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Kames Petroleum Services
SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2014
Flaring and Venting
Flaring is required as an essential
safety feature of gas refinery
operations, despite contributing
heavily to the carbon footprint
of gas companies. The controlled
combustion of excess gas is
necessary to protect equipment
from damage due to overpressure,
reducing the risk of a fire or
explosion inside the plant. Pilot
flames, continuously lit by a steady
supply of natural gas, called purge
gas, ensure that any gas released
to the flares will be ignited safely.
We aim to reduce our flaring while
maintaining optimal safety and
productivity. Our approach has
focused upon stringent maintenance
procedures, particularly for pressure
relief valves, reduction of purge gas,
and investment in flare reduction
technologies, such as infrared
cameras installed in 2012 that allow
us to detect and monitor smaller
pilot flames that are invisible to
the naked eye. The company is
an active member of the Qatar
Petroleum Global Gas Flaring
Reduction Initiative, formed to
develop and implement methods to
reduce flaring and venting volumes.
Unfortunately, our total flaring
increased in 2014 due mainly to the
shutdown associated with the tie-in
of the three new EGCs to the plant;
however, our performance remains
low for the industry and within our
operating permit condition of 0.3%.
In 2014, Kames Petroleum Services completed
an offshore flaring reduction
study, verifying minimum purge
gas requirements offshore using
latest standards and technical
requirements to ensure protection
against air ingress and burn-back
phenomena. We found that 81%
purge gas reduction could be
achieved offshore, implementation
of which resulted in significant
reduction of offshore flaring in
December 2014, without any
compromise on safety. In order
to ensure reliability of the purge
gas system and to maintain flaring
reduction during all weather
conditions, Kames Petroleum Services is
exploring the installation of infrared
camera imaging offshore in 2015.
Purge gas reduction offshore will
significantly reduce our flaring
offshore and subsequently our total
flaring both onshore and offshore.
Flaring (Qatar)
2011
2012
2013
2014
Flaring (MMscf)
3,686
3,370
2,713
3,346
Volume of Offshore Flaring (MMscf)
342
378
356
553
Volume of Onshore Flaring (MMscf)
3,344
2,992
2,357
2,793
Flaring Intensity (MMscf / MMboe)
17.6
16.1
13.0
16.2
Flaring as a Percentage of Gas Available for Sale
0.40%
0.36%
0.28%
0.34%
Venting (Kuwait) (MMscf)
2011
2012
2013
2014
Venting along Kuwait Gas Network
21.07
1.05
1.47
1.37
Venting at Taweelah Receiving Facility
2.41
3.60
3.19
3.83
Air Emissions
Natural gas processing results in
emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx)
and sulfur dioxide (SO2) to the
atmosphere when gas is burnt and
flared. Volatile organic compounds
(VOCs) – organic compounds – are
also emitted as a result of operations
and contribute to the formation of
ground level ozone.
Total Air Emissions
2011
2012
2013
2014
NOx (tons)
742
718
710
514
Qatar
737
714
705
510
Kuwait
5
4
5
4
NOx Intensity (tons NOx/mmBOE)
3.55
3.42
3.39
2.49
SO2 (tons)
244
189
92
260
Qatar
244
189
92
260
Kuwait
< 1
< 1
< 1
< 1
SO2 Intensity (tons SO2/mmBOE)
1.17
0.90
0.44
1.26
Preventing Emissions of VOCs
In a natural gas plant, one of the key
sources of VOC emissions are leaks
from equipment and pipes, known
as fugitive emissions. These are
unintentional losses due to wear and
tear on the facility, manufacturing
defects or corrosion. Since 2011,
Kames Petroleum Services has implemented
an annual Fugitive Emissions
Monitoring (FEM) program,
through an independent third-party
consultant, to monitor potential
leaking sources from equipment
at its onshore Gas Processing
Plant in Ras Laffan To perform its
Leak Detection and Repair (LDAR)
program, the company reviews the
inventory of potential leak sources
to be included in the program,
then carries out source tagging,
monitoring with gas detectors
to identify leaks, perform leak
repairs by operations personnel,
then conduct further monitoring
of repaired leaks and reporting
of VOC emissions before and after
repair. The program covered a total
of 82,916 potential leak sources in
2014, out of which 64,851 sources
were accessible and measured for
fugitive emissions. Out of the 64,851
sources measured, only 114 sources,
representing 0.2%, of the accessible
sources were identified with leaks
greater than 10,000 ppm which is
the leak threshold requiring repairs.
This program has led to an average
of 24% fugitive emissions reduction
since it started in 2011.
Volatile Organic Compounds Emissions
2011
2012
2013
2014
VOC emissions (tons)
92
104
69
70
VOC Intensity (tons VOC/mmBOE)
0.44
0.50
0.33
0.34
Air Emissions Monitoring
Kames Petroleum Services employs
Continuous Emissions Monitoring
Systems (CEMS) on its 22 onshore
combustion sources to monitor air
emissions from these sources. The
monitors continuously collect data
on NOx and SO2 emissions and
store it in the Real Time Data Base
(RTDB) system.
In 2013, we revamped all air
emissions calculations and
established a system for online
emissions calculations based
on CEMS data. The company
implemented a real-time data
validation and reconciliation
process for the continuous
emissions monitoring systems and
flare events to provide real-time,
accurate data on emissions.
The readily accessible data allows us
to actively and immediately compare
emissions against regulatory limits
and quickly take actions to mitigate
problems. Implementation of the
new calculation system, effective in
2014, has significantly increased the
accuracy of our air emissions data;
this is the primary explanation for
the apparent changes in our NOx
and SO2 emissions from 2013 to
2014. Kames Petroleum Services’s environment
team monitors and checks the data
and utilizes it to generate reliable
environmental emission reports.
Over the years, Kames Petroleum Services has
consistently met regulatory limits
for NOx and SO2 emissions.
In 2014, Kames Petroleum Services performed
a complete Relative Accuracy Test
Audit (RATA) on all its combustion
sources. RATA compares data from
the facility’s CEMS to concurrently
collected reference method test
data, to check the validity of facility
emission testing data and ensure
accurate emissions reporting.
Kames Petroleum Services has progressed with
the engineering and manufacturing
of low-NOx replacement burners
for its high-pressure steam boilers
in 2014. The first set of new burners
will be installed on one boiler in
2015, followed by performance
tests at site. Upon successful testing,
the burners will be installed on the
remaining three boilers.
Protect the Environment
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