Tomball oilfield service company BJ Services plans to expand use of cost-saving technology that can take natural gas produced at a remote drilling site to power hydraulic fracturing operations.
BJ Services and customer Dallas oil company Aethon Energy recently wrapped up a series of successful tests of the Titan at hydraulic fracturing sites in Haynesville Shale of East Texas, the companies reported Thursday. BJ Services now plans to deploy the natural gas-fired turbine and frac pump combo in the Permian Basin of West Texas and the Eagle Ford Shale of South Texas.
Touted as a replacement for diesel-powered frac pumps, the 5,000 horsepower Titan was designed to power hydraulic fracturing operations with lower greenhouse gas emissions, lower maintenance costs, improved mobility and less noise.
Service Sector: BJ Services testing natural gas-fired turbine
Most of the BJ Services hydraulic fracturing fleet runs diesel but the company’s CEO Warren Zemlak said the Titan is a step toward cleaner and more profitable operations.
“The successful field trial confirms our decision to deploy our first contracted Titan fleet by the end of 2020 and initiates our long-term disciplined fleet enhancement strategy,” Zemlak said.
