Omani upstream energy firm ARA Petroleum says it has teamed up with Austrian solar engineering specialist Heliovis to set up what is billed as the world’s first solar-thermally powered, zero emission water desalination plant in the Sultanate of Oman.
Unlike conventional water desalination plants – solar powered or otherwise – which use seawater or brackish water as feed for processing, the first-of-its-kind Oman project will treat produced water – naturally occurring water in oil reservoirs that is produced along with hydrocarbons. Their high concentration of mineral salts, heavy metals and hydrocarbon contaminants necessitate their safe disposal either in deep aquifers or carefully managed evaporation ponds.
According to ARA Petroleum, a subsidiary of Zubair Group, the modest-sized plant, with a capacity of 140 cubic metres/day, will be set up in Qarat al Milh, a small oilfield that forms part of the Block 6 license of Petroleum Development Oman (PDO). ARA Petroleum operates the 1,528 sq kilometre oilfield as part of a contract with PDO.
A commercial contract signed with Vienna-based Heliovis will enable ARA Petroleum to harness the latter’s patented and proven low-cost solar thermal technology to treat highly saline oil-contaminated produced water into drinking water – a first for Oman on a commercial scale.
The solar thermal energy will be harnessed to power a forward osmosis (FO) water desalination plant to transform produced water, which is three-times more salty than seawater, into potable water of drinking quality.
Heliovis plans to deploy its proprietary HELIOtube technology that utilises recyclable inflatable tubes and mirror films to collect and concentrate sunlight to generate emission-free industrial process heat.
“The technology gives major cost advantages in manufacturing, shipping/logistics, installation, cleaning, maintenance, and freshwater usage compared to conventional parabolic troughs that employ bent glass mirrors. In the context of the oil & gas industry, it can be used amongst others to power refineries and gas scrubbing facilities, to generate steam for enhanced oil recovery (EOR), or to desalinate produced water as in the present case,” according to the Austrian company.
Felix Tiefenbacher, CEO of Heliovis, commented, “We are looking forward to building on our success with a next generation solar thermal desalination project in Oman. This collaboration with ARA Petroleum demonstrates the scale of opportunity for our unique, low-cost technology to decarbonise industrial heat, including for oil & gas operations. We are pleased to be working with ARA Petroleum to grow Oman’s solar industry and the global market for zero emission desalination.”
Dr Omar al Jaaidi , General Manager of ARA Petroleum Exploration & Production, said, “We are excited about working with Heliovis to enhance our environmental stewardship in Oman and strengthen ARA’s position in the lower-carbon economy. This is a strategic opportunity for us to tap into solar as a sustainable source of energy in order to minimise the carbon footprint of our operations.”
