Learning and Development from the World’s First Operating Subsea Compression System

After years of development, qualification and engineering, subsea compression technology is now a proven solution to increase the recovery factor for offshore gas developments. The first subsea compression system was installed at the Aasgard field in the Norwegian Sea, which was started up successfully on the 17th. of September 2015. This project represents an important milestone for the oil and gas industry, as apart from representing the successful developments of new subsea processing technologies, subsea compression also proves itself a viable alternative field development option to oil and gas operators. The experience from Aasgard enables tomorrow’s subsea compression solutions. The basis is increased field recovery by subsea compression. In addition it opens for wells stream and deep water applications, as well as CO2 EOR. This paper aims to share Aker Solutions’ experience on Aasgard Subsea Compression project, from the design and the project execution phases up to the operational phase, highlighting the key learnings from more than 50 000 hours of successful subsea operation. In addition, the paper will also describe the ongoing development activities to optimize the compression system delivered for Aasgard, with particular focus on increased field recovery and unit size and weight optimization without requiring qualification activities of new technologies. This new generation of subsea compression system will extend the applicability of this technology to a much wider range of fields and offshore regions.