MAN’s First Hermetically-Sealed Compressor for an Offshore Platform

MAN Diesel & Turbo in Zurich has won a contract for a HOFIM™ compressor (High-Speed, Oil-Free, Integrated Motor).

This is a significant business milestone: It is MAN’s first hermetically-sealed compressor being installed on an offshore production platform – Ivar Aasen in the North Sea, run by Det norske oljeselskap ASA.

MAN’s Business Unit Oil & Gas has pioneered the development of integrated turbocompressor systems in the past 25 years. The most significant aspects of this machine are the use of a high-speed motor and active magnetic bearings.

The order for Ivar Aasen comprises a multi-stage radial compressor (1×100 percent) arranged in tandem configuration around a centrally positioned 9.5 megawatts high-speed electrical motor.

The integrated active magnetic bearings are provided by MECOS, a company acquired by MAN Diesel & Turbo early 2012. MECOS is a leading company in the field of active magnetic bearing systems. Since 1988, MECOS has launched magnetic bearing solutions for compressors, turbines and other high-speed rotating machinery serving in various industrial applications.

The complete HOFIM™ unit will be delivered to the module packager SMOE Pte Ltd. in Singapore which is building the Ivar Aasen platform. In 2016 the module will be sailed away to the final site of operation: The Ivar Aasen field situated in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. The compressor will export the produced gas from the platform to shore.

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Press Release, January 16, 2014