EPIC - Energy Production Innovation Center
During the center’s first five years (out of a total of ten) our activities focus on research about oil exploration and production (E&P), to be developed according to three main lines:
RL1. Reservoir ManagementProduction Optimization using Reservoir Simulation Models
RL2. Artificial lift and flow assuranceProduction Optimization, Artificial Lift and Flow Assurance inside ESP
RL3. Reservoir characterizationGeological Characterization and Modeling of a Carbonate Reservoir from the Brazilian Pre-salt
In order to achieve this, we rely on a multidisciplinary team of 13 professors and 34 researchers from Unicamp (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Geosciences Institute, Computing Institute, Faculty of Civil Engineering, School of Technology, Center for Petroleum Studies) and the University of São Paulo (Polytechnic School - USP) to lead the research and supervise our students.
We believe that the partnership between the university and the industry is fundamental for the development of applied solutions. Thus, Unicamp and Equinor work collaboratively, seeking to integrate the experience of operational challenges and academic research, generating high quality and impactful solutions.
Our History
The Energy Production Innovation Center (EPIC) is the result of a public notice from 2017 created by FAPESP and Equinor in order to found an Engineering Research Center in reservoir and production management.
We began our activities in February 2019 at the University of Campinas (Unicamp), where there have been graduate courses on petroleum engineering and geology for over thirty years.
EPIC was designed to develop innovative solutions for oil production optimization and management. We aim to increase efficiency, control and automation of oil and gas recovery and exploration in Brazilian offshore fields.
Our approach is: more efficient processes and machines, larger recovery with smaller energy consumption and, therefore, lower carbon emissions. The magnitude of oil resources for the Brazilian economy is substantial.
During the first annual conference, held at Unicamp in November 2019, guest foreign experts assessed work plans, suggested directions and were enthusiastic about cooperating with EPIC.
Equinor's ambition is to have the intensity of carbon emissions from its energy produced, considering from production to consumption, to be less than half in 2050 compared to 2020. Globally, it is expected to achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2030.
Partnering with EPIC can collaborate with research and development of technologies and solutions that support ambitions to increase energy efficiency. Another important step is to accelerate decarbonization, and for this Equinor has a partnership with UNICAMP in the development of competencies with a focus on CCUS (Carbon Capture and Storage), where the first discipline on the subject in graduate school was established at the School of Mechanical Engineering.
Moreover, improving process efficiency, diversification and integration of energy production systems are important strategies to reduce carbon emissions. Therefore, EPIC’s scope has been broadened since the beginning to include research and innovation in the area of energy and natural resources.
