Subsea All-Electric X-Tree Standardization: Options and Opportunities for Scenarios of Wide Diversity

Abstract As part of the global effort for environmental sustainability, particularly through decarbonization along with responsible energy transition, the electrification of subsea wells and even whole subsea production systems is now a significant drive for industry's renewed interest in the development of All-electric technologies. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) in subsea reservoirs is emerging as a very promising scenario to realize the full potential of All-electric actuators beyond the typical niche applications in the last twenty years, like e.g. power retrofits of manually (i.e. diver or ROV) operated chokes or subsea equipment' fail-as-is valves. New technologies for fail-close subsea electrical actuators, based on spring, batteries, and even closed loop hydraulics have been developed, promising to enable more cost effective subsea All-electric X-trees for a wider audience (customers), not only for subsea CCS, but also for whole range of subsea production system applications as well. Designing for standardization may help to meet the challenge for a future subsea All-electric X-tree that will be more cost effective to the operator in terms of CAPEX, OPEX, or TOTEX reduction when compared with conventional X-tree with electro-hydraulic multiplex control system. But to be effective, such standardization must meet the operator's objectives with enough resilience for a wider range of contract strategies that, for example, may be CAPEX driven for specific equipment. This paper will address the challenge to design a subsea All-electric X-tree standardization, control system included, to attain such goals, discussing options and opportunities for scenarios of wide diversity in terms of field application and business cases.