Shell Reduces Flaring, GHGs
Shell said April 12 it reduced group overall greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) to 70mn metric tons carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent in 2016, down from 72mn mt in 2015, even with the addition of BG projects to its portfolio, although it admitted that divestments by Shell also contributed to the reduction.
Gas flaring in its upstream business was 7.6mn mt CO2 equivalent in 2016, down from 11.8mn mt in 2015 and 13mn mt in 2014, back at 2012-13 levels, said Shell in its Sustainability Report 2016.
More than 70% of flaring from Shell-operated fields last year was in Iraq, Nigeria, Malaysia and Qatar; new facilities brought online in Malaysia and Iraq helped reduce flaring in 2016, it said.
Shell Iraq Petroleum Development (45% owned by Shell) delivered phase 2 of a gas-capturing project at Majnoon; this captured 65% (or 90mn ft3/d) of gas that would otherwise have been flared in 2016, said Shell.
Also in Iraq, Basrah Gas Company (Shell interest 44%), a joint venture with Iraq’s South Gas Co and Japan’s Mitsubishi, captures gas that would otherwise have been flared from three southern Iraq oil fields; BGC processed 574mn ft3/d from these fields in 2016 which went for local use.
In Nigeria, gas flaring further decreased in 2016, but mainly due to production outages and militant activity, although partly in order to bring on new developments to reduce flaring of associated gas, said Shell. Despite attacks, it said sabotage-related oil spills in 2016 were 45, down from 93 in 2015.
Flaring also occurred at Pearl GTL in Qatar for operational reasons (photo below); the 140,000 b/d unit began an unscheduled partial outage late last year.
Photo credit: Shell
Shell’s Quest CCS project in Alberta captured over 1mn mt CO2 equivalent from oil sands in 2016, the Anglo-Dutch major added. It retains the asset despite having sold down its production interests nearby.
Mark Smedley