SOGAT conference to tackle Shah gas HSE challenges

A conference in March, held in Abu Dhabi will highlight the principal safety challenges and plans for the landmark Shah field development project.

“The main highlights of this year’s SOGAT event, with principal sponsors ADNOC and Occidental, will focus on the all important HSE issues associated with the sour Shah Gas Field project in the UAE,” explained Dr. Nick Coles, founder and conference organiser of the SOGAT events.

The keynote address for the 7th International SOGAT Conference will be given by Saif Al Ghafli, CEO of Abu Dhabi Gas Development Co. Ltd (ADGDCL) and the first presentation from ADGDCL will present their strategy in ensuring that the HSE risks in the SGD project are properly managed and the technologies, system integrity requirements, standards, practices and plans will establish a benchmark for sour gas field developments for others to follow.

A key paper in the 1st International Sulphur Management Forum, a new and integral part of SOGAT 2011, will examine the HSE issues associated with fires and explosives from sulphur dust in granulated sulphur by product handling, storage and transport.

Besides the H2S problems, sour gas fields can contain significant amounts of CO2 and the 5th International CO2 Forum, now a well regarded aspect of SOGAT that has contributed since its inauguration to the CO2–EOR debate will be sponsored by MASDAR and it is expected that a presentation on the new 3C carbon capture technology may be included in this Forum.

Additionally, papers from TOTAL and ExxonMobil will give guidelines as to how their technologies could be employed in the development of other such fields both onshore and offshore in the UAE post 2014.

Such are the crucial processing techniques required to sweeten sour gas that a detailed examination of the latest developments is of critical importance in ongoing regional projects and there will be five workshops this year looking at the most recent experiences:

Sulphur Recovery
Sour Gas Treatment and Effective Management
Acid Gas Injection
Mercury Removal and Measurement Technologies
SELEXOLTM Solvent Technology and Applications

With 30 plus exhibitors, SOGAT 2011 seeks to give comprehensive coverage of international sour gas and sulphur management issues that contribute towards the requirement of delivering sweet sales gas that will contribute to the future power requirement plans for the UAE and the region as a whole.

The event runs from March 27th to 31st and will be held at the Abu Dhabi Hilton on the Corniche.