China completes main structure of first offshore CO2-injection gas platform
Version 2: An official-source report added the engineering company behind the platform, technical and performance figures including a stated 20% cut in energy use and a rise of more than 12% in gas recovery, the plan to finish commissioning in Qingdao, the jacket already installed in the Yinggehai area of the South China Sea, and links to 12 other platforms.
In short
The main structure of the new central platform for the Dongfang 1-1 gas field, described as China's first offshore CO2-injection enhanced gas recovery demonstration project, has been completed and the platform has entered commissioning, according to CNOOC. The project is designed to store more than 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year in subsea formations, and the operator says the technology also raises gas recovery. An official-source report says commissioning will be completed in Qingdao before the platform is shipped to the South China Sea.
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The main structure of the new central platform for the Dongfang 1-1 gas field has been completed and the platform has fully entered the commissioning phase, according to CNOOC, as reported by Yicai, CLS, IT Home, Jiemian and 36Kr. China News Service attributed the announcement to Offshore Oil Engineering Co, the engineering company headquartered in Tianjin. The outlets describe the scheme as China's first offshore carbon dioxide injection enhanced gas recovery demonstration project, and say it will be able to store more than 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year in subsea formations once in production. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
IT Home, Jiemian and China News Service report that the platform weighs nearly 17,000 tonnes, stands taller than a 28-storey building and has a deck area of more than 10,000 square metres, about the size of 22 standard basketball courts. The platform captures carbon dioxide produced alongside the gas, purifies it, pressurises it and reinjects it into the formation, which the reports say both raises the recovery rate of hard-to-extract gas and stores the carbon dioxide permanently. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
Dongfang 1-1 is described as China's first self-operated offshore gas field and a representative high-carbon offshore field. IT Home, Jiemian and China News Service say it has produced more than 50 billion cubic metres of gas since it began production in 2003, and that as the field has entered the middle and later stages of development its output has declined while carbon content has risen, which the reports say created the conditions for the injection technology to move from theory into practice. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
Yu Fasong, the head of CNOOC Hainan Company's carbon capture, storage and utilisation project at Dongfang 1-1, told China News Service that the project builds a full offshore closed-loop chain of carbon dioxide capture, purification, storage and gas recovery enhancement. He said it uses a world-first gas decarbonisation technology combining low-temperature distillation and membrane separation, that key equipment is wholly made in China, that energy consumption is 20% lower than in conventional decarbonisation processes and that the gas recovery rate rises by more than 12%. [ 6 ]
China News Service also reports that the platform's main structure will complete commissioning in Qingdao before being shipped to the South China Sea, and that the jacket has already been installed in the Yinggehai area there. After it is in use, the report says, the platform will be linked to 12 platforms including Dongfang 13-2 and Dongfang 29-1, which the operator says will accelerate the release of large-scale carbon storage potential from offshore oil and gas wells and help China build an offshore carbon capture, storage and utilisation base. Only this document carries the engineering, quoting and platform-linkage details; the other outlets report the completion, the commissioning phase and the annual storage figure without them. [ 6 ]
Why it matters
The project is presented by its operator and in state media reports as a step towards large-scale offshore carbon storage and wider industrial use of captured CO2 in China, combined with higher recovery rates at a mature gas field. It covers one field and one platform, and the documents give no cost, no start-up date and no independent verification, so the wider impact is not yet established.
Key facts
- The main structure of the new central platform for the Dongfang 1-1 gas field has been completed. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The platform has entered the commissioning phase, according to CNOOC. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The project is described as China's first offshore CO2-injection enhanced gas recovery demonstration project. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Once in production, the project can store more than 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year in subsea formations. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Dongfang 1-1 is China's first self-operated offshore gas field and a representative high-carbon offshore field, with cumulative gas output of more than 50 billion cubic metres since production began in 2003. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
- The platform weighs nearly 17,000 tonnes, stands taller than a 28-storey building and has a deck area of more than 10,000 square metres, about 22 standard basketball courts. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
- The platform captures carbon dioxide produced alongside the gas, purifies and pressurises it and reinjects it into the formation, which the reports say raises recovery of hard-to-extract gas and permanently stores the carbon dioxide. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
- China News Service quoted the project head as saying the scheme uses a world-first gas decarbonisation technology combining low-temperature distillation and membrane separation, with key equipment made in China, energy use 20% below conventional processes and gas recovery raised by more than 12%. [ 6 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- The main structure of the new central platform for the Dongfang 1-1 gas field has been completed. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The platform has fully entered the commissioning phase. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The project is described as China's first offshore CO2-injection enhanced gas recovery demonstration project. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Once in production, the project can store more than 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year in subsea formations. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Dongfang 1-1 is China's first self-operated offshore gas field and a representative high-carbon offshore field, with cumulative output of more than 50 billion cubic metres since production began in 2003. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
- The platform weighs nearly 17,000 tonnes, is taller than a 28-storey building and has a deck area of more than 10,000 square metres, about 22 standard basketball courts. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
- The platform captures and purifies carbon dioxide produced alongside the gas and reinjects it into the formation under pressure, which the reports say raises recovery of hard-to-extract gas and permanently stores the carbon dioxide. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
- China News Service said the operator describes the project as using a world-first gas decarbonisation technology combining low-temperature distillation and membrane separation, with key equipment made domestically, energy use 20% lower than conventional decarbonisation and gas recovery raised by more than 12%. [ 6 ]
Still unclear
- When commissioning will finish and when the project will start producing The documents say only that the platform has entered the commissioning phase and give no timetable.
- The cost or investment in the project No figure appears in any of the documents.
- Where the platform's main structure was built The documents say commissioning will be completed in Qingdao and that the jacket is already installed in the Yinggehai area of the South China Sea, but do not state where construction took place.
- What the link to the other platforms will involve and what output or storage effect is expected from them Only China News Service mentions that the platform will be linked to 12 platforms including Dongfang 13-2 and Dongfang 29-1, and it gives no further detail; the claim is single-source.
- Independent confirmation of the annual storage volume and the performance figures All figures trace back to CNOOC or its engineering subsidiary, cited through CCTV News and China News Service; no independent source is named.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Yicai reports that the main structure of China's first offshore CO2-injection platform has been completed. [ 1 ]
- CLS cites CNOOC, naming the Dongfang 1-1 field, the entry into commissioning and annual storage of more than 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide. [ 2 ]
- IT Home adds the platform's dimensions and the gas field's production history. [ 3 ]
- Jiemian carries the same details, attributing them to CCTV News. [ 4 ]
- 36Kr publishes the CCTV News summary of the completion and commissioning. [ 5 ]
- China News Service attributes the project to Offshore Oil Engineering Co and adds technology and performance details, the project head's comments, commissioning in Qingdao and the installed jacket in the Yinggehai area. [ 6 ]