Today, Australia is the second largest exporter for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the world with high growth rates in gas production.

As one of the first discovered fields in Australia, the Roma gas field covers approximately 1,158 square miles and has been producing gas since the 1960s. Originally, the gas was extracted from limestones, but, since 1988, it is produced from coal seam formations. Since then gas production has continuously expanded. The produced gas from the Roma field is transported via pipelines to the LNG Terminal in Curtis Island, near Gladstone. There the gas is liquefied and shipped via LNG tanks, mainly to Korea and Japan. Santos, one of the main gas producers in the region since 1954, has invested production, processing, and transport of natural gas from the Roma field.

Santos Relies on Metering Systems Solution Competence from SICK

In 2018, the production capacity was once again increased and a new pre-processing plant was built. The central element of the facility are two metering skids: one for internal allocation and one for custody transfer measurement, exporting the gas to the LNG terminal.

The metering systems are designed to meet the requirement of the Australian market for gas measuring systems. The process pressure is between 246 and 391 PSIG. The flow rate goes from 13 to 132 MMSCFD (15.000 – 155.000 Nm³/h). Both measuring skids are equipped with 16” (DN400) FLOWSIC600-XT ultrasonic gas flow meters in Class 300. The gas is measured after the first compression, but before the final cleaning and liquification.

The first FLOWSKID600 metering skid is used for internal allocation and uses a FLOWSIC600-XT Quatro. The principle of having two metering systems, two independent four-path meters, in one meter body allows redundancy with minimal space. The skid was designed to be very compact while still ensuring measurement availability at all times.

The second metering skid is used for custody transfer and designed in a Z-configuration. Two FLOWSIC600-XT four-path meters are used. The gas can still be dirty and contaminated with small coal seam particles, condensate or oil droplets. However, the robust ultrasonic technology copes with the gas properties and ensures reliable measurement.

Lowest Uncertainty. Precise Measurement.

Flow metering systems from SICK incorporate leading ultrasonic metering technology and are delivered as customized turnkey solutions in the form of metering skids or metering runs. The use of the ultrasonic flow meter as the heart of the system, ensures precise measurement of the gas. The requirement for the lowest measurement uncertainty will fulfill all requirements for custody and non-custody transfer purposes.