In September 2021, the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) announced that a competition has been launched to help decarbonise offshore oil and gas production. The competition, managed by the OGA, is designed to advance the widespread electrification of offshore installations on the UK Continental Shelf, which are currently powered by gas or diesel.
Organisers are looking for studies (technical, engineering, and/or commercial) that will bring electrification projects a step closer to reality. The winning ideas will be allocated a share of the £1 million prize fund, to complete the proposed work by 31 March 2022.
This competition follows the Government’s commitment in the North Sea Transition Deal to support funding for early-stage offshore electrification studies by the end of 2021. Key results from the studies will be published for others to benefit from and build on the ideas generated.
The OGA’s Energy Integration Report found that the UK Continental Shelf could (through a mix of platform electrification, carbon capture and storage, offshore wind, and hydrogen) absorb up to 60% of the UK’s entire CO2 abatement needed to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Thumbnail image credit: OGA
