OKEA and Equinor are teaming up to electrify the Draugen and Njord A platforms on the Norwegian continental shelf in a move expected to substantially reduce CO2 emissions in the area.

Partners for the two Norwegian Sea platforms have made a final investment decision and submitted revised plans for development and operation (PDO) to the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.

The electrification project is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by 330,000 tonnes per year, of which 200,000 tonnes will be removed from Draugen and the remainder from Njord, according to Knut Gjertsen, senior vice president for projects and technology at OKEA.

For its part, Equinor has carried out extensive upgrades on Njord, in 330 m water depth, to prepare the field for 20 more years of production.

“We are now continuing the modernization of Njord by converting to electric operation,” Trond Bokn, Equinor’s senior vice president for project development, said.

Under the project agreement, OKEA will develop the power infrastructure from shore to Draugen. Equinor will be responsible for the cable from Draugen to Njord as well as modifications and upgrading on Njord A, where the two existing gas turbines for main power production will be replaced by electric power from shore via Draugen. Based on this, around 60% of the power needed by Njord A will be covered by electricity, and the Njord Bravo FSO will be fully electrified.

The electrification project is estimated to cost around 7.3 billion NOK, which will be shared by Draugen and the Njord producing licenses.

OKEA has awarded a letter of intent to Aker Solutions and a contract to NKT related to the project. The contract has industry standard cancellation clauses should relevant government approvals not be granted.

Aker Solutions said it had signed a letter of intent (LOI) with OKEA for the Draugen Electrification project, offshore Norway. Aker Solutions expects the LOI to be converted to a full engineering, procurement, construction and installation contract during the first quarter of 2023. The award of the LOI follows completion of front-end engineering and design work performed by Aker Solutions.

Draugen and Njord will require up to 80 MW annually and will be connected to a power grid that has been assessed as operationally sound without the need for reinforcements to the power grid.

The project is slated to be complete in early 2027.

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