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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
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CAREERS IN OIL AND GAS SUSTAINABILITY
The Daily Telegraph
CUTOUT ANDKEEP WORLD
THE RACE TO MAKE FOSSIL FUELS A MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY OPTION IS RESULTING IN SOME OF THE INDUSTRYS SMARTEST IDEAS -- ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO RECYCLING, DISCOVERS THEA JOURDAN
Under the Kyoto Protocol agreement, which has set targets for industrialised nations to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the UK has committed to a 12.5 per cent reduction by 2012. Currently, the UK emits more than 500 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) every year, most of it from the burning of fossil fuels. One of the most promising innovations aimed at combating the effects of Co2, ,however, is carbon capture and storage. This technology, which catches and stores Co2 before it enters the atmosphere, is seen as one of the best ways to safely reduce carbon emissions without reducing energy use. The captured gases are then stored underground. Power stations with storing capability have already been built in Algeria and Denmark, and Britain is looking to do the same with North Sea power stations. However, since CO2 is officially classed as waste, it is illegal to store it beneath the sea at present. Mike Rolls, divisional directorof energy solutions for Siemens energy division, says: "The legal framework that would the most efficient of its kind. By locating next to an operational gas pressure reduction station, some of the spare heat it produces can be used to reduce gas pressure -- a vital, energy-intensive process that makes the gas safe for use in homes and in industry. By using existing gas pipelines to carry over the excess heat, the gasworks can turn off their normal heaters, and make significant energy savings. The rest of the heat is then used to make even more
The US Air Force has already tested cleaner, greener coal-to-liquid fuel on its B52 bombers
The heat is on
The Beckton liquid biomass power station, on which construction is due to start later this year, will be the first of its kind in the UK. The project, led by Bath-based company Blue-NG, is a joint venture between the renewable energy company 2OC and National Grid. Not only will the Beckton power plant use raw vegetable oil to generate electricity, it will also divert any excess heat it produces to neighbouring gasworks, making its generator
Produced by Telegraph Create Special Reports Editor Melissa Crowther Art Director Sally Farr DeputyEditor Smarayda Christoforou Senior Sub-editor Fiona Donald Picture Editor James Bowman Executive editor Caragh McKay
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WHERE IN THE WORLD? THE NETHERLANDS
ANDREW WEBSTER, 26, SHELL GLOBAL SOLUTIONS After graduating from Imperial
JOBS ONLINE: jobs.telegraph.co.uk/ careers-insider
MILES DONOVAN AT PEEPSHOW
electricity -- enough to power more than 50,000 homes. "Our technology creates an electrical efficiency of up to 82 per cent -- and if you add in the heat, youre looking at overall plant efficiency of around 92 per cent," says Blue-NG chief executive, Andrew Mercer. "It will provide sustainable energy sources from existing brownfield sites. As these sites are already industrial, this makes it easy to hook up to the electricity grid." With seven other power stations in the pipeline, the future of greener energy looks bright.
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reen issues are right at the heart of any industrial agenda now -- and the oil and gas sector is no exception. In a bid to minimise their environmental impact, companies are busy instigating techniques to reduce waste and creating new products that improve efficiency. "Sadly there is no magic wand -- we wish there was," says Nick Vandervell, communications director at the UK Petroleum Industry Association. "However, there is plenty the industry is doing to ensure processes are as environmentally friendly and efficient as possible," he reveals. A major priority is reducing carbon emissions, thought to be a major factor in global warming.
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enable this to happen is not yet in place, but the law is changing to allow the offshore sector to grant permission for companies to start the subsea storage of CO2 and regulate the process." In the meantime, the Government looks set to give the go-ahead for the first "carboncapture ready" coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth in Kent. Another interesting development in the sector is the marketing of greener fuels. One alternative to crude oil is coal-toliquid technology, which produces a cleaner, more efficient fuel that contains less sulphur and lower carbon monoxide emissions. The US Air Force has already tested the new fuel on its B-52 bombers and plans to run all 6,000 aircraft in the fleet on a fuel blend of coal-to-liquid and petrol over the next few years. However, there is a caveat: "While the process can ultimately produce cleaner fuels as an endproduct, the refining processes needed to produce them can generate more pollution," says Gordon Couch, a technologist at the International Energy Agencys Clean Coal Centre in London. "This might be good news in terms of cleaner air in our cities and low-emission fuels, but looking at the supply chain overall, the CO2 emissions are higher." However, another way of making fuel emissions cleaner is to recycle elements of them. For instance, sulphur extracted from oil and gas is being added to fertilisers and used in the construction of roads and sea walls, while refineries are reusing the heat they produce using combined heat and power (CHP) generation technology. Rolls explains how far-reaching these new technologies might be: "CHP stations make better use of fuel by capturing waste heat, which can then be used in homes, offices and, in some cases, heavy industry too."
VIEW
ackpacking isnt the only way to satisfy your hankering for travel after graduation. Join the oil and gas industry and you could be traversing the globe as part of your job. The sector offers international career opportunities and posts in countries such as Australia and Zambia, India and Mexico. Hence, the industry is on the lookout for recruits who like the idea of working abroad. "The work does not follow a typical nine-to-five schedule and is often challenging, but
THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY OFFERS TRAVEL-HUNGRY GRADUATES PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES TO SATISFY THEIR WANDERLUST WHILE TAKING STEPS UP THE CAREER LADDER, SAYS RUARI MCCALLION
employees are offered excellent career development and travel opportunities," says David Doig, chief executive of Opito, the Oil and Gas Academy. "The result is a lifestyle that is matched by few other industries." We ask three globetrotting employees where they have worked and why they were keen to work abroad: College, London, Andrew knew that he wanted a job that would expose him to new cultures. In 2004, he decided to join Shell Global Solutions: "I made it clear when I applied that living and working abroad was a priority. Luckily for me, they have been very supportive on this front." Andrews first assignment was in The Netherlands, then he was transferred to the Frederica Refinery in Denmark. He had to learn the native languages of both countries. "Getting into culture through language is very much part of what I was after from my job," he admits. "Ive now got two new languages under my belt."
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THE DAILY TELEGRAPH CAREERS IN Power trip: TRANSPORTING OIL FROM PLATFORM TO FORECOURT Page 5 What lies beneath: THE FUTURISTIC WORLD OF SUBSEA DIVERS Page 6 Stranger than fiction: HOW SCIENTISTS CREATED AN OIL-PRODUCING BUG Page 7 MILES DONOVAN AT PEEPSHOW oil gas THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 200
*** II *** *** THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 THE DAILY TELEGRAPH | *** CAREERS IN OIL AND GAS SUSTAINABILITY The Daily Telegraph CUTOUT ANDKEEP WORLD THE RACE TO MAKE FOSSIL FUELS A MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY OPTION IS RESULTING IN SOME OF THE INDUSTRYS SMARTEST IDEAS ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COM
*** *** THE DAILY TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 *** *** | III The Daily Telegraph GRADUATES CAREERS IN OIL AND GAS TANTS THE CONSUL Priya Sodhi, 25 Consultant accountant, Deloitte Consultancy is another great career option for those looking to enter the oil and gas industry, with a var
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*** *** THE DAILY TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 *** *** | V The Daily Telegraph OUTLOOK CAREERS IN OIL AND GAS MILES DONOVAN AT PEEPSHOW FANTASTIC DAY 10: The storage distribution depot Over 150,000 people and several thousand contract workers are directly or indirectly employed by Br
*** VI *** *** THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 THE DAILY TELEGRAPH | *** CAREERS IN OIL AND GAS NEW RESERVES The Daily Telegraph T CORBIS THERES SO MUCH SCI FI-LIKE ACTIVITY GOING ON BENEATH THE OCEAN FLOOR, IT TAKES DARING AND A SPECIAL KIND OF SKILL TO WORK THERE. JO CLARKE UNRAVELS THE MYSTE
*** *** THE DAILY TELEGRAPH THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 *** *** | VII The Daily Telegraph INNOVATION CAREERS IN OIL AND GAS THE EDGE OF REASON THE DRIVE TO MAKE FOSSIL FUELS CLEANER AND GREENER IS RESULTING IN SOME AMAZING TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES THROUGHOUT THE INDUSTRY, SAYS ESME MCAVOY. WE TA
*** VIII *** *** THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 THE DAILY TELEGRAPH | *** CAREERS IN OIL AND GAS PEOPLE The Daily Telegraph industry means workers can probably afford a good break too. So far this year, Jennifer Watson, a lab technician for InterTech on the Beryl Bravo platform, says she has tra
