St. Fergus Gas Plant
Encyclopedia
The St Fergus Gas Plant in St Fergus, Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area.The present day Aberdeenshire council area does not include the City of Aberdeen, now a separate council area, from which its name derives. Together, the modern council area and the city formed historic...

, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, is a set of four gas processing plants.

History

The plant was initially developed by British Gas and Shell. The three main plants have three main pipelines each coming ashore. The Centrica plant receives gas from the other main three plants. In total, St Fergus receives around 20% of the UK's gas.

Total

The Total part of the refinery opened in September 1977 for the Frigg pipeline, with another section opening in 1978 for the Vesterled
Vesterled
Vesterled is a natural gas pipeline system, which runs from the Heimdal field in the North Sea to St Fergus Gas Plant near Peterhead in Scotland. The name Vesterled is the term used by the Vikings for their westward voyages, i.e...

 pipeline. The Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 opened this plant officially on May 9, 1978. Vesterled is owned by the Gassled partners.

Shell

The Shell plant opened in April 1982, being officially opened by Prince Charles
Charles, Prince of Wales
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay...

 in October 1982, taking gas from the Brent
Brent oilfield
The Brent field is an oil field located in the East Shetland Basin north-east of Lerwick, Shetland Islands, Scotland at the water depth of . The field operated by Shell UK Limited was once one of the most productive parts of the UK's offshore assets but is now nearing the end of its useful...

 field, via the FLAGS
FLAGS
The FLAGS pipeline is a natural gas pipeline in the North Sea which is used to transport liquids and associated gas from the following fields:* Cormorant A* North Cormorant* North West Hutton...

 pipeline. Gas came from the Fulmar
Fulmar oilfield
The Fulmar Oilfield is situated 312 km east of Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom in block number 30/16 and 30/11b. It is operated by Talisman Energy who took over from the previous operator, Shell at the end of 2006. At this time Talisman also purchased the equity of the other partners ExxonMobil...

 field in July 1987, via the Fulmar Gas Pipeline
Fulmar Gas Pipeline
The Fulmar Gas Line is a natural gas pipeline, which transports natural gas from the Central North Sea to St Fergus, Scotland. Originally, the pipeline carried natural gas from Fulmar and Clyde fields...

, and from the Goldeneye
Goldeneye Gas Platform
Goldeneye Gas Platform is an unmanned offshore gas production platform in the South Halibut basin area of the outer Moray Firth, about 100 km northeast of St. Fergus in Scotland....

 field in October 2004. It employs around 180 people.
but when the queen open it in may the same year shell was not there

ExxonMobil

This plant uses the SAGE pipeline from the Brae
Brae oilfield
The Brae field is a Scottish oil field. The name comes from a Scots language word for hillside. The Fields are operated by Marathon Oil and are located in UKCS block 16/7a. Three accumulations total about 70 million tonnes of oil liquids and a further 22 cubic kilometres of gas...

 gas field. The plant also has two other main pipelines: Atlantic, Cromarty and the Britannia pipelines.

Operation

The purpose of the receiving plants are to clean the delivered gas and present the Methane
Methane
Methane is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is the simplest alkane, the principal component of natural gas, and probably the most abundant organic compound on earth. The relative abundance of methane makes it an attractive fuel...

 content to the adjacent British Gas plant.

Centrica

This is connected to the National Transmission System
National Transmission System
The National Transmission System is the network of large-diameter gas pipelines throughout the United Kingdom that supply gas to 40 power stations from natural gas terminals situated on the coast, and also gas distribution companies which lead indirectly to homes.-Similarity to the National...

 which transports to the rest of Scotland via Kirriemuir
Kirriemuir
Kirriemuir, sometimes called Kirrie, is a burgh in Angus, Scotland.-History:The history of Kirriemuir extends to the early historical period and it appears to have been a centre of some ecclesiastical importance...

 in Angus
Angus
Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...

, then on to Bathgate
Bathgate
Bathgate is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, on the M8 motorway west of Livingston. Nearby towns are Blackburn, Armadale, Whitburn, Livingston, and Linlithgow. Edinburgh Airport is away...

 in West Lothian
West Lothian
West Lothian is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, North Lanarkshire, the Scottish Borders and South Lanarkshire....

.

Shell

This plant has a capacity of around 22.8 Mm
Million
One million or one thousand thousand, is the natural number following 999,999 and preceding 1,000,001. The word is derived from the early Italian millione , from mille, "thousand", plus the augmentative suffix -one.In scientific notation, it is written as or just 106...

 SCM/d
Day
A day is a unit of time, commonly defined as an interval equal to 24 hours. It also can mean that portion of the full day during which a location is illuminated by the light of the sun...

 for the FLAGS line and 2.8 Mm SCM/d for the Fulmar Gas Line. It produces 18.19 Mm scu m/d of gas to the British Gas plant and exports 8,000 tonnes of liquid products to Mossmorran
Mossmorran
The Mossmorran NGL fractionation plant is part of the North Sea Brent oil and gas field system located on the outskirts of Cowdenbeath, Fife....

. There is also the SEGAL Terminal - Shell-Esso Gas and Liquids, run by Shell, but owned equally by Shell and Esso.

Total

This plant receives gas from twenty gas fields (including Alwyn, Miller, Bruce and most recently Rhum
Rhum gasfield
The Rhum Gas Field is located north-east of Aberdeen in 109 metres of water. Gas production and export began on 20 December 2005....

) and produces 20% of the UK's gas needs. It is the largest plant on the whole site. Until 1987, gas only came from the Frigg field, and production from this field finished in October 2004. Gas is transported to the TOTAL plant by the Frigg pipeline
Frigg UK System
The Frigg UK System is a natural gas transportation system from the North Sea gas fields to St. Fergus near Peterhead in Scotland. It transports natural gas from the Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets, Frigg, Bruce, Ross, Captain, Buzzard, Tartan, Piper, Chanter, Galley, Hamish, Highlander,...

, which it owns. Total operates as Total E & P UK plc which is based in Aberdeen and is the fourth largest oil & gas operator in the North Sea.

Esso

There is also an adjacent plant operated by ExxonMobil
ExxonMobil
Exxon Mobil Corporation or ExxonMobil, is an American multinational oil and gas corporation. It is a direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil company, and was formed on November 30, 1999, by the merger of Exxon and Mobil. Its headquarters are in Irving, Texas...

. It receives its gas via the SAGE pipeline, which mostly follows the Miller pipeline, to the SAGE Terminal (Scottish Area Gas Evacuation). Esso operates at the plant as Mobil North Sea LLC.

Products

Ethane
Ethane
Ethane is a chemical compound with chemical formula C2H6. It is the only two-carbon alkane that is an aliphatic hydrocarbon. At standard temperature and pressure, ethane is a colorless, odorless gas....

, Propane
Propane
Propane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...

 and heavier products are separated and sent onward to a further plants located at Mossmorran
Mossmorran
The Mossmorran NGL fractionation plant is part of the North Sea Brent oil and gas field system located on the outskirts of Cowdenbeath, Fife....

, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...

 (owned by Shell) and Cruden Bay
Cruden Bay
Cruden Bay is a small village in Scotland, on the north coast of the Bay of Cruden in Aberdeenshire, 26 miles north of Aberdeen.Just south of Slains Castle, Cruden Bay was the site of a battle between Danes and Scots under King Malcolm II in 1012...

 (owned by BP). Separation is by a cryogenic process.

For the Fulmar Gas Pipeline, a gas de-sulphurisation
Hydrodesulfurization
Hydrodesulfurization is a catalytic chemical process widely used to remove sulfur from natural gas and from refined petroleum products such as gasoline or petrol, jet fuel, kerosene, diesel fuel, and fuel oils...

 plant is used to remove hydrogen sulphide and reduce the water content.

Security

To prevent terrorism the site is protected 24 hours a day by armed police guards http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/north_east/6256363.stm

Bittern

Discovered in June 1996 with production starting in April 2000. Mostly an oil field. Gas transported via the Fulmar Gas Pipeline.

Brent

Mostly an oil field
Brent oilfield
The Brent field is an oil field located in the East Shetland Basin north-east of Lerwick, Shetland Islands, Scotland at the water depth of . The field operated by Shell UK Limited was once one of the most productive parts of the UK's offshore assets but is now nearing the end of its useful...

. Discovered in July 1971, with production starting in November 1976. Very large gas field. Gas transported via the FLAGS
FLAGS
The FLAGS pipeline is a natural gas pipeline in the North Sea which is used to transport liquids and associated gas from the following fields:* Cormorant A* North Cormorant* North West Hutton...

 pipeline.

Curlew D

Discovered in May 1990, with production starting in November 1997. Mainly an oil field, with the associated Curlew B field. Named after the Curlew
Curlew
The curlews , genus Numenius, are a group of eight species of birds, characterised by long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. They are one of the most ancient lineages of scolopacid waders, together with the godwits which look similar but have straight bills...

 bird. Gas transported via the Fulmar Gas Pipeline
Fulmar Gas Pipeline
The Fulmar Gas Line is a natural gas pipeline, which transports natural gas from the Central North Sea to St Fergus, Scotland. Originally, the pipeline carried natural gas from Fulmar and Clyde fields...

.

Fulmar

Named after the Fulmar
Fulmar
Fulmars are seabirds of the family Procellariidae. The family consists of two extant species and two that are extinct.-Taxonomy:As members of Procellaridae and then the order Procellariiformes, they share certain traits. First, they have nasal passages that attach to the upper bill called...

 bird. Discovered in December 1975, with production starting in February 1982. Gives its name to the Fulmar Gas Pipeline
Fulmar Gas Pipeline
The Fulmar Gas Line is a natural gas pipeline, which transports natural gas from the Central North Sea to St Fergus, Scotland. Originally, the pipeline carried natural gas from Fulmar and Clyde fields...

. Mainly an oil field
Fulmar oilfield
The Fulmar Oilfield is situated 312 km east of Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom in block number 30/16 and 30/11b. It is operated by Talisman Energy who took over from the previous operator, Shell at the end of 2006. At this time Talisman also purchased the equity of the other partners ExxonMobil...

.

Nelson

Oribinally operated by Enterprise Oil
Enterprise Oil
Enterprise Oil was a major British independent exploration and production company based in Europe, with core areas of activity in Britain and Ireland, mainland Europe, Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico...

, and mainly an oil field. Discovered in March 1988, with production starting in February 1994. Gas transported via Kittiwake and through the Fulmar Gas Pipeline
Fulmar Gas Pipeline
The Fulmar Gas Line is a natural gas pipeline, which transports natural gas from the Central North Sea to St Fergus, Scotland. Originally, the pipeline carried natural gas from Fulmar and Clyde fields...

.

Alwyn North

Also an oil field. Discovered in October 1975, with production starting in December 1987. Gas transported via Frigg pipeline
Frigg UK System
The Frigg UK System is a natural gas transportation system from the North Sea gas fields to St. Fergus near Peterhead in Scotland. It transports natural gas from the Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets, Frigg, Bruce, Ross, Captain, Buzzard, Tartan, Piper, Chanter, Galley, Hamish, Highlander,...

.

Dunbar

Also an oil field. Discovered November 1973, with production starting in December 1994. Gas transported via Frigg pipeline.

Ellon

Discovered in October 1973, with production starting in December 1994. Gas transported via Alwyn and the Frigg pipeline
Frigg UK System
The Frigg UK System is a natural gas transportation system from the North Sea gas fields to St. Fergus near Peterhead in Scotland. It transports natural gas from the Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets, Frigg, Bruce, Ross, Captain, Buzzard, Tartan, Piper, Chanter, Galley, Hamish, Highlander,...

.

Grant

Discovered in August 1977 with production starting in July 1998. Gas transported via Dunbar and Alwyn and then the Frigg pipeline.

Nuggets

Discovered in July 1994. Production started in 2002. Full name is the Northern Underwater Gas Gathering Export and Treatment System.

Beryl

Beryl A (alpha) was discovered in September 1972, and Beryl B (bravo) in May 1975. Production began for Beryl A in June 1976, and for Beryl B in July 1984. Gas is transported via the SAGE pipeline.

Skene

Also an oil field. Discovered in 1976, with production starting in February 2002. Also an oil field. Named after the Clan Skene
Clan Skene
-Origins of the clan:The Clan Skene is thought to have originally been an exceptionally early sept of the Clan Donnachaidh before it became known as the Clan Robertson. Clan Skene is known in Gaelic as Siol Sgeine or Clann Donnachaidh Mhar. The traditional origin of the name is found in an eleventh...

. Gas transported via the SAGE pipeline.

Bruce

Discovered in July 1974 with production starting in August 1993. Also an oil field. Gas transported via the Frigg pipeline
Frigg UK System
The Frigg UK System is a natural gas transportation system from the North Sea gas fields to St. Fergus near Peterhead in Scotland. It transports natural gas from the Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets, Frigg, Bruce, Ross, Captain, Buzzard, Tartan, Piper, Chanter, Galley, Hamish, Highlander,...

. Large gas field.

Magnus

Also an oil field. Discovered in July 1974, with production beginning in August 1983. Gas transported via the FLAGS
FLAGS
The FLAGS pipeline is a natural gas pipeline in the North Sea which is used to transport liquids and associated gas from the following fields:* Cormorant A* North Cormorant* North West Hutton...

 and Northern Leg pipelines.

Miller

Also an oil field
Miller oilfield
The Miller oilfield is a deep reservoir under the North Sea, 240 kilometres northeast of Peterhead in UKCS Blocks 16/7b and 16/8b. It was discovered in 1982 by BP in a water depth of 100 metres. Production from Miller field started in June 1992, and plateau production was from late 1992 to 1997 at...

. Discovered March 1983, with production starting in June 1992. Gas transported eventually to Peterhead power station
Peterhead power station
Peterhead power station is a multi unit owned and operated by Scottish and Southern Energy near Boddam and the A90, just south of Peterhead, in Aberdeenshire in the north east of Scotland.-Oil fired power station:...

 at Boddam
Boddam, Aberdeenshire
Boddam is a coastal village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is north of Aberdeen and south of Peterhead. Sea cliffs rise to , south of the village: a coastal path leads along these to the Bullers of Buchan....

 via the Miller Transportation System which goes to the Total terminal. Ceased production in 2007.

Britannia

Discovered in September 1975, with production starting in August 1998. Operated with Chevron
Chevron Corporation
Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...

. Pipeline to SAGE Terminal at St Fergus.

Statfjord

Originally operated by Conoco. Discovered in February 1975, with production starting in November 1979. Gas transported by the FLAGS system, and also some to Kårstø
Kårstø
Kårstø is an industrial facility located in Tysvær, Norway. The site features a number of natural gas processing plants to refine natural gas and condensate from the fields in the northern parts of the North Sea, including Åsgard, Mikkel and Sleipner...

 in Norway. Also an oil field
Statfjord oil field
The Statfjord oil field is an enormous oil and gas field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea operated by Statoil.It is a trans-median field crossing the Norwegian and UK North Sea Boundary with approximately 15% being in the UK Continental Shelf waters. At peak production it produced over of...

.

Kyle

Also an oil field. Operated by Canadian Natural Resources Limited
Canadian Natural Resources Limited
Canadian Natural Resources Limited is an oil and natural gas exploration, development and production company centered in Calgary, Alberta. Operations are focused in western Canada, the North Sea and offshore West Africa. It ranks number 251 on the Forbes Global 2000 list for...

, trading as CNR International (UK) Ltd. Discovered in August 1993, with production beginning in March 2001.

Guillemot West & Guillemot Northwest

Guillemot West discovered in October 1979 and Guillemot Northwest discovered in July 1985. Production started in April 2000. Operated by Petro-Canada
Petro-Canada
Petro-Canada was a crown corporation of Canada in the field of oil and natural gas. It was headquartered in the Petro-Canada Centre in Calgary, Alberta. In August, 2009, Petro-Canada merged with Suncor Energy, a deal in which Suncor investors received approximately 60 per cent ownership of the...

, although previously operated by Veba Oil. Gas transported via the Frigg system
Frigg UK System
The Frigg UK System is a natural gas transportation system from the North Sea gas fields to St. Fergus near Peterhead in Scotland. It transports natural gas from the Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets, Frigg, Bruce, Ross, Captain, Buzzard, Tartan, Piper, Chanter, Galley, Hamish, Highlander,...

 (FGL).

Britannia

Owned mostly by Chevron and ConocoPhillips. Discovered in September 1975 with production starting in August 1998. Gas transported via the SAGE pipeline. Very large gas field.

Beinn

Discovered in November 1989 with production starting in February 1994. Beinn means mountain in Gaelic. Also an oil field. Gas transported via the SAGE pipeline.

Brae

Mainly an oil field
Brae oilfield
The Brae field is a Scottish oil field. The name comes from a Scots language word for hillside. The Fields are operated by Marathon Oil and are located in UKCS block 16/7a. Three accumulations total about 70 million tonnes of oil liquids and a further 22 cubic kilometres of gas...

. Discovered from 1975-7, with production starting in 1983 and 1988-9. Gas transported via the SAGE pipeline. Brae is also Gaelic for hill.

Galley

Discovered in October 1974 with production starting in March 1998. Also an oil field. Gas transported via the Tartan platform and the Frigg pipeline
Frigg UK System
The Frigg UK System is a natural gas transportation system from the North Sea gas fields to St. Fergus near Peterhead in Scotland. It transports natural gas from the Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets, Frigg, Bruce, Ross, Captain, Buzzard, Tartan, Piper, Chanter, Galley, Hamish, Highlander,...

.

Orion

Discovered in September 1971 with production starting in September 1999. also an oil field, with gas transported via the Fulmar Gas Pipeline
Fulmar Gas Pipeline
The Fulmar Gas Line is a natural gas pipeline, which transports natural gas from the Central North Sea to St Fergus, Scotland. Originally, the pipeline carried natural gas from Fulmar and Clyde fields...

.

Piper

Discovered in January 1973 with production starting in December 1976. Mostly an oil field
Piper oilfield
The Piper oilfield is a substantial North Sea oilfield. Oil extracted from it is piped to Scotland, where it is refined at a purpose built refinery on the island of Flotta, in the Orkney Islands....

. Gas transported via the Frigg pipeline
Frigg UK System
The Frigg UK System is a natural gas transportation system from the North Sea gas fields to St. Fergus near Peterhead in Scotland. It transports natural gas from the Alwyn North, Dunbar, Ellon, Grant, Nuggets, Frigg, Bruce, Ross, Captain, Buzzard, Tartan, Piper, Chanter, Galley, Hamish, Highlander,...

.

Tartan

Discovered in January 1975, with production starting in January 1981. Gas transported via the Frigg pipeline. Mainly an oil field.

Strathspey

Originally operated by Texaco
Texaco
Texaco is the name of an American oil retail brand. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owns the Havoline motor oil brand....

. Discovered in March 1975, with production starting in December 1993. Gas transported via the FLAGS
FLAGS
The FLAGS pipeline is a natural gas pipeline in the North Sea which is used to transport liquids and associated gas from the following fields:* Cormorant A* North Cormorant* North West Hutton...

 pipeline.

See also

  • Easington Gas Terminal
    Easington Gas Terminal
    The Easington Gas Terminal is one of three main gas terminals in the UK, and is situated on the North Sea coast at Easington, East Riding of Yorkshire and Dimlington. The other two main gas terminals are at St Fergus, Aberdeenshire and Bacton, Norfolk. The whole site consists of three plants: two...

  • Bacton Gas Terminal
    Bacton Gas Terminal
    The Bacton Gas Terminal is a large gas terminal found on the North Sea coast in North Norfolk near Paston and between Bacton and Mundesley. The nearest main town is North Walsham. The other main UK gas terminals are at St Fergus, Aberdeenshire and the Easington, East Riding of...

  • Lindsey Oil Refinery
    Lindsey Oil Refinery
    Lindsey Oil Refinery is a Total owned oil refinery on Eastfield Road in North Killingholme, North Lincolnshire, England. It lies immediately north of the Humber Refinery owned by rival oil company ConocoPhillips, being north of the railway line to Immingham Docks. The former RAF North Killingholme...

    (owned by Total)

External links


Gas fields


News items

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