Have you ever thought about the possibility that sunlight could be used to coax out heavy oil, which stubbornly floats at the base of oil fields? Even if it sounds tough, it is now going to turn into a reality. Oman’s state-owned organization Petroleum Development is ready to take this long leap in collaboration with Glasspoint Energy. Glasspoint is a specialist for such a project as it has successfully completed a major project for Berry Petroleum in century-old Californian oil fields. It uses a unique methodology that includes the heating of water using sunlight, and thus producing steam, which when injected into the oil field, extracts oil. In contrast to expensive solar collectors, Glasspoint uses cheaper collectors that are like aluminum foils, and it installs these inside simple glasshouses.
For Oman’s big project, Glasspoint is going to build glasshouses in an area of four acres. On the border with Yemen, glasshouses will be built on a heavy oil field. Oman is being considered the ideal location to run this project, as the country mostly possesses heavy oil and there are hardly any natural gas resources that could be used to build steam to extract this oil. Considering their domestic usage and export requirements, Oman is now looking forward to conserve the present natural gas resources. But, without natural gas, there is hardly any option that could produce steam as needed to bring out the stubborn heavy oil. So, this is an excellent opportunity for Oman to utilize its abundant sunlight resource.
Oman’s project to build a solar-powered oil field aims at an yearly displacement of around 57,000 mmbtu of natural gas that can produce 33,000 barrels of oil. It is little when compared to the country’s huge daily oil output of around 800,000 barrels. But, it can be a good saviour for natural gas reserves and once the project picks up, Oman is considering it as a positively hopeful trial. Not only within the country but across the Middle East, there could also be a significant number of ‘green jobs’ created during the erection of glasshouses.
On the other hand, Glasspoint is looking at the project as a quick-payback investment with comparitively expensive inputs. The returns can brand them as champions of solar fields. Additionally, as Oman’s oil giants Total and Royal Dutch Shell are involved in operating the country’s oil fields, the project appears to be a profitable venture for Glasspoint too. But in the end, what seems most positive is that solar power is wearing the crown, as sunlight would turn into a crucial resource to coax out dirt from the old and heavy crude oil.
Via: Forbes
