Kongsberg Digital is embarking on a two-year project to rebuild lifecycle simulators on Norwegian energy company Equinor’s Sleipner development.
Under the agreement, which is worth more than NOK25m ($2.4m), Kongsberg will rebuild the simulators using its K-Spice and LedaFlow simulation technologies in a project to be completed in 2025.
“We are confident that the Sleipner asset will greatly benefit from the enhanced operational efficiency, troubleshooting analysis and training opportunities our technologies offer.”, said Shane McArdle, Kongsberg Digital’s CEO, and a regular speaker at Future Oil & Gas events.
The upgrade will enable Equinor to enhance operational efficiency, improve training programmes, and provide high-level fidelity for simulator-based engineering.
Kongsberg will provide the multidisciplinary operation and engineering teams with three simulators using K-Spice and LedaFlow simulation technologies: an engineering-study simulator, an engineering-test simulator and an operator-training simulator. These will model the processes of all wells, pipelines, and offshore production facilities for three parts of the Sleipner installations, namely a processing, drilling, and living quarters platform, an unmanned production platform, and a processing and CO2 removal platform. The project will also involve modelling the power grid using its K-Spice Power simulator.
The Sleipner area of gas and condensate fields has been one of the mainstays of Norway’s offshore energy production for over 30 years, and is also home to one of the world’s longest established carbon capture and storage projects.
The agreement strengthens the existing relationship between Kongsberg and Equinor. In November 2023, Kongsberg Digital, which is based near Oslo, said it was collaborating with Equinor on developing simulation technology that would underpin a stronger safety and sustainability focus in offshore operations. This was aimed at enhancing personnel skills to protect the environment, preventing offshore incidents, and performing holistic crisis management in advanced offshore operations.
Kongsberg Digital was founded in 2016 to house the digital expertise of the Kongsberg Group. It works with major energy companies and other organisations around the world, including Shell and Chevron, both of whom have contracted Kongsberg Digital to digitalize their global assets.
