According to China’s official media, CCTV News, the world’s first floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit equipped with carbon capture and storage equipment has been completed by COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry (Shanghai) on Changxing Island, Shanghai. The FPSO is scheduled to be named on February 20th and delivered at the end of this month.
The FPSO is 333 meters long and 60 meters wide, and it can produce up to 120,000 barrels of crude oil per day. It can not only capture carbon dioxide generated during navigation and production, but also utilize the heat energy of exhaust gas to generate electricity, realizing the dual goals of environmental protection and energy saving. The application of this technology marks an important step for China in the field of offshore carbon capture.
Xu Xiaohua, Senior Project Manager at Shanghai COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry said: “This tower is actually a collection and scrubbing tower for carbon capture. It can not only capture carbon dioxide generated during navigation and production, but also utilize the heat energy of exhaust gas to generate electricity, realizing the dual goals of environmental protection and energy saving. This way, the exhaust gas that is released has a lower carbon emission.”
Offshore oil and gas operations produce large amounts of carbon dioxide every year. According to statistics, in 2023, global offshore oil and gas production and processing operations will emit a total of about 38 million tons of carbon dioxide, and carbon dioxide emissions may increase to nearly 50 million tons by 2030 if no control measures are taken.
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) equipment offers greater possibilities for emissions reductions from offshore oil and gas production and processing operations, as well as new solutions for global carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals.