GE is close to a deal with Abu Dhabi Gas Industries (Gasco) that could convert a significant portion of the gas it flares off wastefully into usable energy.
The deal would come at a particularly opportune time for the UAE, which is facing a gas crunch because of soaring domestic demand, requiring it to increase its natural gas imports.
Also, the potential savings for the oil and gas sector of Dh3 billion a year through more efficient use of its gas is attractive at a time when Abu Dhabi’s oil revenues are suffering after the 60 per cent collapse in the oil price at the end of last year.
GE said the scope of the deal is not yet determined, but it is expected to be part of a broader initiative – “greening Gasco” – agreed late last year by the two companies, according to Marwan Al Roub, the executive director of GE Innovation Centers in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
As well as the gas flare conversion programme, the initiative includes a GE training programme for Gasco staff, plus joint R&D projects.
The latter has also not yet been determined but GE has been pushing its “industrial internet” capabilities in recent years, which include such products as digital measurement, management and control of gas turbine fleets.
GE has supplied 70 per cent of the installed fleet of gas turbines used to generate Abu Dhabi’s electricity.
Gasco is the Adnoc-controlled division that manages onshore gas processing and transportation in Abu Dhabi. The company first began consulting with GE about efficiency measures – including gas flare reduction – in 2010.
GE has undertaken several evaluations since then, which includes Gasco’s Habshan natural gas complex, located 300 kilometres south-west of Abu Dhabi, which began implementing a gas flare reduction initiative in 2013.
Separately, GE yesterday published with Masdar a white paper evaluating the potential for saving energy in the UAE, which estimates that the oil and gas sector alone could save Dh3bn a year through efficiency measures.
To arrive at the number, the authors of the report did a cost-benefit analysis of conversion of flaring of associated gas in Abu Dhabi’s 58 onshore and offshore oil rigs, as well as of conversion of waste heat to power at the emirate’s refineries. It evaluated both the money saved through more efficient energy use as well as that saved on government subsidies for energy use.
The white paper determined that the potential savings overall from energy efficiency measures in the UAE is Dh20bn a year.
Mr Al Roub said that the biggest area to achieve this is in efficiencies in buildings, which can be achieved by deploying myriad technologies. Lighting also still has large potential, even though significant progress has already been made in converting to LED technologies, particularly in Dubai’s public lighting.
amcauley@thenational.ae
Follow The National's Business section on Twitter