Gullfaks gas field in the Norwegian Sea will rely on Nexans’ innovative power umbilicals combining power, fibre-optic and hydraulic lines in a single cross section. The cables were successfully handed over to Statoil this month.
The subsea gas-compression station will be installed on the seafloor at the Gullfaks Sør satellite field, 15km from the Gullfaks C platform. It will increase total gas extraction by 22 million barrels. The cables will power two 5MW gas compressors at a depth of 135m. The 650t station will be housed in a 420t protective structure, managing a flow rate of 10 million cubic metres per day.
Photo courtesy of Nexans
The Gullfaks field is located 160 km west of Sognefjorden, Norway. The subsea gas-compression station will be only the second of its kind in the world. Nexans delivered umbilicals to the first subsea compression station at the Åsgard gas field, also operated by Statoil, last year. Dirk Steinbrink, senior executive vice president of High Voltage & Underwater Cable Business at Nexans, said: “We are proud of our position at the cutting edge of this development. The long-term partnership between Statoil and Nexans over many years has been important in facilitating this technological development.” The Gullfaks compression station will be in operation later this year.
