In the 19th Century, German geologist Ferdinand von Richthofen popularised the name of the ancient trade routes between East and West as the Silk Road. However, both “silk” and “road” are misnomers, for the trade of spices, as well as cultural, political, religious and philosophical thought, was as consequential and the routes were bothContinue reading “The New Silk Road, an Energy Transition Gold Mine”
Category Archives: Insights
reducing embedded carbon & EPC related emissions in oil & gas facilities
Are you considering GHG emissions in the CAPEX phase of your projects? In the oil & gas industry, commitments to “net zero” emissions seemed to skyrocket in 2020. Most are focused on Scope 1 and 2 emissions, meaning the emissions consumed directly in their operations, while several leading oil & gas companies have expanded theirContinue reading “reducing embedded carbon & EPC related emissions in oil & gas facilities”
The Energy Transition is Born a Digital Native
Without wanting to use the phrase “unprecedented times”, it is difficult to start this piece without acknowledging the remarkable changes resulting from the confluence of the fourth industrial revolution, the climate crisis and the global pandemic, through which we are all living. Already experiencing the need for an energy transition, and in many instancesContinue reading “The Energy Transition is Born a Digital Native”
Insights from recent hydrogen projects
The energy transition is well underway with hydrogen projects expected to play an important role. io’s Hydrogen Subject Matter Expert, Mary Snowdon explains the considerations to be made when assessing the design of a hydrogen project. io’s approach to projects is to start with the end in mind, which aligns perfectly with hydrogen projectsContinue reading “Insights from recent hydrogen projects”
Starting the Energy Transition in E&P – Part 2
Part 2: a way forward for independent E&Ps An Energy Transition Road-map for E&Ps io proposes the following steps to support Independent E&Ps in their progression to the era of Energy Transition. Step 1: Getting the Basics Right Conduct an overall vulnerability assessment of risks from climate change. TCFD[1] adoption appears to be becomingContinue reading “Starting the Energy Transition in E&P – Part 2”
Einstein’s Fridge, CFD, Refrigeration and Vaccines
I was recently asked to investigate a problem for the design and operability of a hot water sphere energy storage vessel that is part of a compressed air energy storage system. The vessel in question was described in the previous article – “A Load of Hot Air – Comparing Air Energy Storage Technology“. TheContinue reading “Einstein’s Fridge, CFD, Refrigeration and Vaccines”
Net Zero Upstream Facilities: Can we afford not to?
The groundbreaking universal, legally binding global climate change agreement, adopted at the Paris climate conference in 2016, aims to keep the increase in global average temperature to well below 2°C (3.6°F) above pre-industrial levels; and to pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C (2.7°F). In the four years since the Paris Agreement wasContinue reading “Net Zero Upstream Facilities: Can we afford not to?”
A Load of Hot Air – Comparing Air Energy Storage Technology
As our energy sector transitions from fossil fuels to cleaner alternatives, there is a pressing need to provide storage capacity with the power networks. Energy storage provides a mechanism that mitigates the untimely generation from variable renewable sources. In essence our energy demands do not always coincide with the sun shining or wind blowing.Continue reading “A Load of Hot Air – Comparing Air Energy Storage Technology”
How Systems Modelling Optimised A-CAES
From our everyday personal lives to highly complex business projects, trade-offs arise in almost all decision-making processes and understanding how to best manage them is key to finding an optimal solution which satisfies all stakeholders. For large capital-intensive energy projects, where millions of dollars are on the line, an awareness of how competing valueContinue reading “How Systems Modelling Optimised A-CAES”
8 things you should know about Hydrogen Energy
Baker Hughes’ Energy Forward online publication, focused on the latest innovations & people shaping the future of their industry, interviewed our CEO, Richard Dyson and Principal Consultant, Mary Snowdon, about the key things an operator should consider before joining the hydrogen revolution. Here is their shortlist of top tips. 1. Not all hydrogen isContinue reading “8 things you should know about Hydrogen Energy”
The Case for CAES
Importance of Compressed Air Energy Storage Energy Transition Global electricity generation is transitioning to an ever-greater contribution from variable renewable sources (VRE), such as wind and solar. As international grids adjust, the need for energy storage[1] becomes acute. When the wind does not blow, or sun does not shine, a disparity is created betweenContinue reading “The Case for CAES”
Energy Transition – a besieged industry’s response
Introduction There are three truisms, or in io consulting’s terminology, givens that I will state upfront: climate change is real climate change is due to anthropogenic causes we can and must do something about it Indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from oil and gas operations, including both carbon dioxide and methane emissions, today areContinue reading “Energy Transition – a besieged industry’s response”
Europe’s Hydrogen Ambitions
Introduction Hydrogen has garnered much attention in recent years due in part to its relative novelty, but also due to the number of industries and sectors it can disrupt, and indeed must disrupt if we are to meet our COP-21 Paris agreements. The environmental necessity has clearly been understood by the EU who describedContinue reading “Europe’s Hydrogen Ambitions”
Upstream GHG Emissions Reduction in a week
Independent oil and gas companies (“Independents”) are having to balance between rapidly adapting their operations to ‘the great existential challenge of our times’ whilst still maintaining an acceptable return to their investors. The pace of change is perceived by many to be too slow, but the process of change is difficult and there is noContinue reading “Upstream GHG Emissions Reduction in a week”
Zero Emissions Platforms
Introduction In io consulting’s (io) Powerful Thinking article “associated gas – now it’s your turn to stand up and be counted!” [1], we considered the challenges of meeting the environmental targets for associated gas in the context of oil and gas developments. Building on this work, in this article we focus on some of theContinue reading “Zero Emissions Platforms”
