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BP:

North Sea Giants As BP celebrates achievements in its own backyard, major projects around the world are approaching completion, too.

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The Editor

Not worth the whoop (or the holler)

Editor

The

don’t know how you choose leaders in your organisation, but I hope you have a better system than we have for choosing political leaders in the United Kingdom and the United States. The US Presidential campaign reaches its climax at the ballot box on Tuesday 8 November. Greater minds than mine have tried to explain how a complex selection process in one of the world’s premier democracies could leave voters a straight choice between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton – but it’s quite inexplicable. Leading figures from both sides have publicly withdrawn their support for their own party’s candidate and the candidates themselves are more interested in exposing their opponent’s dirty laundry than they are in promoting their own qualities. As a foreign observer, what fascinates me as much as anything is watching American audiences whooping and hollering at the sound bites emanating from the stage. It couldn’t happen in the UK, and that’s not just because our politicians lack the charisma of the Americans. In the UK, we

Martin Ashcroft

whoop at pop stars and footballers, not politicians. Imagine being a cheerleader for Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn? No, I didn’t think you could. Theresa May was elected leader of the Conservative Party in July without a whoop or a holler, after the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron. The Labour Party, unable to adjust to life after Tony Blair, elected Jeremy Corbyn as its leader but his Parliamentary colleagues were so dissatisfied with his leadership that they mounted a tortuous challenge, which Corbyn survived. Somebody threw a brick through someone’s window, but nary a whoop nor a holler was heard. So, from January 2017, one way or another, history will be made. The most powerful politician on the planet, the leader of the Western world, will be either the first female President of the United States, or the oldest President the country has ever elected. I can’t see it being a very high turnout. I know lifelong Republicans who can’t bring themselves to vote for Donald Trump, and Democrats who feel the same about Hillary Clinton. UK politicians may not have the charisma, but it makes me glad we don’t have to elect a President. Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

Contents Page: 3

• The Editor: Not worth the whoop (or the holler)

• BP: North Sea Giants

• Boskalis: Offshore integration

• First shale gas arrives in UK

• News in brief

• ABB to dismantle Milford Haven refinery

• Harris Pye completes repairs on Ocean Endeavor

• Energy sector a prime target for cyber-attacks

• S&P Global Platts acquires PIRA Energy Group

• Damen repairs Jumbo Javelin heavy lift crane vessel

• New vessel monitoring system at Lerwick Harbour

• DSM Demolition to establish facility on Orkneys

• Damen makes move in decommissioning market

• Production started at new gas fields in Croatia

• NAVTOR lead in EU autonomous vessel project

• Findlay Irvine: Friction testing for helidecks

• Brazil tops the table for upstream oil & gas projects

• Executive interview: Sid Hynes, Oceanex

• Russian oil & gas outlook boosted by Arctic projects

• Timm ropes enjoys strong ties with Wilhelmsen

• The state of the oil & gas industry

• Norhard: Norwegian hard rock drilling

• ExxonMobil: Energy lives here

• Expander Systems

• Prime Meridian Docks Ghana

• Rosneft, BP and Schlumberger sign agreements

• Price of new container equipment • LNG market needs more vessels • Rising refinery capacity dents tanker outlook • US Silica completes acquisition of NBR Sand • L&N Scotland celebrates 20 year milestone

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Contents

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BP North Sea Giants Page 6

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North Sea Giants As BP celebrates achievements in its own backyard, major projects around the world are approaching completion, too.

â&#x20AC;&#x201A;â&#x20AC;&#x201A;Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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P has renewed its commitment to the North Sea by announcing the creation of more than 500 jobs. It comes as the oil giant completed a “once in a lifetime” double win for the region, with the installation of all the major modules for its Clair Ridge platform and the arrival of the Glen Lyon FPSO to the west of Shetland, unlocking a combined one billion barrels of oil over the next 40 years. The 534 jobs are linked to the hook-up and commissioning of the two projects and the work is expected to last 18 months. Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

BP BP continues to invest in this region. In July this year, it doubled its stake in the North Sea’s Culzean development and over the last five years it has invested $10 billion in the North Sea. Last year, it invested a $1 billion into its aging ETAP field, securing its future through 2030. BP’s North Sea president, Mark Thomas said: “This is our home. This is where BP has matured and we feel this is our backyard. It’s not very often in an oil and gas basin that in the course of five days you have two major projects basically sailing to the field; it should never be taken for granted. “The north-east is a mature basin but we are looking towards the future, particularly in the west of Shetland, and we see that as a growth opportunity. When was the last time you ever heard someone talk about the North Sea as a growth opportunity? And that’s what we’re looking at. West of Shetland is a place we want to invest and be in for the next three or four decades. In this environment people say, ‘Really can you look that far ahead?’ And in this environment, absolutely we can. “Glen Lyon is a project that was years and years in the making and all of a sudden it’s there,” said Thomas. “It will be online towards the end of this year or early in 2017. To have that happen in itself, is magnificent. And then over course of five days, to have five big modules together weighing 30,000 tonnes sail-out into the Shetlands and to be installed into the jacket flawlessly – I mean that’s a once in a lifetime opportunity. For most project engineers that is the one opportunity in their whole career to see that, and here we’ve seen that twice in the matter of one week. There’s not many other oil and gas basins in the world today that can say they’ve seen that type of activity in such a short time.”

Clair Ridge

Clair Ridge, BP’s £4.5 billion investment, is now in the second phase of development on the Clair field, which lies 75km to the west of the Shetland Islands. Production from Clair started in 2005 from the first phase facilities, which are designed to continue producing until 2028. About 80 million bbl. have been produced thus far. Oil and gas is exported via pipelines to the Sullom Voe terminal on Shetland where it is processed. The project primarily involves the installation of two bridge-

“The Clair Ridge development will have the capability to produce an estimated 640 million barrels of oil over a 40-year period” Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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CREATING NEW HORIZONS IN OFFSHORE ENERGY

Boskalis offers a wide variety of marine services and contracting for the international energy sector including the development, construction, transport, installation, subsea inspection, repair & maintenance (IRM), decommissioning of offshore and onshore facilities and marine cable installation (through Boskalis, Dockwise, Fairmount and VBMS). The combined capabilities are unmatched in the industry and they are the foundation to helping our clients realize exceptional projects. Our offshore energy solutions cover: ■ Transport ■ Installation ■ Subsea IRM ■ Decommissioning ■ Offshore Support Services Boskalis Offshore Energy Division P.O. Box 43, 3350 AA Papendrecht, The Netherlands T +31 78 69 69 000 E offshore.energy@boskalis.com

www.boskalis.com/offshore

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“Culzean is expected to produce enough gas to meet 5 per cent of UK demand when it reaches peak production in 2020/21”

linked platforms at a water depth of approximately 140m, the drilling of 36 wells (26 producing wells and 10 water injectors), and a tie-in to the existing Clair Phase 1 export pipeline system. The platforms will include a drilling and production (DP) platform and a 9,000t quarters and utilities (QU) platform. The produced oil will be exported to the Sullom Voe Terminal (SVT) via a new 6.5km long and 22in diameter pipeline connected to the existing Clair Phase 1 oil export pipeline, whereas the produced gas will be exported to the SVT via a new 14km long and six inches diameter pipeline connected to the west of the Shetland pipeline system. BP describes Clair Ridge as the first sanctioned large-scale offshore-enhanced oil recovery scheme using reduced salinity water injection to extract a higher proportion of oil over the life of the field. To reduce the environmental impact of the project, the platforms will be powered using dual-fuel power generators, incorporating waste heat recovery technology. Vapor recovery also will be used to capture and recycle low pressure gas for use as fuel or for exporting to shore. The Clair Ridge development will have the capability to

produce an estimated 640 million barrels of oil over a 40-year period, with peak production expected to be up to 120,000 barrels of oil per day. The project is headquartered in London, where over 750 people are currently employed. About 30% of the £2.1bn base cost of the project is in the UK and around 80% of the estimated £1.1bn of drilling costs will be spent in the UK. More than 80 British companies are providing engineering design and support services, hook up and installation services, manpower and a wide range of engineered equipment. A project of this size and longevity requires secure, long-term partnerships and BP has made use of its extensive network of suppliers and subcontractors, to ensure Clair Ridge meets cost and timeline targets.

Culzean

By doubling its share, BP now holds a 32 per cent stake in the Maersk-operated Culzean field. The development, which lies about 145 miles east of Aberdeen, is one of the largest gas fields discovered in the North Sea in more than a decade. The gas condensate field has resources estimated at 250-300 million barrels, according to BP. Production is due to start in 2019 and continue into the 2030s, with plateau production of 60,000-90,000 barrels per day. It is expected to produce enough gas to meet 5% of total UK demand when it reaches peak production in 2020-21. BP’s increased share in Culzean again demonstrates its commitment to the future of North Sea opportunities.

Global projects

Other significant upstream projects include, Kizomba Satellites 2, In Salah Southern Fields, Greater Plutonio 3, Western Flank A, Thunder Horse Water Injection, In Amenas Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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Compression Point, Thomson Quad 204, Juniper, Persephone, Oman Khazzan and Thunder Horse South Expansion. All are scheduled for completion between now and 2017. Kizomba Satellites phase 2 is a subsea infrastructure development of the Kakocha, Bavuca and Mondo South fields, tied back to the existing Kizomba B and Mondo floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels and is expected to recover around 190 million barrels of oil. The project scope includes subsea wells, FPSO topside modifications and installation of flowlines and subsea equipment. The development is located approximately 150 kilometres off the coast of Angola in water depths of around 1350 metres. Greater Plutonio Phase 3 started up in June this year and is expected to sustain production through the existing Greater Plutonio FPSO, in Block 18, by developing six wells (four producers and two water injectors), connected into the existing subsea infrastructure. In Amenas is a wet-gas field, operated in partnership between Algerian state oil company Sonatrach, BP and Statoil. The field is approximately 810 miles from Algiers and about 40 miles west of the Libyan border. The project scope consists of two gas turbine compressor trains, a new slug-catcher, a produced water surge drum, associated utilities and control systems and tie-ins to the existing plant. It is expected to develop 216 million barrels of oil equivalent and to produce 107,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day at its peak. In Salah Gas, also a joint venture with Statoil and Sonatrach, is one of the largest dry gas joint-venture projects in Algeria. The venture involves the development of seven proven gas fields in the southern Sahara, 1,200km south of Algiers, and

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has been on-stream since July 2004. The Western Flank A project is expected to extend the production plateau of BP’s assets in the Australian North West Shelf by approximately two years. The project develops the Goodwyn H and Tidepole fields to deliver over 230 million barrels of oil equivalent with five subsea wells tied back to the existing Goodwyn A platform. The project scope also includes brownfield modifications to the topsides and the installation of a new riser. The Persephone gas field is located 85 miles north-west of Karratha, Western Australia, in a water depth of approximately 415 feet. The development concept is a two well subsea tieback to the existing North Rankin complex. The Thunder Horse field is located around 120 miles southeast of New Orleans in over 6,000 feet of water. Phase 1 of this water injection program is expected to develop 65 million barrels of oil equivalent (gross) of the Pink reservoir resources as well as establishing pressure support. Phase 1 scope comprises refurbishment and replacement of existing topsides and subsea equipment, procurement and installation of new equipment and the drilling and completion of two water injection wells. The South Expansion Project comprises a new subsea drill centre located two miles from the Thunder Horse platform. Three new wells and an existing fourth well are expected to tie-into the new drill centre. Topsides scope is minimal as a result of maximising use of existing subsea infrastructure. Point Thomson is a remote natural gas field located on Alaska’s North Slope, approximately 60 miles east of Prudhoe Bay. It is estimated to hold about 25% of known natural gas on the North Slope. Processing facilities include separation,

“The Thunder Horse field is located around 120 miles southeast of New Orleans in over 6,000 feet of water”

compression and utilities plants, three new wells and gathering and condensate export lines. The project is designed to produce 10,000 barrels per day of condensate at start-up. A pipeline is being installed with capacity of 70,000 barrels per day, which will take gas and condensate to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. The Juniper project includes the construction of a normally unmanned platform, together with corresponding subsea infrastructure. Fabrication began in 2014. The Juniper facility will produce gas from the Corallita and Lantana fields located 50 miles off the south-east coast of Trinidad, in water depth of approximately 360 feet. The development is expected to include five subsea wells and to have a production capacity of approximately 590 million standard cubic feet per day. Gas from Juniper will flow to the Mahogany B hub via a new sixmile flowline. This first phase of the Khazzan field development plan in Oman involves drilling approximately 300 wells using several drilling rigs. The project is expected to develop circa seven trillion standard cubic feet of gas and deliver plateau production of one billion standard cubic feet of gas per day and 25,000 barrels per day of gas condensate. The full field development involves a 15-year drilling programme, with production tied back to a new central processing facility in Block 61, via a 315-mile gathering system. With BP’s continued investment in its North Sea activities and global projects the company is meeting the challenges in today’s difficult market head-on and has its eye firmly on a prosperous future.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

boskalis: Offshore integration

The name Boskalis has been synonymous with dredging for over a hundred years. Jaap Meij, Director of Offshore Integrated Projects, tells Martin Ashcroft about the company’s expansion into the offshore energy sector, illustrated by some prestigious projects for BP.

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Boskalis

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ounded in 1910 in Sliedrecht, the home of the Dutch dredging industry, Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (to give the company its full title) has over 100 years’ experience in hydraulic engineering, coastal protection and land reclamation, not only in The Netherlands but around the world. You may remember the Suez Canal expansion, opened by Egyptian President al-Sisi on 6 August 2015. The largest part of the project, the construction of a shipping lane of around 35 kilometres parallel to the existing canal, was executed by a consortium comprising Boskalis and three partners. In recent years, however, Boskalis has grown from a dredging and infrastructure specialist into a global maritime services provider, now offering a wide variety of marine services and contracting for the offshore energy sector, including dry and wet transport of drilling rigs, offshore transport and installation (T&I) of monopiles, jackets and topsides, offshore services to floating structures such as FPUs, SPARs and floating production, storage and offloading units (FPSOs), and subsea inspection, repair and maintenance.

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Boskalis These capabilities have been added through a series of key acquisitions, including (among others) Smit Internationale (in 2010), followed by heavy marine transport specialist Dockwise (in 2013), Fairmount Marine (in 2014), a world-class provider of long-distance ocean towage services, and recently VBMS, a leading player in the European market for offshore cable installation. Started as a shipping company for heavy ocean transports, Dockwise gradually developed into a service provider for the offshore industry, particularly in offshore transport and installation, undertaking a number of projects for BP. Dockwise has now been integrated into the Offshore Energy Division of Boskalis, along with Jaap Meij. “I had been with Dockwise since 2006,” he says, “and I was responsible for all offshore related T&I activities.” One of these activities involved the transportation of the offshore topsides structures for BP’s multi-billion dollar Clair Ridge development from South Korea to the North Sea. “We completed these transports earlier this year,” says Meij. “We had six of our premier vessels involved in the execution, making two voyages last year and four this year.” As transportation is a critical part of the project, planning the preparations has to begin well in advance. “Because of the size and the weight of the modules and structures that need to be transported, there’s a limited number of vessels with the relevant track record available that can do this work,” says Meij, “so it’s important to allocate the vessels early. Sometimes this can be two to three years ahead of execution but we recently completed a project where the contract was in place almost six years ahead of execution.

“Because of the size and weight of the structures that need to be transported, there’s a limited number of vessels that can do this work” Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

“The Dockwise Vanguard is the largest semi-submersible heavy transport vessel in the world”

“There’s a lot of requirements, a lot of specifications and a lot of risk that needs to be managed,” says Meij. “This is not a straightforward heavy cargo transport, it’s an offshore project. If one of our transports were to fail, it would have an enormous effect on the overall project master schedule. If something goes wrong with the fabrication of a piece of the structure, you might face a delay of a few days or a few weeks, but if we lose or damage our critical cargo this will have an immediate effect on the overall project development and can easily become catastrophic. In offshore transport and installation you are 100 per cent on the critical path.” It takes between 60 and 70 days of sailing to transport a load like this from Korea to the North Sea, Meij tells me, usually around the Cape of Good Hope. “Sometimes we go through the Suez Canal but you have height restrictions there. Because we also sail through the Gulf of Aden we also have to take

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adequate security measures.” But while BP Clair is the largest project undertaken for BP to date, the next one being planned will be bigger still – Mad Dog Phase 2, in the Gulf of Mexico.

Mad Dog

The Mad Dog offshore field was discovered in 1998 and started production in 2005. Owned by BP (60.5%), BHP Billiton (23.9%) and Chevron (15.6%), the Phase 2 development is planned for the southern portion of the Mad Dog field, in 4,500 feet of water some 190 miles south of New Orleans. The production platform will be designed by KBR in collaboration with its Swedish subsidiary GVA and the plan is to integrate the topside infrastructure with the semi hull structure.

Dockwide Vanguard

The Dockwise Vanguard is Boskalis’ latest state-of-the-art

Boskalis a bit like an aircraft carrier,” says Meij, “but it is designed specifically to accommodate an FPSO type cargo. “Generally we can only execute two to three projects per year with a vessel like the Dockwise Vanguard,” he continues, “taking account of the time involved to sail from the yard to the actual location, on top of the preparation time to outfit the vessel to accommodate the cargo, and when we have delivered the cargo we have to clean the vessel and reinstate it to its original specification.”

Offshore Integration

semi-submersible heavy transport vessel. “The new vessel Vanguard has not been used yet for existing BP projects but it will be used for the Mad Dog South Project,” says Meij. “It’s the largest semi-submersible heavy transport vessel in the world. It has a carrying capacity in excess of 100,000 metric tons. The special feature about this vessel is its huge deck surface and its ability to take on very large floating loads. In the case of Mad Dog South, where BP is considering an integrated unit, you could transport a single unit like that on the Dockwise Vanguard. If you were using traditional heavy transportation vessels you would have to divide the unit into smaller sections to be able to transport it.” The design of the vessel is unique in that it has no bow and no stern, so it can transport structures that are longer than the vessel itself. The deck strength in the middle also makes it uniquely able to carry smaller, but heavier cargoes. “It looks

Continuing the theme of diversification, the next step in the Boskalis business strategy is to look for ways to integrate more of its newly acquired services in its customers’ major projects. “As Director of Offshore Integrated Projects, that’s where my role comes in,” says Meij. “If we can integrate products and services for our clients, on top of the initial transport project, we can become more like a one-stop shop, reducing interfaces and reducing risk.” The Offshore Energy Division of Boskalis has a wide variety of products and services. For instance, the company operates around 1,000 floating assets ranging from dredging vessels, barges, tugs, floating sheerleg cranes, heavy transportation vessels, diving support vessels, cable laying and fallpipe vessels. “These are all in individual business units within Boskalis but we are trying to capture projects where a number of those activities are involved, so we can offer an integrated solution to our clients,” explains Meij. “Our main challenge is to make our clients aware that we can do more than the original split in scope that they send out to the market,” he continues. “The offshore sector tends to take a traditional approach towards contracting. When the oil price is high it’s natural to want the best players in each particular discipline. Nowadays, when there are price pressures, you have to be very cost efficient, which means bringing these activities together. Instead of managing five individual subcontracts you want to manage one subcontract and have that subcontractor manage a range of activities. The market is now adapting to that format.” In terms of risk, it’s also a significant benefit for the client to have one financially strong contractor rather than have to assess risks for a number of smaller ones. “There is a lot of competition in today’s market but that is one of our strong differentiators,” says Meij. “Contracting with a company without the same financial security always involves a risk, regardless of whether the price was good or not. Next to price they look at track record and financial stability. A company like BP can have confidence doing business with Boskalis.” Having been a dedicated marine service provider for years, the plan is for the Offshore Energy Division is to grow and excel in contracting and become the contractor of choice to its clients. “We have recently announced that we are investing in a new crane vessel,” says Meij, “so with the acquisitions we have made and our investment in critical assets we have now reached a point where we can offer those services.” One positive consequence of the collapse in the price of oil is that many old oil and gas rigs are now being taken out of service and decommissioned, and this has become another strand of the Boskalis business development plan. “It’s like a reverse installation,” says Meij. “With the combination of our knowledge, experience and our assets we have a unique proposition in this field, too.” Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

N E W S

First US shale gas arrives in UK

he INEOS Insight arrived at the INEOS plant at Grangemouth in Scotland recently carrying 27,500m3 of ethane from US shale fields. This is the first ever export of ethane from US shale gas from the United States to the UK. “This is a hugely important day for INEOS and the UK,” said Jim Ratcliffe, chairman and founder of INEOS. “We are very excited about the kick-start shale gas can give to British manufacturing.” The Insight has “SHALE GAS FOR MANUFACTURING” emblazoned along its 180 metre length. The project has included the design and long term charter of eight Dragon class ships which will collectively create a virtual pipeline across the Atlantic, as well as connection to the new 300 mile Mariner East pipeline from the Marcellus shale in Western Pennsylvania to the Marcus Hook deep water terminal near Philadelphia, together with new export facilities and storage tanks. To receive the gas, INEOS has built the largest ethane gas storage tank in the UK at Grangemouth in Scotland, and will use the ethane from US shale gas in its gas

INEOS has built the largest ethane gas storage tank in the UK at Grangemouth shale to our sites in Europe,” added Ratcliffe. “This is a world first and I am incredibly proud of everyone involved in it. I believe that INEOS is one of very few companies in the world that could have successfully pulled this off.”

INEOS is now committed to working with Scottish Enterprise to turn Grangemouth into a manufacturing hub for Scotland. “In 2013 our immediate hope for Grangemouth was survival,” said John McNally, CEO of INEOS O&P UK. “With the advent of US shale gas, we are delighted that not only will the site be profitable in 2016 but that we are in a position to extend these benefits to chemical manufacturing and industry in general. Grangemouth has the potential to provide the base and incubator for new manufacturing enterprises that can use our US ethane feedstock, world class facilities and energy supply to compete with the best in the world.”

Prime Meridian Docks Ghana

Limited has been granted Free Zone Service Enterprise status by the Ghana Free Zones Board to support its ship and rig repair and maintenance activities in the port of Takoradi, Ghana. “The granting of Free Zone Enterprise Status improves our value proposition as a shipyard in West Africa, enabling us to offer our customers competitive pricing and a more efficient service delivery due to the minimal customs procedures for imports of spares and parts,” said Stanley R K Ahorlu, managing director of Prime Meridian Docks.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

cracker, both as a fuel and as a feedstock. “We are nearing the end of a hugely ambitious project that has taken us five years and cost $2 billion, as we begin supply of ethane from

The company was awarded a 25 year concession in 2015 to operate a repair and maintenance facility in Takoradi Port by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority. A free zone enterprise has the advantage of dutyfree imports and other tax incentives for a period of 10 years.

News

ABB to dismantle former Milford Haven refinery

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Suncor Energy has

BB has been awarded a contract to support the dismantling of a former refinery in Milford Haven, South Wales. The Milford Haven Refinery once produced 108k barrels per day, but ceased production in November 2014. Approximately 60 per cent of the process units will now be dismantled and rebuilt at an existing facility outside the UK. This project started in July 2016 and is planned to be completed in the next two years. ABB Consulting has been appointed as the project construction design and management (CDM) principal designers. The team will work closely with the dismantling contractor, Waste Recycling & Decommissioning Ltd, to identify and manage the hazards during the execution

of the project. Steve Andrew, demolition and remediation manager at ABB Consulting explained the challenges surrounding the project: “The refinery has been shut down for some time now, and although it has been decommissioned, there always remains a risk of a residual level of contamination. Thorough checks will need to be carried out to ensure the works can

be completed safely. “Due to the site’s scale and complexity ABB will need to work closely with the client and WRD to ensure this project is completed successfully. This will involve detailed planning and preparation to develop safe systems of work, to ensure the project is completed within the agreed schedule whilst achieving world class SHE performance.”

Rosneft, BP and Schlumberger sign technology agreements

osneft, BP and Schlumberger have agreed to collaborate on seismic research and development. Rosneft will join as an equal partner in BP’s ongoing project with Schlumberger’s seismic business, WesternGeco, to develop innovative cableless onshore seismic acquisition technology. The technology aims to revolutionize the design and acquisition of 2D and 3D seismic surveys, which in turn will improve subsurface imaging and the efficiency of exploration, appraisal and field development. “These agreements turn the page in the development of upstream technologies,” said Rosneft CEO, Igor Sechin. “By teaming up with such industry leaders as BP and Schlumberger we are bound to succeed.” The project envisages an initial two-year period to complete the development of a seismic acquisition system. BP and Rosneft will have preferential access to this technology for

an initial period, after which Schlumberger will have the exclusive rights to market the system. The agreements were signed at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok, Russia, by Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin and President of BP Russia David Campbell. Schlumberger was represented by President for Russia and Central Asia Gokhan Saygi.

reached a multi-year agreement with WestJet to fly employees and contractors to and from its oil sands operations in Northern Alberta, beginning in early November. WestJet will fly between Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, Kelowna, Saskatoon, and Fort McMurray and Suncor’s operations in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, Alberta. The agreement will involve more than 100 weekly flights. *

Trident Maritime Systems has completed

the previously announced acquisition of Callenberg Technology Group from Wilhelmsen Maritime Services AS. Callenberg designs, assembles, integrates, and supports HVAC, electrical energy management, and insulation systems for commercial and government vessels around the world. The company is headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden and employs approximately 900 employees in 14 countries. Trident is a portfolio company of middle-market private equity firm JF Lehman & Company. * Slower growth in the size of the shipping fleet will reduce the shortage of officers over the coming years, according to the latest Manning report published by global shipping consultancy Drewry. The global shipping fleet – encompassing all sectors except the non-cargo carrying ship types, such as tugs and passenger ships – is expected to rise by a mere 300 vessels through 2016-2020. As a result, the shortage in officer supply is forecast to reduce from 20,900 at the end of 2015 to 7,700 by the end of 2020.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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Harris Pye completes repairs during demobilisation of Ocean Endeavor

he Harris Pye Engineering Group has successfully completed repair works during the two-stage multimillion dollar Diamond Offshore demobilisation project for the semi-sub rig Ocean Endeavor, which completed its contract in the Black Sea in January 2016. The initial phase of the repair work, which started in December 2015 while the rig was offshore Constanta, Romania, involved cleaning

Additional work awarded to Harris Pye in Romania was blasting and painting of four primary column ballast tanks. During the surface preparation, steel renewal was added to the project - steel frames, piping, access trunks etc, out of which approx 24 tons of steel work was completed in Constanta. The blasting of all four tanks back to white metal was completed, two tanks received a first coat of paint and two tanks were

“The Harris Pye project team had a very methodical and professional approach” of mud, brine, base oil and skimmer tanks. Steel repairs were carried out on a main column blister. The removal of three Seatrax crane pedestals, which included the supply and installation of internal steel stiffening to the pedestals, guides and jacking points, plus handling trunnions, were all required prior to cold cutting of the pedestal which coincided with the arrival of the heavy lift crane to remove them.

fully coated before Ocean Endeavor departed from Romania to Fincantieri Shipyard in Palermo, Italy via a pre-booked scheduled heavy lift vessel. “The project was not without its challenges, but we relish those,” explains Harris Pye’s chief technical officer, Chris David. “Painting and blasting of the four ballast tanks had to be performed within a one month period. An additional 40 tonnes of

steel was required to ensure the work on the tanks was completed within the required timeframe; this had to be brought in from other parts of Europe. “Once Ocean Endeavor reached Palermo, the Harris Pye repair team mobilised to work on the remaining steel repairs, and painting of the ballast tanks, including an additional contract to repair a section of column diagonal brace. All works were completed on schedule. “The six-month long project enabled us to use specialist equipment including a 40 cubic meter per minute high pressure oil free compressor (no oil fumes in the compressed air) which worked 24/7; and Falch 2500 bar hydro blasting equipment.” “The Harris Pye project team had a very methodical and professional approach to all the projects awarded to them,” stated Diamond Offshore Project Manager Dhaval Mehta. “All projects were completed in a timely manner to the satisfaction of Diamond Offshore’s stringent standards.”

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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Energy sector a prime target for cyber-attacks, warns World Energy Council

new report from The World Energy Council reveals that energy companies have seen a massive increase in the number of successful cyberattacks over the past year. Because of the critical role it plays in a modern economy, the energy sector is an attractive target for cyber-attacks aimed at disrupting operations. In a worst case scenario these attacks can result in infrastructure shut down, triggering economic and financial disruptions or even loss of life and massive environmental damage. The report, The road to resilience: managing cyber

risks, published by the Council in collaboration with Swiss Re Corporate Solutions and Marsh & McLennan Companies, was launched at the Energy Day in Berlin, Germany, on 29 September. The report investigates how cyber risks can be managed taking into account the changing nature of the energy industry and energy infrastructure. “Cyber threats are among the top issues keeping energy leaders awake at night in Europe and North America,” said Christoph Frei, secretary general of The World Energy Council. “Over the past three years, we have seen a rapid change from

we think about integrated infrastructure and supply chain management.” The report makes a range of recommendations for the industry, for governments and the insurance and finance sectors. Policymakers, it says, must stimulate the introduction of standards and support information sharing. The insurance sector needs to develop appropriate cyber insurance products and understand better how their existing portfolios are impacted by cyber incidents. In analysing energy sector information in detail, they must help companies to better quantify their cyber risks. Energy companies must

“Cyber threats are among the top issues keeping energy leaders awake at night in Europe and North America” zero awareness to headline presence. As a result, more than 30 countries have put in place ambitious cyber plans and strategies, considering cyber threats as a persistent risk to their economy. Over the coming years we expect cyber risks to increase further and change the way

get used to the fact that cyber now poses the same kind of risk to large infrastructures as a flood or a fire. The road to resilience: managing cyber risks is the third in a series of reports addressing the need for more investment against emerging risks.

S&P Global Platts acquires PIRA Energy Group

&P Global Platts, provider of information and benchmark prices for the commodities and energy markets, has successfully completed its acquisition of global energy market analyst PIRA Energy Group, originally announced on 4 August 2016. The purchase, which extends S&P Global Platts’ energy analytical capabilities by enhancing its oil offering and strengthening its position in the natural gas and power markets, received necessary regulatory approvals and closed on 15 September.

Financial terms were not disclosed. Founded in 1976, New York-based PIRA Energy provides over 500 energy and commodity customers in 60 countries with a broad range of energy research and forecasting products and services. Customers spanning oil and gas companies, traders, refiners, pipeline and industrial companies, financial organizations and governments use PIRA’s research, forecast data and consulting expertise to undertake fundamental analysis and modelling of the global energy markets. Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

News

Damen Shiprepair Van Brink Rotterdam repairs Jumbo Javelin heavy lift crane vessel

amen Shiprepair Van Brink Rotterdam has completed a three-week repair project on the Jumbo Javelin, a DP2 heavy lift crane vessel owned and

steel specialist Niron Staal Amsterdam. Additional works included a modification to an existing tweendeck to make it more suitable for its purpose, and the repair and repositioning

“The project was an unexpected repair” operated by long-standing Damen client Jumbo. The major aspect of the repair was the replacement of the frames of 15 box coolers. To minimise the time spent in dock, 12 of these were prefabricated prior to the Jumbo Javelin arriving at Van Brink, and the remaining three were built during the docking period. The majority of the steel work was performed by Damen Group company and

The price of new container equipment has been

falling for some time and is forecast to fall further during 2016, according to the latest edition of the Container Census report published by global shipping consultancy Drewry. The container equipment index price at the end of 2015 was $1,450 per CEU equivalent (or 20ft standard), down from $1,900 a year earlier.

of the exhaust pipe stack. The lifeboats also underwent routine maintenance. The 145m vessel was built at Damen Shipyards Galati in 2004, along with three similar vessels for the same owner. Together, the Jumbo Javelin, Fairplayer, Fairpartner and Jumbo Jubilee make up the Jumbo J-Class fleet. As well as general heavy-lifting assignments – the Javelin recently transported two,

large accommodation modules from Croatia to Cameroon – the four ships are active in offshore O&G and wind projects, including installing transition pieces for wind turbines. The Jumbo Javelin previously spent 50 days in 2014 at Damen Shiprepair Rotterdam for repairs and her second special survey. “The project was an unexpected repair,” said Jeroen van Kralingen, superintendent at Jumbo. “Damen Shiprepair Van Brink Rotterdam was a convenient location given the position of the ship at the time, and they offered a good price. We have worked with Damen Shiprepair before, but this was our first time at Van Brink. We found the cooperation to be excellent and the quality of the work first class.”

The global container equipment fleet amounted to 37.6 million teu at the end of 2015, having increased in size by 3.8%, or 1.36 million teu during the year. This increase was lower than at any time previously, apart from 2009 when the box fleet actually shrank, and was prompted by the weakening state of the global economy and a further decline in trade demand.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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News

LNG market needs more vessels than currently on order Despite the current weakness in LNG shipping rates,

New vessel monitoring system at Lerwick Harbour

erwick Port Authority has inaugurated a new vessel monitoring system with the latest technology to improve the handling of ship movements at the busy Shetland port. Transas, a world-leader in harmonised integrated solutions for the maritime industry, has installed the system across four sites covering the port area – Port Control in the main building and three

“The investment in the VMS is just one of several projects expanding the port’s infrastructure at a time when we are welcoming larger vessels – for example, the biggest cruise ship yet at Lerwick arrived this week.” The modernising VMS project, including the Transas contract, telecommunications and civil works, cost £450,000. As part of a wider project to refurbish the Authority’s

“The VMS is already a great asset for Port Control in handling shipping movements and providing navigational assistance” remote stations, at Rova Head north of Lerwick and Maryfield and Kirkabister, on the island of Bressay, monitoring the northern approaches, inner harbour and southern approaches, respectively. Fibre and microwave links supply data back to port control. “The VMS is already a great asset for Port Control in handling shipping movements and providing navigational assistance,” said Captain Alexander Simpson, the Port Authority’s Deputy Harbourmaster. “It combines data from multiple sensors in very user-friendly vector chart operator display units, extends Port Control’s VHF radio range, displays weather information and linked cameras deliver CCTV coverage – all enhancing the efficiency and safety of operations.

office in Albert Building, the port control room in Albert Building has been completely renovated, including a new server room. Transas closely collaborated with the Authority to design a new layout for the service within the building and contracted local support from H Williamson & Sons for installation and ongoing maintenance. As part of its comprehensive customer support programme, Transas also provided the Authority with an operator training course and maintenance service plan. Conversion of the ground floor of Albert Building to a new reception and offices is underway, for completion by yearend as part of the phased refurbishment programme.

global shipping consultancy Drewry maintains its bullish long-term outlook for LNG shipping and believes that the market will require more vessels than listed on the current orderbook, according to the latest edition of its LNG Forecaster report. The impact of weak rates is clearly visible on falling newbuilding activity as only four LNG vessels had been ordered in the first six months of the year. By comparison, an average of 44 vessels per annum were ordered over the prior five-year period. Continuing weak ordering is expected to slow fleet growth from 2019, exactly at the time by when almost all of the currently underconstruction LNG plants will come online. Drewry reiterates that the long-term outlook for LNG shipping is still strong and the limited new ordering is not based on market fundamentals. “The reason for our optimism is that almost 125 million tonnes of capacity is currently being built and there are plans for more. As a majority of the supply from plants under-construction has been contracted on long term agreements, it is likely that LNG will be traded so requiring more vessels,” said Shresth Sharma, Drewry’s lead LNG shipping analyst.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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DSM Demolition planning to create decommissioning facility on Orkney Islands

SM Demolition, one of the UK’s leading demolition and decommissioning companies, is planning to create a major development site on Orkney to take advantage of the expected boom in North Sea oil and gas decommissioning work. With a growing number of North Sea oil and gas fields heading towards the end of their production lives, combined with the falling oil prices, decommissioning presents a major economic opportunity for Scotland. Industry analysts estimate that 144 rigs will be decommissioned between 2019 and 2026, accounting for a spend of between $44 and $51 billion – and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has already said that ‘Scotland can play a leading role in the development of the decommissioning market’. DSM’s proposed facility will be at Lyness, on the east coast of Hoy. “Our vision is for the Lyness site to become the exemplar decommissioning facility for the North Sea,” said DSM’s Graham Crowe.

“The project has potential to create a significant number of local jobs and local companies will secure further spin-off benefits from supplying support services. The substantial, long-term opportunity provided by decommissioning offers an economic driver to provide employment and community benefits to Hoy and the rest of Orkney for many years.”

After exploring a number of sites along the east and west coasts of Scotland, DSM identified Lyness as an ideal location because of its existing harbour and safe, deep water anchorage, combined with access to the oil and gas fields through Scapa Flow. The design of the facility will be undertaken following extensive consultation with potential

business clients, in particular, oil field operators. DSM, established in 1988 and headquartered in Birmingham, has extensive experience in the decommissioning of steel structures in sensitive locations across the UK. The company expects to make a formal planning application later this year with the facility scheduled to open in 2018.

Rising refinery capacity dents tanker shipping outlook

steep rise in refinery capacity in the Middle East, the world’s crude oil production hub, will diminish oil trade growth and with it prospects for tanker shipping, according to the latest edition of the Tanker Forecaster, published by global shipping consultancy Drewry. The global crude oil trade surged last year on the back of strong growth in oil demand and stocking activity, and is expected to continue to expand strongly over the next 18 months, supported by an anticipated rise in US imports. But once US crude oil production stabilises and import growth recedes, the global oil trade will be heavily

dependent on demand growth in Asia, where refinery capacity is scheduled to expand in the coming years. A recovery in US domestic shale oil extraction, a likely scenario from 2017, could dampen tanker shipping tonnage demand further. As a result, Drewry forecasts that global seaborne crude oil demand growth will slow to an annual rate of 1.2% in 2019-21 from 3% currently. “Slower trade growth by 2019-21 will negatively impact tonnage demand, which in turn will keep freight rates under pressure despite the expected slowdown in fleet growth,” said Rajesh Verma, Drewry’s lead analyst for tanker shipping.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

News

Damen makes opening move in decommissioning market

amen Shipyards Group has announced its latest concept design: the Damen Decommissioning Series. The vessel will specialise in three core areas of the oil and gas decommissioning sector: topside decommissioning, offshore platform removal and subsea cleaning and removal. The design is based on in-house research carried out at Damen by one of its undergraduate interns. A recent internship position was offered to Justin Rietveld, studying Maritime Technology at the Rotterdam Mainport University of Applied Sciences. His brief was to investigate the potential niche markets for new vessel designs in the oil and gas decommissioning sector. “This research started off with the idea of developing a decommissioning vessel based on Damen’s existing portfolio,” said Rietveld. “But we soon found that this market needs more. There are many different activities within the decommissioning sector.

US Silica completes acquisition of NBR Sand

This vessel can support a vast number of those. We have developed a concept to cover the bigger part of this new and exciting market.” The vessel’s monohull design has a split stern, a characteristic that will come into play during platform removal operations, explains Rietveld:

“There are many different activities within the decommissioning sector. This vessel can support a vast number of those” “This ship will be able to reverse up to a jacket, where it will be ballasted to sink below the platform. After deballasting, the vessel will rise up to pick up the platform.” Preliminary estimations of the vessel’s capabilities suggest that it will be able to perform decommissioning of fixed platforms up to 1,600 tonnes in weight,

which represents a significant amount of global fixed platforms, and over half of those in the North Sea. In order to deliver maximum flexibility to clients, the concept design includes modular add-ons which allow the vessel to be used in activities other than the decommissioning market. These include the (temporary) installation of a crane or a helideck. Functionality can be further boosted with the addition of accommodation modules to increase personnel capacity. Another option will be the addition of a temporary platform to create a solid stern. “We initiated this project because we felt that we can make a difference in this sector – and it has certainly generated some significant ideas,” said Lucas Zaat, Damen manager design & proposal offshore & transport. “The decommissioning market is close to our current activities. We are therefore planning to continue with this project and assign specialised personnel to implement it.”

US Silica Holdings has completed the acquisition of the NBR Sand unit of New Birmingham, Inc., a leading regional sand mining company based in Tyler, Texas. The low-cost, state-of-the-art facility has annual capacity of just over two million tons and produces 40/70 mesh and 100 mesh silica sand used in hydraulic fracturing. US Silica is headquartered in Frederick, Maryland, and currently operates nine oil and gas sand production plants and nine industrial sand production plants. Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

News

Production started at new gas fields in Medimurje project, Croatia

OL’s Croatian subsidiary INA has started test production in two of its gas fields in Croatia, following a US$64 million (HRK 450m) investment program in the Međimurje project. INA has begun the test production of gas at two of its fields, Vučkovec

and Zebanec, as part of its Međimurje project. Production is expected to begin at the third field, Vukanovec, in early 2017. Incremental production is estimated at around 2,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in H2 2016 and it is expected to further increase in 2017. INA has invested US$64m (HRK 450 million) in the project. Five production wells were drilled and equipped along with a total of 100 kilometers of new pipeline. Cumulative yield of gas is estimated to be around 1 billion cubic meters and the vast majority is to be exploited by 2024. An additional main objective is that the carbon dioxide being extracted from the fields in the Međimurje project will be transported

to the Žutica and Ivanić oil basins via pipeline. It will then be reinjected into the ground in the frame of INA’s ongoing EOR project. Dr. Berislav Gašo, MOL Group’s E&P COO commented: “The Međimurje project, along with our comprehensive production optimization program in CEE, is yet another important part of MOL Group’s efforts to maximize the extraction of profitable barrels of hydrocarbons, which helps to ensure that our portfolio is creating value even in the current oil price environment. The expected incremental production of around 2,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day will keep onshore hydrocarbon production in Croatia on its growing trend.”

L&N Scotland celebrates 20 year milestone

&N Scotland, an Aberdeenbased supplier of specialised manufacturing, welding and engineering services, is celebrating its 20th year in the subsea oil and gas industry. Formed in 1996, primarily as a supplier of valve and actuator packages to the oil and gas services sector, L&N Scotland has developed from its early days with its core competencies now focused around turnkey spool manufacture, design engineering, control system applications and innovative product integration. The company has completed a number of strategic initiatives this year, including the expansion of its engineering facilities and personnel. The L&N Scotland facility, based within the Kirkhill Industrial Estate in Dyce, Aberdeen, now comprises segmented ferrous, non-ferrous, assembly and test workshop areas as well as comprehensive design, engineering, sales and operations offices, with supporting yard and warehouse space. “We are proud of the fact that many of our clients have retained business with us since we started trading in 1996,” said chairman

Alastair Chalmers, “and we have been able to collaborate with them on various industry challenges using innovation and high impact ‘design to manufacture’ principles to drive efficiency and cost reduction. “Through the introduction of lean manufacturing techniques and the dedication of our personnel we have developed and expanded both our manufacturing and service offering. We will continue to implement these techniques and have set strategies to continue growth over the years to come. I believe that through this we will continue to be successful in our ventures.” Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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NAVTOR takes maritime lead in EU autonomous vessel project

“We believe autonomous vessels will be a reality within the next 10 to 15 years”

AVTOR will spend the next three years helping EU preparations for the development of autonomous vessels. The Norwegian firm, a global leader in e-navigation technology and services, has been selected to represent the maritime industry in the ENABLE project – conceived to prove, verify and validate the safety of autonomous vehicles in Europe. NAVTOR has now received funding to investigate the concept of ‘shore-based bridges’, a crucial steppingstone on the path to autonomy. ENABLE was originally proposed by the car industry, before the EU widened its scope to take in the full spectrum of transport, including ships. NAVTOR was chosen to represent the maritime sector’s efforts due to its expertise and innovation in the field of navigation, planning and monitoring. The firm’s technology currently connects vessels and shorebased facilities worldwide to optimise routes, safety, efficiency and overall fleet management. “It’s an honour to be selected as the sole

representative for our industry,” comments NAVTOR e-navigation project manager Bjørn Åge Hjøllo. NAVTOR’s role in ENABLE, which runs through to October 2019, will focus on testing the validity of the software element of a remote bridge concept. This will be built upon continuous data sharing between vessels and land, with key navigation functions migrating from the crew to office-based teams. Shore-based bridges will not be central to the day-to-day operation of autonomous vessels, but will be a vital part of their support infrastructure, allowing those onshore to take charge of individual ships when necessary. “We believe autonomous vessels will be a reality within the next 10 to 15 years,” Hjøllo states. “Shore-based bridges will be a vital part of realising that vision. “However, before that point there is work to be done. We can use our expertise with software, monitoring, planning, and the secure transfer of data between vessels as a platform to build upon. Together with actors

from sectors such as research institutes and the car industry, which has already made huge leaps forward in autonomy, we can accelerate the development of safe, reliable and innovative solutions for maritime. This is a long-term project with huge potential. We’re delighted to be taking the maritime lead.” NAVTOR launched the initiative with a pre-project meeting for 16 European experts, representing some of Europe’s leading research and development institutions, in its hometown Egersund last month. Other ENABLE participants include IBM, Philips Medical Systems, Renault, Tieto and Siemens. NAVTOR was established in 2011 and has since grown into a global e-navigation leader, with a network of offices in Norway, Russia, Japan, Sweden and Singapore. Its product portfolio includes advanced ENC services, publications, weather services, routing, and NavStation, the world’s first digital chart table, integrating all necessary navigation information onto one digital platform, with easy vessel to shore information exchange.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

Friction Testing for Helidecks:

Changing legislation

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Findlay Irvine As mandatory surface friction testing for helidecks is becoming more likely it is imperative that helideck operators and maintenance teams have the correct equipment in order to comply with the impending regulations. Recent research has identified set criteria for suitable friction testers to achieve in order to meet the new legislation, CAP 437. The minimum average surface friction value of 0.65 should be achieved across the area inside the touchdown/ positioning marking, outside the touchdown/ positioning marking and on the paint markings themselves. This should help to ensure that suitable levels of surface friction are available consistently at all helidecks and allow operators to monitor levels in order to take affective action when levels begin to drop and improve safety. Findlay Irvine has developed a continuous surface friction-measuring device, Helideck micro GripTester, which meets all the criteria required by the UK CAA. The simple to use software installed on the micro GripTester’s touch screen display guides the user through the friction test procedure with ease and stores the data straight onto the unit’s built in hard drive or directly onto a USB drive to allow for easy transfer of data. Helideck micro GripTester can be folded away easily and weighing in at only 23kg can easily be transported or stored making it a simple, efficient one-person operation. With the ability to consistently measure surface friction regardless of slope or incline the micro GripTester will give a true surface friction measurement regardless of the location from Airports, oilrigs to hospital helidecks. This unique machine is the only friction tester that is fully compliant with CAP 437 and is now being adopted as the go to machine for testing helidecks all over the world. The ease of use and ability to generate reports quickly are helping to increase the popularity of Findlay Irvine’s Helideck micro GripTester. For more information please contact: Rob Sims Sales Director +44 (0)1968 671200 sales@findlayirvine.com

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

BRAZIL TOPS THE TABLE FOR UPSTREAM OIL & GAS PROJECTS

GlobalData report shows an estimated 13.3 billion barrels of commercially recoverable reserves from announced projects in offshore Brazil

razil may not have led the world on the Olympic medal table, but it is second to none when it comes to planned upstream oil and gas projects, with a staggering total of 40 developments scheduled to start operations by 2025, out of an anticipated total of 236 worldwide, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData. The company’s latest report* shows that the UK and the US follow Brazil, with 29 and 21 planned projects respectively. Key offshore planned projects around the world are expected to contribute an incremental 6.8 million barrels of oil per day in 2025, and 36.3 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas. Matthew Jurecky, GlobalData’s head of oil & gas research and consulting, explains: “The offshore commercial reserves in Brazil are second only to Russia, Iran, and Mozambique. GlobalData’s analysis shows there are an estimated 13.3 billion barrels of commercially recoverable reserves from announced projects in offshore Brazil. To put this in perspective, planned offshore projects in Norway, United States, United Kingdom and Nigeria total 12.9 billion barrels of commercially recoverable reserves altogether.” While the National Iranian Oil Company is expected to lead in terms of production volumes, Petroleo Brasileiro S.A (Petrobras) will lead globally in terms of project count, with 35 planned, of which 34 are crude and one is natural gas. Petroleos Mexicanos and Chevron Corporation occupy second and third places with nine and eight projects planned, respectively.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

Offshore analysis GlobalData’s report also states that in terms of proposed capital expenditure, US$871.7 billion is estimated to be spent bringing planned offshore projects online globally, of which US$500.5 billion is expected to be spent between 2016 and 2025. Brazil will also lead in this regard, with capital investment of US$116.2 billion over the forecast period. Petrobras will have the highest share of spending among companies in the global offshore oil and gas industry, and is expected to spend US$90.9 billion on key planned projects over the next 10 years.

*Q2 2016 Production and Capital Expenditure Outlook for Key Planned Upstream Projects in the Global Offshore Industry The report provides information on oil and gas production outlook by key countries and companies in the global offshore industry over the forecast period from 2016 through to 2025. It was built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research, and in-house analysis conducted by GlobalData’s team of industry experts.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

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On site Heavy lift Dockside Cranage with Maximum weight and radius of 800 Ton at 11 metres / 500 Ton at 24 metres and 300 Ton at 28 Metres radius, including Material and Product handling Services

Please contact us at any time regarding property development, project work or facility usage

Tel: +44 (0) 191 234 4038 Email: headoffice@shepherdoffshore.com Web: www.shepherdoffshore.com

Offshore Technology Park Newcastle upon Tyne

A unique offshore and marine cargo handling terminal with a world class reputation in service, cost effectiveness, efficiency and flexibility. • Deep water terminal • Heavy / Abnormal / Regular lift specialists • Dockside cranage SWL 325T (at 24.25 metres radius) • Heavy load out access routes & quay capability • Rigging fabrication & seafastening services • Storage solutions • Warehousing • Freight forwarding services • Project specific support To see how you could benefit from our unique service’s please call us on:- + 44 (0) 191 262 9614 Tel: Email: Web:

+44 (0) 191 262 9614 headoffice@shepherdoffshore.com www.shepherdoffshore.com

executive Interview

SID HYNES: EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN OCEANEX INC Captain Sid Hynes is Executive Chairman of Oceanex Inc, providing intermodal transportation services to the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. What would you consider your greatest achievement at Oceanex?

Prior to acquiring Oceanex in 2007, the company was a public income trust. Since that time, we have focused on changing the corporate culture of the organization to a more entrepreneurial approach to management, embracing a culture of accountability. We have taken great strides in educating our management personnel on the merits of shifting from a reactionary approach to a more proactive approach to management.

How has your experience prepared you for your role?

I started work at a young age, beginning as a second-mate on a ship when I was 19 and advancing to become a ship’s captain at 21. This certainly required study, focus and commitment to get to that stage at a young age. As a master mariner you have to know how to demonstrate leadership. In order to take charge of a ship you must have strong managerial and leadership skills. Throughout my career, I have combined these skills with a great deal of determination and applied them to whatever challenges have been presented to me.

Please tell us about the key values of your organization:

At Oceanex, safety is our highest and first priority in

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everything that we do. We are focused on the protection of our people, property and the environment. Excellence and reliability are the foundation of our quality management system, which is focused on continuously improving our work practices to ensure we provide a reliable, consistent service for our customers.

What makes Oceanex different from the competition?

Reliability and on-time performance, competitive transit times, pricing and a complete transportation solution are the foundation of our leading market position. Marine transport is the only option for getting cargo into Newfoundland and Oceanex is a scheduled liner providing intermodal transportation services to the province. We provide customers with a complete service with cargo pick up anywhere in North America and delivery to any point in Newfoundland, as well as being a link to international carriers through the Ports of Halifax and Montreal. Additionally, Oceanex offers customers equipment and services required for their specific needs and the transportation of specialty products.

What services can your clients expect from the Oceanex brand?

Oceanex serves a multitude of customers and industries with various requirements. In response, we must have the ability to

Executive Interview

Image credit to Kenneth J. Harvey

handle large volume as well as over dimensional and project cargo, while maintaining a schedule to support the ‘just in time’ requirements of supply chain customers. Oceanex has a fleet of equipment to do that with three ice-class vessels operating on year-round, fixed-day weekly departures from Montreal and Halifax to Newfoundland. In addition to the marine services, Oceanex coordinates the movement of cargo to and from its piers through its inlands division. Cargo can be picked up around the continent and consolidated at either Montreal or Halifax for shipment to the province. Through a combination of direct and agent networks, Oceanex is capable of handling anything from: full container loads ranging from 20’ to 53’, LTL (less than full load), project cargo requiring standard and specialised equipment, commercial vehicles, new cars, heavy equipment, heavy lifts and both heated and refrigerated container/trailer service. Requirements are predominantly for 53’ units that offer the same capacity as highway trailers and have become the unit of choice for many shippers in the domestic trade.

Do you foresee exploring new markets over the next five years?

Our primary focus is service to Newfoundland. Having said that, our management team is always looking for growth opportunities, specifically with respect to the marine, offshore, and transportation sectors. Oceanex has recently expanded to offering 3PL services for

its clients to ensure we are better able to provide all of their transportation requirements.

Your memorable shipping experience:

My most memorable shipping experience was perhaps my most challenging experience. I was captain of the dynamic positioning diving support vessel responsible for locating and completing the survey of the sunken oil rig Ocean Ranger in extremely harsh conditions.

Your favourite ship:

I wouldn’t say that I have a favourite ship as I have had the pleasure of working on a number of state of the art vessels. I am particularly proud, however, of the Oceanex Connaigra (pictured above). I was closely involved in the building of this vessel from development of the specification until it joined the Oceanex service in October 2013.

Paul González-Morgan Editor, Gibraltar Shipping Email: shippinggib@gmail.com Twitter: @ShippingGib Web: www.gibraltar-shipping.com Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

RUSSIAN OIL & GAS OUTLOOK BOOSTED BY ARCTIC PROJECTS Russia drives production growth in Former Soviet Union thanks to a strong pipeline of new projects, several of which could reach peak production as early as 2017.

total of 24 key crude and natural gas projects are expected to start operations in the Former Soviet Union (FSU) region by 2025, with Russia and Kazakhstan driving production in the region, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData. The company’s report states that Rosneft Oil Company is expected to lead the FSU in terms of operatorship of planned projects, as it is responsible for nine, of which eight will be

“The five planned projects going into commercial production in Russia this year illustrate intensified capital investment”

conventional crude projects. According to the latest forecast, key planned projects in the region are expected to contribute 2.1 million barrels of oil per day (mmbd) to global crude production in 2025, and 10.4 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) to global gas production. Russia accounts for most of the planned oil and gas production in the FSU, with Gazprom contributing the highest production levels in the region by 2025. According to the GlobalData’s latest estimates, the company’s key planned assets are expected to contribute 1.7 million barrels

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of oil equivalent per day of production in 2025, followed by Rosneft Oil Company and Lukoil Oil Company. “The five planned projects going into commercial production in Russia this year illustrate intensified capital investment,” said Anna Belova, GlobalData’s senior analyst covering oil & gas, “and the large numbers of pre-drilled wells at each project will allow several of the fields to realize peak production as early as 2017. As is the case with most planned projects in Russia, the investments involved not only drilling campaigns and processing facilities, but also significant midstream components to connect crude in the Caspian Sea, Arctic North, and East Siberia with domestic and international consumers. Construction on pipelines and export infrastructure for the five planned projects saw rapid progress in the first half of 2016. Commercialization of these projects serves as evidence of the growth approach taken by Russian operators, rather than the freeze advocated by other crude producers.”

Arctic contribution

Russian president Vladimir Putin opened the Arctic Gate marine oil terminal on 25 May, providing access for Russia’s Arctic-sourced crude to both European and Asian markets.

Russian O&G outlook

The opening was specifically timed to coincide with the commencement of commercial oil production at the Novoportovskoye field, one of five major planned oil fields scheduled to come online by the end of the year in Russia. Their combined peak capacities promise to bring over 500,000 barrels per day of crude to the global market, according to GlobalData, indicating that the country’s two-year streak of record-breaking crude output is set to continue. The devaluation of the Russian rouble helped keep the country’s operators afloat as global crude prices plummeted over the past two years. With most capital expenditure (capex) and operating expenditure (opex) denominated in roubles, Russian operators effectively decreased their dollar-denominated costs, Belova observed, and when the rouble lost half of its value, they continued to generate dollar-based revenues from crude exports. Russia’s progressive taxation system, designed during the previous oil price run to capture the upside of high prices in the government vaults, further cushioned operators. When prices dropped, the Russian state took a large hit to its revenues, while Russian operators’ revenues decreased by a smaller margin. In terms of capital expenditure related to planned projects, GlobalData estimates Russia will lead the region with US$31.7 billion during

the 2016–2025 period, of which US$6.0 billion will be spent on the Kovyktinskoye project. “Just as some US operators have demonstrated their resilience to low crude prices by improving operational efficiency and productivity, and cutting production and overhead costs, their Russian counterparts have capitalized on their cost and tax advantages,” noted Belova. “In 2015, development drilling in Russia grew by 11.5% compared with 2014. Rosneft drilled 60% more horizontal wells in 2015 than in 2013, and had a higher total number of wells drilled, while its annual upstream capex demonstrated an overall

“The large numbers of predrilled wells at each project will allow several of the fields to realize peak production as early as 2017”

dollar-denominated decrease from US$10.36 billion to $7.48 billion. “Exploration drilling has dropped in Russia as it has globally,” concludes Belova, “but it has begun to rebound in 2016. The intensification of development activities and growing levels of exploration in Russia signals operators’ confidence with the new normal of the low-price environment.”

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

Introducing the Laser Bevel Tool.

Improve pipeline fit-up efficiency and increase weld integrity. HALF OPENING

WALL THICKNESS

BEVEL ANGLE

BEVEL RADIUS LAND LENGTH

ROOT THICKNESS

Example of a J-prep bevel is shown here. Tool not limited to J-prep bevels.

Prior to automatic welding, verifying the shape of a bevel is crucial. The new Laser Bevel Tool from OMS eliminates doubt about bevel compliance and provides pipeline engineers with an unrivalled insight into critical pipe bevel geometry. The tool can be deployed immediately after bevelling, prior to pipes being moved into production, and performs a complete scan of a pipe end within 16 seconds. This produces a 360 degree measurement profile. The operator receives a simple red or green, go / no-go indication with the option to investigate parameters in greater detail using bespoke software.

FEATURES INCLUDE:

· · ·

Accurate, repeatable results Pipe diameters of 6” to 48” Pipe wall thickness up to 45mm

CONSISTENTLY SAFER PIPELINES. OMS provides independent specialist pipeline inspection and fit-up services to the oil and gas industry. Over the last 10 years, the company has worked on all the major projects worldwide. In addition to this, the company manufactures a bespoke range of quality assurance hand tools to assist pipeline engineers.

For more information, contact OMS on info@omsmeasure.com or visit www.omsmeasure.com OMS UK Office Unit 9, M11 Business Link, Parsonage Lane, Stansted, Essex CM24 8GF +44 (0) 1279 656038

OMS US Office 701 N Post Oak, Suite 345, Houston TX 77024 +1 (832) 519 9421

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TIMM ROPES ENJOYS STRONG TIES WITH WILHELMSEN When Wilhelmsen Ship Services decided in 2015 to add ropemaker Timm Marine A/S with its 243 years of rope making history to its portfolio, the people at Timm say they couldn’t have found a better buyer.

hen the Timm team moved into their new home at the Wilhelmsen offices on the pier just outside Oslo, they felt like they were being welcomed into the family. “Everyone in Timm continued in WSS,” says product marketing manager for ropes, Veronika Aspelund, a 12 year Timm employee, now completing her first year with WSS. WSS was equally enthusiastic about Timm. Danny Ingemann, business director, Marine Products in WSS had this to say: “Ropes are an integral part of the maritime industry, and the segment was identified as a priority in the WSS Marine Product growth plan. Timm A/S quickly came out as a strong candidate with a relatively standardised portfolio and a well-positioned brand for both conventional and high-tech ropes. With Timm ropes and skilled employees now fully integrated in WSS, we are set to grow the business together.” Timm was originally founded in Oslo as Christiania Reeperbane in 1772, and was run by the Torgensen family for two generations. In 1857, sailmaker and partner William Timm acquired the firm and renamed it Timms Reperbane. The Timm family ran the company for another two generations, navigating through the transition from sail to steam, and eventually enlisting professional management. The company transitioned again, from natural to synthetic fibres, surviving major shipping crises and moving its main production from Oslo to Slovakia in 2003. Veronika Aspelund was working in logistics from Austria, helping Timm move its machines from the factory in Oslo to the new one in Slovakia, when she was recruited to the Timm head office in Norway. “We all felt like we were a part of the history of Timm,” she says. “The ropewalk was still at the old offices in Oslo. You could go inside and see the old machines, so the history was with you all the time. It wasn’t just work, it became a part of your life.”

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Timm Ropes Building on history

“Rope is a traditional industry,” she continues. “Constructions going back to ancient Egypt are still used today. And even though machines do the winding and braiding now, we still need people to perform certain tasks like splicing. There is no machine that can do those jobs.” From the roots of rope, a modern, hightech industry has grown up. Machines have taken over the bulk of rope production from humans, just as synthetic materials have taken over for natural fibres in the ropes themselves. “All the ropes we produce are made from plastics of different kinds, and constructed in different ways. There are so many ways to make rope. Our job is to discuss challenges with shipowners and try to find a solution that suits their needs,” says Veronika. One plastic in particular is currently doing good service for Timm and its clients. HMPE, or high modulus polyethylene, has

engines five minutes earlier, saving a single ship up to one hundred thousand dollars in fuel each year. As the example from cruise indicates, there are many factors that go into determining the proper rope for the job. Ship weight varies, vessels are getting bigger, there are special regulations for tankers and fuel terminals, and new requirements for the expanded Panama Canal. Weather conditions also influence needs, as some terminals and ports are more exposed than others. And there is a rope designed to meet each different requirement.

Learning the ropes

Integration with the extensive WSS system is giving Timm new opportunities through stronger networks and market knowledge, but there are also new challenges. “In Timm, everyone did a little bit of everything,” she says. “Now we have support staff specialising in sales, customer service and supply chain,

“In Timm, everyone did a little bit of everything. Now we have specialist support staff, but we still have to learn to work as a team” particularly attractive properties for rope. Timm’s trademark ACERA rope is stronger than steel, and 1/7 of the weight. Though not first on the market with HMPE ropes, Timm has been instrumental in expanding markets for the technology.

Follow the ships

The history of rope making in Norway is as old as the history of Norwegian shipping. “The rope industry was, and still is, local. Shipowners bought from local producers,” Veronika says. In Timm, careers were typically long, leading to long-term relationships with Norwegian shipowners, and following them into global markets. Timm now serves the biggest shipowners, and the biggest ships in the world, with customers like Maersk with its Triple-E class container ships, the Quantum Class ships of Royal Caribbean Cruises, and more world leaders like Teekay, BW, Höegh, Stolt-Nielsen, and The China Navigation Company. With bigger ships, come new challenges, and new solutions. “The biggest cruise vessels wanted conventional ropes, but they had to be so big to handle the weight that they were just too thick, heavy, and hard to handle,” Veronika explains. “We realised we could offer them ACERA ropes that were almost 60% thinner and so much lighter that they could handle two at a time.” This speeded up the mooring procedure, allowing ships to shut down their

but we still have to learn to work as a team.” Timm staff have been training the WWS network in the art of selling rope, a new feature in the WSS portfolio. Even transporting the ropes is a challenge, with their bulk and weight. But most important is to arrive at efficient logistics solutions, to streamline the flow of orders, and make the entire supply chain work as smoothly as possible. “We are learning to work together,” says Veronika. “The potential synergies between WSS and Timm are exciting. WSS has the best maritime supply network in the world, and now the same people dealing with existing products are the ones selling rope. Their customers can order rope together with other products, from the same supplier.” After a year together, the WSS buy-up of Timm has been embraced by customers of both companies, and by the employees. Though Timm was of course much smaller, Wilhelmsen is also a Norwegian family company with a long history, and strong values: “We feel welcome here, and there are so many nice people,” says Veronika Aspelund. “They really take care of you!” But she knows the importance of reassuring loyal Timm customers that some things will never change. Quality and personal service remain at the heart of their business: “Our customers are happy to know that we are still here. What they liked about Timm is now in WSS.”

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THE STATE OF THE OIL & GAS INDUSTRY As part of Petroplan’s 40th anniversary celebrations, the specialist oil and gas recruiter has teamed up with Professor Jonathan Redfern, head of petroleum geoscience and basin studies at the University of Manchester, to discuss the last half century in oil and gas, the current state of the market, and the key challenges facing the sector in the future. What is the key difference between the oil and gas industry in 1976 and the present day?

The biggest change is undoubtedly the significant advances in technology that have driven exploration and production, and also allowed increases in recovery from existing oil fields. Everything from hard engineering, to the ability to drill in ultra-deep water, and the ability to drill quicker and more efficiently and safely, has changed. Advances in computing power have allowed us to image the subsurface and manipulate data, and combined with new software to visualise and manage data, this has revolutionised the industry. The fundamentals haven’t changed, but these jump step advances in data acquisition and interpretation, and the ability to engineer solutions, has unlocked huge global resources. Fifteen years ago people talked about the impending ‘peak oil’ crisis, and said that the world was running out of oil. We had 40 years proven oil reserves then in 2000. Now, 15 years later, we have over 50 years of proven supply, probably more if you include unconventionals, and no one talks of peak oil anymore. But it isn’t only technology that has transformed the sector - our scientific understanding of the petroleum system has greatly increased. How

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oil and gas is generated and trapped, and our ability to model this, has reduced uncertainty and risk. Of course, we have largely found the ‘easy oil and gas’. The large traps have been drilled in most basins, so it is getting harder to discover big fields. But there are still significant volumes left to find, or to extract more efficiently, to go back in and find ways to economically produce small stranded oil fields or to go deeper and open up new, as yet, unknown plays. And that will require leading technology, applying the best ideas, and importantly, the best brains. That is one thing that is still unchanged from 1976 - the best minds deliver the best results.

Is there a difference in the kind of oil and gas being used these days?

Fundamentally no, but there is a difference in the reservoirs we can extract oil and gas from. With the advent of drilling technology to fracture the reservoirs (fracking) we can now target both conventional reservoirs that have poor quality (tight reservoirs) and unconventional reservoirs, which are rocks that mainly were the source of the oil, and still contain large volumes of oil within them that hasn’t managed to escape out. We can now drill into these rocks, which in many basins cover vast areas, and extract the oil or gas, albeit at lower rates (barrels produced per

Oil & Gas Industry

Drilling at Johan Sverdup- Photo Kjetil Eide - Statoil

day). Given the size of the resource we can tap into, this has made a significant impact on global resources. It has brought the US back to the top table of the world’s leading oil producers.

What has impacted these changes?

The driver is demand for energy, which has increased annually. We currently use in excess of 90 million barrels per day (30+ billion barrels per year), and world energy consumption is expected to increase by 40+% in the next 25 years. To put that in context, our global daily oil production

by hand, maps all drawn by hand) or even telecommunications. It’s hard to imagine now. The key challenges were the ability to image the subsurface, and the seismic data available was poor and limited to 2D individual lines. Today we have made huge improvements, with the ability to acquire 3D seismic volumes or shoot deep seismic to the Moho, and using modern computing power to process that data to image much more clearly the rocks at depth. It’s literally like wiping the steam off a window and being able to see through. Of course it’s not always clear,

“There is no viable alternative to oil and gas to meet global energy needs” equates to draining the equivalent of a large oilfield every day, or using the same amount of oil that has been found in the North Sea every year.

there are still huge challenges, as we drill deeper or in more complex areas, but our ability to deploy leading technology is a huge advantage.

What were the key challenges faced by the oil and gas sector in the 1970s?

What are the key challenges now, and what will be the challenges moving forward?

In the 70s it was a new world. Drilling in ever harsher conditions, and opening up new basins like the North Sea, unknown geology, poor data and in an age before significant computing power (no workstation, seismic interpreted

Moving forward we have many key challenges, largely driven by a falling oil price in the short term. Companies face the combined economic challenges of making projects viable, cutting

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Oil & Gas Industry

“The key to unlocking new resources, and to reducing risks and uncertainty, is not technology or software, it’s having the right personnel”

costs and reducing waste. But there are also challenges in increasing exploration success. A dry well (failure that only finds water) is a waste, and there is a drive to improve our geological understanding of basins. The key to unlocking new resources, and to reducing risks and uncertainty, isn’t driven by technology or software, it’s having the right personnel. It’s about a mix of key experienced staff to guide and avoid making errors that have been made before, to mentor and manage, and bright new graduates to bring in new ideas, the drive, energy and passion. When the oil price is high, there is a tendency to drill first, but we have seen this yields poor results. There isn’t a short cut to understanding the geology, it requires time to assess the data and evaluate. Many companies have failed to appreciate that small cost cuts in geology and geophysics can result in a large increase in uncertainty because the work just can’t be done as well, and that results in dry wells, the costs of which dwarf the initial savings made to reduce staff costs. You can only cost cut so far, and then companies need to begin the cycle of income generation, of adding value, and that means exploration or better production, and that means getting the right people. It means engaging with universities that nurture the raw talent of new graduates and also develop the new ideas and concepts. Those at the cutting edge of funding new research always lead the pack. Those companies that are quick off the mark to rebuild and drive forward will be the successful ones.

What does the future of energy look like to you?

Despite the drive for reduction in CO2, and to meet climate change, which will be undoubtedly a challenge for oil companies to manage going forward, I can’t see at present any viable alternative to meet global energy needs other than oil and gas. The long term trends, at least for the next 50 years, I think will still involve increasing production, until there is a similar step change in renewables technology to reduce

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its costs and increase efficiency. This may have to involve large scale carbon sequestration; that ball is still in the court of the governments, but if that is an option taken then oil companies are likely to be the ones tasked to deliver that CO2 sequestration anyway, as they are the ones with the technology and ability to move fluids in vast volumes. Any changes will likely be gradual, and oil and gas as a resource for chemicals and such will always remain. We have been too successful, if anything, in meeting this global energy challenge, and in the short term the market has been oversupplied. But this will correct naturally and going forward I think there is still a very rewarding, exciting career available in oil and gas, and one that the world needs, to maintain its energy output, without which the crisis we would face would dwarf any issues of climate change, in my opinion.

Jonathan Redfern is Professor of Petroleum Geoscience, Head of the Petroleum Geoscience and Basin Studies research and Director of the Petroleum Geoscience Mscs run within the School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences at the University of Manchester. He is also a Fellow of the Geological Society (FGS), and a member of the AAPG, PESGB, IAS and EAGE. As well as a strong standing in academia, Professor Redfern has worked for Fina and Amerada Hess in the UK, North Africa and SE Asia.

Norhard – Norwegian Hard Rock Drilling: A well of opportunities

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Norhard- Norwegian Hard Rock Drilling

he company Norhard AS, established in 2007, is a full service provider for drilling and lining of penstocks for hydro power plants. It enables environmental friendly solutions through game changing drilling technology based on in-house development and production. This technology is now in operation at 14 hydro power plants with a total production capacity of approximately 150 GWh of clean renewable energy. Through the successful delivery of approximately 11 km of commercial drilling and lining solutions under various conditions, and for various customers, the game changing technology has proven its worth. The technology, and equipment it helps to build, is in place for the use of remote controlled, full profile directional drilling of tunnels with a variety of diameters up to 1.5m. Tunnels in hard rock can be drilled over distances up to 2 km.

Advantages

Norhard technology is enabling substantial advantages compared to traditional technologies available in the onshore market. • • • • •

Energy is transmitted from surface equipment to the borehole assembly over electric cables; Non-rotating drill string; High capacity communication through fiber cables attached to the drill string; Integrated systems for online navigation and steering makes it possible to drill in curves and follow predefined trajectories with a very high grade of accuracy; and Reduced energy consumption provides for substantial reductions of surface equipment and better HSE characteristics

The Norhard technology is prepared for further development and integration of further substantial advantages. • • • •

Fully electric operated downhole equipment Continuous circulation and penetration Flexible drill string Prepared for integrated look ahead seismology

In parallel with focusing on the commercial introduction of the technology in the initial marked of penstocks for small hydro power plants, comprehensive studies and works have been ongoing to adapt the technology for other markets as well. Some of the works have been supported by funding from Innovation Norway and the Norwegian Research Council.

Future focuses and opportunities

Based on gained experience, comprehensive dialogue with leading companies and research institutions within the Norwegian oil and gas industry, descriptions for further utilizations are already in place – such as: •

• • • • • • • • • •

Taking a variety of on-shore infrastructures underground. Long distance directional drilling with high grade of accuracy in trajectory and continuous logging of position combined with built in look ahead seismology is opening up for new innovative solutions. Complex, as well as simple systems can be established or replaced without disturbing existing systems and activities, underground as well as on ground. Supply systems for gas, water, district heating, power and telecommunication Disposal systems for waste, sewage and drainage Relocation of overhead lines into the underground Applications within the Oil & Gas industry P&A Complete drilling systems Deep geothermal wells. Depths down to 5 – 7 km Substantial reduction of surface equipment Reduction of drilling cost by 50 – 70 % compared to existing systems

www.norhard.no Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

ExxonMobil energy lives here

With familiar brand names across upstream and downstream operations, ExxonMobil Corporation is the largest publicly traded international oil and gas company. With an industryleading inventory of resources, it is also one of the world’s largest integrated refiners, marketers of petroleum products and chemical manufacturers. Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

ExxonMobil

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xxonMobil - a name synonymous with energy supply - had its origins in Titusville, Pennsylvania over 150 years ago, as a regional marketer of kerosene in the United States. Today it is the largest publicly traded petroleum and petrochemical enterprise in the world and operates in most of the world’s countries. ExxonMobil is best known by its familiar brand names: Exxon, Esso and Mobil and across its upstream, downstream and chemical operations it makes the products that drive modern transportation, power cities, lubricate industry and provide petrochemical building blocks that lead to thousands of consumer goods.

Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

UPSTREAM OPERATIONS

The strength and breadth of ExxonMobil’s global organization allows it to explore for and capture all resource types, across all geological and geographical environments, using industryleading technology and capabilities. It employs unique geoscience capabilities and understanding of the global hydrocarbon endowment to identify and prioritize all quality resources. ExxonMobil’s portfolio of diverse opportunities includes conventional, heavy oil, tight gas, shale gas, deepwater, liquefied natural gas (LNG), Arctic and sour gas projects. With experience and applied technology, it can capture more oil and gas reserves at both new and mature fields. Advances in seismic imaging, reservoir simulation, drilling and facility design allow it to reach deposits that were previously unidentified or unreachable.

ExxonMobil Julia Oilfield

“Over the past decade, ExxonMobil has drilled 187 deepwater wells worldwide in water ranging from 2,100 feet to 8,700 feet”

One of ExxonMobil’s major discoveries in recent years is the Gulf of Mexico deepwater find and subsequent development of the Julia Oilfield. In April this year oil production started under budget and ahead of schedule. The Julia development is located approximately 265 miles southwest of New Orleans in water depths of more than 7,000 feet. The initial development phase uses subsea tie-backs to the Chevron-operated Jack/ St. Malo production facility, reducing the need for additional infrastructure and enhancing capital efficiency. Technology has also played a key role in the Julia development including the use of subsea pumps that have one of the deepest applications and highest design pressures in the industry to date. “Successful deepwater developments like Julia, located more than 30,000 feet below the ocean’s surface, benefit from ExxonMobil’s disciplined project execution capabilities and commitment to developing quality resources using advanced technology,” said Neil W. Duffin, president of ExxonMobil Development Company. The Maersk Viking drillship is currently drilling a third well, which is expected to come online in early 2017. Production results will assist in the evaluation of additional wells included in the initial development phase, which has a design capacity of 34,000 barrels per day of oil. “This initial production will provide ExxonMobil with insight into the potential future development of the reservoir,” said Duffin. Discovered in 2007, the Julia field comprises five leases in the ultra-deepwater Walker Ridge area of the Gulf of Mexico. ExxonMobil, the operator, and Statoil Gulf of Mexico LLC each hold a 50 per cent interest in the Julia unit. Over the past decade, ExxonMobil has drilled 187 deepwater wells worldwide in water ranging from 2,100 feet to 8,700 feet.

The Maersk Viking drillship

Canadian oil sands

“Discovered in 2007, the Julia field comprises five leases in the ultradeepwater Walker Ridge area of the Gulf of Mexico”

In Canada ExxonMobil works with its Canadian affiliate Imperial Oil. Its latest project there is the Kearl oil sands project, which represents a next generation approach to oil sands development. At Kearl, ExxonMobil will deploy a new proprietary technology— paraffinic froth treatment— to remove fine clay particles and water from the bitumen and produce a product suitable for pipeline transportation to market, eliminating the need for an on-site upgrader. Processing bitumen once, rather than twice (in an upgrader and at a refinery), reduces life cycle GHG emissions. ExxonMobil has also developed a new technology called LASER (liquid addition to steam to enhance recovery) to improve in situ oil sands recovery. The LASER technology allows for more energy-efficient and higher recovery of bitumen and will reduce the GHG intensity of this process by Oil, Gas and Shipping Magazine www.ogsmag.com

about 25 per cent. Its cyclic solvent process, currently under development, is a nonthermal method for recovering heavy oil that could potentially reduce the GHG intensity of heavy oil production by about 90 per cent. Using cogeneration in oil sands production reduces energy requirements and provides an efficient means for producing electricity and steam at the same time. Cogeneration planned for Kearl will reduce CO2 emissions by 500,000 metric tons a year, compared to purchasing electricity for the first phase of the project. Cogeneration facilities at ExxonMobil’s Cold Lake in situ operation reduced CO2 emissions by 40 per cent compared with generating electricity from coal-fired plants and processing steam from conventional boilers. Another important concern surrounding oil sands development in Canada is the impact of water withdrawal on the Athabasca River in Alberta. About 3 per cent of the

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“The Kearl oil sands project represents a next generation approach to oil sands development”

ExxonMobil Angola

“Using cogeneration in oil sands production reduces energy requirements and provides an efficient means for producing electricity and steam at the same time”

ExxonMobil, its coventurers and Angola’s national oil company Sonangol have announced 44 discoveries in Angola, representing a recoverable resource potential of about 12.4 billion barrels, making Angola an important resource for the company. With a workforce of more than 750, Angolanization is a priority. Since the beginning of business operations in 1994, Esso Angola has been committed to promoting national content to support the company’s operations and contributing to the economic and social development of Angola. The company believes that national content can add positive results to the business, workforce, suppliers and contractors by supporting economic growth and improving quality of life. The national workforce in Angola represents nearly 78 per cent of the total number of workers. Kizomba field is ExxonMobil’s primary operation in Angola and lies in Block 15, offshore of Angola, marking one of the first tranches of deepwater acreage offered by the Angolan Government. Upon discovery more than 2,500 square kilometres of high-quality 3D seismic data was acquired and this was followed during 1997-99 by the first wildcat drilling programme to take place in 1,000-1,400m of water, which resulted in six discoveries. Four of the discoveries (Hungo, Chocalho, Kissanje and Dikanza) announced in 1998 make up the giant Kizomba field complex. Block 15 was allotted to ExxonMobil in 1994, with first production commencing in 2003 from the Xikomba field. Productions from Kizomba A, Kizomba B and Kizomba C began in 2004, 2005 and 2008 respectively. The first production from Phase I of the Kizomba satellites project was achieved in July 2012. Kizomba has recoverable reserves approaching two billion oil-equivalent barrels. The plan is to tie other nearby fields into the Kizomba infrastructure. In 1999, the Chocalho and Xikomba fields were discovered or reappraised. In July 2000, Esso Exploration Angola discovered another oilfield named Mondo, 370km west of Luanda. The discovery well drilled in 740m of water and encountered an oil-bearing interval, which flowed at a test rate of 4,200bpd. The well was drilled in 2,400ft of water, down to a total depth of 8,200ft.

Malaysia

average natural flow of the Athabasca is allocated to the oil industry, half of which is used. At its Kearl oil sands project, ExxonMobil is constructing a water storage system to reduce water withdrawal from the Athabasca River during low-flow periods. Kearl will also use advanced technologies to recycle water and reduce water demand. Water extracted from the Athabasca River will be re-used about 18 times. The Cold Lake facility uses half a barrel of fresh water for each recovered barrel of bitumen. To significantly reduce water consumption, approximately 95 per cent of the water recovered from oil production is treated, recycled, and re-injected as steam. ExxonMobil and Imperial Oil are also progressing promising research on nonaqueous extraction. This emerging technology has the potential to virtually eliminate the need for water and thus revolutionize bitumen extraction recovery for oil sands mining operations.

ExxonMobil is one of the major crude oil producers and suppliers of natural gas in Malaysia. It operates under four production-sharing contracts (PSCs) with the Malaysian national oil company, PETRONAS, producing about one-fifth of the nation’s oil production and about one-half of natural gas supplies to Peninsular Malaysia. The Tapis Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) project is Malaysia’s first large-scale enhanced oil recovery project and uses the immiscible water-alternating-gas process to recover remaining oil reserves from the Tapis field. It does this by gradually sweeping remaining oil to the producing wells, increasing the overall recovery of the field. Tapis is one of the largest offshore EOR projects in Southeast Asia, representing an RM8 billion investment by ExxonMobil and its joint-venture partner Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd (PCSB) to help ensure reliable and sustainable energy supplies for Malaysia. Fully designed and constructed in Malaysia by local contractors, fabrication activities for the Tapis EOR project began in November 2011. The combined topsides and jacket, which were installed in May 2014, weigh about 23,500 metric tonnes, making it the heaviest platform constructed in Malaysia by the company.

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DOWNSTREAM OPERATIONS

As the largest global refiner, the majority of ExxonMobil’s refining capacity is integrated with its lubes and/or chemical businesses. Downstream operations refine and distribute products derived from crude oil and other feedstocks and ExxonMobil’s global network of manufacturing plants, transportation systems, and distribution centres provides fuels, lubricants and other high-value products to customers. As the world’s number one supplier of lube basestocks and the largest global marketer of finished lubricants, ExxonMobil is supported by a highly trained field force, a strong distributor network and a robust supply chain. ExxonMobil delivers highquality products and application expertise to customers around the world, marketing its fuels products to millions of customers worldwide through its retail service stations and three global business-to-business segments — Industrial Wholesale Fuels,

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Aviation Fuels & Lubricants, and Marine Fuels & Lubricants.

Fawley Refinery, UK

The Esso refinery at Fawley, near Southampton, is the largest in the UK and one of the most complex in Europe. Situated on Southampton Water, it has a mile-long marine terminal that handles around 2,000 ship movements and 22 million tonnes of crude oil and other products every year. The refinery processes around 270,000 barrels of crude oil a day and provides 20 per cent of UK refinery capacity. Refining is a complex operation that depends upon the skills of operators, engineers and planners in combination with cutting edge technology to produce products that meet the demands of an intensely competitive market. Some of the greatest challenges for the refinery in recent years have been changes to the specification of transportation

ExxonMobil smaller, more useful and therefore more valuable molecules are used for manufacturing petrol and provide feedstocks for the chemical plant. Refining processes use substantial amounts of energy and there has been considerable investment to make the refinery more energy efficient. A £60 million combined heat and power (CHP) generating plant was installed in 1999, reducing energy costs by more than £2 million per year. Using less energy brings the additional environmental benefit of reducing emissions of gases such as sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides. ExxonMobil continues to improve its environmental performance at this operation. The site’s emissions to atmosphere have been falling steadily. This reduction has been achieved in part by the installation of a £60 million cogeneration unit. This highly energy efficient combined heat and power (CHP) unit burns fuel at an efficiency of 75 per cent, twice the efficiency of a conventional power station. Energy efficiency improvements over recent years have led to significant reductions in emissions. ExxonMobil’s record on releases of oil in water used by the refinery is also excellent. The site draws over 300,000 tonnes of seawater from Southampton Water every day, mostly for cooling purposes. When it is returned to the sea after purification it is often cleaner than when it was extracted.

CHEMICAL OPERATIONS

“The Esso refinery at Fawley, near Southampton, has a milelong marine terminal that handles around 2,000 ship movements and 22 million tonnes of crude oil and other products every year”

fuels. The switch from leaded to unleaded petrol, the reduction of sulphur levels in diesel and petrol and, more recently, the increased use of biofuels in diesel and petrol, have all required major investment in new units and upgrades to existing refinery units. At its simplest, oil refining is the separation of crude oil by distillation into different fractions. But many other complex processes are necessary to produce a full range of products, including propane and butane (LPG), petrol, jet fuel, diesel, marine fuels, heating oil, lubricant basestocks and fuel oil. The refinery at Fawley also supplies feedstock to the adjacent ExxonMobil Chemical plant. The catalytic cracking unit, known as the cat cracker, is one of the most important plants on the refinery. The cat cracker takes the heavier, less valuable molecules from the distillation process and breaks them down into smaller ones. These

ExxonMobil Chemical is a global leader in the petrochemicals industry, applying breakthrough proprietary technology to create products that improve the quality of life for people around the world. Today, its global network of manufacturing facilities, technology centres and businesses has enabled the company to become the market leader in some of the largestvolume and highest-growth petrochemical markets. As part of ExxonMobil Corporation, the Chemical Company is integrated with the Corporation’s other programs, giving it an unparalleled ability to share technologies and best practices. ExxonMobil Chemical focuses on sustainable solutions based on time-tested business practices. The core elements of its business strategy include: • Olefins • Aromatics • Fluids • Synthetic rubber • Polyethylene • Polypropylene • Plasticizers • Synthetic lubricant basestocks • Additives for fuels and lubricants • Zeolite catalysts While the uses for these products span a variety of markets, most can be grouped into four major areas, these being automotive, packaging, construction and industrial, and personal care. In conclusion, Exxon Mobil Corporation is committed to being the world’s premier petroleum and petrochemical company. To that end, it works to continuously achieve superior financial and operating results while simultaneously adhering to high ethical standards.

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Expander Systems The global leader in pivot engineering CADEX 5 is the heart of the Expander Global Group Proprietary Global IT-Platform. It can create customized pivot solutions that eliminate both costly downtime and repairs – in minutes. All machines experience wear with use, especially the pivot points. Over time, the bores of the lug ears become oval, affecting stability and safety. Once the wear begins to appear, it rapidly increases due to the accelerating nature of the wear process. Repairs are expensive, time-consuming and are necessary multiple times over the life of a machine when using the traditional repair method of welding and line boring. The Expander Assemblies install directly into worn mounting lugs without welding and line boring, even if holes are worn slightly oval. Over the course of 30 years, Expander Global has developed a catalog of more than 60,000 assemblies for a wide range of equipment. As an expert in pivot technology, Expander has developed advanced engineering software that automates the design process, providing results in minutes. Customers can print a pivot dimension sheet from the Expander®System website and use it in the field to record measurements. Next, they input the information into the online version, and the Expander®System engineering department reviews it immediately to ensure accuracy. If there are any questions, an engineer on staff will contact the customer for clarification. As with all Expander®System assemblies, custom assemblies are backed by a 10,000-hour/10-year function warranty. “Chances are when a customer visits our online catalog (www.expandersystem.com) or calls us directly with a pin part number, machine make, model or position, we already have what they need in stock,” President Roger Svensson said. “However, there is no standard in the world when it comes

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Expander Systems

Expander®System has an extensive catalog of more than 60,000 Expander Assemblies to fit a multitude of machines. Expander also makes custom pins to fit specific needs.

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Expander Systems

The Expander®System CADEX 5 System allows Expander to custom design and manufacture Expander Assemblies with fast turnaround times. “We can usually have the Expander Assembly to the customer within a few days,” said President Roger Svensson. “If it’s an emergency, and a machine is down, we will expedite the order.”

“Expander has developed advanced engineering software that automates the design process, providing results in minutes” to pivot pins. We receive requests for new designs all the time. Fortunately, our proprietary CADEX 5 engineering system allows us to customize a design and manufacture a new Expander® assembly with quick turnaround.” Expander®System assemblies provide a permanent, cost-effective solution. That’s why more and more companies, from various markets including: construction, mining, oil and gas, and offshore, process industry and forestry have turned to the Expander®System to replace conventional straight pins. CADEX 5 technology continues to move Expander® Global to the forefront of pivot technology. “The new custom Expander®System Assembly is designed, manufactured and shipped within a few days,” said Svensson. “If it’s an emergency, and a machine is down, we can expedite an order. We encourage anyone who wants a permanent solution for pivot wear to contact us.”

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Using its propriety CADEX 5 Global IT Platform, Expander®System manufactures custom-designed pin bodies and components within minutes of receiving a customer’s specifications. New Expander Assemblies are usually received within a few days.

No More Line Boring

The Expander®System installs directly into worn pivots without the need for costly welding and line boring – even if holes are worn oval. Each assembly is designed to fit your specific machine make, model and position. The assembly pin-body is tapered at both ends, and when the fasteners are tightened, the tension washers force the expansion sleeves into the worn lug holes. The sleeves conform with the wear pattern to permanently eliminate the wear problem, so you get a perfect fit every time. Stop endlessly replacing pins, and opt for a long-term solution that will expand your bottom line – The Expander®System.

See how it works

Contact Expander today to find the perfect-size pins for your oil, gas and drilling equipment.

www.ExpanderSystem.com The Global Leader in Pivot Engineering

Sweden: Expander System Sweden AB +46-(0)120-299 00

Germany: Expander Deutschland GmbH +49(0)611-97445707

USA: Expander Americas Inc. +1-888-935-3884

info@ExpanderSystem.com www.ExpanderSystem.com

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