Shell to build new pipeline in boost for North Sea gas

Shell is to invest in a new pipeline as part of moves to increase gas production and reduce costs in the North Sea.

The move is part of plans for a major infrastructure hub. Picture: Ian Rutherford.

The energy giant, together with partners ExxonMobil and BP, has agreed the final investment decision to build the new pipeline to transport gas from its Shearwater platform to the St Fergus plant in Aberdeenshire.

The 23-mile link will join Shearwater, 140 miles east of Aberdeen, with the Fulmar Gas Line and is part of moves to create of a gas infrastructure hub in the central North Sea to up production and cut costs.

No figure has been been given for the pipeline investment but it is likely to be a significant spend.

Steve Phimister, Shell’s vice president for upstream in the UK, said: “This is part of our strategy to grow our gas production from around the Shearwater platform and it underscores Shell’s commitment to maximising the economic recovery of oil and gas from the North Sea.

“Through close collaboration with our partners and suppliers, we have been able to reduce costs, simplify the production process and create an important production hub at Shearwater. Fifty years after Shell began working in the North Sea, we continue to invest in projects to deliver more gas to UK consumers for years to come.”

The gas will initially be processed at St Fergus before onward transmission of natural gas liquids to the Fife Natural Gas Liquids plant and Fife Ethylene Plant at Mossmorran where they will be separated and exported to customers.

The announcement comes as Shell continues to work on its “Central Graben” strategy, which links fields such as Fram and Arran back to the Shearwater platform hub.

The strategy will see a simplification of the production process on Shearwater while maximising the value of gas flowing into the system and on to the plants at Mossmorran.

At peak production, the gas export capacity of the Shearwater hub is expected to be around 400 million standard cubic feet of gas a day, which equates to approximately 70,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Investment in the hub follows on the decision to develop the Penguins fields in the northern North Sea, the BP operated Alligin field west of Shetland, the Fram, Arran and Gannet E fields along with the Gannet Export infrastructure investment in the central North Sea.

The Shearwater field, which Shell is the operator of, was discovered in 1988 and first developed in 2000.

Last month research funding was announced for a scheme in Aberdeenshire to capture around 200,000 tonnes of CO2 from the St Fergus gas terminal and transport it for storage in a depleted gas field using existing pipelines.