Liquid metering systems for Suncor Energy's Voyageur Upgrader

20 October 2008

Emerson Process Management has won a contract to install metering systems for the East Tank Farm being constructed in Suncor Energy's Voyageur Oil Sands Upgrader Operation in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada, the world's second-largest oil reserve, following Saudi Arabia. Suncor Energy is the single-largest investor in Canada's oil sands industry and a major North American energy producer and marketer.

Emerson will perform front-end engineering, design (FEED) and commissioning of Daniel liquid metering packages, including two bi-directional provers. Additional Emerson products include 22 Micro Motion Elite High Capacity Coriolis mass flow meters and 56 Rosemount pressure and temperature transmitters. Suncor's upgrading facilities process bitumen, a very heavy hydrocarbon, into synthetic crude oil. Suncor's goal is to increase oil sands production capacity to 550,000 barrels of oil per day by 2012.

Emerson will work closely with CB&I, the EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contractor, to help Suncor achieve operational excellence with timely engineering and industry-leading technology that meets their stringent operating requirements. In an environment where temperatures fall to -45°C, Emerson's metering systems will deliver internal custody transfer measurement and leak detection capabilities for the East Tank Farm pipeline transfers. High integrity custody transfer measurement is required for fiscal accounting and compliance with environmental protection regulations. This pipeline will carry blended bitumen from an interim storage facility to multiple areas within the Voyageur Upgrader facility.

"We are pleased at this opportunity to combine our technology with the construction capabilities of CB&I," said Steve Colella, vice president and general manager, Daniel division of Emerson Process Management. "We are encouraged by Suncor's trust in our competence to offer system design, configuration, staging, commissioning, and start-up assistance. We are devoted to providing an outstanding metering system at the Voyageur Upgrader."

With an installed base of over 2800 large-scale skids around the world, Daniel's systems are proven to meet the stringent velocity and pressure drop requirements of the East Tank Farm and achieve optimum process performance while maximising profitability. Emerson's Micro Motion Coriolis mass meters deliver precise mass, volume, density and temperature measurements, thereby minimising environmental risks and measurement uncertainty. The enhanced EMI (Electromagnetic Interference) rejection and filtering of the Rosemount temperature transmitters result in unmatched stability in process measurement.