GE direct drive technology supplies Total offshore Norway

GE Oil & Gas has announced that it will supply Total E&P Norge with its first high-speed electric motor and centrifugal compressor packages for the company’s new offshore production platform on the Martin Linge oil and gas field offshore Norway.

The four complete, variable frequency drive high-speed electric motor and centrifugal compressor packages combine GE Oil & Gas’s centrifugal compressor technology on active magnetic bearings (AMBs) with GE Power Conversion high-frequency variable speed drive and high-speed motor technology.

One of the packages has a unique configuration with a central high-speed electrical motor driving one centrifugal compressor from one end and a two-section compressor from the other end.

“This contract illustrates how GE is able to offer an integrated, single-source solution by taking advantage of GE Power Conversion’s extensive experience and successful track record with solutions that drive compressors with high-speed, stand-alone induction motors,” GE Oil & Gas said in a statement on Monday.

Total submitted its Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) for the field in January 2012, which was approved by the Norwegian parliament in June 2012.

In late November, Subsea 7  bagged a USD 800m subsea, umbilical, riser and flowline (SURF) contract with Total for offshore works on the French giant’s subsea facilities at the Martin Linge. Total investments in the Martin Linge gas field are estimated to amount to USD 3.6bn.

The Martin Linge gas field is situated in the northern North Sea in roughly 120 meters of water. It is co-owned by Total (operator, 51 per cent) and Norwegian companies Statoil (19 per cent) and state-owned Petoro (30 per cent). The field holds estimated recoverable reserves of 189 million barrels of oil equivalent. Production is scheduled to start in Q4 2016.