Innovoil Issue 41 (Subsea EXPO 2016 Special)

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NEWSBASE

Bringing you the latest innovations in exploration, production and refining Issue 41

February 2016

blue-sea thinking

Behind PTTEP’s home-grown AUV Page 20

Subsea expo 2016

SubseaUK’s Neil Gordon looks at the year ahead Page 12

cracking the case

New research could revolutionise hydrogen production Page 7

E SID A E t IN n Seme 27 B l 2U p p 1 S w

su es l a ci Pag e Sp

The World’s Largest Subsea Exhibition and Conference Aberdeen AECC 03-05 Feb 2016

What to do in a b e rd e e n see page 16

ORGANISED BY

Conference Sponsor

Principal Media Sponsor

Supporting Sponsors

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InnovOil

February 2016

page 3

Inside

A note from the Editor

5

TiltRotor fatal crash

6

Contacts:

Cracking innovation

7

Media Director Ryan Stevenson ryans@newsbase.com

Safer habitats

8

Maria modification plan

9

AgustaWestland remains committed to the AW609 programme

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) uses molten tin to crack methane

Pressurised habitats reduce the risk of fire or explosion, says Safehouse CEO Gordon Mackay

Media Sales Manager Charles Villiers Email: charlesv@newsbase.com

Wintershall’s Maria will be linked to the Kristin, Heidrun and Asgard B platforms

Media Sales Manager Riley Samuda RileyS@InnovOil.co.uk

SUBSEA Special 12-27 A transformative year

Editor Andrew Dykes andrewd@newsbase.com

12

Innovoil interviews SubseaUK chief executive Neil Gordon

Reducing costs with Impact 14

NewsBase Limited Centrum House, 108-114 Dundas Street Edinburgh EH3 5DQ

Impact Subsea explores the world’s first combined altimeter with an in-built HMRU

Ready for the floor

17

All systems go

18

PTTEP’s AUV

20

Fugro’s SFD drills cores from the sea bed

Phone: +44 (0)131 478 7000 www.newsbase.com www.innovoil.co.uk

Chuck McConnell and the newly created Subsea Systems Institute in Houston

Design: Michael Gill michael@michaelgill.co.uk www.michaelgill.eu

Thailand launches AUV programme

Closer inspection with TSC 22 TSC Inspection System’s ACFM® MagCrawler™ ™

Published by

ations Bringing you the latest innov

Small pools, big impact

25

The chemical challenge

28

Recovery strategy

29

Incubating inovation

30

News in brief

32

The future of the UKCS

NEWSBASE

in exploration, production

and refining February 2016

Highlights from the RSC’s Chemistry in the Oil Industry event in Manchester

Issue 41

inking blue-Sea th home-grown AUV Behind PTTEP’s Page 20

Golder Associates’ integrated operations and efficient water management

Total’scorporate incubator programme 2016 SubSea expo Gordon looks SubseaUK’s Neil at the year ahead Page 12

the caSe crackingcould revolutionise

Contacts 38

New research hydrogen production Page 7

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February 2016

InnovOil

page 5

A note from the Editor As InnovOil goes to press, the team and I are finalising our itinerary for Subsea Expo. We have been involved in the event since our early issues in 2012 and have attended every year since. Its Aberdeen location and focus on the North and Norwegian Seas have led us to speak to a wide variety of firms, and not limited solely to the subsea industry.

This year will be a somewhat bittersweet return. Low prices and diminished investment have taken their toll over the past 18 months. In putting together our coverage of the speakers and innovators attending, we found that many firms struggling with smaller budgets were no longer making the trip, while many that were would only be doing so in a reduced capacity compared with years gone by.

SubseaUK’s chief executive, Neil Gordon, has struck a similar note answering our questions in this month’s Subsea technology supplement. Yet acknowledging 2015 as a year of “rationalisation and realisation,” he also believes that 2016 will be a year of transformation.

This will encompass the good and the bad. Daily volatility in oil prices and outlooks is unlikely to inspire confidence in either the short or medium term, but new concentration on subjects like integrity will open up fresh possibilities and new technical avenues for firms to explore.

The UK is also well-positioned, as its expertise and engineering capabilities are still in demand across the world. This

year’s conference will see a renewed look at foreign export opportunities within the sector, with the aid of organisations such as UK Trade & Investment (UKTI).

Those export opportunities are myriad. As one might notice from our cover, national oil companies (NOCs) are keen to begin developing their own capabilities – but all need to begin somewhere. Inside, we look at the efforts of Thailand’s PTTEP to create a hybrid autonomous underwater vehicle (HAUV) for pipeline inspection, and how this could help its future exploration efforts.

In the Gulf of Mexico, good news is also lurking just beneath the surface. The newly created Subsea Systems Institute (SSI) – created with money from BP’s Deepwater Horizon settlement – will see two of Houston’s top universities collaborate with NASA to develop a raft of new subsea technology, with a particular focus on BOPs and subsea safety. Rice University’s Chuck McConnell also speaks exclusively to InnovOil about the aims and goals of the new venture.

Times are tough – we know this all too well. But throughout 2016 and beyond InnovOil will continue to bring you the newest innovations in exploration, production, refining and everything game-changing in between.

We hope to see as many of you as possible at Subsea Expo, and hear from many more in the coming year.

For now, the team and I are pleased to present the February edition of InnovOil.

Andrew Dykes Editor

NEWSBASE

page 6

InnovOil

February 2016

Fatal crash raises questions over TiltRotor

AgustaWestland remains committed to the AW609 programme, despite the crash in Italy which killed two test pilots

B

ack in our April 2015 Issue we featured AgustaWestland’s pioneering AW609 TiltRotor prototype. Boasting the ability to fly at twice the speed and range of a conventional helicopter, the 609 promises a revolution in long distance transfer – qualities of particular interest to an energy industry pushing into tougher environments.

A platform development agreement for the TiltRotor programme between AgustaWestland and offshore transport service provider Bristow Group confirmed as much, and with the 609 expected to receive approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2017, the stage seemed set.

However, on October 30, one of the company’s prototype aircraft crashed in Northern Italy whilst performing a routine test flight. Both test pilots – Pietro Venanzi and Herb Moran – were killed in the crash, which occurred between Santhia and Tronzano, around 30 miles from the company’s Cascina Costa facility.

Unconfirmed reports in the Italian press

suggested that an engine was on fire when the TiltRotor went down 27 minutes after take off. AgustaWestland also stated later that the flightplan for the aircraft included the testing of its high-speed flight capabilities.

An investigation is now underway by a number of aviation agencies including the Italian Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC) and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA and the US FAA, but given its scope, this could be a difficult and protracted process.

Testing to continue The aircraft – Prototype 2 – had been flying since November 2006, logging a total of 567 hours, and was expected to conclude its flight tests by the close of 2016.

At present, Prototype 1 has been voluntarily grounded by AgustaWestland, although ground tests on Prototype 3 and the assembly of Prototype 4 are still scheduled to continue. A November 8 statement released

by AgustaWestland confirmed that: “With regards to the AW609 tiltrotor program, Finmeccanica-AgustaWestland is fully NEWSBASE

committed to mitigating any delay this tragic accident, and the subsequent investigation, might have on the program itself.”

The loss of the second aircraft is a blow to what has until now been a promising programme. Weeks before, Prototype 2 had set a new point-to-point speed record, making a 720 mile (1,161 km) journey from Yeovil in the UK to the Cascina Costa site in just 2 hours and 18 minutes. The summer of 2015 also saw a new pitot-static system tested while the aircraft flew numerous flights around Europe.

However, the incident does not appear to have diminished corporate interest. Days after the crash, during the Dubai airshow, the UAE’s Joint Aviation Command announced its intention to purchase three AW609s for search and rescue operations, with deliveries set to begin by 2019.

The results of the air crash investigation will make the commercial future of the TiltRotor clearer, yet its capabilities – proven by its speed record and flight ceiling – are certain to remain in high demand. n

InnovOil

February 2016

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Low-carbon methane cracking uses molten tin 3.

Carbon collects on the surface of the tin while the hydrogen floats feely

2.

As the methane floats up through liquid tin, intermediate molecules are formed before releasing the carbon and hydrogen atoms

1.

Methane molecules are bubbled through liquid tin heated to 700o to 1200o

New research at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) uses molten tin to crack methane into hydrogen – lowering carbon emissions and producing usable carbon black

A

team from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and the Institute of Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS) has tested a new way of cracking methane to produce hydrogen gas that has virtually no CO2 load.

The team bubble methane (CH4) through a column of molten tin at 750 to 1200 degrees Celsius. The methane cracks into hydrogen and pure carbon, which collects on the surface of the tin and is recovered for use in standard carbon-black processes, mostly tyre manufacture. The fact that the tin is molten means that the process is continuous.

The tin simply acts as a reaction chamber and is not consumed in the process.

As the process consumes little heat energy, once the column is at operating temperature it is reasonably thermally efficient.

One kg of methane will yield about 0.75kg of pure carbon and 0.25kg of hydrogen. US natural gas prices (around US$2 per mmBtu) are around US$100 per tonne or 10 cents per kg. At today’s carbon black prices (70 cents per kg) and hydrogen prices (US$5 per kg) the economics of the process look pretty attractive – crack 10 cents worth of methane and end up with 50 cents worth of carbon black and 125 cents worth of hydrogen, minus process costs.

Even in economies where methane is much more expensive the economics still NEWSBASE

look like working. LNG – the most expensive methane source – is currently priced at about 37 cents per kg.

The process is not as simple as splitting carbon and hydrogen atoms. Along the way intermediate molecules are formed (C2H2, C2H6 and longer chain hydrocarbons) and public information released does not discuss the purity, or otherwise, of the gas stream produced by the process. It is possible that a developed design of the reactor would process all hydrocarbons into hydrogen.

Two advantages of molten tin cracking are that hydrogen can be produced closer to where it is to be used, and without the use of liquid hydrocarbons. At present, almost all hydrogen comes out of oil refineries as a by-product of the methane stream via steam reformation.

Until now, future hydrogen mass production had looked likely to come from electrolysis powered by photovoltaic (PV) solar – placing manufacturing plants in the same hot desert countries that produce much of the world’s hydrocarbon liquids today.

This new process could, quite simply, remove the need for PV/electrolysis completely, as methane is abundant and widely spread.

The next stage of the KIT-IASS research will see the team focus on improving aspects of the reactor design – especially elements such as the carbon removal process – and progressively scaling it up to accommodate higher flow rates.. n

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InnovOil

February 2016

Safer habitats

Safehouse CEO Gordon Mackay discusses how pressurised habitats reduce the risk of fire or explosion

A

s the industry has evolved through the decades, so too has its approach to safety. New technology and procedures now allow operators to push the boundaries of exploration, production and refining whilst reducing unnecessary risk to personnel. The latest data from the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP) supports this: fatal incidents in 2014 fell to a 10-year low.

Yet lives are still lost in the industry’s pursuit of new resources. In the past few months alone, two separate explosions across plants and platforms have claimed a number of lives, and have resulted in charges being brought against an operator and two contracting companies relating to a fatal incident in 2012 for failing to follow proper safety practices when carrying out hot work.

The best way to avoid catastrophic incidents and ultimately safeguard the lives of industry staff is through a commitment to process safety across every global basin.

Process safety needs to be a language that everyone in an operational role speaks, from the ground up, applying the hierarchy of control to everything they do. It is the

operator’s responsibility to make sure that its employees, contractors and supply chain foster a safety culture that reflects this.

Safehouse’s core product was developed from the hierarchy of control and is used when the risk – hot work – cannot be substituted or eliminated. Owing to the nature of the business, process safety is always at the forefront of the company’s mind, and is rightly the first consideration of all of its clients.

Staying safe Hot work is frequently required on facilities while maintaining production, when hydrocarbons and hazardous gases may be present. To manage the risk of ignition without the need for a production shutdown, pressurised areas – habitats – can be created, which build a barrier to stop the ingress of hydrocarbons. They create a safe area to carry out hot open flame work, ultimately mitigating the risk of a fire or explosion.

Pressurised habitats are specifically designed to manage the risks of ignition in hazardous areas, but also provide additional protection in the form of external gas detectors. These instantly shut down all NEWSBASE

systems associated with ignition risk upon the detection of hydrocarbons.

Applying the hierarchy of controls, when hot work is absolutely required and the hazard cannot be eliminated or substituted, pressurised habitats provide an excellent engineering control measure to manage and mitigate the risk of ignition. The result is that the OIM or permit authoriser can make a risk-based decision informed by equipment that has been designed and certified for this purpose, rather than guesswork when deciding to continue with the hot work without shutting down production.

The use of a positive pressure habitat enables the use of a robust process safety management system, designed to manage the risks associated with ignition and contributing factors such as human error.

Pressurised enclosures can become part of the operational environment for the entire lifespan of a project in a hazardous area, allowing for greater flexibility when planning maintenance that involves hot work or naked flames, and also allowing for hot work to be considered within an acceptable process safety barrier. n

February 2016

InnovOil

page 9

Statoil given green light for Maria modification plan Wintershall’s Maria will be linked by subsea tieback to the Kristin, Heidrun and Asgard B platforms

M

id-December saw Norway’s Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) give Statoil the green light for modifications at Kristin and Tyrihans, as part of a tie-in project with Wintershall-operated Maria oil and gas field.

Maria is located in Production Licence (PL) 475 BS and PL 475 CS, at a depth of around 300 metres on the Halten Terrace in the Norwegian Sea. Recoverable reserves at Maria were placed at around 180 million barrels of oil equivalent as of December 2014, with the project due on stream by the end of 2018.

Wintershall operates the Maria licence with a 50% interest, while partners Petoro and Centrica Resources own 30% and 20% respectively.

The Maria reservoir will be linked via subsea tieback to the Kristin, Heidrun and Asgard B production platforms. Maria’s well stream will be transported to Kristin for processing, while receiving water injection into the reservoir from the Heidrun platform, and gas lift provided by Asgard B via the Tyrihans D field subsea template.

Processed oil will be sent to Asgard for storage and subsequent offloading to shuttle tankers, while gas will be exported via Asgard’s transport pipeline to the Karsto facility in Rogaland. The plan dates back to 2013, when Wintershall agreed with Statoil to use the Kristin platform for production at Maria in order to capitalise on advanced pre-existing infrastructure located in the area.

Statoil awarded a US$75.37 million contract to Reinertsen on March 23, under which the Norwegian supply firm will prepare Kristin for the Maria tie-ins. Kristin is a gas and condensate field located at Haltenbanken in PL 199 and PL 134 B of the Norwegian Sea.

Odfjell Drilling’s Deepsea Stavanger

Wintershall’s Maria development plan Statoil holds a 55.29% operating interest at Kristin with partners Petoro (19.57%), Mobil (10.87%), Eni (8.25%) and Total (6%).

Tyrihans is located in PL 091 and PL 073, comprising a gas-capped oilfield named Tyrihans South, and a gas and condensate field with a thin oil zone named Tyrihans North. Tyrihans is already connected to installations at the Kristin and Asgard fields, with its well stream sent through a 43.6-km pipeline to Kristin, while gas is separately transported via the aforementioned Asgard pipeline to Karsto.

Statoil holds a 58.8% stake at Tyrihans NEWSBASE

with partners Total (23.1%), ExxonMobil (11.8%) and Eni (6.2%.).

The approval follows Wintershall’s awarding of a drilling contract at Maria to Odfjell Drilling. Issued in September, the agreement will see the company’s Deepsea Stavanger unit bore six wells on the Maria Field starting from April 2017, with the option for further well drilling.

The contract is worth US$175 million based on a 574-day budgeted campaign, and will see the drilling and completion of three production wells in each of Maria’s two subsea templates. n

InnovOil

page 10

February 2016

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InnovOil

February 2016

SUBSEA Special supplement Pages 11-27

hit the floor Fugro’s seafloor drill offshore Australia Page 17

Deep impact

Impact Subsea’s world -first altimeter & HMRU Page 14

inspector gadgets TSC Inspection Services’ ACFM MagCrawler tm

Page 22

Time for transformation Looking ahead to Subsea Expo 2016 Page 12

NEWSBASE

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InnovOil

page 12

February 2016

SUBSEA

A transformative year SubseaUK chief executive Neil Gordon considers the impact of a tough 2015 on the subsea sector, ahead of February’s Subsea Expo in Aberdeen

W

ith the year barely under way, the subsea industry is already gearing up for its annual centrepiece event –

Subsea Expo.

A great deal has changed since the previous summit in 2015. The industry remained upbeat when it last met, focusing on the ways in which costs could be reduced, and placing a firm emphasis on collaboration as record numbers of delegate attended the AECC in Aberdeen.

Yet the interim has not been kind, and the cautious optimism of a year ago has been replaced by something more closely resembling steely determination in the face of a growing energy storm.

Nevertheless, SubseaUK chief executive Neil Gordon has highlighted the industry’s ability to adapt. He speaks to InnovOil below about the trials of 2015, and how the theme for the 2016 conference – “Time for Transformation” – applies to the sector, and to the whole energy industry.

What has been your experience of the sector in 2015?

There is no getting away from the fact that it has been tough for everyone in oil and gas.

The cost-cutting has been severe and project delays and cancellations have had a major impact on many subsea companies.

Regrettably, we have seen companies forced into administration, with the damaging knock-on effect across the subsea supply chain. Others are struggling to keep their heads above water and there will inevitably be further casualties both in terms of firms and individuals.

After the initial fear, panic and rationalisation, 2015 has ultimately been a year of realisation – a wake-up call to the industry that we have to make fundamental changes to survive and eventually thrive.

But the subsea sector, which has been responsible for game-changing technology and innovative thinking over the last 40 years, is up for the challenge of re-inventing itself and transforming to deal with the fundamental changes now required to secure

a sustainable future in a lower, and longer, oil price environment.

What has been the main impact of a low oil market for subsea firms?

The main impact has been on jobs and investment.

While cost reduction and efficiencies are required, the long-term damage of some of the cuts, particularly in terms of the loss of skilled people or lack of investment in training and development, may come back to bite us in the years ahead.

The subsea sector is renowned for its technology but cuts in research and development will put the smaller companies under pressure to develop the next wave of technology, which the industry needs urgently if it is to find more viable ways of extracting the remaining reserves.

On the upside, oil and gas companies are becoming more receptive to looking at new or existing technology. Those companies with a technological solution to the challenges of maximising economic recovery should find it less challenging to get their technology to market more quickly.

Equally, the subsea industry’s pioneering approach to finding new and better ways of working will count in their favour as they seek to work more collaboratively with their customers.

You’ve highlighted events in Asia recently.

With a slowdown in the North Sea, are more companies eyeing opportunities in other regions?

While the repercussions of the low oil price are perhaps being more sharply felt in the North Sea owing to its high cost base, the rest of the world is not immune. However, there are some key regions which stand out for me in terms of short to medium-term potential.

These are parts of Africa, Southeast Asia and Mexico.

Companies who are able to spread the risk across several geographical markets are weathering the storm better than others. But it’s not about being a fair weather exporter; subsea firms must all be looking to new NEWSBASE

markets if they are serious about their longterm future.

British subsea expertise, experience and technology are in demand and SubseaUK will continue in its efforts to help companies capitalise on overseas opportunities.

Collaborating with other organisations is an important element of SubseaUK’s strategy and we continue to work with Scottish Development International (SDI) and UKTI to develop a strategic approach to growing the industry’s international capabilities and reputation.

To support subsea companies further with exporting their skills, technology and expertise to key oil and gas provinces around the world, we launched a new online portal, Global Business. As a specially developed online tool, this provides regularly updated details on opportunities and contacts in over 20 countries. Global Business acts as a starting platform for companies looking to expand into international markets: the portal allows members to access intensively researched industry reports, market data, related news and events to help them pinpoint exactly where the opportunities are outwith the UK.

February 2016

InnovOil

page 13

SUBSEA

“In my opinion, 2016 will be about smart, simple solutions to complex issues” Neil Gordon SubseaUK chief executive

How has the role of the NSRI developed in 2015?

Following the re-launch of NSRI in 2014, the organisation has made significant progress towards meeting its overall aim of bringing new subsea technology to market, consolidating the UK’s leading position across the globe and helping to sustain the life of the North Sea. NSRI launched its Matchmaker database in 2015, which aims to partner end-users with technology researchers and developers in the appropriate fields. The resource is a starting point on which NSRI will build to make sure that it truly represents the entire industry and relevant research organisations, by providing the best and most relevant contacts and collaborations needed to advance the development of new technology.

Following a study into the recovery of small hydrocarbon pools, NSRI and Subsea UK ran a series of workshops (Hackathons) to explore the new, disruptive technologies that will help exploit small and currently uneconomical stranded fields. All ideas were captured and will be screened to prioritise the efforts in the short, medium

and long term, with cost reduction and efficiency measures addressed first. This could bring some real long-term benefit and opportunities to the North Sea subsea sector.

What topics/areas of discussion are you most looking forward to at the 2016 conference?

The theme this year for Subsea Expo is “Time for Transformation”. The first and inevitable reaction to the lower oil price was the round of cost-cutting. This was followed by the drive for efficiency, with calls for cooperation and collaboration.

Now it’s time for the hardest part, that of transformation. The oil and gas industry as a whole has to change the way it behaves and works with the supply chain. Leading figures from the regulators, the operators and the supply chain will come together at Subsea Expo to tackle how we need to change, what we can do simpler and more effectively and where we need to reinvent ourselves for a sustainable future. This is our time to demonstrate the pioneering attitude and ingenuity for which our industry has been renowned in the past.

NEWSBASE

Are there any areas of technology, innovation or development within the sector which we should look out for in 2016?

In my opinion, 2016 will be about smart, simple solutions to complex issues.

A major focus is going to be integrity.

With subsea infrastructure and assets coming of age, we need to explore more radical approaches to maximising production from these assets and extending their life.

The recently formed Subsea Asset Stewardship Workgroup brings subsea engineering and construction companies and equipment manufacturers together with operators to look at how we manage the integrity of subsea assets to increase production and reduce costs.

This subsea-specific group is fully aligned with OGA’s asset stewardship board as part of the MER UK forum.

And finally, NSRI’s Small Pools initiative will generate the opportunity to develop new, disruptive technologies and we are eagerly awaiting the outcomes of the recent hackathons on this subject. n

page 14

InnovOil

February 2016

SUBSEA

Reducing costs with Impact Impact Subsea explores the ISA500, the world’s first combined altimeter with an in-built HMRU

I

n the current energy market, demand for intelligent solutions is at an all-time high. A decade of high oil prices has allowed many to overlook inefficiencies in underwater operations caused by imperfect technical solutions. New innovations in underwater technology are in demand to provide increased efficiency and decreased operational costs.

Altimeters are one component which has suffered from stagnated interest. Despite major advances in microelectromechanical (MEMS)-based sensors and their capabilities, the past decade has seen comparatively few changes to altimeter design and functionality. Harnessing these improvements will allow users to make remotely-operated vehicle (ROV) operations more efficient, precise and accurate.

Impact Subsea was established in Aberdeenshire in early 2015 by an experienced team of underwater technology developers. The company was founded with the core aim of reducing the cost of underwater operations using a new generation of highly innovative product solutions.

The company launched its first groundbreaking innovation in August 2015 – the ISA500.

The ISA500 The ISA500 is the world’s first and only hydro-acoustic based underwater altimeter with an in-built heading and motion reference unit (HMRU). It provides an all-in-one solution for ROV and AUV altitude, heading, pitch

and roll monitoring, at approximately half the cost of purchasing a comparable standalone altimeter and HMRU. The ISA500 provides a 120-metre range capability, coupled with pinpoint accuracy (effective to the nearest millimetre). This sets a new standard in range and accuracy for 500kHz underwater altimeters, as well as a significant saving on space and equipment in the vehicle itself.

This range increase is achieved through the use of a highly sensitive directional piezo-composite transducer, the component which produces the hydro-acoustic pulse and listens for the return pulse. The transducer’s composite design then allows the unit to detect smaller return signals, enabling an increase in range capability.

An advanced digital correlator is used to detect the returning pulse. The correlator can detect very low signal to noise pulses, greatly helping to provide a long-range capability while maintaining an exceptional level of measurement accuracy.

Enclosed within a titanium housing as standard and depth rated to 4,000 metres (400 bar/5,800 psi), the ISA500 is built to withstand the harshest of underwater conditions. Its unique design uses no screws in the outer housing – removing the potential corrosion, fouling and weakness issues often associated with screw-fixed units.

Weighing 0.5kg in air and 0.325kg in water, the ISA500 is

light enough for use in some of the smallest AUVs, but robust enough to handle the demands of larger work-class vehicles.

Heading, pitch & roll The design team at Impact Subsea were keen to ensure that the ISA500 provided more than purely altitude. With significant developments being made in MEMS-based sensors in recent years, the team decided to integrate magnetometer, gyro and accelerometers based on this technology into the unit.

The magnetometer enables a magnetic north heading to be determined to accuracy of within +/- 1°. This value is fed into the gyro, adding significant increased stability to the heading and producing a far more stable result than that produced from flux-gate compass-based devices.

To further increase heading accuracy, a calibration feature is provided in the ISA500.

Once the unit is installed in a subsea vehicle, calibration can be carried out to minimise the effects of permanent hard and soft iron.

Accelerometers and gyroscopes in X, Y and Z planes are fused together to provide highly accurate pitch and roll readings, to within 0.2°.

The ISA500 also has the ability to correct for slant range measurements caused by vehicle pitch and roll. The unit can take into account these pitch and roll readings and combine them with its range reading to calculate actual altitude, to within a few centimetres.

This results in a very smooth and very accurate altitude reading at all times, regardless of the pitch and roll of the vehicle – another true first in underwater altimeter technology.

Applications Initially designed to be an ideal sensor for ROV & AUV applications, the ISA500 has found uses in various other underwater applications as well.

In one instance, the ISA500 was used to

NEWSBASE

February 2016

InnovOil

page 15

SUBSEA

Dashboard displaying readings from the ISA500

ISA500 Internal Components monitor not only the height above seabed of a ROV tether management system (TMS), but also to log its motion while subsea. This ability enabled additional monitoring to be carried out, allowing users to calculate and examine the long-term fatigue data on the TMS. Altimeter units have been used for a long time to monitor the deployment of various assets and tools. Traditional altimeters measure just the depth range, with no indication of the tool or asset’s orientation.

With the ISA500, a far higher degree of understanding of the height above seabed, orientation, pitch and roll of the tool/asset is provided. This significantly reduces risk when deploying the asset and in some instances can also reduce its deployment time.

The ISA500-L – a pure altimeter – has also been designed to be as flexible as possible in order to meet individual requirements. Available with various

connector options, physical connection to any system is as simple as possible, the ISA500-L features the exact same measurements and specifications as the original, without the integrated HMRU. Furthermore, the system is provided with an in-field firmware update feature to add new output strings and capability. This ensures that the unit can be easily adapted to suit any underwater altitude or distance measurement application.

What next?

With numerous work-class ROV and AUV manufacturers now integrating the ISA500 into their new vehicles as standard, the unit has been well received by the underwater vehicle market.

Discussions are under way with several manufacturers, while other early-stage work could see the company integrate its OEM NEWSBASE

components directly into the housings of new micro-ROVs. Impact Subsea is now focusing on its next product – the ISD4000. The unit is set for launch early February 2016 and will be premièred at SubseaExpo in Aberdeen, taking place on February 3-5.

In-depth details of the ISD4000 will be released at launch. However, InnovOil is pleased to disclose that the unit will provide a significant breakthrough in the underwater depth measurement market. n Impact Subsea will be showcasing the ISA500 and the brand-new ISD4000 at Pod 173 of Subsea Expo Contact: Ben Grant, Managing Director Tel: +44 (0)1224 460 850 Email: info@impactsubsea.co.uk Web: www.impactsubsea.com

February 2016

InnovOil

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SUBSEA

Ready for the floor Fugro’s SFD drills cores from the sea bed

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ugro’s seafloor drilling equipment has gained further confidence after the completion of a number of investigations in Australia’s North West Shelf.

The company reported early in January that its Seafloor Drill 2 (SFD2) unit had completed a multi-site investigation which encountered variable calcareous sediments, with the results supporting a jack-up drilling campaign.

SFD units are remote drilling platforms designed to source a range of high-quality material samples – from soft clays through to hard rock – at depths of up to 120 metres below the seafloor, and is rated to water depths of up to 4,000m.

Using wireline coring tools sized between N and P, they can collect geotechnical samples with a diameter of 73mm. These also use aluminium core barrels to reduce weight.

Building on the capabilities of the primary SFD1 unit, SFD2 is also fitted with coiled tubing piezocone penetrometer testing (PCPT) equipment, and can

automatically handle drill rods and tools whilst subsea. Test procedures such as seismic PCPT, vane shear testing (VST), surface T-Bar testing, ball probe testing (BPT) and piezoprobe testing can also be carried out.

The SFDs are fitted with four separate jacking legs that allow them to work on seabed slopes of up to 25 degrees. They can also be deployed with different footing options, depending on conditions.

The units are controlled remotely from the surface using work-class ROV telemetry and control systems, via an umbilical.

The concept was originally developed by Gregg Marine and later operated by Seafloor Geotec, a joint venture of Gregg and Fugro.

Fugro’s first project with the SFD1 was in January 2013.

Record-breaker In the recent North West Shelf operations, SFD2 worked in water depths of up to 112 metres, performing in-situ testing and sampling to a total length of 323 metres.

According to Fugro’s update, it was effective NEWSBASE

in sampling some of the most difficult seabed sediments from ultra-soft carbonate muds to highly weathered limestone.

Fugro’s Integrated Geosciences’ lead, Ian Finnie, helped scope the investigations and interpret the seabed conditions for the client, and noted in a statement: “Seafloor Drill 2 has proved to be ideally suited to the calcareous sediments that we have around Australia and is a game-changer in Fugro’s ability to support the offshore industry in Western Australia and Southeast Asia.”

When contacted by InnovOil Fugro was unable to disclose the operator on the North West Shelf project.

The success in Australia builds on a water depth record for seafloor drilling set by SFD1 in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2015.

The unit carried out combined sampling and a PCP testing borehole to 62m below the seafloor, in water depth of 2,923m, in the Gulf ’s Walker Ridge area.

The company could not disclose the next SFD deployment destination, but confirmed that “SFD1 is currently in Houston, Texas, while SFD2 is in Perth, Australia.” n

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InnovOil

All systems go

February 2016

Subsea

InnovOil speaks to Rice University’s Chuck McConnell about the aims of the newly created Subsea Systems Institute in Houston

F

ive years on, the Macondo disaster remains perhaps the defining oil industry event of the past decade. Its effects are felt in new standards for operations, accountability, engineering and a multitude of other factors, and few areas of the sector have been untouched by the lessons of Deepwater Horizon.

Thankfully, however, these lessons appear to have been (largely) learned and recent years have seen more positive developments in the story. Houston’s recently created Subsea Systems Institute (SSI) is one such success story.

Set up using federal award funds – generated via RESTORE Act penalties paid

by BP and other parties to the State of Texas – the SSI is a national research centre aimed at tackling subsea engineering and offshore energy sustainability issues. Comprised of a consortium including University of Houston (UoH), Rice University and NASA’s Johnson Space Center, as well as other partners in the DeepStar programme, the SSI’s goal is to pool resources and expertise to develop transformative technologies.

Another group, the Texas OneGulf Center of Excellence, is being led by the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies at Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi, backed by the other 50% of the RESTORE grant money. OneGulf will assemble a consortium of Texas institutions focused on marine science and human health to promote collaborative, multidisciplinary research, synthesis and problem solving concentrating on the Gulf of Mexico.

The idea behind the SSI was to “create an institute that is recognised around the world as the undisputed leader in transformative deepwater technology,” UoH interim vice president for research and technology transfer Ramanan Krishnamoorti stated last June.

Speaking to InnovOil late in 2015, Rice University’s Energy and Environment Initiative executive director, Chuck McConnell, explained: “Because [Houston] wasn’t primarily affected by the spill itself but we were impacted directly by the economic impact, we put forth an idea that

would identify the issues that would prevent the next spill … actually getting ahead of the curve and looking at transformative technologies, new ways of doing the work, all the aspects of discipline and best practice with the one thing in mind: never having another Macondo.”

For now, the Institute remains in its early stages. Newly appointed director Bill Maddock took up his position in September with the short-term goal of reaching out to a number of potential industry partners ahead of forming a corporate advisory board of 6-8 companies, in addition to the three main stakeholders. “Subsequently,” McConnell said, “we plan to add a number of industry participants on technical advisory committees to begin to put some meaningful projects behind each of those areas.”

Areas of interest Not unexpectedly, one area of particular focus for the SSI will be in developing new technology and equipment for blow out preventers (BOPs). This includes, McConnell said, “The whole design, manufacturing, materials, control systems, you name it – BOPs are a critical area.”

New IT techniques and computational analysis will also form a major thrust of research. The hope here is that improved ways of mapping reservoirs and the ocean floor can lead not only to better exploration – particularly in deepwater prospects – but also to enable better production and maintain excellence in the whole extraction phase.

“We will also be looking at platform design,” McConnell added. “With the ever-increasing needs that platforms must provide for in the deepwater, we’re going to be looking at re-designs, new types of technology which can replace equipment currently on these platforms but with perhaps half the footprint, or even less.”

It is notable that these platform-based innovations will not only serve the platforms of the future, but could play a vital role in life-extension operations on the platforms of today – an area of renewed focus in the current low-price environment.

NEWSBASE

Another SSI statement outlines further interests in early kick detection and wellbore monitoring.

McConnell said that the consortium would be issuing its first round of preliminary RFQs soon into the new year, and SSI stakeholders will work together to identify the most pressing areas of technical focus. From here, it is hoped that the group can develop pathways for cuttingedge technology right the way through to commercialisation.

“Most of our focus will be on the areas of technology which are typically identified as Technology Readiness Level [TRL] 1-3,” he continued. “The industry advisory board will allow us to progress these ideas – not just embryonic ideas and writing a paper, but to actually drive to do pilots, demonstrations and field testing.”

This type of support is all the more important given the current climate.

McConnell noted that “industry has become less and less interested in TRL 1-3 because it’s hard to show the payoff to shareholders.

Most of the technology industry develops now is what I would call incremental change to existing tech, but not transformative.”

If the SSI can leverage federal funding to incubate ideas in an academic environment before rolling them out for trials or use by companies, it will alleviate some shortterm financial strain whilst preserving the long-term goals of horizon research and technology. After all, he conceded, “It’s very difficult for industry to have a longterm R&D strategy when you’re also being nipped every quarter for earnings. That’s the challenge for industry and it’s getting more difficult every day.”

Multi-disciplinary Despite its key areas of interest, the Institute’s capabilities are not limited purely to new equipment. “We also have the Baker Institute for Public Policy at Rice, and a lot of the policy decisions that go along with effective offshore operations, as well as the technology road-mapping and deployment to make impact, will also come into question and hopefully we recommend the right

February 2016

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Subsea Picture: Winter NAPE 2014

policies to be considered to enhance E&P in an effective and safe way,” McConnell explained.

Likewise, technology transfer – another vital maxim for the energy industry in 2016 – has a role to play, not least thanks to the calibre of SSI participants. “The Johnson Space Center has some rather unique and amazing testing capabilities, that are likely to be leveraged for the ultradeepwater environments that we’re looking at,” he said. “For many of the challenges we’re looking at now, testing equipment doesn’t exist! We may help to develop some transformative testing procedures, as well as the equipment.”

“Cool ideas are a dime a dozen,” he said. “What we’ve got to do is find those applicable opportunities that are going to have relevance and impact.”

And that impact could be great: with access to a potential US$100 million in award funding over the next 10-15 years, McConnell believes that the Institute can contribute to subsea systems in the Gulf and worldwide. “This needs to be international.

This needs to be something that the rest of the world can participate in. What we want to do here is make a special effort to reach out to the Statoils, the Petrobrases and the Saudi Aramcos of the world, any institutes that we can potentially collaborate with. If there’s duplication in this world, shame on us.”. n

“Cool ideas are a dime a dozen... What we’ve got to do is find those applicable opportunities that are going to have relevance and impact”

NEWSBASE

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InnovOil

February 2016

Subsea

PTTEP plunges into home-grown AUV technology Sophie Davies speaks with Thailand’s PTTEP about its newly launched AUV programme

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hailand’s PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP) has recently announced that it is driving development of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) for E&P activities, in partnership with a global oil services company.

The state-run firm is a subsidiary of Thailand’s state-run PTT, the country’s largest oil and gas firm. It signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Singapore-listed oil services company Mermaid Maritime in November, pledging to co-operate on AUV research and development to “develop a fully functional AUV for offshore petroleum exploration and production activities.”

Ultimately, the development process is expected to take this prototype from a concept through to a full-scale operational AUV that could be commercially used at all of the firm’s offshore operations.

PTTEP has already completed development of a laboratory-scale prototype AUV in 2015, following a co-operation agreement with the Faculty of Engineering at Bangkok’s Kasetsart University, signed in 2014. The vehicle programme was the first AUV technology R&D to be initiated in Thailand, a senior PTTEP official told InnovOil. “PTTEP is the first company in Thailand that initiated an AUV project to fulfil specific in-house needs. We give utmost importance to technology development – our vision is to become [a] leading Asian E&P company driven by technology,” he added.

Neither is this the first high-profile partnering. PTTEP has formed several MoUs to develop its own proprietary equipment in recent years. These include an agreement with French geophysical service company CGG to develop advanced seismic imaging technology in order to enhance seismic

processing and interpretation capabilities, as well as with the US’ KJT Enterprises to develop electromagnetic imaging technology to improve reservoir imaging quality and subsurface geology. The latter in particular, the company notes, will aid “better analysis of petroleum potential and enhanced oil recovery [EOR] in mature fields.”

Hybrid engineering The most recent project will focus on the development of a new and novel type of hybrid AUV, or HAUV, specifically for use in subsea pipeline inspection, the official said.

The concept is comprised of two unmanned vehicles. The first is a compact, unmanned surface vehicle (USV), which tracks the subsea pipeline from the surface.

The second vehicle is the HAUV which moves along the pipeline subsea and remains connected to the USV via a fibreoptic chain. A remote station on the surface controls the whole system, ensuring that both vehicles work together to inspect the infrastructure automatically.

Given their autonomous capabilities, HAUVs are expected to improve the efficiency of inspections

The Zeabus ROV

NEWSBASE

and reduce the significant cost of doing so compared to other techniques such as operator-controlled remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), he said.

PTTEP has already tested two prototype AUVs in various environments. Since the beginning of its joint programme with Kasetsart University, the Thai firm has already made significant progress in testing its “Obsidian” and “Zeabus” robots.

The second-generation Zeabus variant is now being put through a rigorous testing phase, based on the lessons learnt from the first-generation Obsidian robots. So far, the Zeabus “demonstrated a good performance” at the 2015 International RoboSub competition in California, PTTEP added.

The competition involved a number of tasks which simulated subsea working conditions. Zeabus finished in the top 10 out of the total 39 participating teams, a vote of confidence suggesting that the Thai firm’s underwater expertise is “on par with other educational establishments around the world,” the firm said.

February 2016

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Subsea

PTTEP and Kasetsart University’s Obsidian ROV Pushing convention Underpinning the firm’s research and development is a strong belief in the growing necessity of AUVs for oil and gas operations.

PTTEP, along with most E&P companies, “are increasingly being forced to conduct their subsea operations in more hostile conditions, which are farther afield and in deeper waters,” the firm told InnovOil. This is beginning to stretch the operational limits – and budgets – of conventional ROVs. When asked if PTTEP had plans to sell the AUVs to either Thai or foreign oil and gas or marine companies, the official was cautious.

He said that commercialisation was “a part of our plan” but that the “main objective is to fulfil the in-house specific needs.” That said, with stakes in numerous projects across the world, the technology should have no shortage pf potential deployments.

Partner Mermaid Maritime also stands to benefit, likely gaining additional ROV capabilities to add to its 2 Schilling work-class vehicles and 8 Saab Seaeye variants. The firm has conducted subsea work for a number of regional clients, including Chevron offshore Thailand, and Sakhalin Energy Investment in the Sea of Okhotsk.

If all goes to plan, the HAUV could be ready sooner rather than later. PTTEP is intending to complete the first pilot AUV by the end of 2016, before an official product launch and rollout in 2017 or 2018.

The programme also highlights the growing trend of NOCs looking to develop their own equipment. As costs are squeezed further, more state-run firms are leveraging the power of technical universities and partner organisations, or expanding the role of their technology ventures/M&A groups to pick up cutting-edge equipment at knockdown prices.

Production pressure It is no surprise that PTTEP is keen to advance development of subsea technology for more hostile conditions. In the face of declining domestic reserves, and a dependence on foreign imports – the Southeast Asian nation imports around 85% of the crude oil it consumes – the government is pushing for the exploration of new offshore regions and an improvement in current output.

Although crude production in Thailand in the last ten years has grown moderately, it still NEWSBASE

falls short of domestic demand. Data from NewsBase Research suggest that in 2015, crude production fell to around 150,000 barrels per day, alongside an estimated 260,000 bpd from natural gas liquids (NGLs).

It is also a political issue. Parent company PTT – as well as the Thai government – has been the target of much recent criticism by Thai consumers, who believe that indigenous petroleum should be reserved for the country’s own use, claiming it would serve to keep the pump price lower. Not only this, but the weak price of oil is putting even further pressure on the firm’s operations: last year, PTT reported its largest-ever quarterly loss.

Despite government reforms aimed at boosting output, PTTEP has reduced its upstream investment in recent years, on the back of the country’s continued political unrest.

These pressures raise questions over the company’s 2014-2018 spending plans, which signalled an intention to invest 6% of its net profit in technology and R&D. With 2015 expenditure reduced by 25% and further cuts to its initial 2016 budget, the AUV programme will need to offer proven results quickly if it is to be a success. n

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InnovOil

February 2016

Closer inspection with TSC Subsea

TSC Inspection System’s David Parramore discusses the benefits of ACFM®, and the company’s innovation – the ACFM® MagCrawler™

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t often feels like there isn’t much you can’t attach to an ROV these days.

The advent of more manoeuvrable Xxxxxx and versatile vehicles, coupled with major advances in electronics and sensing technology, has transformed industry capabilities and expectations. That brings immense benefits to operators, but also new challenges in incorporating complex equipment into an enormous number of vehicle designs.

Now, alternating current field measurement (ACFM®) joins the ranks of inspection techniques, which can be deployed remotely. ACFM® is an electromagnetic inspection technique which uses an alternating current to detect defects.

It works by introducing AC into the surface of a structure, component or pipeline.

Cracks in the material’s surface disturb the current’s electromagnetic field, and the returned signal is analysed in real time, A diver measuring pipe integrity using ACFM alerting the user to the presence, size and depth of a defect or crack. since become a mainstay for use in diver and The immediacy and accuracy of the Enter the MagCrawler™ diverless inspection operations. technique offers major advantages when The ACFM® MagCrawler™ allows this TSC Inspection Systems is a UK-based compared to other non-destructive testing inspection technique to be carried out by a firm established in 1984 as a spin-off from (NDT) methods. Independent testing has tracked magnetic crawler vehicle. This is of University College London. shown that ACFM matches the particular use for situations requiring accurate Its founding team were performance of rival techniques inspection of subsea welds, but where access recognised leaders in the such as method magnetic can be difficult or costly to reach with divers. fields of NDT, robotics and particle inspection (MPI) The crawler is magnetically attached to fracture mechanics, and the for inspecting underwater the inspection surface. Two rubber caterpillar company now offers an array structural welds, but offers tracks provide both traction and accurate of inspection services and significantly lower instances steering. The vehicle can then be piloted equipment. of missed and spurious signals directly down the structure, if near the splash Having begun as a software when compared to MPI and zone, or can even be delivered and deployed company for testing fatigue in conventional Eddy current

by ROV, to the inspection site. components and tubulars, TSC testing.

Parramore adds: “Although it’s possible developed ACFM as a method It can also be performed to get good access to structures with ROVs, “We believe we’re of checking and verifying through coatings and paints, sometimes space constraints prevent you the results and effects of test meaning it can be carried out getting in close enough. Placing ACFM on a the leaders in procedures in the early 1990s. far more quickly, economically MagCrawler was a way we could overcome the field” Since then, NDT has become and safely than techniques like that, and particularly overcome the issue of its core business, with ACFM at MPI. ROV stability near the water surface.”

David Parramore the forefront.

ACFM was developed by In order to ensure the operation could Most recently, this includes the ability to TSC Inspection Systems, with support from be performed accurately and remotely, TSC carry out ACFM inspection with a magnetic BP, BG, Conoco and Royal Dutch Shell developed a new ACFM array probe. While crawler deployed from an ROV. who were keen to improve the reliability divers might use a pencil-shaped probe to InnovOil spoke to TSC’s engineering & of underwater inspection dramatically, enable very accurate inspection, Parramore operations director, David Parramore, to find reducing the reliance on the operator and explains: “We recognised that as soon as you out more. provide auditable inspection records. It has go to remotely operated inspection tasks, the NEWSBASE

February 2016

InnovOil

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Subsea

ACFM® MagCrawler

precision capability of a diver is no longer there…so we overcame that by making arrays.” These are sensitive to changes over the surface area of the probe, allowing for wider and more accurate coverage for remote use.

The resulting array probe is accurate to within 10mm or so, and means that that in addition to crawler deployment, it can be used on ROV manipulator arms and in other configurations. ACFM can still detect and size defects as small as 15mm long by 1mm deep in welded connections, even when inspected through a protective coating.

Advanced control software means the crawler can also navigate the wide range of complex weld geometries found on both fixed and floating structures. Power is supplied to the array by the ROV or crawler, typically requiring 24 V at a couple of amps.

It can manoeuvre easily on flat surfaces or tubulars with a diameter greater than 30 inches (760mm). Motorised adjustments of probe position can be made in both parallel and transverse directions, allowing full coverage of the area to be inspected. The probe is held in contact with the inspection surface using passive compliance, ensuring that the probe is aligned correctly at all times.

Additionally, 360° rotation means that the probe can fully inspect flange welds.

Crawler deployment also means that ACFM can be used to inspect ship hulls, “particularly large ship hulls which are semipermanently in position, such as drilling ships and semi-subs,” Parramore says.

The ability to perform checks on welds with ROVs and crawler vehicles significantly reduces costs – an ROV-equipped vessel can be typically three or four times cheaper than a similarly capable diving support vessel (DSV).

2016 and beyond December 2015 saw the ACFM® inspection technique accepted by classification society Lloyds Register. The endorsement covers manual and robotic deployment of ACFM® for topside, subsea and splash-zone inspection applications.

Under Lloyd’s Register certificate RSS/ MNDE/0009, the TSC Amigo™ and U31™ Systems have been accepted for the in-service examination of structural welds, heat-affected zones and adjacent parent materials, in uncoated or coated steel structures, with the intention of detecting surface breaking discontinuities.

NEWSBASE

Array probes overcome the issue of taking accurate measurements from an ROV

In 2016, the company will also be expanding the use of the ACFM® NodeScanner™, a dedicated device for complex node inspection on welded tubular joints.

“Now that we can perform ACFM without using a diver, it opens up the opportunity to further reduce inspection costs – and we believe we’re the leaders in the field,” Parramore says. “While there are comparable ultrasonic techniques, they require much higher degrees of accuracy, making them extremely difficult to deploy via ROV.” TSC’s year is already filling up with potential projects in both the Norwegian North Sea and Gulf of Mexico. If everything goes to plan, the ACFM MagCrawler may well be visiting a structure near you very soon. n TSC’s David Parramore will be speaking about the capabilities of the ACFM MagCrawler® and the NodeScanner™ during the Spotlight on Technology session, Thursday, February 4, at SubseaExpo 2016.

Contact: David Parramore Tel: +44 (0)1908 317 444 Email: info@tscis.com Web: www.tscis.com

February 2016

InnovOil

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Subsea

Small pools, big impact National Subsea Research Initiative (NSRI) project director, Dr Gordon Drummond, explains the role of Small Pools in the future of the UKCS, and how technology can help to unlock them

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he re-launched National Subsea Research Initiative (NSRI) is making swift progress on the challenge to facilitate the recovery of small discoveries set by the Oil and Gas Technology Leadership Board. An initial study revealed the significance of the prize if the industry can come together in a cluster approach as well as implementing new, disruptive technologies to exploit these small pools.

As the “go to” advisory body and knowledge centre for subsea technology, NSRI is in prime position to understand the needs of industry and match them with the development teams best placed to discover and then apply the solution, working closely with all the relevant bodies to oversee maximum impact and no duplication of effort.

Small pools are oil and gas reserves of less than 15 million barrels of oil equivalent.

There are currently 210 small pools with more than 3 billion boe in the UK continental shelf (UKCS). This represents 5% of the UK’s reserves.

If the subsea industry and academia, led by NSRI, can rise to the challenge of economically tapping into these pools, the North Sea could have a whole new lease of life. Technology is only part of the solution, the industry must be much more receptive to innovation – there must be a willingness to work more collaboratively on multi-field applications and on access to infrastructure.

Even with new technological applications, operators may still have to form clusters to work on small pools to achieve the economies of scale required to shift them from marginal to economical.

What currently holds back these pools?

To unlock these small pools we require highly disruptive technology that radically changes the way in which subsea field developments are presently executed. For Maximising Economic Recovery (MER) to

“Without some form of intervention, small pools will remain locked-in and Maximising Economic Recovery in its truest sense will not be realised.” occur with respect to small pools there is an industry structural problem that needs to be addressed as it presents a huge barrier for implementing technical solutions.

Without some form of intervention, small pools will remain locked-in and MER in its truest sense will not be realised.

Small pools have a national importance in terms of achieving MER and they must be considered as an industry asset if they are to be capitalised upon. Leadership must be exhibited and driven by the industry bodies acting as a catalyst to small pools development and being aware of the NEWSBASE

nation’s interest in an environment where conventional market dynamics have failed.

It is clear that companies must change the way in which they deliver projects in the long term – there must be a willingness to work more collaboratively on multi-field applications to explore and speed up the development of near to market technologies to extend the life of the UKCS and maximise economic recovery.

Have there been any breakthroughs to help tap small pools?

NSRI has been working closely with subsea

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September 2015

InnovOil

page 26

February 2016

Subsea Goliat FPSO on board Dockwise Vanguard. Picture: Imgur

Where do you see the greatest potential in terms of technology development to unlock these pools?

The technologies that present the biggest enablers to unlocking small stranded fields are: l Compact FPSO l Enabling technologies which attain access to existing infrastructure such as hot taps and self-sufficient hook up modules

The Sea Commander Power Buoy

l Production buoys l Subsea production facilities including boosting, processing and subsea storage ABT Oil and Gas production buoy concept companies across the UK to help identify the challenges associated with unlocking small pools, debate how they could be addressed and the technology required to shift them from marginal to economical.

A series of workshop events – known as hackathons – took place in Aberdeen and London to brainstorm new approaches to tackling these hard to reach reserves. The findings revealed that there is a need for standardisation of subsea components and hardware and to allow for less rigorous specifications in order to meet the shorter design lives of small reservoirs. Near to market technologies for floating productions units and offshore production buoys were identified as areas which need to be further explored.

In this low oil price environment there is pressure to embrace change and to adopt new technology. Companies are becoming much more receptive to new techniques and innovations that enhance performance and offer significant cost savings.

Small pools exploitation will also be dependent upon the success of the Technology Leadership Board’s mission to reduce well costs by 50%.

Is there anything that can be done on a regulatory/fiscal level to help develop small pools?

Exploiting small pools is a challenge that the UKCS is facing because it is one of the most mature oil and gas basins in the world. It is clear that if small pools developments are NEWSBASE

to be exploited, there is a greater need for more meaningful engagement between the Government, industry and academia to help stimulate investment and increase subsea related research in the UK. Solving the small pools challenge would perhaps yield a reward potentially greater than predicted with regards to the domestic market. It would enable the already capable UK supply chain to export its knowledge, products and services to international markets, thus safeguarding jobs, revenue and maximising economic recovery from the North Sea. n Contact: Dr Gordon Drummond Tel: +44 (0)845 505 3535 Email: info@nsri.co.uk

THE QUESTION IS, WHAT CAN WE DO FOR YOU?

For half a century we have been supporting our clients on some of the world’s most challenging projects. Whether correcting pipeline freespans at 1,615m or stabilising jackets in much shallower waters, we have always been recognised as the safest, the most reliable and experienced solution provider available. From the first telephone call to the final close-out meeting, our focus is you, your project and your interests.

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InnovOil

February 2016

Meeting the chemical challenge

InnovOil presents highlights from the RSC’s Chemistry in the Oil Industry (CITOI) event in Manchester

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espite an almost impenetrable fog, November saw delegates brave the journey to Manchester for the biennial Chemistry in the Oil Industry (CITOI) symposium. Organised by the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Speciality Chemical Sector and the European Oilfield Speciality Chemicals Association (EOSCA), the sector’s international companies, engineers and researchers met to hear some of the latest formulations, techniques and policies at work within the oil and gas industry, under the event’s banner of “Challenges and Responsibilities.”

The event opened unconventionally, with a keynote lecture delivered by Cuadrilla Resources’ Nick Mace on the company’s experience of environmental permitting as it works to test and bring on line some of the UK’s first onshore wells using hydraulic fracturing. Mace’s presentation highlighted the problematic effects of policy which requires the full disclosure of oilfield chemicals used in their operations. While submitting these to UK regulators is necessary for transparency, it also leaves chemical formulations and IP subject to Freedom of Information requests – a troubling prospect for firms who apply considerable resources to devising competitive and effective products.

In response, Mace said that the UK Onshore Oil and Gas Group (UKOOG) had created a working group involving operators,

chemical suppliers and the Environment Agency (EA), with a view to establishing a list of pre-approved and assessed substances for use downhole, similar to the Chemical Hazard and Risk Management (CHARM) model used for offshore chemicals. Bookending this, the EA’s Ian Davey offered the regulator’s perspective on its methodologies for assessing the risks of drilling activities to onshore groundwater.

Stratigraphic services provider Chemostrat followed later in the day, with a presentation on total organic carbon (TOC) correlation trends using trace elements. Using case study samples from the Lower Permian, the team suggested that relying on the common approach which uses molybdenum and uranium to provide TOC correlation data could be misleading or inaccurate. Their methodology shows that in some areas, other trace elements – in this case nickel – can offer more accurate proxies for TOC and allow operators to build a better understanding of the reservoir.

Stephanie Edmunds of Solvay also presented on the group’s latest biocide formulations for use in frack fluids. These fourth-generation formulations of Tetrakis Hydroxymethyl Phosphonium Sulphate (THPS) offer a faster bacteria kill-rate and are less detrimental to the performance of other additives such as biopolymers and friction reducers, illustrating the incremental NEWSBASE

performance gains that are still achievable by the chemical sector.

From the conference sessions to the exhibition floor, it was great to see so many of the sector’s big players – from AkzoNobel, Baker Hughes and Nalco Champion to Dow Chemical and BASF – contributing and conversing. Despite the sector’s extensive reach into many aspects of oil and gas, the network of personnel remains remarkably intimate.

Another keynote lecture delivered by Shell Global Solutions’ Julian Barnes covered the opportunities and challenges of surfactant manufacturing for use in enhanced oil recovery (EOR) operations. Barnes explained the full procedure from molecular design and formulation – surfactants are usually designed to perform at individual reservoir conditions – and tracked the manufacturing process from pilot schemes to full-scale implementation.

This also illustrated to delegates areas in which future work will be needed, such as in improving supply logistics for large-scale projects and reducing the risks and time taken to mix surfactants once at the field.

Rest assured that InnovOil will keep you informed of all the latest developments in the oilfield chemical sector, not least as part of our upcoming Drilling & Fluids supplement in September 2016. n For more information on future CITOI events, please visit www.rscspecialitychemicals.org.uk/

February 2016

InnovOil

Recovery strategy

page 29

Golder Associates’ UK oil and gas leader, Mark Cottrell, explains how integrated operations and efficient water management can maximise resource recovery

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ecessity may be the mother of invention, but even more so of innovation. Companies are frequently re-examining their existing operations to discover new ways of extracting more resources from existing wells. Maximising resource recovery, however, is not only about optimising production; it is also about linking all capabilities closer together to make whole projects more efficient.

Recent Golder Associates projects have demonstrated that companies – used to working in silos – can make operations more profitable by linking disparate processes and bringing them closer together. This is particularly true when water management is integrated closer with exploration. By establishing clearer communication channels between water management and exploration teams, operators can significantly increase the output of existing wells, enabling them to retain production levels while developing fewer new wells.

Continuous discussions between exploration, reservoir engineers and water management teams about reservoir stimulation are integral. On a recent project in East Africa, Golder worked with a leading oil and gas operator to undertake water resource assessments in tandem with exploration surveys. These in-depth assessments enabled water supply requirements to be refined in parallel to field developments, so that water supply would not be the critical operational constraint. In many areas it is necessary to identify new water resources: these can and should be developed using similar exploration methods as for oil and gas.

Another opportunity in which different teams can better communicate and enhance productivity is the relationship between subsea and surface teams. Discrete fracture network (DFN) modelling simulations, using tools such as FracMan, can help to inform water and permitting teams about well locations, orientations, water requirements and waste disposal requirements. Golder has worked on a number of high water-demand fracture projects and therefore these have had to be designed with the constraints on water supply in mind.

This is achieved through combinations of optimising stimulation design, optimising the recycling of flowback water, and developing new water supplies. With the confidence that any impacts on the community have been mitigated, operators are able to extract resources at a higher rate.

Co-ordinating schedules Companies should also look to optimise project schedules to make operations more efficient. A good way to do this is to consider oil exploration operations as integrated environmental and engineering projects from discovery through to closure.

This incorporates regulatory requirements with site planning and engineering, and minimises the time required to get permits for projects. It also co-ordinates the project design with the environmental assessments at the earliest stages of the project.

It should also be highlighted that NEWSBASE

environmental and permitting issues can sometimes derail projects without a sound technical justification. Optimisation in those instances involves education of regulatory bodies and stakeholders, so as to make the whole process seem less intimidating.

Golder’s strategy is to initiate workshops with engineers, regulatory expertise and owners to identify critical constraints and issues at the beginning of a project. By undertaking this step early, it develops a schedule that is aligned with regulatory requirements, engineering design inputs and the owners’ commercial needs.

When completing engineering and regulatory tasks in parallel, environmental assessments become consistent with engineering design assumptions over the life of a project, as well as including design mitigation measures to address significant environmental and social concerns.

Optimisation is multi-faceted and integrates many more considerations than a simple cost-cutting exercise. For optimisation to be successful, operators must take an end-to-end approach to operations and unify the various teams and practices. Moreover, they should also take into consideration the availability of the necessary infrastructure and resources, as well as compliance to regulation throughout the life cycle of an operation. n

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InnovOil

February 2016

Incubating innovation

Total has launched Plant 4.0, a corporate incubator programme aimed at fast-tracking and deploying digital innovations in its assets

E

ven the best innovations occasionally need a helping hand.

Indeed, in today’s energy market, even established companies and game-changing breakthroughs can benefit from fresh perspectives and some commercial assistance.

Multinational E&P firm Total is no stranger to developing its own unique technology, or looking out for what may be the next big thing. Its Total Energy Ventures (TEV) and Total Développement Régional (TDR) units already work to support and encourage small firms with big ideas across a variety of sectors. Their success, and a need to foster more digital innovation within the company’s assets, has led to the firm’s newest competition – Plant 4.0.

Launched in December, Plant 4.0 is corporate incubator programme which will develop digital technologies for Total’s industrial activities. Its scope is broad – technologies from sensors and automation to cloud computing and collaboration will be eligible (see table) – if they can aid the performance, safety and reliability of industrial assets. One category also includes dedicated “augmented operator” technology, i.e. digital innovations like mobility tools, wearable tech and augmented reality which can help users improve safety and efficiency.

Shortlisted start-ups will then be incubated by Total and its partner Impulse Labs for six months, allowing them to develop and test their innovations in Total’s operations. The goal is that these pilot and proof-of-concept projects will be ready by the end of this year.

First of its kind Although these technologies are not new per se, this type of innovation programme is novel. Speaking from Paris by phone, Total’s digital industry officer, Juliette de Maupeou, told InnovOil: “We’ve already been looking at start-ups in the digital ecosystem, but this topic – the “digital plant” – we have never done before. I think we’re the first to propose this type of topic in the digital ecosystem.”

This lag is partly a result of the trend within the digital marketplace, she added.

“I think digital has been driven by a B2C approach so far, and many industries which

Asset Optimisation

Augmented Operator

Asset integrity and safety

Operation safety and reliability

Real-time monitoring and optimisation

Collaborative processes

Industrial data analytics and predictive modelling

Augmented interface for simulation, assistance and training

Energy efficiency

Working conditions, corporate wellness and productivity

Cyber security

Automation-based assistance

have been accelerating have been for the consumer market. We already implement a lot of digital projects in geoscience and many other data-driven activities, but we really wanted to make this process faster.”

Once proposals are submitted by February 22, successful businesses will present to a Total committee, incorporating TEV staff and operational managers in both France and the US. The latter in particular, she noted, will be vital in deciding which innovations could have the greatest impact in the shortest time. “Because we are looking for pilots that are do-able this year, I think we might be expecting projects around internet of things (IoT), data analytics – those which are mature enough to be adopted by our operations,” she added. “But of course I’d be very happy to see some NEWSBASE

prospective proposals such as virtual reality, wearables nd 3-D.” Chosen firms will work directly with Impulse and Total to “receive mentorship in business models, funding, pitch, networking etc., and from us they’ll receive an organisational mentor,” she continued. “We will also give them access to technical advisors who will help them examine the project or service they’re proposing to make it fit our plants.”

If the project is successful for both the start-ups and Total, de Maupeou said it could be repeated each year, maintaining a healthy innovation pipeline – and plenty of new opportunities for innovators – to 2020 and beyond. n Interested start-ups can register at www.startup-incubator.total.com until February 22.

InnovOil

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February 2016

News in brief

Finalists announced for annual British subsea awards Aker Solutions, N-Sea and Saab are in contention for the Subsea Company of the Year award at this year’s Subsea UK Awards, held during Subsea Expo – Europe’s largest subsea focused exhibition and conference.

A selection of the country’s most dynamic and successful subsea businesses have made it on to the final shortlist for the annual awards which seek to recognise companies and individuals who are leading the way in Britain’s £9billion subsea sector. The awards dinner will take place on Wednesday 3rd February at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre.

In the Global Exports award category, Flowline Specialists and JDR have been shortlisted and the Innovation for Safety award will see JDR, Fathom Systems and Oil Spill Response Limited compete to take home this coveted accolade.

The shortlist for the Innovation and Technology award comprises Aker Solutions, EC-OG and Innospection.

Nadine Stanistreet of Hughes Sub Surface Engineering, Robert Weeks from JDR Cable Systems and Nicolas Pellerej from OMS Ltd are the individuals short-listed for the Young Emerging Talent award.

This year saw the launch of a new category to recognise small companies that have shown outstanding performance in the subsea sector. Vying for the Small Company of the Year award are Fathom Systems, ITC Hydraulics and Subsea Supplies.

The individual whot has made the most outstanding contribution to the subsea sector will be announced on the night of February 3.

commissioning and training, which went very smoothly.

Teck believes LNG has the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions while reducing fuel costs.

CHART

FoundOcean completes Chart equipment grouting for supports Teck Gemini Wind Resources Farm Limited LNG haul truck pilot project SUBSEA UK

Teck Resources Limited (Teck) is the latest company to pilot the use of LNG as a fuel alternative to diesel in high horsepower engines with the conversion of six haul trucks at their Fording River operation in British Columbia.

The vehicles are fueled by a Chart designed and built mobile unit based on the Orca™ platform, which has long been the preferred solution for liquid gas delivery across a wide range of applications, including atmospheric gases for industry, drinks dispense gases at restaurants, as well as LNG fueling.

The Orca™ was delivered in October 2015 and Chart’s scope also included on-site

NEWSBASE

FoundOcean has successfully completed the grouting of foundations at Gemini Wind Farm on behalf of the main contractor, Van Oord.

The offshore wind farm, situated 85 kilometres north of the Dutch province of Groningen, is made up of 150 wind turbines spanning across 2 sites. The 600 MW wind farm will provide 785,000 homes with renewable energy from 2017 onwards.

Following the continued success of FoundOcean and BASF’s collaboration, the Gemini wind farm project was the first to utilise a new grouting material, MasterFlow 9800.

Van Oord, which led the installation of foundations for the Gemini project, chose MasterFlow 9800 for its unique qualities which enhance productivity and safety.

Having considered operational challenges, which are frequently encountered during offshore operations, it became clear that there was a significant market requirement for an alternative material. For large scale projects, such as Gemini, there was a need for engineered grouts that could be supplied in bulk rather than bags, and effectively mixed to ensure a consistent quality.

Jim Bell, the Managing Director of FoundOcean, highlights the necessity and effectiveness of the product. “FoundOcean recognized a need amongst its customers for a material that could provide high early strength development and low temperature performance, yet also offered increased efficiency, safety and cleanliness.”

The MasterFlow 9800 grout is delivered to the foundation at much higher rates than previously seen with blended materials, resulting in reduced impact on the vessel’s critical path. Alongside its low autogenous

February 2016

InnovOil

page 33

News in brief

The Gazprom Neft Group’s first high-volume 15-stage fracked horizontal well

shrinkage and excellent early strength development, the material’s ability to be supplied in bulk improves safety and productivity by eliminating the offshore lifting of bags and containers.

MasterFlow 9800 enables the installation contractor community to reassess their procedures in offshore grouting and to consider a new way of working – one which delivers significant and quantifiable improvements in productivity and safety when grouting offshore structures.

FOUNDOCEAN

Gazprom Neft completes first 15-stage fracked well in Western Siberia Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of state-controlled Gazprom, has completed its first ever 15-stage

hydraulic fracturing (fracking) operation at Yuzhno-Priobskoye, a field in the KhantyMansi autonomous area.

In a statement, the company said that its Gazpromneft-Khantos subsidiary had carried out the operation in order to drill a new well at Yuzhno-Priobskoye. The site is the “first high-volume 15-stage fracked horizontal well” that Gazpromneft-Khantos has brought into production, it said.

Gazprom Neft credited technological innovation for its success at the field, saying that the multi-stage fracking operation had been “made possible through the use of non-ball-and-socket well completion and stimulation technology.” This technology was used to sink the well to a total depth of 4,200 metres, with horizontal displacement of 760 metres, it said.

“The key feature of the configuration of the horizontal section of the well lies in its allowing well stimulation to continue throughout its entire operation, removing any limitations on the number of fracking operations that can be undertaken,” it added.

Gazprom Neft did not say how much oil the new well was yielding. It did state, though, NEWSBASE

that output might eventually peak at nearly 550 barrels per day, which represents an improvement in performance.

This “[exceeds] comparable figures for lesser multi-stage fracking operations by at least 10%,” it said.

Additionally, the company said, multistage fracking will help Gazpromneft-Khantos gain more access to oil that lies within the Bazhenov shale formation. It noted that the Gazprom Neft subsidiary was working at Yuzhno-Priobskoye as part of a wider effort to develop hard-to-access crude reserves.

Vadim Yakovlev, Gazprom Neft’s first deputy CEO, said that the company intended to expand its use of multi-stage fracking operations. “The use of cuttingedge technologies is an absolute priority throughout the entire Gazprom Neft Group,” he stated. “In 2015, in particular, we expect to see group-wide horizontal drilling volumes increasing by 12.5%, to 334 wells, with the number of high-technology wells completed with multistage hydraulic fracking increasing by more than 40% this year, to 238.

Edited by Joe Murphy josephm@newsbase.com

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InnovOil

February 2016

News in brief

BP to collect 3-D data from shallow water areas offshore Azerbaijan

and [will be] complete within nine months, in all coastal sections of the country’s section [by] November 24, 2016.” of the Caspian Sea. The company said it had identified five Baku sees “the exploration of Paleocene priority areas within the 1,900-square km and Mesozoic deposits onshore and in the block. These areas lie in 25-metre deep water [Azeri] sector of the Caspian Sea ... as [a] and may contain productive strata at depths priority” because of “the gradual depletion of 3,000- 5,000 metres, it reported. of oil deposits in [existing] productive BP-Azerbaijan’s impact report, which was reservoirs,” he commented. drawn up by the AECOM consultancy, will Edited by Joe Murphy be open to public comments and proposals josephm@newsbase.com until the end of February 2016.

BP-Azerbaijan has said it intends to begin a The company is working under a 23-year 3-D seismic study of potential hydrocarbonproduction-sharing agreement (PSA) signed bearing structures offshore Azerbaijan on in December 2014 and ratified by the Azeri March 1. parliament in April 2015.

In a draft document detailing the The PSA splits equity in the project potential environmental and socio50:50 between BP-Azerbaijan and the economic impact of the project, the Ten big North Sea field developments State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic company said that the study would target representing more than one in seven in (SOCAR). a shallow-water licence area located off the the region have been shelved as a result of The partners have said they will carry southern coast of the Absheron Peninsula. tumbling oil prices. out the project in three stages: preliminary The geophysical data collected during Eight of the projects are in Norwegian exploration, basic exploration and the survey will supplement the 2-D and waters – a fact that underlines the challenges development and production. They hope 3-D data collected during previous seismic and high costs of operating in the country’s to find crude oil in a number of small fields surveys, it said. often stormy weather conditions and deep located in waters up to 40 metres deep.

“The purpose of the 3-D surveys is waters.

Valeh Aleskerov, the deputy speaker to gather geophysical data [that] will be Norway was one of six countries that of the Azeri parliament, noted in April used when planning the exploration and Wood Mackenzie, an energy consultancy, SWAP 3D Seismic Survey Chapter 1 2015 that the project was in line with the development of the contract area,” BPfound to have the most project deferrals,Introduction Environmental & Socio-Economic Impact Assessment government’s exploration strategy, which Azerbaijan stated. “[The] 3-D seismic survey placing it alongside Canada, Angola, tasks SOCAR with looking for hydrocarbons is scheduled to begin [on] March 1, 2016 Kazakhstan, theand US. Previous Seismic Figure 1.1: Location of the SWAP, ACG, Bahar Gum Deniz & SD Contract Areas, the SWAP 3D SeismicNigeria Surveyand Area

Major North Sea projects shelved

Survey Lines within the Vicinity of the SWAP 3D Seismic Survey Area

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Location of the SWAP, ACG, Bahar Gum Deniz & SD Contract Areas, the SWAP 3D Seismic Survey Area and Previous Seismic Survey Lines within the Vicinity of the SWAP 3D Seismic Survey Area

November 2015 Draft

1-4

NEWSBASE

February 2016

InnovOil

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News in brief

The other two are UK developments that contain nearly 500 million barrels of reserves in total, according to estimates. This makes them unusually large finds for the region.

One of the deferred UK projects is BG’s Jackdaw, a high-pressure, high-temperature (HPHT) scheme. BG announced in October 2014 that it had delayed making an investment decision on it and it is now being acquired by Royal Dutch Shell, which has indicated it intends to shrink the former’s North Sea portfolio.

The other delayed UK project is the Rosebank development northwest of Shetland. Even before oil prices started their slide, Chevron warned it might not be as economic as planned.

The UK North Sea will be hit especially hard by crude price falls. Many older fields are at risk of closure in the coming years, while smaller firms may be forced into distress sales in an attempt to raise cash.

“The impact of lower oil prices on company plans has been brutal,” said Angus Rodger, principal analyst, exploration and production research, at Wood Mackenzie.

“What began in late 2014 as a haircut to discretionary spend on exploration and pre-development projects has become a full surgical operation to cut out all non-essential operational and capital expenditure.”

Costs have fallen relatively quickly in Europe and there is some consensus that oil prices could start to recover in the second half of this year. This could encourage early movers to take advantage of cost deflation and underused capacity at oil services companies to lead a fresh round of investment in the sector.

Edited by Ryan Stevenson ryans@newsbase.com

Unitel wins miniLNG work in South Korea Korea Gas Technology Corp. (KOGASTech) has awarded a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract to Illinois-based Unitel Technologies for a fleet of mini-LNG plants it intends to build in South Korea, the companies announced last week.

KOGAS-Tech plans to design, build and operate a number of 200 tonne per day LNG mini plants, which will supply the domestic

The world’s largest corporate buyer of LNG, South Korea’s Kogas, hired Unitel Technologies to perform the front-end engineering and design work on small-scale LNG plants network

market with fuel for power generation and transportation, according to its new business director, Chul-ho Lee. One aim of the company is to start distributing LNG to power stations on small islands and on mainland South Korea, to help them switch from oil to gas by 2020.

Unitel is charged with finding ways to reduce capital expenditure and operating costs of the mini LNG plants compared with current industry standards.

According to the US company’s president, Ravi Randhava, it has already identified several areas where savings can be made and intends to file a number of patent applications this year.

“We want to optimise the refrigerant cycle and the overall thermodynamics of the system,” according to Hack-Eun Kim, the head of KOGAS-Tech’s development team. “At the same time, we are looking for a high level of flexibility and a wide turndown capability to meet changing demand requirements. State-of-the-art automation will help reduce operating costs, but safety will always be our most critical concern.”

Unitel and KOGAS already have a history of working together, most notably in their joint efforts to demonstrate and commercialise KOGAS’ single-step technology for converting natural gas into dimethyl ether (DME).

KOGAS is South Korea’s only LNG importer and the world’s biggest corporate buyer of LNG. It operates four LNG terminals, plus a countrywide distribution network covering more than 4,240 km.

There are signs, though, that South Korea’s demand for LNG is on the wane amid economic stagnation plus the resolution of NEWSBASE

a raft of problems at nuclear power plants (NPPs).

The country’s imports of LNG fell 11% in 2015, according to Wood Mackenzie.

Edited by Ed Reed edreed@newsbase.com

Fears up to a third of US shale oil producers could go bankrupt by 2017 THE downward trend in global oil prices seems to have no end in sight, with both global benchmark Brent crude and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude prices falling to levels not seen since 2004.

This time last year, the debate was over whether or not prices would go below US$50 per barrel and how US oil companies would survive. A year on, and prices are now about to dip into the US$20s range.

Against this backdrop Oppenheimer & Co.’s senior oil and gas analyst, Fadel Gheit, told CNBC this week that half of US shale oil producers could go bankrupt before the crude market reaches equilibrium. He said that the “new normal oil price” could be 50-100% above current levels and ultimately sees crude prices stabilising near US$60 per barrel, but it could be more than two years before this happens.

“Half of the current producers have no

page 36

InnovOil

February 2016

News in brief

legitimate right to be in a business where the price forecast even in a recovery is going to be between, say, US$50 [and] US$60.

They need US$70 oil to survive,” Gheit said. He added that at the current oil price, companies both large and small – including super-majors – would have to think twice about their dividends. To date, however, most US oil majors have not cut dividends.

Gheit added that US drillers were now spending more than they were making from operations; a situation that he said was unsustainable and would eventually force prices higher. For the past year, many US shale oil producers, particularly smaller companies, have been burning through cash on their balance sheets just to stay in operation and to service debt.

In an even worse scenario, Wolf Research said that up to a third of US oil and gas producers could move towards bankruptcy and restructuring by mid-2017. Law firm Haynes & Boone said that over 30 small US oil companies that collectively owe in excess of US$13 billion had already filed for bankruptcy protection so far during the downturn.

It is thought that many of these companies could survive if oil prices rebound to around US$50 per barrel.

However, oil prices are unlikely to reach such a level this year or even the following year according to the more pessimistic forecasts.

There are concerns over China’s economic slowdown, the volatility of its stock market and serious doubts over Beijing’s handling of these growing problems. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia and Russia continue to ramp up production in an effort to protect market share. And with new supplies of Iranian crude, ranging between 500,000 and 1 million barrels per day set to hit the market after Western sanctions against the country have lifted, the supply glut looks likely to continue unabated.

The weakest OPEC members, countries overly reliant on petro-dollars for state coffers and US shale producers alike will all feel the impact.

However, the downward cycle cannot continue forever. The current issue is not the usual “‘lack of supply” scenario that has played out so often in the past, but is one of unprecedented oversupply. It will take these same low prices to finally bring about market equilibrium once again, and more US producers could be forced out of business along the way.

Edited by Anna Kachkova annak@newsbase.com

Trelleborg unveils dedicated swivel stack seal inspection facility Trelleborg Sealing Solutions has opened a dedicated climate-controlled swivel stack seal inspection facility for the validation of bespoke seals.

The global facility is based in Barendrecht, in the Netherlands, and has been unveiled in a move to help ensure Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) operators achieve the highest possible standards in seal quality.

The facility provides a temperaturecontrolled environment to avoid fluctuations in the dimensions of the seals caused by temperature changes, with specialist storage racks allowing the seals to be acclimatized prior to inspection.

A bespoke inspection table has been installed, on which seals up to 3000mm can be measured with special lighting to aid visual inspection.

Trelleborg’s FPSO Focus Group, who are based on site, is made up of a team of experts trained to inspect the specialist seals.

Henk-Willem Sanders, Technical Manager Oil & Gas and FPSO Focus Group leader at Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, said: “The quality of seals for our customers is of the upmost importance and we are continually striving for excellence, which is

why we have launched this dedicated seal inspection and validation facility.”

“Typical FPSO seals are from 100mm up to 3000mm in large cross sections. The controlled environment in combination with the fact that large diameter seals can be inspected, gives our customers unrivalled reassurance when selecting a seal partner.”

TRELLEBORG

Lloyd’s Register and Aker Solutions collaborate on subsea efficiency With this new global framework agreement in place, Norwegian oil services company Aker Solutions can further improve efficiency and uphold their position as forerunner in advanced technologies for the offshore oil and gas industry.

Commenting on the achievement, Lead Group Category Manager, Gaute Fardal from Aker Solutions, said: “We are pleased to have Lloyd’s Register on board as a new Group Frame Agreement supplier to Aker Solutions. Our expectations to the agreement are highly competitive priced services and further enhanced efficiency in

Trelleborg Sealing Solutions has opened a dedicated climate-controlled swivel stack seal inspection facility for the validation of bespoke seals.

NEWSBASE

February 2016

InnovOil

page 37

News in brief

Subsea factory; Image: Aker Solutions

our processes and product solutions.”

The contract gives Aker Solutions access to all relevant services from the Lloyd’s Register Group, including inspection, compliance, certification and advisory/ consulting services in areas like risk management/HSEQ, engineering dynamics, asset integrity, drilling, wells and reservoirs.

The project builds on Lloyd’s Register’s solid track record of enabling the oil and gas industry to improve efficiency and performance while reducing environmental impact.

The first call off from the contract is already in place: a global project for international quality management system standard ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 (environmental) certification of Aker Solution’s Subsea division. The project will be carried out by LRQA – a division of the Lloyd’s Register Group and a world leading professional assurance services organisation specialising in management systems compliance and expert advice across a broad spectrum of standards, schemes and customised assurance programmes.

“Of special interest is our process for technology qualifications,” said Alme. “This is an important area for a company like Aker Solutions, where new innovations in areas like subsea processing can be critical for tomorrow’s leading oil and gas operators.”

The Technology Qualification offered

by Lloyd’s Register provides a route for companies to provide evidence that their

equipment will function within specified operational limits and with an acceptable level of confidence. It gives a step-by-step approach on how to develop and operate new technologies in a safe, reliable and environmentally friendly manner.

“Our approach supports a better way to manage costs and the associated risks of bringing new technology to market,” said Alme.

The framework agreement is valid for 3 years with options for extension for a further 2 years.

AKER SOLUTIONS

FMC wins Woodside award FMC Technologies has signed an agreement with Woodside for the design, manufacture and supply of subsea production systems for the Greater Western Flank Phase 2 (GWF-2) Project as part of the North West Shelf (NWS) Project in Western Australia.

The contract is valued at approximately $180 million for FMC Technologies and includes: subsea production trees, wellheads, manifolds, subsea and topside controls, and flowline connection systems. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2016 and continue through 2018.

NEWSBASE

“Our continued collaboration on the North West Shelf Project further solidifies the 20-year relationship between FMC Technologies and Woodside,” said Tore Halvorsen, Senior Vice President, Subsea Technologies. “This development assists with the timely and efficient commercialization of the project’s gas reserves.”

The GWF-2 Project is the fourth major gas development for the NWS Project in the last seven years and is expected to develop 1.6 trillion cubic feet of raw gas from its combined six fields using subsea infrastructure and 21.7 miles (35 kilometers) of 16 inch pipeline connecting to the existing Goodwyn A platform.

The GWF-2 Project is expected to begin production in 2019.

FMC TECHNOLOGIES

page 38

InnovOil

What next …?

To make enquiries about any of the products or technologies featured in this edition, use this list of vital connections

If you would like to learn more about FoundOcean’s strategy for keeping offshore operations efficient, contact Alexandra Leo on +44 (0)1628 567 000 or Alexandra.Leo@Foundocean.com If you are interested in Impact Subsea’s integrated altimeter and HMRU technology, contact Ben Grant on +44 (0)1224 460 850 or email info@impactsubsea.co.uk To discuss TSC Inspection Systems’ ACFM® or the ACFM® MagCrawler™, contact David Parramore on +44 (0)1908 317 444 or email info@tscis.com To enquire about Safehouse’s offshore HSE strategy, contact Lindsay Jepp at LJepp@webershandwick.com Interested start-ups can register for Total’s Plant 4.0 incubator at www.startup-incubator.total.com until February 22, or contact Laetitia Maccioni at laetitia.maccioni@total.com For more information on future RSC Speciality Chemicals conferences, visit www.rscspecialitychemicals.org.uk To make further enquiries about Golder Associates’ plans for water management, contact Elizabeth Jones at elizabeth.jones@withpr.co.uk

NEWSBASE

February 2016

An asset to energy professionals

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December 2015

BETTER WITH BIO

We look at Cosun’s Betafib® viscosifier

Page 16

MERCURY FALLING

November 2015

Month 2015

NONFRICTION

Page 6

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FoundOcean discusses offshore cost-efficiency

CTRL + PRNT

How 3-D printing could change oil and gas

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RETURN OF REFRACK

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Utility ROV Services’ unique subsea equipment Page 6

sustainable supply

AkzoNobel’s take on the future of the chemical oilfield

Pages 11-25

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CLEAN AND EFFICIENT

Our supplement tackles production efficiency innovations

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Dyform Bristar ropes from Bridon

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A new era in completion fluiDs hAs arriveD …

An in-depth look at Nautilus subsea connectors

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September 2015

POWER. DEEPER.

Siemens’ magnetic oil-free steam turbine

Johnson Matthey’s PURASPECJM technology for mercury removal

SEISMIC SHIFT

Prof. Maarten de Hoop on how deep learning could revolutionise seismology

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August 2015

TOP TECHNOLOGY FROM TELEDYNE Page 12

July 2015

June 2015

An in-depth look at asset integrity and technology

How EOR is helping Statoil reach 60% recovery Page 12

Japanese shipbuilders are poised to see a renaissance thanks to LNG

Pages 13 to 27

naiLing down hammerhead™

Page 24

A closer look at Baker Hughes’ ultradeepwater completion system

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Laser-drilling from ZerLux

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Halfwave’s ART Scan tool for in-line inspection Page 26

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CONTROLLING AN FPSO ICSS from Kongsberg Maritime Page 16

Bronswerk’s Flexplate is a new approach to heat exchangers

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HUMAN OR ROBOT? The latest advances in inspection and maintenance

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InnovOil, from the NewsBase group, is a technology-driven, monthly magazine which aims Andy Hill, Group Marketing Manager to provide a platform for innovators and engineers to share to share their ideas and expertise.

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