World news

Emerson to provide automation technologies for new Caspian Sea platform

Emerson has been awarded a US$14 million contract to provide automation technologies for the new Azeri Central East offshore platform in the Caspian Sea, the latest development in the Azeri-Chirag-Deepwater Gunashli oilfield.

Emerson will provide its Project Certainty methodologies and digital technologies to help BP bring the project onstream in 2023.

Digital twin solutions and cloud engineering services will help accelerate project execution. Emerson’s digital twin solution enables virtual testing and system integration while the platform is being built and provides a simulated environment for platform operators to train. Cloud engineering reduces engineering costs and time by enabling global teams to collaborate and engineer in parallel regardless of location.

Emerson will apply its portfolio of automation software and services to help BP achieve greater production and safe operations. This includes the DeltaVTM automation system that controls critical safety functions in addition to wellhead production, drilling and the transfer of oil and gas to the onshore Sangachal Terminal.

Wired and wireless networks will connect measurement instruments to monitor pressure, flow, temperature and pipework corrosion. Emerson will also provide all critical control, emergency shutdown and isolation valves, connected by its digital positioning technology.

Petronas awards seismic consortium contract

A seismic consortium comprising PGS, TGS and WesternGeco has been awarded a multi-year contract by Petronas to acquire and process up to 105 000 km2 of multi-sensor multi-client 3D data in the Sarawak Basin, offshore Malaysia.

The award follows an ongoing campaign by the consortium in the Sabah offshore region of Malaysia, in which over 50 000 km2 of 3D seismic data have been acquired and licensed to support Malaysia licence round and exploration activity.

The Sarawak award will enable the consortium to position itself in Malaysian seismic exploration and allow for a multi-phase programme to promote exploration efforts in the prolific Sarawak East Natuna Basin (Deepwater North Luconia and West Luconia Province). The consortium is planning the initial phases and is engaging with the industry to secure prefunding ahead of planned acquisition, covering both open blocks and areas of existing farm-in opportunities.

Karoon acquisition of Baúna field approved

Karoon Energy has announced that the Board of Directors of Brazil’s Agência Nacional do Petróleo, Gás Natural e Biocombustíveis (ANP) has approved the assignment of the rights and obligations under Concession Contract BM-S-40 related to the Baúna field.

Once written confirmation of the approval of the sale of the field by Petrobras is issued, a further condition precedent to transaction close under the Baúna sale and purchase agreement and the last outstanding regulatory condition precedent will be satisified.

The approval follows the issue of new environmental operational licences by the Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA).

Transaction close still remains subject to certain conditions precedent, including FPSO charter assignment. In relation to the FPSO charter assignment, Karoon does not consider that this will delay transaction close.

In brief In brief

Egypt

BP has announced the start of production from the Qattameya gas field in the North Damietta offshore concession. The field, located approximately 45 km west of the Ha’py platform, is expected to produce up to 50 million ft3/d of gas. It is tied back to the Ha’py and Tuart field development via a new 50 km pipeline and is also connected to their existing subsea utilities via a 50 km umbilical. BP holds 100% equity in the North Damietta offshore concession.

UK

Archer has secured a two-year contract extension with a major North Sea operator for the provision of platform drilling operations and maintenance services on seven UK North Sea installations. The extension will commence 1 November 2020 in direct continuation of the current contract. Over the next two years Archer will continue to deliver drilling operations, maintenance and intervention support services including the provision of well services and rental equipment.

Norway

TechnipFMC has been awarded an EPCI contract by Equinor for the Breidablikk Pipelay, including option for the subsea installation scope located in the area close to the Grane field, North Sea. The Breidablikk project is a tie-back to the existing Grane platform. TechnipFMC’s scope includes provision of flexible jumpers and rigid pipelines as well as pipeline installation work. The Breidablikk development is subject to final approval by the Norwegian authorities.

World news

Diary dates Diary Diary dates

9 – 12 November 2020

ADIPEC 2020 Online adipec.com/virtual-2020-home/

24 – 26 November 2020

OSEA 2020 Online osea-asia.com/

8 – 11 December 2020

EAGE Annual Conference Online Online eage.eventsair.com/annual-conferenceonline/

13 – 16 September 2021

Gastech Singapore gastechevent.com/ To stay informed about the status of industry events and potential postponements or cancellations of events due to COVID-19, visit Oilfield Technology’s events listing page: www.oilfieldtechnology.com/events/

Web news Web news highlights highlights

Cenovus Energy and Husky Energy agree merger Peterson and OneSubsea agree logistics contract ConocoPhillips to acquire Concho Resources Dvalin field given start-up approval

To read more about these articles and for more event listings go to: www.oilfieldtechnology.com

Maersk Drilling awarded three-well contract

Maersk Drilling has been awarded a three-well contract from Total E&P Angola for the 7th generation drillship Maersk Voyager, which will be employed to drill development wells in Angola’s Block 17.

The three-well contract has an estimated duration of 140 days, which means that Maersk Voyager is now contracted until 2Q21. The firm value of the three-well contract is approximately US$30 million, including integrated drilling services provided.

The two one-well options included in Maersk Voyager’s previously agreed work scope for Total E&P remain.

Maersk Voyager is a high-specification ultra-deepwater drillship which was delivered in 2014. It has been operating offshore Africa since 2015 and commenced operations for Total E&P Angola in January this year.

TGS starts coring project off shore Nigeria

TGS has announced the recommencement of a geochemical coring project offshore Nigeria.

The initiative is part of an anomaly targeting programme focusing on the previously completed analysis of multibeam and backscatter data. The survey is being conducted in conjunction with Nigerian joint venture partner TGS-PetroData.

Completion is planned for late November. The project covers an area of approximately 82 000 km2 and will incorporate 17 seabed heat flow measurements and 253 seabed cores whose location is based on multibeam and backscatter anomalies. The data is complemented by TGS’ NGRE19 2D seismic data reprocessed last year. Once coring is concluded, geochemistry will be undertaken with final reports ready for industry review in 1Q21.

Shell to use Bentley digital twin platform for deepwater projects

Bentley Systems has announced that Shell’s Deepwater business has selected Bentley’s digital twin approach to streamline its capital projects process and accelerate time to first oil.

With a plan to deliver several subsea tie-back projects over the next 10 years, Shell Deepwater Projects will accelerate capital project delivery and cut project delivery time by implementing an integrated digital project and engineering environment. The solution spans project conception in the early phase design through to handover.

In addition, Bentley has announced that it is providing investment funds to FutureOn, a Norwegian software company supporting deepwater subsea projects, to accelerate going digital within the oil and gas industry. The investment sets the stage for FutureOn and Bentley to deliver digital twin technology required for oil and gas ecosystems to manage and analyse data, integrate with existing systems, provide analytics visibility, and rapidly explore ideas collaboratively.

FutureOn builds on more than 20 years of visual engineering experience specifically in the oil and gas subsea domain. The company will combine its field design application (FieldAP) and its API-centric collaboration platform (FieldTwin) with Bentley’s digital twin platform (iTwin) to advance user organisations such as Shell Deepwater. Both FutureOn and Bentley platforms use open web standards to facilitate complex integration and customisation, and the combined offerings are already being implemented in exploration and production workflows for the creation and curation of subsea digital twins.

World news

CGG starts Walker Ridge reimaging programme

CGG has announced the start of a new seismic data reimaging programme in the prospective Walker Ridge area, as part of a major reimaging campaign being conducted in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Walker Ridge programme covers approximately 300 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) blocks including two priority areas of significant industry interest. Proprietary imaging technologies will be applied to this programme to unlock the full potential of existing seismic data and provide significant uplift in subsurface imaging.

Given recent discoveries and proven production in Walker Ridge, the new programme has received strong industry prefunding from clients actively exploring and drilling for oil and gas within this basin. CGG’s Walker Ridge Wide-Azimuth and StagSeis DEUX surveys will provide input for the project and the reprocessed data will deliver valuable, high-quality imaging throughout the programme with two priority discovery areas being processed on an accelerated schedule. Final products are expected in February 2021 and May 2021 respectively, ahead of the full programme results, which are due out by the end of 2021.

The target of CGG’s new programme is the prolific Wilcox formation, which is deformed by thrusts and folds beneath multiple thick salt sheets and shales that have historically been difficult to image. To better define this challenging and complex area, CGG will reprocess existing data with 3D deghosting, 3D SRME and its new velocity modelling technologies, including Time-Lag FWI and FWI Imaging. Preliminary test results show significant uplift in imaging of the subsalt fold-belts and continuity of reflectors within the Eocene and Paleocene exploration targets.

Touchstone makes gas discovery in Trinidad

Touchstone Exploration Inc. has completed drilling the Chinook-1 exploration well on the Ortoire exploration block, onshore in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and announced that the well encountered significant hydrocarbon accumulations based on wireline log data.

Drilling samples and open hole wireline logs indicated that the Chinook-1 well encountered a significant Herrera turbidite package with a total thickness of 2000 ft containing over 1480 ft of sand. Open hole well logs and drilling samples indicated that these sands contain an aggregate 589 net ft of natural gas pay in three unique thrust sheets.

An additional natural gas pay of approximately 20 net ft was encountered in the shallower Cruse formation.

The company expects to initiate a comprehensive completion and testing plan to evaluate the economic potential of the hydrocarbon sands in 1Q21. The drilling rig is expected to move to the Cascadura Deep location prior to the end of the month.

Wood secures Mariner contract with Equinor

Wood has secured a new contract to support Equinor’s operations at the Mariner field in the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS).

Wood has entered into a three-year agreement to deliver operations, maintenance, modifications, and offshore services on the Mariner A platform and Mariner B floating storage unit. The agreement, valued at around US$75 million, will run for three years from January 2021 through to 4Q23, with options to extend.

Mariner is an offshore development supported by automated drilling and digital twin solutions. The Mariner field is Equinor’s first operated development in the UK North Sea.

The contract builds upon Wood’s recent agreements with Equinor on the Kollsnes gas processing facility and Breidablikktie-back development in Norway.

The work will be delivered by Wood’s Aberdeen-based onshore and offshore teams.

Oceaneering awarded BOP tethering contract

Oceaneering International has been awarded a one-year blowout preventer (BOP) tethering services contract offshore Brazil from Petrobras.

The scope of work includes data acquisition and real-time riser analysis for dynamic positioning rig operations for up to seven wells in water depths between 150 m and 700 m.

Oceaneering will provide eight suction piles as well as 10 wellhead load relief (WLR) tensioners, one monitoring system to be integrated on the BOP, and one suction pile pump to install the suction piles.

An anchor handling tug supply (AHTS) vessel will launch and install the suction piles and tensioners. The drilling rig will be used to connect the tensioners to the BOP.

BOSS given funding for AUV project

Blue Ocean Seismic Services (BOSS) has secured a total of £10 million of Series A investment from BP Ventures, Woodside Energy and Blue Ocean Monitoring.

The investment will be deployed to continue the development of an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) which uses long endurance self-repositioning autonomous underwater nodes to conduct offshore seismic surveys for oil and gas exploration and reservoir optimisation, whilst also identifying and monitoring carbon storage opportunities under the seabed.

The technology has been designed to be fully containerised, scalable and modular allowing for deployment to survey locations across the globe.

To support the project, the company has established a new corporate head office, laboratory and workshop facility in Farnborough, UK. It is planning to open other offices from next year.

All three investors are actively involved in developing the technology.