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Abstract Polymer flooding is a well-established enhanced oil recovery (EOR) technique that involves the injection of water-soluble polymers into oil reservoirs to increase the viscosity of the injected water, thereby improving sweep efficiency and displacing residual oil (Green & Willhite, 1998; Thomas, 2019). The implementation of polymer flooding typically results in an incremental oil recovery of 10–15% in tertiary mode, following prolonged water injection, and can exceed 20% when applied in secondary mode. Beyond improving displacement efficiency, polymer flooding also accelerates oil production while reducing the overall carbon footprint, as well as water usage and handling requirements. Despite its advantages, polymer flooding in offshore environments presents additional challenges, particularly due to the high shear forces encountered in subsea injection systems (if any), including subsea chokes and Christmas trees (Seright et al., 1983). These extreme shear conditions can induce mechanical degradation of polymer chains, leading to a substantial loss in viscosity and, consequently, increased OEPX and a decline in flooding efficiency (Maerker, 1975; Jouenne et al., 2014, 2017). In response to this limitation, encapsulated polymer technology has been developed to mitigate shear degradation and optimize polymer performance in offshore applications (Caulfield et al., 2002). This innovative approach involves encapsulating polymer molecules within a protective shell that shields them from degradation during injection while enabling controlled release within the reservoir. Unlike crosslinked polymers, encapsulated polymers retain their linear structure without intermolecular bonding, ensuring a non-damaging transition into the reservoir. The chemistry of the encapsulating shell can be precisely tuned to facilitate polymer release within a controlled timeframe, typically ranging from 12 to 72 hours after reservoir penetration. Upon release, the polymer solution attains the same viscosity as a conventional, non-encapsulated polymer of equivalent concentration. Extensive laboratory investigations, yard tests, and field trials have demonstrated that encapsulated polymers remain structurally stable under severe shear conditions, effectively preventing polymer degradation while ensuring delayed release under a wide range of reservoir conditions (Diaz et al., 2019; Husveg et al., 2021; Stavland et al., 2016). This controlled release mechanism ensures that viscosity development occurs within the reservoir rather than during injection, thereby maintaining polymer integrity and maximizing displacement efficiency. Additionally, since encapsulated polymers exhibit water-like viscosity prior to activation, they do not induce excessive pressure buildup at the injection well, thereby preserving injectivity and mitigating operational risks associated with polymer-induced formation damage. The introduction of encapsulated polymer technology represents a significant advancement for offshore reservoir development, particularly for fields relying on subsea wells. By effectively overcoming the dual challenges of shear degradation and injectivity loss, this novel approach enables the reliable and sustainable deployment of polymer flooding in complex offshore environments (Poulsen et al., 2018; Sorbie, 1991). As the industry increasingly emphasizes ecologically sustainable EOR solutions, encapsulated polymer technology becomes a crucial facilitator, promoting greater oil recovery while minimizing the environmental impact of offshore production activities.