Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle Tanker

This paper presents the technical and economic feasibility analysis of the subsea shuttle tanker (SST). The SST is proposed as an alternative to subsea pipelines and surface tankers with the primary purpose of transporting CO<sub>2</sub> autonomously underwater from onshore facilities to...

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Main Authors: Yihan Xing, Tan Aditya Dwi Santoso, Yucong Ma
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-12-01
Series:Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/1/20
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author Yihan Xing
Tan Aditya Dwi Santoso
Yucong Ma
author_facet Yihan Xing
Tan Aditya Dwi Santoso
Yucong Ma
author_sort Yihan Xing
collection DOAJ
description This paper presents the technical and economic feasibility analysis of the subsea shuttle tanker (SST). The SST is proposed as an alternative to subsea pipelines and surface tankers with the primary purpose of transporting CO<sub>2</sub> autonomously underwater from onshore facilities to subsea wells for direct injection at marginal subsea fields. In contrast to highly weather-dependent surface tanker operations, the SST can operate in any condition underwater. The technical–economic analysis is performed in two steps. First, the SST’s technical feasibility is evaluated by investigating designs with lower and higher capacities. The purpose is to observe the appearance of technical limits (if present) when the SST is scaled down or up in size. Second, an economic analysis is performed using the well-reviewed cost models from the publicly available Zero Emissions Platform (ZEP) and Maritime Un-manned Navigation through Intelligence in Networks (MUNIN) D9.3 reports. The scenarios considered are CO<sub>2</sub> transport volumes of 1 to 20 million tons per annum (mtpa) with transport distances of 180 km to 1500 km in which the cost per ton of CO<sub>2</sub> is compared between offshore pipelines, crewed/autonomous tanker ships, and SST. The results show that SSTs with cargo capacities 10,569 m<sup>3</sup>, 23,239 m<sup>3</sup>, and 40,730 m<sup>3</sup> are technically feasible. Furthermore, the SSTs are competitive for short and intermediate distances of 180–750 km and smaller CO<sub>2</sub> volumes of 1–2.5 mtpa. Lastly, it is mentioned that the SST design used the DNVGL Rules for Classification for Naval Vessels, Part 4 Sub-surface ships, Chapter 1 Submarine, DNVGL-RU-NAVAL-Pt4Ch1, which is primarily catered towards military submarine design. It is expected that a dedicated structural design code that is optimized for the SST would reduce the structural weight and corresponding capital expenditure (CAPEX).
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spelling doaj.art-8dd93b5395fe400e8c0520cca2afb8a92023-11-23T14:15:42ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122021-12-011012010.3390/jmse10010020Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle TankerYihan Xing0Tan Aditya Dwi Santoso1Yucong Ma2Department of Mechanical and Structural Engineering and Materials Science, University of Stavanger, 4021 Stavanger, NorwayDepartment of Mechanical and Structural Engineering and Materials Science, University of Stavanger, 4021 Stavanger, NorwayDepartment of Mechanical and Structural Engineering and Materials Science, University of Stavanger, 4021 Stavanger, NorwayThis paper presents the technical and economic feasibility analysis of the subsea shuttle tanker (SST). The SST is proposed as an alternative to subsea pipelines and surface tankers with the primary purpose of transporting CO<sub>2</sub> autonomously underwater from onshore facilities to subsea wells for direct injection at marginal subsea fields. In contrast to highly weather-dependent surface tanker operations, the SST can operate in any condition underwater. The technical–economic analysis is performed in two steps. First, the SST’s technical feasibility is evaluated by investigating designs with lower and higher capacities. The purpose is to observe the appearance of technical limits (if present) when the SST is scaled down or up in size. Second, an economic analysis is performed using the well-reviewed cost models from the publicly available Zero Emissions Platform (ZEP) and Maritime Un-manned Navigation through Intelligence in Networks (MUNIN) D9.3 reports. The scenarios considered are CO<sub>2</sub> transport volumes of 1 to 20 million tons per annum (mtpa) with transport distances of 180 km to 1500 km in which the cost per ton of CO<sub>2</sub> is compared between offshore pipelines, crewed/autonomous tanker ships, and SST. The results show that SSTs with cargo capacities 10,569 m<sup>3</sup>, 23,239 m<sup>3</sup>, and 40,730 m<sup>3</sup> are technically feasible. Furthermore, the SSTs are competitive for short and intermediate distances of 180–750 km and smaller CO<sub>2</sub> volumes of 1–2.5 mtpa. Lastly, it is mentioned that the SST design used the DNVGL Rules for Classification for Naval Vessels, Part 4 Sub-surface ships, Chapter 1 Submarine, DNVGL-RU-NAVAL-Pt4Ch1, which is primarily catered towards military submarine design. It is expected that a dedicated structural design code that is optimized for the SST would reduce the structural weight and corresponding capital expenditure (CAPEX).https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/1/20subsea technologyshuttle tankersubmarineeconomic analysisZEPMUNIN
spellingShingle Yihan Xing
Tan Aditya Dwi Santoso
Yucong Ma
Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle Tanker
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
subsea technology
shuttle tanker
submarine
economic analysis
ZEP
MUNIN
title Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle Tanker
title_full Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle Tanker
title_fullStr Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle Tanker
title_full_unstemmed Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle Tanker
title_short Technical–Economic Feasibility Analysis of Subsea Shuttle Tanker
title_sort technical economic feasibility analysis of subsea shuttle tanker
topic subsea technology
shuttle tanker
submarine
economic analysis
ZEP
MUNIN
url https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/1/20
work_keys_str_mv AT yihanxing technicaleconomicfeasibilityanalysisofsubseashuttletanker
AT tanadityadwisantoso technicaleconomicfeasibilityanalysisofsubseashuttletanker
AT yucongma technicaleconomicfeasibilityanalysisofsubseashuttletanker