Newly Developed Sensor Has Created a Growth Business and Reduced Chemical Usage Offshore

“Innovation Project Opens New Market for SulfiLogger, Eightfold Revenue Increase and Clients on Two Continents. ‘We gained an entirely new market through the project,’ says CEO.

The decision proved highly beneficial when Aarhus-based SulfiLogger engaged in an innovation project in 2020 to develop a smart, robust hydrogen sulfide sensor for the offshore industry under the auspices of Energy Cluster Denmark.

‘The project has been crucial for us,’ says Søren Porsgaard, CEO of SulfiLogger. ‘In 2020, we were a wastewater company with eight employees. Today, we are also an energy company with 23 employees and an eightfold increase in revenue,’ he says.

Progress accelerated through a partnership involving SulfiLogger, LIC Engineering A/S, Aalborg University, and Pieter Mouritsen, aimed at finding a more efficient and environmentally friendly method to remove hydrogen sulfide from production before gas is sent ashore.

In the project, the partners built a new measurement and dosing system, installed at two offshore oil and gas installations in the Danish North Sea. The system includes a sensor that accurately measures hydrogen sulfide levels in the pumped gas – a sensor that has propelled SulfiLogger’s growth:

‘Through the project, we gained access to an entirely new market,’ says Søren Porsgaard. ‘We developed the product in collaboration with the offshore industry, which provided a crucial breakthrough and the network that enables us to sell to the entire oil sector today,’ he says.

Critical Network Access

The sensor solution developed in partnership with offshore industry partners is now in commercial use:

‘Directly stemming from the project, we developed commercial products sold in both Europe and North America today. There is potential for further markets as we expand the technology and awareness of its capabilities in the energy sector. We also see potential in the Power-to-X market,’ says Søren Porsgaard.

He has no doubt about the significant role played by the cluster organization in this development.

“Energy Cluster Denmark has been instrumental in engaging operators in the North Sea. Without their network, we would likely not have gained offshore access during our development project, making it nearly impossible to develop and test the optimal sensor product for this demanding environment,” he says.

FACTS

The sensor, developed in the ‘H2SMAN’ innovation project under Energy Cluster Denmark, enables a reduction in chemical usage in oil and gas production by real-time measurement of corrosive and toxic hydrogen sulfide (H2S) content in production streams.

With more precise measurements of H2S content, operators can better dose the exact amount of H2S scavenger needed to neutralize H2S, significantly reducing chemical consumption. The innovation project was supported by the Regional Fund and EUDP from 2018 to 2021 and represents one of the completed innovation projects under Energy Cluster Denmark.