Noble tucks CCS rig tech milestone under its belt

U.S.-headquartered offshore drilling giant Noble Corporation has confirmed the receipt of a certificate related to carbon capture and storage (CCS) rig technology from DNV, an energy expert and assurance provider.  

The rig owner claims that it recently marked another milestone in CCS rig technology with DNV’s technical qualification (TQ) for its work on evaluating how CO2 operations affect rig systems and defining the technical solutions needed to safely support offshore CO2 operations. This week Robert Eifler, Noble’s CEO, received the formal TQ certificate from Remi Eriksen, DNV’s CEO.

“We’re extremely proud of the work our Low Carbon Solutions group is doing to advance the capabilities that are crucial for scalable offshore carbon storage,” highlighted the offshore drilling player.

After the U.S. giant wrapped up a qualification exercise for a CO2-certified rig, DNV awarded a Statement of Qualified Technology last year as proof that the rig owner had put all the pieces into place to make a mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU) ready for drilling, interventions, and workovers when running into CO2 during well operations.

Given the role CCS is expected to play in the decarbonization race, the company is working on a modular rig package, which will lend a helping hand in advancing the drilling of CCS wells by responding to challenges, such as CO2 ventilation, temperature, and corrosion of blowout preventer (BOP) materials, to ensure safe injection of CO2 into offshore reservoirs under the seabed.

One of the key challenges Noble is working on addressing in the process of drilling CCS wells entails the weight of the CO2, as its density level is double the one methane has; thus, the ongoing modular drilling package is envisioned to contain a second ventilation line, which ejects CO2 downwards into the sea to avoid leakage onto the drill floor. This solution will also come with a sensor package to enable detection of CO2 concentration.

While prototype testing is on the agenda in 2026, the drilling package is targeted for commercial use in 2027 or 2028. Noble has amassed experience in the CCS drilling arena by working on Project Greensand, led by INEOS and Harbour Energy in the Danish sector of the North Sea. This project achieved a world first on March 8, 2023, with the first-ever injection of captured CO2 in the North Sea, which was transported across borders and stored offshore.

After DNV verified the safety of all aspects of the project’s CO2 storage, partners took the final investment decision (FID) to invest in the Greensand Future Project – the first commercial phase to establish Denmark’s first CO2 storage site at the Nini field in the North Sea.

As the preferred drilling contractor for Project Greensand, Noble retains the right to all drilling work involved in the project until the end of 2027. Greensand aims to develop a storage capacity of up to 8 million tons of CO2 annually by 2030.

This is not the only CCS rig experience that Noble has in its portfolio, as the U.S. player is also working closely with BP and DNV to bring a CCS-enabled rig design for drilling and workover operations to life. With more offshore carbon storage hubs increasingly coming online, the rig owner believes the industry needs to innovate to find “the most efficient and safe methods to maintain these sites.”

“Inspired by initiatives like Project Greensand and the testing we do on the Noble Interceptor, these innovations show our dedication to advancing energy solutions,” emphasized Noble.

Aside from carbon capture, the firm sees green methanol as a promising rig fuel to unlock greenhouse gas (GHG) emission cuts since using this fuel instead of traditional diesel fuel on a jack-up rig is said to have the potential to result in CO2 emission reductions of up to 95%.

In pursuit of its decarbonization goals, the rig owner is employing various emission reduction initiatives, including what it claims to be the world’s first rig operating on shore power and the world’s first hybrid, low-emission rig upgrade.

The firm is part of a carbon capture and storage consortium, which enables it to test the possibility of running its rigs on 100% sustainable fuels. This endeavor to ensure more sustainable operations is confirmed by the rollout of the Energy Efficiency Insights (EEI) across 29 marketed rigs to allow 6–10% reductions in fuel consumption and derived emissions.

The company is continuing with hydrocarbon exploration activities across the globe while working on making its operations more sustainable. One of the rig owner’s drillships is scheduled to start its new drilling campaign offshore Ghana later this month.