Benefits of HTS Technology to FLNG Power Systems

Offshore floating liquefaction (FLNG) solutions are receiving growing interest lately as they are seen as potential enablers to un-lock and monetize offshore gas reserves. Another important feature of FLNG is the possibility to change field during the life. This means that the liquefaction system may change its operating point according to different gas composition or different ambient temperature. The most preferable solution in this case is an all-electric concept (E-FLNG), that provides high flexibility, high efficiency, high safety and less maintenance requirements. It is known, high temperature superconducting (HTS) technology provides more intense energy transformation. In addition to improving system efficiency, reducing size and weight of equipment, HTS can significantly simplify power system architecture eliminating high voltage level, which is crucial for E-FLNG power system. This article provides an overview and potential application of the HTS technology to E-FLNG power system. Preliminary economic and operational advantages are investigated, a typical comparison study of the two alternatives is shown, and some details of the state-of-art HTS applications are presented.