Maintaining a neutral water balance in a 450 MWe NGCC-CCS power system with post-combustion carbon dioxide capture aimed at offshore operation

A post-combustion CO2 capture process intended for offshore operations has been designed and optimised for integration with a natural gas-fired power plant on board a floating structure developed by the Norway-based company Sevan Marine ASA—designated Sevan GTW (gas-to-wire). The concept is constrained by the structure of the floater carrying a SIEMENS modular power system rated at 450 MWe, with a capture rate of 90% and CO2 compression (1.47 Mtpa) for pipeline pressure at 12 MPa. A net efficiency of 45% (based on a lower heating value) is estimated for the system with CO2 capture, thus suggesting that the post-combustion CO2 capture system is accountable for a fuel penalty of nine percentage points.The rationale behind the technology selection is the urgency of replacing the dispersed aero-derivative gas turbines which power the offshore oil and gas production units in Norwegian waters with near-zero emission power.As (inherently) fresh water usually constitutes a limiting factor in sea operations, efforts are made to obtain a neutral water balance to obtain an optimal design. This is primarily achieved by controlling the cleaned flue gas temperature at the top of the absorber column.