Design of an all Electric FPSO with Combined Cycle and High Power VSD

To reduce Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emission, All Electric FPSO solution has been designed considering dynamic equipment driven by electric motors. The next challenge is to supply the large electric power demand at deep water and far from shore locations and, at the same time, reduce the power generation emissions responsible for 60-70 % of the total unit emissions. In this scenario, a high capacity FPSO with a combined cycle power generation plant is being designed to supply the FPSO 130 MW power demand. Variable Speed Drives (VSD's) were considered for the large electric motors to enable motor starting, besides the speed control. This paper studies the technical challenges related to designing the electric power system with combined cycle for this offshore production unit and presents the analysis and topology to accomplish technical feasibility for the electric power system.