To ensure an orderly transition towards a greener energy future, maximized recovery from thousands of active subsea wells, using existing infrastructure is a high priority.

Over the past 25 years, subsea boosting systems have proven their worth in doing just that, boosting recovery with 10-30% and using 60%-80% less energy than gas-lift for recovering the same amount. However, adoption is limited due to high cost and complexity and often disappointing reliability. FASTsubsea, a JV between FSubsea and Aker Solutions, was created to marry respective qualified HydroMag drive unit and MultiBooster pump technologies, to create a transformational, simpler subsea multiphase pumping system.

It is the first such unit to be seal-less (no barrier fluid) and topside-less (torque converter negates the need for electric Variable Frequency Drive). The hermetically sealed 2 MW system, which will be assembled in the end of 2023, is developed in partnership with Petronas, Equinor, Vår Energi and the Research Council of Norway’s Demo2000 program.

The system is estimated to save total system costs and installation time with up to 50% compared to conventional technology. It will be targeted mainly at accelerating and increasing recovery from brownfields, tie-backs and marginal or distributed new fields globally.