Oil & Gas

Remote Site Power That Cuts the Cost of Getting There

On a remote wellhead or pipeline asset, the generator is cheap and reaching it is not. One service visit per year instead of monthly attendance takes the dominant cost line out of the equation, with up to 90% service cost saving and 30 to 50 percent fuel cost saving against a like-for-like diesel genset.

The economic case

On a remote site, servicing is the cost, not the genset

Access dominates the economics of wellhead, gathering station and pipeline power. A diesel unit expects attention once a month or 300 run hours, and each of those visits carries vehicle, crew, permit and often helicopter or boat cost before anyone touches a filter. Every avoided visit is a full mobilisation avoided.

Uptime works the same way. A reciprocating engine has hundreds of wearing parts and fails in the field; a single-shaft turbine on air bearings has one moving part, so there is far less to strand production while a crew is mobilised.

Mobilisations: One service visit per year against once a month or 300 run hours for diesel, which is where up to 90% service cost saving comes from on hard-to-reach sites.
Fuel: 30 to 50 percent fuel cost saving against a like-for-like diesel genset, running whichever of diesel, kerosene, paraffin, HVO, FAME biofuel your site logistics already deliver at the lowest price.
Unplanned downtime: 1 moving part and air bearings - no oil required, so there are no oil changes and far fewer in-field failure modes than a reciprocating engine. Remote monitoring means you dispatch a crew because something needs doing, not to check.
Asset life: 45,000 hours design life against 15,000 to 25,000 hours for diesel, halving how often the replacement lands in the capital plan.

Model these numbers for your own sites, or review the independent validation and field evidence behind them.

Why incumbents struggle on remote O&G sites

Remote wellheads, monitoring stations, and pipeline assets are expensive to service. The standard diesel or natural-gas genset needs frequent attention, and reciprocating engines have many moving parts that fail in the field. NOx limits on new wellsites are tightening across most operating regions.

The Bladon microturbine sits in a specific niche: small-load, liquid-fuelled, hard-to-reach sites where service cost dominates the TCO calculation.

The microturbine vs diesel comparison sets out the service, fuel and lifetime lines side by side, and what a microturbine is explains why a single rotating assembly tolerates heat and dust.

Where the Bladon microturbine fits

Liquid-fuel multi-fuel: diesel, kerosene, paraffin, HVO, FAME biofuel - useful where wellsite logistics already deliver liquid fuels.
Low NOx vs. reciprocating diesel - easier path to permit on tightening-emissions sites.
Single moving part - far fewer in-field failure modes than a recip engine.
One service visit per year cuts the cost of unattended-site maintenance.
Remote monitoring and SCADA integration for unmanned operation.
Compact footprint, suitable for skid mounting alongside other wellhead equipment.

An honest fit note: the current microturbine runs liquid fuels today. Flare gas and natural gas are in active development - our modular combustor architecture means adding a gaseous fuel is a contained engineering programme rather than a new engine, and customer demand shapes the order in which those fuels land. Talk to sales about your wellsite fuel availability and about registering interest in the gas-fuel programme.

Proof from the field

Case study

International oil company, Middle East

Over 9,200 hours in the desert on three site visits.

Read case study

Case study

Remote site power provider, UK island

Continuous power at a site with high logistics cost.

Read case study

Frequently asked questions

Can the Bladon microturbine run on associated or flare gas?

Not yet. Flare gas and natural gas are in active development with funded work under way. The units run liquid fuels today (diesel, kerosene, paraffin, HVO, FAME biofuel), and the modular combustor design lets us change the fuel a turbine burns without redesigning the engine around it. That is what makes the gaseous roadmap credible. For sites that need gas-to-power today, the microturbine works well as part of a hybrid arrangement covering low-load and start-up duty - and we would like to hear about your gas application, because customer requirements set the roadmap order.

What are the NOx emissions vs. a reciprocating diesel genset?

The microturbine runs at significantly lower NOx than equivalent reciprocating diesel - a meaningful permit and compliance advantage on tightening-emissions sites. Detailed emissions data is available on the MTG12 datasheet.

How does it integrate with SCADA?

The microturbine exposes monitoring and control interfaces suitable for integration with standard wellsite SCADA. Talk to sales for protocol details and reference architectures.

What is the MTBF compared to a recip engine?

With a single moving part and a 45,000 hours design life, the microturbine sees substantially fewer in-field failures than a comparable reciprocating engine. Specific MTBF data is shared under NDA on request.

Is the microturbine suitable for offshore or hazardous-area use?

The standard microturbine is not certified for hazardous-area use. Contact sales early if your site requires ATEX or equivalent certification - bespoke arrangements may be possible depending on programme size and timeline.

What's the typical wellsite use case?

Continuous low-to-mid kW load: wellhead instrumentation, pipeline monitoring stations, cathodic protection, and remote control & comms gear. The microturbine sits well at the 5 to 12 kW band where diesel is over-specified and solar+battery is under-firm.

Specs at a glance

MTG12: 12 kVA / 12 kW prime, Single phase
MTP40 (pads, three phase): 40 kVA / 32 kW prime, 44 kVA standby, Three phase - now available for pre-order
Fuels: Diesel, kerosene, paraffin, HVO, FAME biofuel
Emissions: Exceeds EU Stage V emissions limits, low NOx
Service interval: One service visit per year
Design life: 45,000 hours
Mounting: Skid or container, 920 kg

Talk to our sales team

Tell us about your site, fuel availability, and load profile. We'll come back with a sizing and a deployment plan.