By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Dec. 16 -- Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP, through its subsidiary Kinder Morgan CO2 Co. LP, has signed a contract with Houston-based Natco Group Inc. for the expansion of Natco's 180 MMcfd carbon dioxide membrane separation facility in the Scurry Area Canyon Reef Operators Committee (SACROC) unit in Scurry County, West Texas.
The contract outlines work that would more than double the hydrocarbon recovery capacity of the plant to about 40 MMcfd of hydrocarbon gas and 14,000 b/d of natural gas liquids. Kinder Morgan's net share of this gas and NGL production is close to 50% Natco reported.
The separation facility uses proprietary membrane technology to recover hydrocarbons for Kinder Morgan from SACROC's produced gas and to return high-concentration CO2 for recirculation back into the injection flood. The processing capability of Natco's facility will be increased to a total of 367 MMcfd of produced gas following the start-up of the expansion, which is slated for fall 2003.
SACROC is one of the oldest and largest oil fields in the US using CO2 injection technology, the company reported. Previously Kinder Morgan had announced plans to expand SACROC's oil production to 30,000 b/d of oil. The company last year began expanding the CO2 flood project to increase oil production (OGJ Online, May 18, 2001) and has increased production in the field to over 15,000 b/d of oil currently from 8,500 b/d of oil in 2000, when it purchased the field, a spokesperson said.
Kinder Morgan's net share of SACROC oil production is 70%.