Solar thermal enhanced oil recovery

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Solar thermal enhanced oil recovery (abbreviated solar EOR) is a form of thermal enhanced oil recovery (EOR), a technique applied by oil producers to extract more oil from maturing oil fields. Solar EOR uses solar thermal arrays to concentrate the sun's energy to heat water and generate steam. The steam is injected into an oil reservoir to reduce the viscosity, or thin, heavy crude thus facilitating its flow to the surface. Thermal recovery processes, also known as steam injection, have traditionally burned natural gas to produce steam. Solar EOR is proving to be a viable alternative to gas-fired steam production for the oil industry. Solar EOR can generate the same quality steam as natural gas, reaching temperatures up to 750 °F (399 °C) and 2,500 PSI.

Contents

While typical fuel-fired steamflood operations inject steam into the ground at a constant rate, research conducted by leading oil producers shows that variable rate steam injection has no negative impact on production levels. In effect, solar EOR could supply up to 80 percent of a field's annual steam requirements, by injecting solar-generated steam during the sunny hours, and a reduced amount of gas-fired steam at night or in less sunny weather or climates. This method of integrating solar EOR will displace larger amounts of gas consumption without affecting oil output. [1]

Technology

While there are many types of solar-to-steam technologies, often referred to as solar thermal or concentrated solar power, only two are currently deployed for solar EOR.

Central tower

Originally designed for generating electricity, central tower, or power tower technology, uses a field of large tracking mirrors, called heliostats, to concentrate the sunlight on a boiler filled with water that rests on a central tower. The sun's energy is reflected on the boiler to produce steam, which is used to turn a traditional turbine to create electricity. For EOR, the process ends at steam production. High-temperature steam made from demineralized water in the tower receiver passes through a heat exchanger, generating steam of lower temperature from high-contamination oilfield feedwater at lower temperatures. The steam is fed into distribution headers which lead to injection wells, which convey steam into the oil-bearing formation.

Enclosed trough

Inside an enclosed trough system Inside an enclosed CSP Trough.jpg
Inside an enclosed trough system

The enclosed trough architecture encapsulates the solar thermal system within a greenhouse-like glasshouse. The glasshouse creates a protected environment to withstand the elements that can negatively impact reliability and efficiency of the solar thermal system. [2]

Lightweight curved solar-reflecting mirrors are suspended within the glasshouse structure. A single-axis tracking system positions the mirrors to track the sun and focus its light onto a network of stationary steel pipes, also suspended from the glasshouse structure. [3] Steam is generated directly, using oil field-quality water, as water flows from the inlet throughout the length of the pipes, without heat exchangers or intermediate working fluids.

The steam produced is then fed directly to the field's existing steam distribution network, where the steam is continuously injected deep into the oil reservoir. Sheltering the mirrors from the wind allows them to achieve higher temperature rates and prevents dust from building up as a result from exposure to humidity. [2] GlassPoint Solar, the company that created the Enclosed Trough method, states its technology can produce heat for EOR for about $5 per million British thermal units in sunny regions, compared to between $10 and $12 for other conventional solar thermal technologies. [4]

Recent projects

21Z in McKittrick, California

World's first commercial solar EOR project, located in Kern Country, CA, USA. GlassPoint EOR Kern County CA.jpg
World's first commercial solar EOR project, located in Kern Country, CA, USA.

GlassPoint Solar partnered with Berry Petroleum, California's largest independent oil producer, to deploy the world's first commercial solar EOR project. Commissioned in February 2011, the project is located on a 100-year-old McKittrick Oil Field in McKittrick, California. Coined the Kern County 21Z Solar Project, the system spans roughly one acre and will produce approximately one million Btus per hour of solar heat, replacing natural gas used for steam generation. The solar EOR project was constructed in less than six weeks and is the first installation of GlassPoint's enclosed trough technology in an oil field. [5]

Coalinga in Coalinga, California

In October 2011, Chevron Corp. and BrightSource Energy revealed a 29-megawatt solar- to-steam facility at the Coalinga Oil Field in Fresno County, California. The Coalinga solar EOR project spans 100 acres and consists of 3,822 mirror systems, or heliostats, each with two 10-foot (3-meter) by 7-foot mirrors mounted on a 6-foot steel pole focusing light on a 327-foot solar tower. [4]

BrightSource was contracted to provide the technology, engineering and production and construction services, and Chevron Technology Ventures will manage operations of the project. The facility began construction in 2009. It was reported that Chevron spent more than its $28 million on the contract, and BrightSource has lost at least $40 million on the project and disclosed it will lose much more. [6]

Petroleum Development Oman

7MW Solar EOR project in Amal, Oman GlassPoint Solar EOR Project In Sandstorm.jpeg
7MW Solar EOR project in Amal, Oman

In May 2013, GlassPoint Solar and Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) commissioned the Middle East's first solar EOR project. [7] PDO is a joint venture between the Sultanate of Oman, Shell and Total. The 7 MW solar EOR facility produces a daily average of 50 tons of emissions-free steam that feeds directly into existing thermal EOR operations at PDO's Amal West field in Southern Oman. The system in 27 times larger than GlassPoint's first installation at Berry Petroleum's 21Z oil field. [8] Reports by Petroleum Development Oman indicate that the pilot was delivered on-time, under-budget, and above contract output specifications, with zero lost time injuries. In the first year of operations, the fully automated system successfully exceeded all performance tests and production targets. The system recorded a 98.6% uptime, significantly exceeding PDO's expectations. Even during severe dust and sandstorms, the system has proven to maintain regular operations.

In 2015 Oman announced Miraah, a $600 million, 1 gigawatt solar-thermal facility by 2017 at Amal West. The plant will cover 3 square kilometres (1.2 sq mi) with 36 large greenhouse protecting the solar collectors from sand and dust. [9] Oman anticipates that the new solar project will replace 5.6 trillion BTUs of natural gas each year, which is equivalent to the amount required to produce electricity for 209,000 people in Oman. In August 2017, GlassPoint and its contractors crossed the threshold of 1.5 million man-hours worked without lost time injury (LTI) at Miraah.

In November 2017, GlassPoint and Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) completed construction on the first block of the Miraah solar plant safely on schedule and on budget, and successfully delivered steam to the Amal West oilfield. [10]

Belridge Solar

A rendering of future solar field at South Belridge Belridgesolar render2.jpg
A rendering of future solar field at South Belridge

The Belridge Solar Project is a joint venture between GlassPoint Solar and Aera Energy. The project was announced in November 2017 and, when completed, is projected to produce approximately 12 million barrels of steam per year through a 850MW thermal solar steam generator. The project will be located at the South Belridge Oil Field, near Bakersfield, California, and will be the state's largest solar EOR field when completed. It will also cut carbon emissions from the facility by 376,000 metric tons per year. [11]

Market

The global market for EOR technologies was $4.7 billion in 2009 and is expected to grow at a 5-year compound annual rate of 28 percent, reaching $16.3 billion in 2014. [4] While quickly gaining traction, it is predicated solar EOR will have minimal impact on the market till 2015. [12] As solar EOR scales up, oil producers will consume less gas for oil production [4]

According to research analysts at Raymond James, solar EOR can be done more cost effectively than using gas, even as current depressed prices. Steam represents as much as 60 percent of the production cost for heavily oil extraction. [12] In addition to being cost competitive with gas, solar EOR provides a hedge against long-term gas price escalation. Long-term price projections put natural gas at $5.00 per thousand cubic feet, considerably higher than the 2011 forecast of $3.75 per thousand cubic feet. When an oil producer invests in a solar EOR system, all costs are upfront and the standard life of the equipment is 30 years. [12]

United States

California is a promising geography for solar EOR with its high level of sunshine and vast heavy oil reserves. Currently, 40 percent of California's oil production deploys steam injection for EOR and in a few years will grow to 60 percent. [2] [4] Together five heavy oil producers – Chevron, Aera Energy, Berry Petroleum, Plains and Occidental – consume about 283 Bcf of gas annually. This equals 1.3 percent of total demand in the United States. However, analysts say that solar EOR could replace 20 percent of the natural gas used for EOR in California. [13]

Middle East

The Persian Gulf has exceptionally favorable insolation, which in some locations exceeds levels in the Mojave Desert, which is a factor in making solar EOR very promising there. The other factor is less obvious but even more important: with the exception of Qatar, Persian Gulf countries are short of natural gas and actually have to import gas. The limited natural gas supplies is made worse by growing local economies that require natural gas for desalination, electricity and other industrial uses. [14]

By using solar, instead of gas, to generate steam for EOR, Middle Eastern companies can extend their domestic natural gas supplies to higher value uses. This is especially relevant for Oman, which is aggressively pursuing EOR – for example at the Mukhaizna field, which is operated by Occidental Petroleum. [14] Oman built a natural gas export terminal, but since its oil production peaked in 2000, the country redirected the gas for used in its EOR operations. The scarcity of gas in Oman means the price there is around $10 per thousand cubic feet. [14] Oman currently uses a significant amount of its natural gas for EOR. [15] A report published by Ernst & Young in January 2014 found that full-scale deployment of solar EOR in Oman, in which solar steam accounted for 80% of Oman's thermal EOR needs, could save up to half a billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas per day and contribute more than $12B in Omani GDP by 2023. [16]

History

In 1983, ARCO Solar constructed a solar steam generation pilot using central tower technology in Taft, California. The system generated one megawatt of thermal energy during peak operating conditions. [17] Though technically feasible, the system was not cost-effective and was not replicated. [4] The ARCO pilot was the first time solar steam was applied to facilitate heavy oil recovery.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevron Corporation</span> American multinational energy corporation

Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation predominantly specializing in oil and gas. The second-largest direct descendant of Standard Oil, and originally known as the Standard Oil Company of California, it is headquartered in San Ramon, California, and active in more than 180 countries. Within oil and gas, Chevron is vertically integrated and is involved in hydrocarbon exploration, production, refining, marketing and transport, chemicals manufacturing and sales, and power generation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar thermal energy</span> Technology using sunlight for heat

Solar thermal energy (STE) is a form of energy and a technology for harnessing solar energy to generate thermal energy for use in industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parabolic trough</span> Technology used in concentrated solar power stations

A parabolic trough is a type of solar thermal collector that is straight in one dimension and curved as a parabola in the other two, lined with a polished metal mirror. The sunlight which enters the mirror parallel to its plane of symmetry is focused along the focal line, where objects are positioned that are intended to be heated. In a solar cooker, for example, food is placed at the focal line of a trough, which is cooked when the trough is aimed so the Sun is in its plane of symmetry.

Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) is the leading exploration and production company in the Sultanate of Oman. The Company delivers the majority of the country's crude oil production and natural gas supply. The company is owned by the Government of Oman, Royal Dutch Shell (34%), TotalEnergies (4%) and Partex (2%). The first economic oil find was made in 1962, and the first oil consignment was exported in 1967.

Enhanced oil recovery, also called tertiary recovery, is the extraction of crude oil from an oil field that cannot be extracted otherwise. Although the primary and secondary recovery techniques rely on the pressure differential between the surface and the underground well, enhanced oil recovery functions by altering the chemical composition of the oil itself in order to make it easier to extract. EOR can extract 30% to 60% or more of a reservoir's oil, compared to 20% to 40% using primary and secondary recovery. According to the US Department of Energy, carbon dioxide and water are injected along with one of three EOR techniques: thermal injection, gas injection, and chemical injection. More advanced, speculative EOR techniques are sometimes called quaternary recovery.

Steam-assisted gravity drainage is an enhanced oil recovery technology for producing heavy crude oil and bitumen. It is an advanced form of steam stimulation in which a pair of horizontal wells is drilled into the oil reservoir, one a few metres above the other. High pressure steam is continuously injected into the upper wellbore to heat the oil and reduce its viscosity, causing the heated oil to drain into the lower wellbore, where it is pumped out. Dr. Roger Butler, engineer at Imperial Oil from 1955 to 1982, invented the steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) process in the 1970s. Butler "developed the concept of using horizontal pairs of wells and injected steam to develop certain deposits of bitumen considered too deep for mining". In 1983 Butler became director of technical programs for the Alberta Oil Sands Technology and Research Authority (AOSTRA), a crown corporation created by Alberta Premier Lougheed to promote new technologies for oil sands and heavy crude oil production. AOSTRA quickly supported SAGD as a promising innovation in oil sands extraction technology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin</span> Sedimentary basin of Canada

The Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin (WCSB) underlies 1.4 million square kilometres (540,000 sq mi) of Western Canada including southwestern Manitoba, southern Saskatchewan, Alberta, northeastern British Columbia and the southwest corner of the Northwest Territories. This vast sedimentary basin consists of a massive wedge of sedimentary rock extending from the Rocky Mountains in the west to the Canadian Shield in the east. This wedge is about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) thick under the Rocky Mountains, but thins to zero at its eastern margins. The WCSB contains one of the world's largest reserves of petroleum and natural gas and supplies much of the North American market, producing more than 450 million cubic metres per day of gas in 2000. It also has huge reserves of coal. Of the provinces and territories within the WCSB, Alberta has most of the oil and gas reserves and almost all of the oil sands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Extraction of petroleum</span> Removal of petroleum from the earth

Petroleum is a fossil fuel that can be drawn from beneath the earth's surface. Reservoirs of petroleum are formed through the mixture of plants, algae, and sediments in shallow seas under high pressure. Petroleum is mostly recovered from oil drilling. Seismic surveys and other methods are used to locate oil reservoirs. Oil rigs and oil platforms are used to drill long holes into the earth to create an oil well and extract petroleum. After extraction, oil is refined to make gasoline and other products such as tires and refrigerators. Extraction of petroleum can be dangerous and have led to oil spills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steam injection (oil industry)</span> Method of extracting heavy crude oil

Steam injection is an increasingly common method of extracting heavy crude oil. Used commercially since the 1960s, it is considered an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) method and is the main type of thermal stimulation of oil reservoirs. There are several different forms of the technology, with the two main ones being Cyclic Steam Stimulation and Steam Flooding. Both are most commonly applied to oil reservoirs, which are relatively shallow and which contain crude oils which are very viscous at the temperature of the native underground formation. Steam injection is widely used in the San Joaquin Valley of California (US), the Lake Maracaibo area of Venezuela, and the oil sands of northern Alberta, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midway-Sunset Oil Field</span> Oil field in Kern County, San Joaquin Valley, California

The Midway-Sunset Oil Field is a large oil field in Kern County, San Joaquin Valley, California in the United States. It is the largest known oilfield in California and the third largest in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Belridge Oil Field</span> Oil field in Kern County, California, USA

The South Belridge Oil Field is a large oil field in northwestern Kern County, San Joaquin Valley, California, about forty miles west of Bakersfield. Discovered in 1911, and having a cumulative production of over 1,500 million barrels (240,000,000 m3) of oil at the end of 2008, it is the fourth-largest oil field in California, after the Midway-Sunset Oil Field, Kern River Oil Field, and Wilmington Oil Field, and is the sixth-most productive field in the United States. Its estimated remaining reserves, as of the end of 2008, were around 494 million barrels (78,500,000 m3), the second-largest in the state, and it had 6,253 active wells. The principal operator on the field was Aera Energy LLC, a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil. Additionally, the field included the only onshore wells in California owned and operated by ExxonMobil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lost Hills Oil Field</span> Kern County, California oilfield

The Lost Hills Oil Field is a large oil field in the Lost Hills Range, north of the town of Lost Hills in western Kern County, California, in the United States.

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Concentrated solar power systems generate solar power by using mirrors or lenses to concentrate a large area of sunlight into a receiver. Electricity is generated when the concentrated light is converted to heat, which drives a heat engine connected to an electrical power generator or powers a thermochemical reaction.

Heavy oil production is a developing technology for extracting heavy oil in industrial quantities. Estimated reserves of heavy oil are over 6 trillion barrels, three times that of conventional oil and gas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energy in Oman</span>

Energy use in Oman was 381 TWh in 2020, almost double the consumption in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GlassPoint Solar</span> Solar steam generator

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Termosolar Borges is a hybrid biomass-parabolic trough solar thermal power plant which provides electricity to Spain's transmission system. It is located about 100 kilometres (62 mi) west of Barcelona, about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south-east of Lleida, near Les Borges Blanques, Catalonia, Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miraah</span> Solar thermal energy plant in Oman

Miraah is a solar thermal energy plant that is under construction in Oman for the production of steam for solar thermal enhanced oil recovery. In July 2015, Petroleum Development Oman and GlassPoint Solar announced that they signed a $600 million agreement to build the 1 GWth solar field. The project will be one of the world's largest solar field measured by peak thermal capacity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belridge Solar</span>

Belridge Solar is an enhanced oil recovery facility that is currently being developed in the South Belridge Oil Field and, when complete, will be California’s largest solar energy field. It is a joint project between Aera Energy and GlassPoint Solar. It will be the first in the world to incorporate solar steam generation with solar electricity generation. These technologies will be leveraged to reduce costs for the traditional oil and gas company while at the same time reducing emitted carbon and increasing local air quality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solar augmented geothermal energy</span> Solar-heated artificial underground lake

Solar augmented geothermal energy (SAGE) is an advanced method of geothermal energy that creates a synthetic geothermal storage resource by heating a natural brine with solar energy and adding enough heat when the sun shines to generate power 24 hours a day. The earth is given enough energy in one hour to provide all electrical needs for a year. Available energy is not the issue, but energy storage is the problem and SAGE creates effective storage and electrical power delivery on demand. This technology is especially effective for geothermal wells that have demonstrated inconsistent heat or idle oil or gas fields that have demonstrated the proper geology and have an abundance of solar.

References

  1. ↑ van Heel, A. P.; van Wunnik, J. N.; Bentouati, S..; Terres, R.. (2010-04-11). "The Impact of Daily and Seasonal Cycles in Solar-Generated Steam On Oil Recovery" (PDF). All Days. SPE. doi:10.2118/129225-ms. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-25.
  2. 1 2 3 "Energy & Resources Predictions 2012". deloitte.com. 2012-05-11. Archived from the original on 2013-01-06.
  3. ↑ Helman, Christopher (2011-04-06). "Oil From The Sun". Forbes.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Chevron's Solar-Powered Oil Extraction Begins in California". Bloomberg.com. 2011-10-03.
  5. ↑ "World's first commercial solar EOR project begins". arabianoilandgas.com. February 27, 2011. Archived from the original on 2014-07-27.
  6. ↑ Gilbert, Daniel (2011-09-30). "Drilling for Crude Goes Solar". WSJ.
  7. ↑ Mahdi, Wael (21 May 2013). "GlassPoint Solar Sees Interest from Middle East Oil Firms". Bloomberg. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  8. ↑ "Petroleum Development Oman Selects GlassPoint to Build First Solar Enhanced Oil Recovery Pilot in Gulf Region". Reuters. 3 August 2011. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  9. ↑ Kantchev, Georgi (2015-07-08). "Oman to Build Giant Solar Plant to Extract Oil". WSJ.
  10. ↑ "Petroleum Development Oman and GlassPoint Announce Commencement of Steam Delivery From Miraah Solar Plant" (Press release). November 2017.
  11. ↑ "South Belridge Oil Field".
  12. 1 2 3 Molchanov, Pavel (March 7, 2011). Can Thermal Technology Transform the Economics of Enhanced Oil Recovery (PDF). glasspoint.com (Report). Retrieved 12 October 2011.[ permanent dead link ]
  13. ↑ Groom, Nichola (2011-04-18). "Analysis: Oil companies go solar to tap hard-to-get supplies". reuters.com.
  14. 1 2 3 Molchanov, Pavel. Solar EOR Keeps Advancing: Oman to Build First System In Mid-East (PDF). glasspoint.com (Report). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 10 November 2011.
  15. ↑ Ali Khan, Gulam (21 May 2013). "PDO Commissions Solar EOR Project". Muscat Daily. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  16. ↑ "Solar enhanced oil recovery: An in-country value assessment for Oman" (PDF). ey.com. January 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-07-14.
  17. ↑ Larson, Ronal W.; West, Ronald Emmett (1996). Implementation of Solar Thermal Technology. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. ISBN   978-0-262-12187-3.


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