More underground
storage for increased
gas consumption
The UN/ECE
publishes a study on underground gas storage in Europe and Central Asia
Geneva, 15 February 2000
During the tenth session of the
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE) Working Party on Gas, the Study on
Underground Gas Storage (UGS) in Europe and Central Asia was officially presented to
delegations.
The three-hundred-page report deals with a
wide range of issues related to the underground storage of gas, such as current status of
UGS in Europe and Central Asia, new and emerging technologies, new and existing UGS
projects, regulatory framework, cost of storage in USA and in Europe, future gas markets
development. An attempt was also made to identify the UGS facilities that ensure today
(and could provide in the future) international contract border services.
The Study presents original data related
to all of these topics.
DATA ON 134 UNDERGROUND GAS STORAGE
FACILITIES (UGS) AVAILABLE…
Type |
number |
Working
volume(1996)
Bcm (billion m3) |
Deliverability
(1996)
Mcm (million m3 /day) |
Depleted
field |
72 |
142.2 |
1052.6 |
Aquifer |
36 |
26.9 |
322.9 |
Salt
cavern |
19 |
6.3 |
251.5 |
Abandoned
mine |
2 |
0.1 |
1.5 |
Total |
134 |
175.5 |
1628.5 |
An UGS facility is characterised by two
main features: the working volume which is a percentage of the total UGS capacity and the
deliverability which represents the withdrawal capacity (volume per peak day). The ratio
of these two figures serves to determine the number of days of reserve at the maximum
withdrawal rate. Generally the shorter the minimum withdrawal period, the more flexible
the facility.
The characteristics of each type of
storage have a wide range of values, for example the working gas volumes in depleted
fields are found over a range from 20 Bcm for Severo-Stavropolskoe in Russian Federation
to 30 Mcm for Allmenhausen in Germany.
The figures mentioned in the table could
be compared with the situation in the USA where 410 UGS facilities totalled a
working gas volume of 106 Bcm as of 1997.
The existing UGS facilities were developed
to balance the gas demand with supply potential (including or not supplier swing) the
whole year long, and optimise the utilisation of the transportation system. For several
countries they also represent strategic reserves in case of supply shortage, thus securing
their sustainable development. As can be seen from the above table most of these
underground storage facilities are located in depleted fields (around 80% of total
volume), the remaining 20% being located in either aquifers or salt caverns.
GAS INDUSTRY AND FORECASTS UP TO
2010…
Global natural gas demand in the
western, central and south-east European transition countries is expected to rise by 42%
from 460 Bcm in 1996 to 654 Bcm in 2010. The EU Directives, by opening up
and liberalising electricity and gas markets in the European Community, should accelerate
this trend. The power generation sector is and will continue to be the engine of growth
for gas over the foreseeable future.
STORAGE FACILITIES PROJECTS...
The foreseeable gas market development
in the coming years will require an increase of gas storage capacity. In Europe and
Central Asia 36 expansion/upgrade projects of existing UGS and 57 new projects
are being developed or planned. 39 new potential projects are also under
consideration. 24% of the total number of projects are UGS facilities with high
deliverability. Once implemented this group of projects would increase the total working
volume of gas up to 110 Bcm and the deliverability to 1600 Mcm per day. This would
make a total working volume of 285 Bcm almost as much as that currently available
worldwide and a total deliverability doubled.
TRANSNATIONAL UGS WILL BE DEVELOPED…
Since not all countries benefit
favourable geological conditions for the building of UGS the so-called
"transnational" UGS facilities are of particular interest to the ECE region.
Countries lacking reservoir potential could contract storage volume or facilities in a
neighbouring country, sometimes even operating the facilities themselves. Bilateral
agreements of this kind already exist between Slovakia and Austria, Poland and Ukraine,
and between France and Switzerland. In the future UGS facilities are seen as not only
intended to equalise fluctuations in demand but also as an object for speculation over a
number of years in a deregulated gas market. Hence new attractive sites will be developed,
as they are located near the crossroads of transit lines and close to sizeable gas markets
(e.g. central Europe and the Balkans).
AN EVOLUTING REGULATORY FRAMEWORK…
The study gives an overview of the
legal framework governing planning, construction and operation of UGS facility in Europe
and Central Asia in a form that had never been published before. Administrative delays are
an important parameter that implies rise of costs and leads to postponement of operation
dates. It is important to follow the implementation of the EU regulations in the area
covered by the study because items on the EU agenda such as safety issues, major accident
hazards, pollution control and management of water resources are key issues in the UGS
activity.
COSTS OF STORAGE IS APPROACHED…
A chapter dedicated to costs compares
European and American investment costs for UGS facilities and shows what factor investment
depends on.
Investment cost for a 100 106 m3 UGS facility
Type |
Investment costs working gas volume
in US$/m3 |
Investment costs storage deliverability
in US$/m3/d |
|
Europe |
USA |
Europe |
USA |
Aquifer |
0.35-0.6 |
0.14* |
35-60 |
10 |
Depleted field |
0.35-0.6 |
0.12 |
35-60 |
5 |
Salt cavern |
0.7-1 |
0.30 |
7-10 |
2 |
* size 500x106m3
In the light of the above figures,
UGS facilities in aquifers or depleted fields might be cheaper to construct than cavern
facilities in both continents. They would be also more suitable as a seasonal facility
with a large capacity. On the other hand salt cavities provide a cheaper way of dealing
with short-term peak demand.
NEW AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES ALLOW
IMPROVEMENTS IN UGS…
The ongoing development in UGS
technologies contributes to improving the efficiency of UGS facilities in optimising the
working volume and the withdrawal rate for a given storage and at minimal cost and under
safe conditions. Technologies available to meet this goal include detailed geological
reservoir description accompanied by migration simulation allowing optimal management of
the UGS reservoir, horizontal drilling to increase deliverability and automatisation of
UGS processes to reduce operational costs. These technologies will enable, in particular,
to raise the maximum allowable pressure for a given storage.
AND THE STUDY WILL BE EXTENDED….
Taking into account the growing
importance of gas storage development in Europe and the results presented in the current
Study, the Working Party on Gas believes it is necessary to enlarge the scope of the
Study. In agreement with UN/ECE governments and companies that wish to contribute to
further update, the Study will be developed notably in the following areas: UGS services
portfolio, use of inert gas as cushion gas, UGS flexibility, UGS relinquishment, UGS
standards and optimisation of the greater European transportation network.
For more information please
contact:
Alexandre Chachine / Yannick Guerrini
United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe (UN/ECE)
Palais des Nations
CH - 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Telephone: +(41 22) 917 2451 / 1709
Telefax: +(41 22) 917 0038
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet: http://www.gascentre.unece.org
The Study on Underground Gas Storage
(UGS) in Europe and Central Asia is priced at US$ 300 and may be purchased by quoting
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