Gas storage is principally used to meet seasonal load variations. Gas is injected into storage during periods of low demand and withdrawn from storage during periods of peak demand. It is also used for a variety of secondary purposes, including:
i) Balancing the flow in pipeline systems;
ii) Maintaining contractual balance (Shippers use stored gas to maintain the volume they deliver to the pipeline system and the volume they withdraw. Without access to such storage facilities, any imbalance situation could result in a penalty);
iii) Levelling production over periods of fluctuating demand. (Producers use storage to store any gas that is not immediately marketable, typically over the summer when demand is low and deliver it when in the winter months when the demand is high);
iv) Market speculation;
v) Insuring against any unforeseen circumstances including severe weather or malfunction of production or distribution systems;
vi) Meeting regulatory obligations.
Gas storage is in use accross Europe with the UK currently increasing its ability to store gas as it realise more heavily on imports. Most countries in Western Europe have between 10 and 30 days of gas supply held in “in-country” storage (UK has about 7) for the reasons above.
Natural gas can be stored underground in either depleted gas reservoirs, aquifers and salt caverns. An underground storage facility needs to be reconditioned before injection, to create a sort of storage vessel underground. Natural gas is injected into the formation usually under pressure.
Our Gas Storage Service assists companies to maximise revenues by flexible delivery to market whilst stabilising production, or maximising arbitrage capacities. This includes strategic and technical definition level of salt cavern storage, and depleted fields and Salt Caverns. Our process, compression and electrical consulting teams ensure that the engineered solutions maximise storage availability and turnaround. Once sanctioned we are comfortable with engineering and owners engineer scopes.
Energy and Power is acting as Owner’s Engineer for this EDF Energy salt cavern gas storage project in Cheshire. Energy and Power is defining the engineering design limits and criteria within which the detail design is developed, monitoring the detail design, co-ordinating technical matters with drilling contractors and managing the overall delivery of the gas storage and treatment facilities.
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A study was undertaken to assess the potential future use of the depleted reservoirs (almost end of field life) and infrastructure of an offshore gas production facility in the North Sea. Potential options considered were storage of natural gas for seasonal production to the UK gas market and storage of flue gas (CO2) produced as a by-product of power generation from fossil fuels.
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Energy and Power supported Centrica and Grain LNG in the first two phases of development at the LNG import terminal at the Isle of Grain in Kent.
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The Energy and Power team undertook the project management of the increase in gas storage compression duties, gas turbines upgrade and compression equipment change-out including all engineering verification.
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Energy and Power has undertaken three separate scopes of work for Dragon LNG and currently works under a Framework Agreement.
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Energy and Power was contracted to undertake a study on behalf of the client to assess the economic and technical viability of a proposal for the development of an underground gas storage facility in East Yorkshire, UK. A report was submitted to our client who was a potential investor, operator and owner of the facility.
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Energy and Power was appointed on behalf of the project financiers and the IPO advisors to act as an expert in undertaking a Peer Review study and audit which incorporated an economic viability assessment of the proposed development.
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