Upgrade of Cupiagua gas processing facilities
ECOPETROL, Colombia’s largest energy company, has tasked IDOM with the strategic refurbishment of the gas processing facilities in the CUPIAGUA field, located in the eastern mountain range.
The refurbishment project aims to ensure the continuous, reliable, efficient, and safe delivery of gas to the country, extend the productive life of the field, and prevent the disincorporation of 9 to 12.5 million barrels of oil equivalent (MBOE) of reserves in the medium scenario. The project also aims to maximize hydrocarbon recovery and ensure gas sales by reducing gas pressure from 600 to 200 pounds, allowing for an increase in production of 1,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (BOPD).
The processing facilities in the CUPIAGUA field, one of Colombia’s largest oil reserves discovered in the 1990s, has a processing capacity of 10,000 barrels of crude oil per day, 2,000 barrels of water per day, and 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day. It plays a key role in the country’s energy security.
IDOM carried out the basic and detailed engineering services for this project, highlighting:
- SCPR Slug Catcher Pressure Reduction to increase gas and crude oil volumes to meet the sales gas requirement to its maximum allowable and to incorporate more reserves than estimated to date.
- Replacement of Demag process gas compressor to optimize operation, operating ranges and fuel gas consumptions more efficiently.
- OSIG: update of the gas reinjection requirement to the reservoir, according to the development plan and field modifications.
- Installation of a backup system for the sales gas compressor in order to reduce fuel gas consumption and optimize operating ranges. A Turbo Expander was implemented for this process.
- Additionally, engineering was developed for dismantling the mechanical, piping, civil, electrical, instrumentation, and control systems in the area of the old Crude Stabilization Train 1, where the SCPR subproject new boosting compressors were located.
