VIII Congreso Internacional de Investigación REDU
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Publicado el 25 de abril de 2022 | http://doi.org/10.5867/Medwave.2022.S1.CI84
Análisis tecno-económico de la valorización del gas natural en la región Amazónica con la finalidad de incrementar la producción de gas licuado de petróleo (GLP) en Ecuador
A techno-economic assessment of natural gas valorization in the Amazon region to increase the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) production in Ecuador
Darwin Ortiz , Alfredo Viloria, Marvin Ricaurte
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Tema
Desarrollo y sostenibilidad
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Palabras clave
Natural gas, associated gas, liquid petroleum gas, Amazon region, Ecuador
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Introducción
The energy demand is growing worldwide, and different energy sources need to be analyzed to ensure the current supply. One of these sources is natural gas, a fossil fuel with the least environmental impact over the other hydrocarbon sources. Natural gas is widely used to provide energy and as a feedstock for the petrochemistry industry. On the other hand, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is a C3/C4’s hydrocarbon mixture used as fuel gas. In Ecuador, the LPG is mainly used by the residential sector. The national LPG production (1.90 MMbbl/year) came from Esmeraldas refinery and the Shushufindi gas plant. The last one is located in the Amazon region. However, the LPG production cannot satisfy the domestic demand, and over 80 % of this commodity is imported, with high expenses (358.72 MMUSD/year). Nevertheless, the natural gas produced is not fully used in the Amazon region, and important quantities of the associated gas are flared (~100 MMscf/day), representing energy wasted with an environmental impact. Therefore, there is an opportunity for natural gas valorization in the Amazon region.
Objetivos
To develop a technical and economic feasibility analysis of the natural gas valorization in the Amazon region to increase the LPG production in Ecuador.
Método
The study followed some steps, starting from a review of the associated gas production in the Amazon region. The data was analyzed considering the field location, gas composition, and operational conditions. Then, a possible valorization of the associated gas was visualized. Subsequently, a technical analysis was performed to take advantage of natural gas, considering the available techniques for processing the most attractive gases in this region for LPG production. The natural gas processing stages included: sweetening, dehydration, natural gas liquid recovery, and fractionation. Finally, an economic feasibility (class V) study was carried out, considering a preliminary analysis of the CAPEX and an economic balance analysis.
Principales Resultados
The valorization of associated gas from the Ecuadorian Amazon region is technical and economically feasible, especially for those fields which produce natural gas with high richness (GPM > 3) and commercial flowrate (Q > 10 MMscf/day). The outcome of this study indicates that by processing 14.6 MMscf/day of the associated gas from the Sacha field, the LPG production in Ecuador could increase 1,731 bbl/day. An amount that represents 14.5 MMUSD/year in commodity importations to the Ecuadorian economy. The required infrastructure consists of conventional processes (using mature technologies) for natural gas processing. The estimated CAPEX for the natural gas processing plant is 21.9 MMUSD, considering local conditions. In addition, other fields also present commercial characteristics to be analyzed for gas valorization opportunities.
Conclusiones
The processing gas from the Sacha field could produce 1,731 bbl/day of LPG. This associated gas valorization would represent a great social impact by introducing ~10,000 LPG cylinders of 15 kg per day to the domestic market. It easily represents the LPG supply of nearly 150,000 households per month in Ecuador. The insertion of LPG volumes into the domestic market would highly reduce the importation dependence of this commodity.
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