CCED eyes improved recovery in Oman blocks

What is the company’s strategy for being more environmentally sustainable and reducing its carbon footprint?
We have a three-pronged approach to our environmental stewardship: greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions reduction, water and waste management.
Regarding greenhouse gas emissions reduction, there are two key elements: reducing the quantity of flared gas and removing the gas from the system.
We are looking to reach zero gas flaring by 2027. To achieve this aim, we were initially looking at building a pipeline to export our associated gas, but we did not have sufficient quantities to make that economical. Then, we turned to a gas-to-power project, and we started using our associated gas effectively by generating electricity to power our field production assets, such as wells and pumps. This will allow us to replace most of the diesel that is currently used for those purposes, impacting positively not only our operating efficiency and carbon footprint but also our costs.
On the water management side, we are producing around 65,000 barrels per day and that is probably going to double soon, so it is very important that we deal with that water both efficiently and effectively. Our plan is to stop using ponds, except for emergencies, and all that water will be disposed of either through injection, for pressure maintenance, in our reservoirs, or by disposal in safe reservoirs where we no longer need to be producing hydrocarbons.
Given the nature of our fields, we get high levels of water production and we are looking at ways we can enhance our understanding of the flow regimes. We optimise production through facilities while at the same time determining how we can reduce water production, including a trial of a new polymer technology.

Can you give us an overview of your gas-to-power projects and the main benefits they can represent for the oil and gas sector?
In 2019, we inaugurated our first power generation facility in Shahd F, which we built as a trial and which is still running. Now, we are going to add two new power generation facilities at Ulfa and another at Shahd-B. They will utilise significant quantities of our gas, generating enough power to provide electricity to our fields, facilities and camps via an overhead power line distribution system. By the beginning of 2023 we should be awarding a contract for a two-year project for the construction of these new plants.
These gas-to-power projects represent a win-win situation for everybody: they are good for the environment, they cut diesel consumption and the risks associated with its transportation, and they save money.

What are your expectations regarding the oil and gas sector’s need to consolidate technology and sustainability?
The relationship between technology and sustainability is a paramount one and the Gulf region community is paying increasing attention to that, as shown by the Paris Agreement targeting net-zero emissions by 2050, which Oman has signed, along with the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
At CCED, we are looking to halve our GHG  emissions by 2027, but we also want to go beyond that and to do so we are exploring new technologies.
The plus side is that the oil and gas industry has been particularly good at taking on technological challenges. Operators went into super deep water, where nobody thought we’d be able to produce hydrocarbons. We’ve been able to resolve the challenges in high-pressure, high-temperature fields and we have drilled super-long horizontal wells. For these reasons, I am highly confident that the industry will come up with solutions to overcome these barriers and turn towards a more sustainable approach.

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