Towards digital solutions for the Net-Zero UK North Sea energy hub: The digital Emissions Atlas prototype

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Innovate UK
Innovate UK
Innovate UK
Innovate UK
Innovate UK

£482,195

Nov. 1, 2020

April 30, 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected oil and gas exploration and production in the North Sea and highlighted the importance of accelerating the transition to net-zero emissions energy, a key to achieving the UK's 2050 climate targets. The primary motivation for this project is the recognition that the UK energy industry must focus on the transition from oil and gas to carbon-free production.

In this project, we propose to develop a digital North Sea Emissions Atlas to support the decarbonisation of the UK energy sector and contribute to the emergence of the connected UK Digital North Sea. The focus of our innovation is the prototype of the Emissions Atlas, a flexible emissions monitoring database feeding a geospatial portal, created for a major UK North Sea net-zero emissions energy hub.

The Emissions Atlas will enable the cost-effective monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions associated with:

\* oil and gas production for domestic needs during the energy transition;

\* decommissioning/abandonment of oil and gas infrastructure;

\* production of natural gas (mainly methane) for blue hydrogen fuel generation;

\* carbon capture and storage in the subsurface, in synergy or not with blue hydrogen production.

The Emissions Atlas will be based on open data from academia and industry. Within the project, we will research and develop innovative techniques to support the scalable data management of the complex data types required for monitoring greenhouse gas emissions, compile an extensive database, and develop modelling methods to obtain flux estimates from the data using physics-based models.

The deliverables of the Emissions Atlas prototype include a demonstrator product to serve as basis for the short-term development of a fully commercial product. We anticipate the Emissions Atlas will help establish IGI in the carbon-free energy market by increasing the range of specialist consultancy and software products it provides. This project will thus contribute to placing IGI in a strong position to support the energy transition in the UK, and ultimately globally. This project is expected to have a positive climate impact for the UK by helping it reach the 2050 net-zero emissions target. The prototype will, on the medium-term, be extended to have the capacity to support the future UK decarbonisation industry. IGI will promote Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, involving women in more than half of the project roles, including management and R&D.