Page 22: of Marine Technology Magazine (May 2018)

Interconnect

Powering the seaf oor

Put a Socket In It Put a Socket In It

T ere’s an energy revolution coming on the seabed.

Elaine Maslin reports.

n efforts to boost subsea oil and gas production and also provide more responsive control and advanced health reach ? elds further from shore, in deeper and even monitoring of subsea equipment.

Arctic waters, a subsea power revolution is in prog- But, this new infrastructure could support more than pumps, ress. Several multinationals are developing systems compressors and actuators. It could also be used to support to provide electric power across the sea? oor – think a growing ? eet of unmanned underwater vehicles, as well as

Isubsea power sockets. supporting other industries, from ocean science to deepsea

Giving access to subsea power this way would help oil and mining. gas ? rms move processing equipment to the sea? oor, instead “Once you have power down there, you can power ROVs of hosting it on platforms. On the sea? oor, equipment, includ- (remotely operated vehicles), heating in pipelines (to prevent ing pumps and compressors, would be more effective and ef- blockages), and a number of other applications, that are com- ? cient at boosting production rates. Reduced reliance on plat- ing up,” says Jan Bugge, Vice President of subsea technology forms would also help reduce oil ? rms’ footprints, reducing at ABB and Project Director of a subsea power joint industry pollution risk and CO2 emissions. All-electric systems would project (JIP) the ? rm has with Statoil. “There have been dis-

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