Energy, Oil & Gas Issue 134 July 2016

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issue 134 JULY

progress Making

Advancements are being achieved in the UK’s smart grid infrastructure, and investment is growing at pace

Duty of care The right standards and strategies in helicopter safety are essential to protect employees

Bricks and mortar Building a real estate policy that supports wider business objectives around growth, innovation and talent

Also in this issue - Nuclear, Flow Meters, HR, LAES, Electricity distribution

Editor Editors Chairman Andrew Schofield Editor Libbie Hammond libbie@schofieldpublishing.co.uk Staff Writers Jo Cooper Ben Clark Andrew Dann Editorial Administrator Emma Crane Art Editor Gérard Roadley-Battin Production Manager Fleur Daniels Studio Assistant Barnaby Schofield Sales Director Joe Woolsgrove Operations Director Philip Monument Business Development Manager Mark Cawston Sales Tim Eakins Andy Ellis Darren Jolliffe Jonas Junca Dave King Theresa McDonald Research Managers Ben Richell Natalie Griffiths Kieran Shukri Editorial Researchers Jeff Johnson Wendy Russell ­Office Manager/Advertisement Administrator Tracy Chynoweth Digital Subscriptions Iain Kidd digital @schofieldpublishing.co.uk

© 2016 Schofield Publishing Limited all rights reserved 10 Cringleford Business Centre Intwood Road Cringleford Norwich NR4 6AU

Even if ‘this country has had enough of experts’, Government will need clear advice from the energy industry more than ever over the next few years,”

Given the recent

referendum result, Brexit is the topic I had to cover in my Ed’s page and also in the next issue of EOG – when the initial reactions have died down, and hopefully some sort of predictions can be made on what we can expect.

Getting the new UK Prime Minister installed will be the crucial first step to help establish a firmer footing and a bit more confidence – we need calm and effective leadership now more than ever.

We are still in the very early days of this new order and as I look at the immediate reactions to the Leave vote in my inbox there are far too many questions and very few answers.

What I am seeing are fears about environmental policy, possibly rising energy prices and possible recruitment issues – as well as the mountain of EU regulation and legislation that needs to be conquered.

But also there are opportunities. Adam Brown, energy lawyer at global law firm Dentons, pointed out that free from EU constraints, the UK Government could introduce some very radical changes to current energy policies. “Even if ‘this country has had enough of experts’, Government will need clear advice from the energy industry more than ever over the next few years,” he said.

I’m keen to hear advice from experts on this matter too, so please get in touch if you would like to share your opinion.

editor LIBBIE HAMMOND

T: +44 (0) 1603 274130 F: +44 (0) 1603 274131

@EOG_magazine please note: The opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers within this publication do not necessarily coincide with those of the editor and publisher. Every reasonable effort is made to ensure that the information published is accurate, and correct at time of writing, but no legal responsibility for loss occasioned by the use of such information can be accepted by the publisher. All rights reserved. The contents of the magazine are strictly copyright, the property of Schofield Publishing, and may not be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or reproduced without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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1

Regulars

4

A reactive response

The next few years are going to see a new generation of nuclear reactors come online

8

A compelling solution

How Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) offers a new hope to the energy generation market

12

Duty of care

Standards and strategies for helicopter safety in the oil and gas market

14

The real EVP

Why would an EVP be valuable to companies in the oil and gas market?

16

Alternative paths

Low oil prices are driving pervasive structural changes in the industry

21

News

Some of the recent developments within the oil and gas industry

22

A useful catalyst

The Low Carbon Networks Fund has achieved sector wide impacts, and has been a successful vehicle for change

24

Making progress

An increase in patent applications for smart grid technologies could be an indicator that smart grids are getting closer to reality

28

An introduction to anaerobic digestion

The process, applications and benefits of anaerobic digestion – the controlled breakdown of organic matter in a closed digester vessel

30

The future of flow

It can be said with confidence that smart meters are becoming smarter and are the future of flow measurement

32

Bricks and mortar

While market pressures are forcing a focus on cost reduction, there is a need to look at your real estate strategy

36

Strategic changes

2

Offshore efficiency and how certain improvements can support falling exploration budgets

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Profiles

38

38 NETZSCH GmbH 41 Wandfluh 44 STORAG ETZEL 48 Triyards Holdings 51 Ansaldo NES 53 Endress+Hauser 56 Plexus Holding 59 Northern Gas Networks 62 Asian Supply Base 64 Howco 69 Balltec 71 Technip India 74 TuuliSaimaa 74 76 FoundOcean 78 Nexans Power Accessories 80 Neodrill 85 Online Valves

Contents

87

155

87 Chart Ferox 90 Marine Assets Corporation 92 Motherwell Bridge 95 Menck 98 Machinefabriek Van Der Ploeg 100 NETZSCH Pumps & Systems 104 CNG Fuels 107 Parkwind 111 TANAP Project 119 Archer UK 123 Shazand Arak 126 126 Matco Asia 128 Maersk Oil – Culzean Gas Field 132 VBMS 135 JDR Cable Systems 140 Helgeland Kraft 142 DUC Marine Group 144 Laggan-Tormore Project –

Total E&P

150 YPF Bolivia 152 Shawcor

155 Norfolk Marine 158 Suomen Hyötytuuli 160 OceanMaster Engineering 162 Vysiion 164 VWS MPP Systems 166 Ledwood Mechanical Engineering 168 BST Supplies 170 PPS Pipeline Systems 172 VandeGrijp Group 174 Caspian Offshore Construction 176 Bohlen & Doyen 178 Cummins Middle East 180 Wilhelm Group 182 Scaldis 184 DEA Deutsche Erdoel 186 Schmid AG Energy Solutions 188 Interocean 190 Reelwell 192 AHI Carriers FZC 195 St1 Biofuels Oy 192 ENERGY,oil&gas

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3

response A reactive

As the impact of global climate change continues to be felt there is increasing demand for the development of low-carbon power generation technologies. Andrew Dann talks to Dr. Jonathan Cobb of the World Nuclear Association about the place of nuclear energy in developing a low-carbon energy solution

W

hile the debate surrounding climate change may still have some dissenters, the current scientific consensus is that manmade CO2 emissions are a major driving force in the warming of the Earth’s atmosphere. NASA for example, asserts that the planet’s climate is warming and lists statements from 18 leading American and international leading scientific organisations in support of this conclusion.

A statement from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report, Summary for Policymakers (2014) for example, states that: “Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and since the 1950s, many of the observed changes are unprecedented over decades to millennia. The atmosphere and ocean have

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warmed, the amounts of snow and ice have diminished, and the sea level has risen.” While later adding that: “Human influence on the climate system is clear, and recent anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases are the highest in history. Recent climate changes have had widespread impacts on human and natural systems.”

The consensus on the issue of global warming now extends to every corner of the world. The State of California for example, currently hosts a list of around 200 global organisations ranging from the Academia Chilena de Ciencias, Chile to the Zimbabwe Academy of Sciences that all support the premise that climate change has been caused by human action. Also in support of the consensus are organisations such as the British Antarctic Survey and the

Nuclear Power

United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

NASA and the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) have collaborated to collect data illustrating the change in global surface temperature relative to 1951-1980 average temperatures. The collected results show that in a 134-year record of results from 1881 to 2015, that the ten warmest recorded years have all occurred since 2000, with the exception of 1998. NASA and GISS temperature analysis further suggests that this translates to an average global temperature rise of about 0.8° Celsius (1.4° Fahrenheit) since 1880. To combat and limit the impact of industry on climate change through CO2 emission, governments around the world are increasingly implementing mitigation measures such as carbon taxes and subsidies for renewable

fuels. Crucially there is increasing interest in encouraging the further development of alternative power generation methods to take over from fossil fuel burning to aid the development an effective CO2 mitigation solution.

“It is clear that we need to make very significant reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions if we want to prevent the worst effects of climate change. The energy sector, electricity generation in particular, is an area where the ability to decarbonise has been demonstrated with technologies available today. By the middle of this century we may need to eliminate 80 per cent of our greenhouse gas emissions from this sector,” reveals World Nuclear Association (WNA) Senior Communication Manager, Dr Jonathan Cobb. “In Europe alone countries such as France,

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5

The national plans put forward by most nations ahead of COP 21 don’t come close to making the kinds of reductions in emissions that will be necessary. We will need to do more in all sectors, not just the energy sector, but nuclear energy has a very important role to play in more ambitious energy policies

Sweden and Switzerland have been able to reduce fossil fuel generation to very low shares of the generation mix and they have done this by combining nuclear energy with renewable power generation.”

Both the importance of limiting the global rise in temperature and the role of nuclear energy in mitigating CO2 emissions were discussed at the Conference of Parties (COP) 21, also known as the Paris Climate Conference, during 2015.

While the conference led to the establishment of ambitious targets for reducing the impact of global warming, there is less certainty regarding how the targets will be reached, as Jonathan explains: “The Paris Agreement committed the international community to keeping the global temperature rise above pre-industrial levels to less than 2° Celsius, with the aim of going further to limit the rise to 1.5° Celsius. To achieve even just the 2° Celsius target will require significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. What the Paris Agreement doesn’t do is say how the international community is going to achieve this. The national plans put forward by most nations ahead of COP 21 don’t come close to making the kinds of reductions in emissions that will be necessary.

We will need to do more in all sectors, not just the energy sector, but nuclear energy has a very important role to play in more ambitious energy policies.”

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Nuclear power possesses several benefits that differentiate it as a useful tool in limiting the impact of climate change.

For example, nuclear power is able to provide constant and reliable supplies of low carbon electricity when compared to other low carbon options. The development of a broader range of capacity options with the introduction of small modular reactors (SMRs) and the ability to adjust the output of power according to demand through the use of mod-merit power plants, will also increase the suitability of nuclear generation for different grid requirements. “Nuclear power supplies a reliable baseload that can complement generation from other low carbon sources. It also works particularly well with hydropower, as shown in France, Switzerland, Sweden and also the Canadian province of Ontario. The right mix of solar and nuclear can also make a good contribution, with solar helping meet daytime peaks and nuclear supplying the underlying demand,” Jonathan says. “France succeeded in moving from a fossil fuel-dominated generation mix to more than 75 per cent low carbon generation in just two decades with nuclear energy.

It is important that we make a priority of decarbonisation of electricity generation as achieving similar reductions in other sectors is likely to be much more challenging.”

Although the evidence over six decades shows that nuclear power is a safe means of generating electricity and

Nuclear Power

that the risk of accidents in nuclear power plants is low and declining, one of the greatest challenges facing the nuclear energy industry is one of public perception. There have been only three major reactor accidents in the history of civil nuclear power during over 16,000 cumulative reactor-years of commercial nuclear power operation in 33 countries, but public fears can still hinder the development of new plants.

“One of the issues facing the nuclear industry is that people hear about nuclear energy far more often than they do about the other forms of electricity generation and what they hear isn’t always correct - there’s no long running cartoon series where the lead character works in a coal-fired power plant!

For a better understanding of nuclear energy there needs to be a better education of all the different forms of electricity generation so that we can understand the comparative merits of all the different energy choices,” Jonathan explains. “Our website is one of the main ways in which we contribute to providing a better understanding of nuclear energy. Our information library offers in-depth profiles of more than countries as well as each stage of the nuclear fuel cycle. We also have a news service to bring information on the latest developments.”

Despite these challenges, at the time of writing there are currently 66 nuclear reactors under construction and

global and nuclear build rates are at their highest level for more than 25 years. During 2015 for example, nearly ten GW of new nuclear capacity started supplying electricity, representing twice the capacity added during previous years. Within the UK the industry is currently still waiting to see if the EDF Hinkley Point 3 project will go ahead, however should the plant be built it will represent the first of a new generation of new nuclear plants in the country and supply around seven per cent of the state’s energy needs. “This project at Hinkley, as well as other new nuclear projects proposed at Sizewell, Moorside, Wylfa, Oldbury and Bradwell, can make a very significant contribution to helping the UK meet its target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. We believe that globally we will need to add 1000 GW of new nuclear capacity by 2050 as our contribution to reaching the emissions targets agreed in Paris at COP 21. To do this we need to continue from the 10 GW additions seen in 2015 and ramp that up until global additions are running at 33 GW per year,” Jonathan observes.

“These build rates are similar to those seen in the 1980s.

To help encourage these rates in the future we need to see technology-neutral market frameworks that permit all lowcarbon technologies, valuing not only carbon costs, but also system reliability and environmental benefits. To this end the WNA will be focusing on helping its members with the continued operation of the existing global fleet of reactors, especially those facing challenging market conditions. This also means supporting our member companies working in mining, enrichment, fuel fabrication and the other sectors of the nuclear fuel cycle that support those reactors,” he concludes. “The next few years will also be an exciting time for us, as the first of a new generation of reactors start to supply electricity, including those soon to come online in China, in Europe and the US.”

the world nuclear association The World Nuclear Association is a network of around 170 of the world’s leading nuclear companies in over 35 countries and represents all aspects of the global nuclear industry. Its members include virtually all of the world’s uranium mining, conversion, enrichment and fuel fabrication companies, all major reactor vendors, nuclear utilities providing 70 per cent of world nuclear generation, major nuclear engineering, construction, and waste management companies. The association was established in 2001 with a mission is to promote a wider understanding of nuclear energy among key international influencers by producing authoritative information, developing common industry positions, and contributing to the energy debate.

For further information please visit: world-nuclear.org

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A compelling Austen Adams explains how Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) is offering hope to the energy generation market

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s nations the world over move towards renewable energy technologies such as wind and solar power, the requirement for a large-scale, long duration energy storage solution, capable of delivering a consistent supply to help balance the grid, has never been greater.

Like all energy storage systems, Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) technology comprises three primary elements; a charging system, an energy store and a

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power recovery unit. The real selling point however, is that each can be scaled independently to optimise the system for different applications - making it an incredibly versatile solution.

The differences continue further with LAES being free from geographical restrictions thanks to its use of liquid air stored at low pressure in tanks to power turbines. Other benefits of the system: it doesn’t require scarce materials and doesn’t give off harmful emissions, resulting in no damage to ecosystems.

LAES

The design has been brought to life by Highview Power Storage, which tested and demonstrated a fully operational LAES pilot plant (350KW/2.5MWh) at SSE’s 80MW biomass plant at Slough Heat and Power in Greater London from 2011 to 2014 – successfully connecting to the UK grid and complying with the necessary regulations and inspections.

Now, backed by £8m in funding from the Department of Energy and Climate Change, the Highview team and its

project partner, Viridor, have completed the construction of a 5MW, pre-commercial demonstration LAES technology plant at Viridor’s landfill gas generation site at Pilsworth Landfill facility in Greater Manchester.

Having been designed to demonstrate LAES technology at scale, the facility will operate for at least one year, providing energy storage as well as converting low-grade waste heat to power from the landfill gas engines.

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LAES

How does LAES store and discharge energy?

Matthew Barnett, Head of Business Development, for Highview Power explained: “Our LAES technology stores liquid air in insulated tanks at low pressure before discharging it as electricity when required.

“The process involves taking off peak or excess electricity and using it to turn air into liquid by refrigerating it to -196 degrees and storing it in insulated vessels on a very large scale. When power is required, liquid air is drawn from the tanks and pumped to high pressure. Stored heat from the air liquefier is applied to the liquid air via heat exchangers and an intermediate heat transfer fluid. This produces a high-pressure gas that is then used to drive the turbine and create electricity.

“With 700 litres of ambient air being reduced to just one litre of liquid air, the storage capacity offered is significant, representing impressive GWh of energy potential.”

Where the technology really turns heads is in its ability to use waste heat and cold from its own and other processes to enhance its efficiency.

Matthew continues: “During the discharge stage, very cold air is exhausted and captured by a high-grade cold store that can be used at a later date to enhance the efficiency of the liquefaction process. In a similar way, we can integrate waste cold from industrial processes such as LNG terminals.

“Similarly, the low boiling point of liquefied air means the efficiency of the system can be improved with the introduction of ambient heat. The standard LAES system is designed to capture and store the heat produced during the liquefaction process (stage one), integrating it into the power recovery process (stage three). This makes it a great option for applications that have their own waste heat source, such as thermal power generation or steel mills.”

Manufacturing the technology A key element of LAES technology is the insulated vessels which store the liquid air. Avingtrans PLC’s Stainless Metalcraft business, in Cambridgeshire, has a long track record of working with companies to bring new concepts to life and specialises in manufacturing pressure vessels in a range of sizes and materials so the project was a great fit for the business.

While the 5MW/15MWh pre-commercial demonstration plant is appropriately sized to demonstrate grid scale storage, the supply chain is equipped to provide components that are scalable to hundreds of MWs in power for multiple hours.

The vessels used in the pre-commercial project are nearly 12 and a half metres high and three metres in diameter, with a shell thickness of 13mm. With an empty weight of 16,230kg, working on vessels this size and bigger gives rise to a range of manufacturing challenges, not least in finding production facilities large enough to house the vessels and their protective scaffolding as they are produced.

Making use of the specialist welding skills available at

Metalcraft, the vessels were manufactured from carbon steel EN 10028-1 P 265 GH (1.0425). With an elongation factor of more than 14 per cent, this material is sufficiently ductile for such an application and offers impact energy absorption greater than 27J at -20°C. Using the company’s on-site testing facility, the vessels were exposed to radiograph techniques, to in order to certify the high integral welds as non-destructive. Testing for the completed vessels also included hydrostatic testing to 12.6 bar, including an allowance for the static head as the vessel is around 12 metres tall. The actual test weight of the vessel was 94,000kg.

It is manufactured to PD5500:2012+A2:2013 Cat. 2 PED Cat IV Mod G – a code of practice that provides rules for the design, fabrication and inspection of pressure vessels.

Project goals As well as generating power, the pre-commercial project also aims to demonstrate how LAES can be used to help balance supply and demand on the grid during its time in operation, including Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR), Triad avoidance (supporting the grid during the winter peaks), and testing for the US regulation market.

Everyone involved in the project is excited by the potential LAES offers the energy industry and, considering the scalability of the technology using readily available equipment, liquid air looks set to become a compelling solution for this huge potential market.

Highview Power Storage/Metalcraft/ Avingtrans Austen Adams is divisional managing director of Avingtrans plc’s Energy & Medical division. Metalcraft forms part of Avingtrans PLC’s Energy & Medical division, which offers a one-stop shop for the design, manufacture, installation and maintenance of systems for the oil and gas, nuclear, power, renewables, environmental and medical markets.

Highview Power Storage is a designer and developer of largescale energy storage solutions for utility and distributed power systems. Using liquid air as the storage medium, Highview can design bespoke Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) plants, that can deliver around 5MW/15MWh – to significantly more than 50MW/200MWh to service a growing multi billion dollar energy storage market.

For further information please visit: metalcraft.co.uk avingtrans.plc.uk

highview-power.com

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11

care Duty of

After another tragic helicopter crash recently hit the headlines, proactive risk management and aviation safety in oil and gas have never been more important. Mark Rogers advises on standards and strategy

A

ccording to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), in 2010 the global accident rate (measured in hull losses per million flights of Western-built jet aircraft) was 0.61. That is equal to one accident for every 1.6 million flights and is the lowest aircraft accident rate in history. Having said that, these statics change dramatically for the worse, when comparing oil and gas helicopter operations, particularly pipeline inspections, where the International Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP) quote a fatality factor of 52.0 per million flights. The causes of

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such incidents are varied. For example, an internal UK Civil Aviation Authority review of all UK offshore public transport helicopter accidents during the period 1976 to 2012, showed that 28 per cent could be attributed to ‘rotor and transmission failures ’and 28 per cent to ‘lightning strikes’ causes with the remaining 44 per cent attributed to ‘pilot performance / operational’ causes. But what role can proactive risk and safety due diligence play in minimising such risks?

Aviation safety and risk management is largely about meeting the standards of any particular organisation and (or) regulatory authority, within that specific jurisdiction.

Helicopters

It’s also about adhering to and maintaining these standards.

This is often done by applying due process, resources, quality and safety management systems, to help us monitor and control operational activities. One challenge that stands out across the aviation industry is the harmonisation of safety and quality standards. What is recognised as ‘best or good aviation practice’ on some continents might not correlate with the standards of an emerging or newly emerged geographic region. Indeed, by way of example, we once reviewed an operator's maintenance hangar that had passed an internal quality audit one month previously despite having shelf life expired lubricants that were 12 months out of date. The quality management system had apparently been approved by the National Aviation Authority. The same hangar had a small fire some months previously. Postincident, a risk assessment was conducted and all control measures were meant to be in place, however our review found a large stock of oil soaked rags and ignition sources at the head of the hangar, loose and disconnected bare wiring was also noted.

There are a number of industry organisations that help to ensure these standards are indeed harmonised. International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) works with the Convention’s 191 Member States and industry groups to reach consensus on international civil aviation Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs). The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is the trade association for the world’s airlines, representing around 260 airlines or 83 per cent of total air traffic. The IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) program is an internationally recognised and accepted evaluation system designed to assess the operational management and control systems of an airline. All IATA members are IOSA registered and must remain registered to maintain IATA membership. Aviation related safety data is becoming more accessible too; the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is tasked to provide an annual review of aviation safety. The Agency has access to accident and statistical information collected by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

Within each organisation, there will be a corporate responsibility to implement, manage and proactively adhere to a wealth of regulatory, operational and safety management legislation, working towards zero incidents and accidents by assessing and mitigating identified risks, where practicable.

Of course, simply meeting such standards on paper, but not in practice, is where many operators fall down.

Indeed, in our experience it is often where an operator has an approved or recognised process that we find issues with such process adherence. For example, we have come across operators whose operating procedures (approved in accordance with IOSA guidelines) detail monthly pilots reports for flight data monitoring reviews, as well as three monthly flight data monitoring committee meetings, only to discover that due to service provider bills having not been paid, such information did not exist.

So what can be done to avoid these pitfalls?

Firstly, it’s important to work closely with other key stakeholders in the field of air safety, organisations such as the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB), the Civil Aviation Authority and various regulatory bodies across the world. Close relationships with other key stakeholders such as the London Insurance Market can also be beneficial.

These organisations bring an unparalleled insight and understanding of aviation risk. Secondly, it’s important to ensure that your review follows due process. A typical review starts with a background review and analysis, this saves time on-site and minimises any potential burden to the Auditee, as highlighted within CAP1145 (safety review of offshore public transport helicopter operations). A start-up meeting of the key stakeholders is scheduled once on-site, it’s often at this stage through good questioning an early indication of the culture, level of co-operation and any areas of concern can be highlighted. If applicable and where appropriate, a typical review will include general observations of the operation, environment and facilities, with a high level review of the operational and technical procedures, including Safety and Quality management systems and processes. Personnel training, crew scheduling and incident / accident reporting processes will be reviewed for appropriate implementation, control, monitoring and timely feedback. The review is concluded with a post wash up meeting and final report containing an executive summary complete with any notable observations and ‘best practice’ recommendations.

Many oil & gas businesses outsource their air transport needs to aircraft operators and in doing so have a duty of care to their employees to perform the necessary risk and safety due diligence of the operator they select. A proactive operator audit program can help to mitigate the risks outlined above, whilst aviation manufacturers’ and operators’ ongoing adherence to the highest levels of safety and quality management ensures our aviation industry continues to be as safe as possible.

mclarens aviation Mark Rogers is Commercial Manager, Risk and Asset Management at McLarens Aviation.

McLarens Aviation is a leading provider of risk, survey and loss adjusting services to the global aviation industry, specialising in all types of aircraft. Clients include the aviation insurance market, aircraft operators, airports, maintenance and repair organisations (MROs), financiers, lessors, oil and mining companies, law firms and regulators. It has a team of over 75 in-house aviation specialists, operating across 32 offices, in 22 countries across the globe.

For further information please visit: mclarens.com/mclarens-aviation/

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13

The real

EVP

EVPs: what they are and why they’re important in the oil & gas industry. Justine James explains

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here is a well-documented skills shortage in the oil and gas industry caused by older, skilled workers leaving the sector, and a lack of suitable graduates with STEM Below (science, technology, engineering and Justine James, mathematics) qualifications coming into it. This is creating a Founder of leading widening gap in mid-level jobs, despite tempting salary offers HR consultancy and benefits packages, and it’s creating fierce competition for Talentsmoothie the best talent.

So what can we learn from companies, like Apple, that never have a problem attracting top talent, that can be adopted by oil and gas organisations? Apple is as famous for the way it treats its staff, and the quality of its staff, as it is for its products and services. Apple doesn’t have to enter into a war for talent; it has great people queuing up to join

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it. One of the main reasons for this is its strong and credible Employee Value Proposition, or EVP. So what is an EVP? It’s the deal struck between an organisation and employee in return for their contribution and performance. At Talentsmoothie we call this the ‘People Deal’. It’s what characterises an employer and differentiates it from its competition. A well-articulated EVP will bring significant benefits. It can create an environment where people can thrive and do their best work, and in turn this impacts on the customer experience, customer loyalty and ultimately improves business performance.

Most organisations encounter two main problems when it comes to their EVP: SS Firstly they struggle to differentiate themselves from their competition. Differentiation is crucial if an organisation is

HR

to stand out from the ‘sea of sameness’ that characterises some sectors.

SS Secondly their branding is appealing, but it does not accurately reflect the reality.

An effective EVP enables an organisation to stand out as different, but also it ensures that the ‘packaging’ reflects the ‘contents’. All too often people join organisations tempted by the ‘branding’ and are disappointed when they experience the reality.

According to a recent Hays survey, company reputation is a significant factor for job seekers evaluating job opportunities in the oil and gas sector, and with information more readily available on the internet about what it’s really like to work for an organisation, it’s important that organisations deliver on their recruitment promises.

An effective EVP can bring an organisation significant benefits. According to the Corporate Leadership Council’s research, a well thought-through and executed EVP can: SS Improve the commitment of new hires by up to 29 per cent SS Reduce new hire compensation premiums by up to 50 per cent SS Increase the likelihood of employees acting as advocates from an average of 24 per cent to 47 per cent In addition, an effective EVP allows organisations to source more deeply within the labour market, increasing access to ‘passive’ candidates who may not have even considered entering the oil and gas industry.

Demographic predictions show that there will be a stark contrast in population growth in certain areas of the world.

Many countries will show a decline in population making it harder to source talent, whereas in countries such as India there will be large increases making it more difficult to attract the right talent from a potentially large pool. This will cause challenges for organisations in the future and builds an even stronger case for the importance of having an effective EVP. Our clients turn to us for help with their EVP usually because of recruitment or retention issues. All companies have an EVP, whether it is well articulated or not. To ensure your EVP generates maximum returns, it must be built around attributes that genuinely attract, engage and retain the talent you want. It must also be consistent with strategic objectives and clearly demonstrate its uniqueness. That’s why we work with employees and business leaders to define this two-way deal, focusing on action orientated solutions.

The EVP must also be real. That is to say a large proportion of it must be true now. We usually say around 70 per cent, and 30 per cent can be aspirational. This is important to drive change and progress, and also to give employees a sense that the organisation is responding to the changes they want to see.

As well as the ‘content’ of the EVP, it must also be

articulated in a style that appeals to the audience. So many companies write about themselves in a dull way and the net result is a lot of organisations that claim to be unique but all sound the same. Our research with graduates found this is the case.

The EVP is the bedrock of your people strategy and will inform what you should carry on doing, stop doing and start doing to support and drive your business strategy forward. It informs recruitment messages, communications and strategic HR priorities. Knowing where to spend your time and money will make a difference and is one of the great outputs of the EVP process.

We typically help organisations to define and implement their EVPs in eight stages. The full process can take anywhere from three to six months or more, depending on the size of the organisation.

We find that engaging employees in the EVP development process is a very powerful engagement tool in itself and people usually enjoy and appreciate it. It’s also important for building ambassadors who will help implement the EVP once it’s fully defined.

In the highly competitive hunt for talent, companies in the oil and gas sector with an attractive and effective EVP will more easily attract experienced industry professionals from other companies and abroad, and might even broaden the pipeline of talent from outside the sector. Can you afford not to strengthen yours?

talentsmoothie Justine James is Founder of leading HR consultancy Talentsmoothie.

Talentsmoothie is an organisational development consultancy.

Areas of expertise include Employee Value Proposition (EVP), Employee Engagement, Employer Brand and Future Focus. Clients include Atkins, Centrica, Enterprise Rent-a-car, KPMG, Kuoni Group Travel Industry Services, Warner Brothers and Sodexo, and its projects range from one-off reviews, to global strategies and large-scale implementations.

For further information please visit: talentsmoothie.com

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paths Alternative

Stephen Rogers and Ondrej Sanislo explain why low oil prices may drive pervasive structural changes in upstream oil and gas

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any of the highest-cost and technically most complex oil and gas development projects, including remote and deep-water fields, are still deferred or cancelled as their economic outlook remains poor. This presents international oil companies (IOCs, or the ‘majors’) with an increasing reserves-replacement challenge that the largest national oil companies (NOCs) do not face, or at least not in the same way.

Developing scenarios for IOC development As a consequence of these challenges, traditional IOCs’ future access to economically viable resources is becoming increasingly difficult, especially in this relatively low-oil-price environment and uncertain market. This presents IOCs with a growing strategic dilemma. The first step in analysing possible ways forward is to examine the key drivers of change in the sector, considering both their likelihood and impact, and then to develop coherent combinations of these changes that can be developed into scenarios.

SS Carbon constraint (likely/high impact): Current pressures for limits on carbon emissions are likely to become more severe.

SS Opening of closed resource areas (uncertain/moderate impact): The reform and opening up of E&P provinces that are currently closed to IOCs, particularly those involving less-developed NOCs, could generate very attractive prospects for IOCs. SS Supply security of major producers (likely/high impact):

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Changes to either the political or security environment that impacts a major oil or gas producer may have a critical impact on supply levels and pricing in the global market.

SS Advances in fracking technology (certain/high impact): The increasingly low-cost gas volumes that result will continue to displace gas from conventional projects elsewhere in the world and set a cap to gas prices. Several IOCs may, as a result, continue to establish significant positions in this unconventional sector.

SS Pace of demand recovery (uncertain/high impact): Given current production overcapacity in both oil and gas, and significant current levels of oil overstocking, it may be several years before demand growth leads to rebalancing of supply and demand.

SS Investment-capital spend rate (uncertain/moderate impact): The uncertain timing of future tightening of supply and demand is significantly governed not only by the rate of natural production decline in existing fields, but also by the depth and duration of the current slow-down in investment in new-production capacity.

Scenarios for IOC development By combining potential outcomes from the above drivers to form discrete and internally consistent scenarios for the sector’s development, we form a series of alternative future visions for the environments in which IOCs may come to live. These outcomes also describe the strategic responses that the IOCs may have to make.

Trends

demand in particular. Partly as a result, oil-demand growth is restored by continued Asian economic strength, and met by reinstated additional supply from markets such as Iran, Iraq, Libya and Mexico. These markets may have not only undergone political, and in some cases security, settlement, but will start to undergo major capacity overhaul.

In most of these cases the local NOCs will still lack the strengths and capabilities to perform this capacity overhaul themselves. The unlocking of the currently untapped, lowcost potential in these areas can therefore only be carried out by active engagement of IOCs and service companies. There will thus be significant growth in the opportunities open to these companies.

Scenario 3 – ‘Return to mega-projects’

Scenario 1 – ‘Carbon controlled’ This is a world in which effective policies to reduce worldwide carbon emissions are effectively enforced. There is continued rapid growth in renewable energy sources, driven by technology breakthroughs and progressive policy pressures. In the longer term there will be continued and even greater growth in renewable energy production, together with slow expansion of nuclear capacity. Progressive transport electrification and a shifting of gas-fired power from base load towards mid-merit and peak will lead to erosion of demand for both gas and liquids, and particularly for oil.

This reduced oil and gas demand growth will suppress prices and eliminate high-cost supply sources.

The early increase in demand for gas, as coal is displaced over the next 10–15 years, will strengthen gas prices sufficiently to stimulate major new gas projects. These will mostly be pursued by IOCs worldwide, together with expanded unconventional gas capacity in the US. This will be stimulated by continued fracking technology improvement, with the resulting associated gas liquids further dampening any oil-price rise.

As a consequence, it will be common for IOCs to shift towards being more strongly gas-dominated as the availability of project finance becomes more difficult for major new developments.

Scenario 2 – ‘Open house; return to easy oil’ The adoption of fossil-fuel constraints is relatively slow, though the gradual changes that are made will dampen coal

Slow oil and gas demand growth will prompt gradual strengthening of oil and gas prices over the next five to ten years, at least partly due to continuing security challenges or political instability in certain areas and continued closure of IOCs in many NOC provinces.

However, the next few years of low prices will result in a cash-flow crisis and low earnings, which will drive an extended and pervasive wave of M&A consolidation involving most IOCs, both majors and large independents (such as the recently mooted Anadarko/Apache tie-up and the Shell/BG merger). Mergers or fire-sales involving debtridden smaller independents are also very likely. As a result of these aggregations, the fewer remaining much-larger entities will be better able to take advantage of the slow oilprice recovery.

Conclusions These outlines should provide a selection of alternative visions of the future, against which companies might stresstest their own portfolios to identify the most viable and profitable strategies for long-term growth. The best approach would be to develop strategies that are resilient under most plausible scenarios and can be relatively easily adapted depending on which direction the energy world takes.

arthur d. little Stephen Rogers is a Partner and Ondrej Sanislo,is a Consultant at Arthur D. Little. Arthur D. Little has been at the forefront of innovation since 1886. It is a thought leader in linking strategy, innovation and transformation in technology-intensive and converging industries. Its consultants have strong practical industry experience combined with excellent knowledge of key trends and dynamics. Arthur D. Little is present in the most important business centres around the world.

For further information please visit: adlittle.com

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News

In Brief LNG framework DNV GL has been awarded a framework agreement for the provision of design and engineering technical services to the Grain LNG terminal. The scope of the three-year framework agreement covers feasibility studies, conceptual design studies, specialist engineering and risk management services up to and including front-end engineering and design (FEED).

Carbon-neutrality goal The next phase of a multi-decade major infrastructure project to build a heat network across Bristol in the UK has been given the green light by the Mayor Marvin Rees, who has approved the allocation of £5 million of capital funding to the scheme.

The new infrastructure will be a cornerstone of the city’s journey to becoming carbon neutral by 2050.

The heat network will supply low carbon heat to buildings across Bristol through a network of underground pipes connected to a number of energy centres, and as the city moves to carbon neutrality over time, low carbon transition technologies like gas CHP will be replaced by renewable alternatives, further reducing carbon emissions, increasing the city’s resilience to fluctuating energy prices and reducing our reliance on gas.

Major contract win The Oil and Gas division of Actemium, the VINCI Energies brand dedicated to industrial processes, has announced a new multi-million dollar contract with BP Angola. The ‘two-asset’ agreement, the first of its kind for BP’s Angolan operations, will see Actemium become the key Topsides Maintenance provider for BP’s two Floating Production Storage and Offloading Units in Angola: Greater Plutonio (Block 18) and PSVM (Block 31).

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£10 million saving Coretrax, a leading engineered servicing company for wellbore clean and abandonment, has secured cost savings of nearly £10 million in rig time for UK operators.

Focused on improving operational efficiencies and saving rig time in wellbore clean up and abandonment operations, Coretrax’s range of CX-products have been used extensively in decommissioning contracts with operators since 2012. One solution from the product range is the CX-2 bridge plug, which is a versatile tool, suited to multiple applications in the oilfield, which reduces cement disturbance and rig time.

In addition to this Coretrax has delivered time savings through drill pipe cleaning tools and by combining CX-2 bridge plugs with disposable scrapers to save trip time.

Earlier this year, Coretrax completed the setting of its 150th bridge plug as part of an ongoing abandonment campaign for an operator project in the UK sector. Approximately 40 bridge plugs have been run for the campaign to date, along with swarf recovery strings and drillpipe cleaning tools, and a 100 per cent success rate achieved.

Coretrax global business development director, John Fraser said: “The design and versatility of the CX-products provide a sound solution for cementing operations. Achieving these cost savings as well as the setting of our 150th bridge plug are fantastic milestones, which not only highlights the reliability and effectiveness of the tool but further underpins our position as one of the leading suppliers of bridge plugs in the North Sea.”

Site exceeds targets A brand-new solar energy site in Warwickshire has got off to a flying start – exceeding its generation target by 12 per cent and providing thousands of pounds for worthy causes in its first month of operation.

The Leys solar site near Stratford-upon-Avon is part of a community energy project from Stratford Community Energy. The 11.8 hectare solar farm benefits both the environment and local community groups by creating renewable energy and giving a portion of profits from the sale of power to nearby worthy causes.

In its first month of operation the site performed at 112 per cent of its design, meaning it generated more than its target for energy production. The first payment has also been made to one of the beneficiaries of the project, with Welford on Avon Primary School receiving a windfall of £2000.

The Stratford Community Energy project is funded by a mixture of private and public investment.

Members of the public bought into the project through the purchase of bonds, which offer five per cent gross returns, with the interest paid every six months for an initial three-year term.

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MARKOS

MARKOS - Your Vision, Your Composites Manufacturer MARKOS is a fibre reinforced composites manufacturer located in the north of Poland with 25 years of experience and over 500 employees. Through implementation of Lean Manufacturing MARKOS’ team has constantly been improving and optimising both the company and its performance.

From the very beginning, since wind generators entered the market, MARKOS has been co-operating with global leaders manufacturing nacelles and hub covers for generators. Parts for wind generators are produced with open mould technology, RTM technology, vacuum bag or resin infusion.

Lifeboats and rescue boats have been produced by MARKOS almost since the company's early beginning. In 1992 MARKOS started co-operation with the German company Fr. Fassmer, which resulted in wide and constant extension of the range of manufactured products.

MARKOS has also been co-operating with producers of luxury sailing yachts and powerboats for many years. MARKOS manufactures flydecks, frames, ceilings, sanitary segments, platforms and other elements.

RIBs production is growing very fast - hulls, with characteristic rubber tube around and mighty engines at transom can be seen frequently during the holiday season. Those boats are multi-purpose and they are successfully used by the police, coast guard, army and private owners.

Leisure boats cruising European canals, rivers and lakes are often designed and manufactured by MARKOS. They are used for personal, family and sometimes sportsmanlike recreation.

MARKOS’ R&D Department and Design Office offer wide services, ranging from concept development and converting the discovered concept to 3D CAD models, CNC machining and the production.

For more information, please visit www.markos.pl MARKOS Sp. z o.o. Globino 79, 76-200 Slupsk, Poland, tel. (+48) 59 8485311, fax (+48) 59 8485326, markos@markos.pl, www.markos.pl

3 HEMPEL HEMPEL ENSURES PROTECTION AND AESTHETICS IN THE NORTH ADRIATIC SEA Hempel is a global supplier of protective coatings, and in the offshore sector Hempel is a recognised world leader. A magnificent example of how Hempel can comply with all protection and decorative coating requirements for all underwater structures is that Hempel has been selected among other competitors to supply approximately 40,000 litres of coatings for Oil & Gas giant ENI’s new Bonaccia NW and Clara NW offshore gas platforms.

At present, the final touches are currently being made to the two platforms, which are due to be loaded for transport and installation in the Adriatic Sea, 45 kilometres off the Italian coast, in late summer 2015. Built in Italy by the Navalmare yard in Lerici, each rig has a gross weight of around 900 tonnes, and stands on four legs measuring up to 90 metres. ENI requested tenders for a paint system of its own specification (System N.004), which Hempel successfully fulfilled with a 3-layer scheme based on a primer of HEMPADUR PRO ZINC 17380, an intermediate layer of HEMPADUR MASTIC 45880, and a topcoat of HEMPATHANE HS 55610, applied by local firms Andaloro Srl and Nuova Oma Spa. HEMPADUR PRO ZINC 17380 is a grey, two-component epoxy zinc rich primer that is especially versatile as a high-solids, long-term primer on steel structures exposed to medium and severely corrosive environments, and conforms to NORSOK M-501, SSPC-Paint 20, type 2 and ISO 12944-5 standards. HEMPADUR MASTIC 45880 is also high-solids epoxy, although it is cured with polyamide adduct to form an extremely tough and resilient coating, which can thus be used in heavy-duty paint systems and immersed structures. Two-component HEMPATHANE HS 55610 polyurethane topcoat contains a high volume of solids and zinc phosphate, making it an ideal choice for structures in highly corrosive environments. Delivered white as standard, this paint can be perfectly tinted to any shade to provide a long-lasting colourful and glossy finish on all outdoor steel structures.

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News

Italian job

Work on Hebron ACE Winches has been awarded a six-figure contract with an operator to support in connecting the Hebron gravity based structure (GBS) and topsides. The project will see ACE Winches supply hydraulic drum winch packages for the deep-water Hebron oil field located off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada, working at depths of 95m. The contract will include all winches, ancillary equipment and skilled personnel for the project.

ACE Winches will provide ACE 40 tonne WLL hydraulic drum winches, two ACE 12.5 tonne WLL hydraulic drum winches, a dedicated diesel hydraulic power unit for each winch and running line monitors to provide line and load monitoring.

Alfie Cheyne, CEO, ACE Winches said: “We are thrilled to have been awarded this contract and look forward to working closely with our client in the coming months. ACE Winches has a successful track-record of projects in the region and we look forward to building on this success with the Hebron project.”

The contract marks further work on the Hebron project for the company; in 2014 the company supplied a range of winches for use in the dry dock to tension the installation as it transitioned from dry dock into open water. The winches were then used to keep the GBS in position during the manoeuvre process.

Market insights Airswift, the global workforce solutions provider for the energy, process and infrastructure sectors, has formed a bespoke executive search firm, Ducatus Partners. The new company, which brings in an industry leading team, will operate independently of Airswift, delivering executive search, market intelligence and related consultancy to clients across the energy value chain.

The core team of Kevin Davidson, Sean Buchan and Jamie Ferguson will lead Ducatus Partners.

Together the team has more than 45 years’ personal experience of matching companies and investors with the C-suite, board-level executives and leadership teams, most recently at Maxwell Drummond.

Ducatus Partners will harness Davidson, Buchan and Ferguson’s proven ability to access both established and emerging leadership talent at an international level, by leveraging their extensive network and world-class research capabilities.

Peter Searle, CEO of Airswift said: “The launch of Ducatus Partners gives our clients a dedicated executive search capability, led by some of the best and most widely regarded individuals in this space. Their sector knowledge and market intelligence means they have access to potential leaders that their rivals cannot hope to match. The team’s experience and expertise, combined with our global footprint and comprehensive package of workforce solutions, gives our clients an unrivalled opportunity to work with a single, trusted supplier.”

Working in partnership will enhance the range and reach of both companies’ services. Together they will have an unrivalled insight into market challenges and opportunities, and be extremely well placed to develop innovative, intelligence-led solutions for both clients and candidates.

GE Oil & Gas will be supplying Graziella Green Power (GGP) with technologies for nextgeneration power stations using geothermal energy from the Tuscan geothermal district.

GGP is the leading Tuscan company in the construction and management of geothermal, photovoltaic, biomass and wind energy plants.

GE’s ORegenTM technology generates electricity using steam from below the ground (‘geothermal fluids’), without any dispersal or leakage into the environment. After use, the geothermal resource - the flow of steam – can be reinjected underground in its entirety, with zero atmospheric impact. This is a new application for this technology, which has previously been used for waste heat recovery in hydrocarbon-based plants.

GE Oil & Gas will supply a complete ORegenTM system combined with a reciprocating compressor for reinjecting the gases alongside digital solutions, built on GE’s Predix technology.

This will allow for the system to be monitored constantly from a monitoring and diagnostics centre at the site in Florence, together with Houston and Kuala Lumpur centres.

In contrast with existing technologies, the plant built

by Graziella Green Power will allow system optimisation, minimizing the visual impact of the site and producing an annual energy output of 40,000 MWh renewable, clean energy, equivalent to the consumption of 14,000 families. The plant should enter the operational phase in 2018.

REAL COPY

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21

catalyst A useful

David McNaught discusses innovation in the electricity distribution industry

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romoting and fostering innovation is a complex problem in any industry; the forward impetus of innovators, driven by a desire for competitive advantage, can be stymied by corporate inertia, entrenched interests, myopia or any other of a whole host of factors.

These barriers are a significant concern even in situations where organisations are fully able to exploit the benefits of their own innovation; they become stifling in the context of tightly regulated industries. Where an organisation has its role shaped primarily by licence and legislation, and its income calculated by a fixed return mechanism, innovative approaches are very unlikely to result.

The Challenge The UK’s electricity distribution networks, and the Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) licenced to run

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them, existed in just such an innovation limbo following privatisation in the 1990s. By the time the industry regulator, Ofgem, started consultation for the fifth Distribution Price Control Review (DPCR5) period, which was due to commence on the 1 April 2010, there was wide recognition within the industry that DNOs were not incentivised to take innovative approaches to service delivery. The DNOs argued that they were doubly bound: their licensing terms made them responsible for the full costs of any failed innovation projects, and the financial gains from successful innovation were likely to be subject to claw back at the next price control review period.

In short, the previous network price control regimes, despite the laudable aim of providing lowest price to electricity customers, had incentivised DNOs to reduce their cost bases, simply by driving down the cost of operations and maintenance and extending the life of their existing assets.

Transmission & Distribution

Incentivisation In response to this situation, Ofgem used the DPCR5 to establish the Low Carbon Networks Fund (LCNF); a £500 million competitive project fund whose intended purpose was to replicate the incentives supporting and promoting innovation present for companies in other industries. In addition, the fund was designed to help the DNOs ‘to prepare for their role in the low carbon economy’.

My organisation, Frazer-Nash Consultancy, was involved as technical consultants scrutinising and recommending potential projects on their effectiveness at facilitating carbon reduction, assuring security of supply and providing value for money for distribution customers.

The DPRC5 period came to an end on the 31 March 2015 and the LCNF closed to new projects. The fund’s conclusion, and the completion of the first tranche of projects commissioned under it, presents a natural opportunity for retrospection and to present an initial ‘hot take’ on the fund’s successes and imperfections.

Results In plain, numerical terms the LCNF has allocated over £240 million of funding on 23 major and 42 minor projects with each of the UK’s six DNOs having at least one major project funded. The fund has realised Ofgem’s objective to allow the DNOs to ‘try out new technology, operating and commercial arrangements’. All aspects of the ‘trilemma’ of challenges – reducing carbon emissions, increasing security of supply, and ensuring affordable costs to energy consumers – have been investigated. The projects have sought a variety of solutions for the unprecedented challenges to the UK’s energy infrastructure: new technology, novel management techniques and sympathetic policy approaches have all been investigated as providers of the necessary changes to the sector.

Beyond the delivery of individual projects, the biggest successes of the LCNF have probably been its sector-wide effects. By giving industry participants a ‘walled garden’ for new approaches, in which innovative ideas could be trialled on their own merits, the fund has fostered a sectorwide culture change. The best evidence for that success has been the introduction of the RIIO (Revenue = Incentives + Innovation + Outputs) funding mechanism as the follow up to DPCR5. Many of the assumptions that RIIO makes about the sector’s abilities to innovate and drive down costs would have been inconceivable without the LCNF. The LCNF itself has now been replaced for funding new projects by the Network Innovation Competition and the Network Innovation Allowance, both of which build on the LCNF’s structure, approach and achievements.

Some critics would suggest that, in purely project terms, the LCNF has failed to deliver a ‘killer app’: no single project

has broken through to make a significant impact outside of the industry. Despite some impressive aspirations, the projects have, on the whole, not been as effective as had been envisaged in engaging domestic consumers. Public engagement is vital for many of the issues facing the electricity network: distributed generation, electric vehicles, the electrification of heat and the provision of smart meters are all key issues for the coming decade, and many of the projects engaging on these topics have reported difficulties getting wider traction.

Conclusions These shortcomings notwithstanding, the sector-wide impacts that the LCNF has been able to achieve make it an interesting template for how innovation might be promoted in other heavily regulated markets. Firstly, a proactive regulator willing to recognise a shortfall in the industry structure and propose amendments to incentivise the innovative behaviour that is required. Secondly, a willingness to assign funding, not just to promote individual projects for immediate results, but to deliver structural change.

Thirdly the readiness of regulated organisations to engage and collaborate with new parties, seeking to draw in new expertise and fresh views of their industry.

The Low Carbon Network Fund was made available to the DNOs in recognition of the fact that the regulatory environment had, perversely, failed to incentivise network operators’ trialling of innovative methods, approaches and technology. On those terms, the LCNF has been a successful catalyst for changing the perspectives of the distribution industry. It has encouraged key players within the industry to value and seek novelty; to engage with new tools, techniques and partners and to initiate the development of an operational culture which is positive about participating in the transition to a lower carbon future.

frazer-nash consultancy David McNaught is a chartered mechanical engineer at Frazer-Nash Consultancy Ltd, a leading systems and engineering technology company. With around 700 employees, Frazer-Nash operates from a network of ten UK and Australian offices. The organisation excels in solving complex engineering challenges for clients in the aerospace, transport, nuclear, marine, defence, and power and energy sectors.

For further information please visit: fnc.co.uk

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23

progress Making

According to Andrew Thompson, increased patent filing activity suggests Smart Grids are a step closer

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n upturn in innovation activity in the area of Smart Grid technology in Europe is signalling a positive development in energy generation and distribution. This activity is helping to establish the infrastructure necessary to support some major scale energy projects and a growing number of localised energy producers.

Desk research conducted by European intellectual property firm, Withers & Rogers, has revealed that over 450 patent applications for Smart Grid technologies were filed at the European Patent Office (EPO), based on the latest year of

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complete data1. This number has more than doubled in the space of three years and suggests a strong increase in research and development investment.

Smart Grid technology is an umbrella term for interrelated technologies with the common aim of improving existing energy networks. It covers more efficient and flexible energy generation, storage and distribution, as well as allowing consumers to better control their consumption (through the use of smart meters, for example). A Smart Grid has the ability to manage a diverse input of energy sources, including wind, solar, and hydropower, as well

Smart grids

as more conventional fuel. Furthermore, an increased interconnectivity and efficient energy storage allows Smart Grids to better utilise distributed power generation, easing the pressure on central providers.

As well as the focus on meeting targets for renewable energy production, there is growing interest in wind and solar energy projects as the technology becomes more accessible and cheaper to install. In addition, there are generous payback schemes, which allow consumers and other small-scale producers to sell back surplus energy to the grid and reward them with discounts on their energy costs

for doing so. Such incentives have inspired some exciting one-off energy generation projects. For example, work is nearing completion on what will soon be Europe’s largest floating solar power farm in Walton-on-Thames on the outskirts of London. With others also under construction, renewable energy projects on this scale are becoming an increasingly reliable source of energy.

However, the growing prevalence of localised energy generation is putting pressure on an ageing national grid, which is in urgent need of modernisation. Supply from renewable energy projects is often erratic by nature – solar

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When it comes to establishing smart grids in the UK, progress is being made. Many of the individual components that are required to establish an efficient and sustainable energy network are already in place and, as patent filing activity shows, investment in innovation is growing at a pace

panels won’t produce energy at night and wind turbines don’t turn if there is no wind. This could lead to supply shortfalls if the situation is left unmanaged.

Clearly there is a need to create an energy distribution infrastructure that is capable of taking energy from many different sources, storing it efficiently and effectively, and providing it as and when it is needed, where it is needed.

It is only by casting the net as wide as possible to optimise smarter energy consumption that the grid can really become effective.

Of course, in order for each individual energy initiative to fulfil its potential, supply side innovation needs to keep pace with that linked to the distribution and consumption

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of energy. For example, without establishing solid communication lines between homes and power stations, consumers do not have the ability to share usage data. Here, smart meters can play a role by providing accurate realtime data to power companies in such a way that demand is never overestimated. Similarly, by making customers aware of the real-time cost of energy, lower energy use is encouraged, especially at times of high demand and cost.

Smart meters can also tie in closely with day-to-day activity by actively managing power use in the home, automatically switching off certain devices at times of peak energy demand, or making the most of cheaper energy at night. As well as improving efficiency, smart meters could also help reduce

Smart grids

some innovators have realised that one-off producers could also benefit from solutions in this area and have made some significant headway. Tesla, for example, has invented a lowcost home battery pack called Powerwall, which is small enough to be housed in customers’ basements, garages or lofts. These packs use lithium-ion batteries that are designed to capture and store up to 10kWh of energy from wind or solar panels. Power reserves can be drawn upon when needed, for example when energy generation is not possible.

A recent government white paper on smart energy investment provides a map showing investment levels in Smart Grids throughout Europe. Although general Smart Grid activity in the UK is currently the highest in Europe, it is clear that there needs to be a more even split between investment in one-off demonstration projects and long-term R&D initiatives that aim to optimise the grid for the benefit of all future users.

Of course, a move to a more integrated energy market is likely to add complexity and make it even more important that the UK's national grid is able to cope. It is therefore essential that Government legislation does not hinder its development. Certainly in terms of a smart meter roll out, the government is committed to encouraging take up in millions of homes by 2020. However, measures must be taken to ensure that the grid continues to develop in a cohesive manner.

When it comes to establishing smart grids in the UK, progress is being made. Many of the individual components that are required to establish an efficient and sustainable energy network are already in place and, as patent filing activity shows, investment in innovation is growing at a pace. While there is still some way to go until there is mass consumer buy-in and a solid infrastructure through which to administer home energy distribution and storage solutions, the race to establish essential standards for these new technologies is helping to fuel investment.

1 Due to the time it takes for an application to be published and to become public, the research is based on the latest complete data available.

energy theft through highlighting the misreporting of usage data. The worldwide cost of energy theft is estimated to top $200bn a year, so even a small percentage reduction can lead to significant benefits.

In the race to establish essential standards for smart meter technology in the UK, a number of key players have emerged including Honeywell, Hive (owned by British Gas) and Nest (owned by Google). However, as yet there is no clear frontrunner. As standards become established, the importance of intellectual property protection comes to the fore, as this could allow companies to benefit from lucrative licensing deals in the future.

While energy storage is principally a supply side problem,

withers & rogers Andrew Thompson is a patent attorney and clean tech energy specialist at European intellectual property firm Withers & Rogers. Established in 1884, Withers & Rogers LLP is a leading European intellectual property (IP) firm providing expert advice on the protection and enforcement of IP rights particularly for inventions, designs and trade marks. Reflecting the firm’s distinctive entrepreneurial personality, its patent and trademark attorneys come with a depth of specialist understanding and pride themselves on helping businesses to commercialise their IP. For further information please visit: withersrogers.com

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An introduction to anaerobic

digestion Martin Wager explains the process, applications and benefits of anaerobic digestion (AD)

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revenue-boosting method of generating renewable energy is via anaerobic digestion (AD). This is the controlled breakdown of organic matter in a closed digester vessel.

The air supply is restricted to stimulate anaerobic decomposition (unlike composting, which takes place in the presence of air). This process of decomposition, accelerated in the presence of bacteria, produces a methanerich biogas, which can then be turned into heat and electricity via a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) unit.

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is an attractive proposition for suitable sites, especially for those organisations with organic waste and residues from manufacturing processes (such as food and drink) that are uneconomic to reuse or recycle. Instead, these waste products make good feedstock for AD.

How anaerobic digestion works Anaerobic digestion is a four-stage process in which the organic feedstock (containing proteins, carbohydrates and fats) is broken down by bacterial microorganisms in a sealed, heated digester tank. Typically, this takes 60 days, but it is dependent on the composition of the feedstock and the process parameters, e.g. digester temperatures.

There are four stages: Stage 1: Hydrolysis, where the feedstock is broken down into simple sugars, amino acids and fatty acids Stage 2: Acidogenesis, which produces volatile fatty acids, alcohols, CO2, hydrogen sulphide and ammonia

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Stage 3: Acetogenesis, which produces acetic acid, CO2 and

hydrogen Stage 4: Methanogenesis, which converts the acetic acid,

CO2 and hydrogen into biogas (comprising 50-60 per cent methane and approx 40 per cent CO2 and trace compounds.

Digestate Some feedstocks produce an additional process by-product called digestate. This is indigestible feedstock (90–95 per cent original volume) containing nutrient-rich materials and exhausted microorganisms with high contents of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.

Typical uses for solid fibre and liquid digestate are soil conditioners and biofertilisers, or it may be treated and used as animal feed.

Renewables

Using biogas for CHP

Financial incentives and income

The primary use of biogas is in the generation of renewable energy, as it can be used as the combustion fuel in a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) unit.

CHP, also known as cogeneration, is the simultaneous generation of renewable electrical power and heat energy (and cooling, if required).

Electricity is used on-site to power production line equipment, site lighting, etc. Any excess electricity can be exported and sold to local customers or back to the local grid. Renewable heat energy is used in the site’s manufacturing processes, heating buildings, and warming the digester. Excess heat may be exported and sold to other local heat users.

Feed-in Tariffs (FiTs)/Contract for Difference (CfD), the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) and Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) complement renewable energy savings with valuable revenue streams. These tariffs can present a fixed income for the life of the installation, based on the rate at time of construction. However, FiTs and the RHI are subject to a biannual degression, which can affect new projects.

Other incomes and incentives might be derived from selling high-quality digestate as a biofertiliser, or the production and sale of biomethane for injection into the natural gas grid under the provision of the RHI tariff.

Alternatively, it may be compressed and sold as transport fuel, which is eligible for Road Transport Fuel Certificates.

Biomethane

Is AD and biogas right for you?

If the biogas output is greater than required on-site, any excess capacity can be upgraded to biomethane – to the same quality as natural gas. Alternatively, the biomethane can be compressed for use as transport fuel.

You will need to check that you have the following: 1. A constant feedstock of good composition and quantity 2. Space on-site for equipment - with good access for any storage and transport.

3. A potential market for digestate - to be sold as biofertiliser.

4. A potential market for biomethane - if you are able to produce more biogas.

5. Finance for biogas - capital investment, or install under a hire purchase agreement.

What equipment is necessary for anaerobic digestion?

Equipment specifications will depend on the intended use of the AD plant, i.e. whether the process will produce highquality digestate and/or is biomethane production viable.

The main digestion equipment list comprises: a primary tank, digester tank, gas bag, flare and auxiliary equipment.

Generation equipment includes a CHP unit, generally supplied as a packaged system, and an optional heating boiler.

The benefits of anaerobic digestion Generating on-site renewable electrical and heat energy from biogas via AD can mean energy self-sufficiency, with the benefits of increased reliability and security of supply.

The combination of biogas production by AD and energy generation with CHP will result in significant energy and cost savings. CHP is around 30 per cent more efficient compared with conventional energy from fossil fuels.

The potential energy savings and increased profit margins that biogas production will produce are wholly dependent on the amount of renewable energy that can be generated from the feedstock used, and whether the generated energy will be utilised on-site or exported.

AD and CHP used for renewable energy generation is considered carbon neutral when biogas is used as the combustion fuel. This is because the methane is completely consumed and the amount of carbon in the CO2 exhaust gas emissions is the same as that originally absorbed during photosynthesis in the natural carbon cycle.

Carbon savings will also be made by reducing or even eliminating the greenhouse gas emissions associated with transportation of food waste to landfill sites.

Environmental planning and permitting Planning permission is normally required for most new AD installations. Approval will be concerned with how the development may impact on the local environment and community. It may be necessary to undertake an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).

The Environmental Permitting Regulations specify criteria for whether a permit or exemption is required for the operation of a new AD plant and the use of digestate. Some sites may be exempt from environmental permitting if their control of waste meets the criteria.

ENER-G Combined Power Ltd Martin Wager is Business Development Manager for ENER-G Combined Power Ltd. The UK headquartered manufacturing and engineering business is a global specialist in combined heat and power (CHP), biogas generation and anaerobic digestion. With over 30 years’ experience, more than 2625 units manufactured, some 5900 CHP running years logged and nearly two million tonnes of CO2 saved by its customers, ENER-G is the largest provider of small scale CHP units in Europe.

For further information please visit: energ.co.uk/chp

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flow The future of

Craig Marshall takes a look at how smart flow meters will become smarter

Below Craig Marshall, Project Engineer at NEL

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F

low meter technology is now highly advanced, with the next key milestone being to make the equipment more cost -effective for the end user. This process will be enabled by the correct use of flow measurement diagnostics and secondary measurements to create smarter flow meters.

Advances in electronics has allowed the detailed monitoring of all the recorded data within a meter to be used as a diagnostic tool to complete a ‘health-check’ of the meter while it is in operation. By trending this

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information over time, changes can be linked to various flow disturbances to help resolve measurement accuracy issues.

Some manufacturers have also created bespoke software for their meters, meaning that reports or live data can be accessed from anywhere in the world. Engineers can use this information to assess a meter’s ongoing performance, with alarms instantaneously alerting them to any problems.

Additionally, trending of the data over time can then be used to provide regulators and auditors with information on the present state of meters, with the aim of reducing the need for recalibration.

Flow meters

Greater efficiency

A smarter future

Recalibrations are both costly and labour intensive, particularly when multiple meters are involved. However, incorporating diagnostics and utilising smart meters could reduce this cost.

Taking a fingerprint of the diagnostic parameters during calibration can provide a traceable link to meter performance. Once the meter is installed for use in a process stream, comparing the fingerprint with calibration values can ensure no change or shift from the calibration. This provides confidence that the calibration is successfully transferred to the operating location and conditions.

Using qualitative information about the meter’s performance and embedded technical knowledge, the resultant flowrate information can be reassessed and a confidence level applied. If there is no shift in meter diagnostics i.e. fingerprint, over a period of time, this indicates that the meter has not shifted in service and therefore does not need a recalibration.

A good example of this is an ultrasonic meter with builtin diagnostic capabilities. An ultrasonic meter measures the time it takes for a pulse of ultrasound to traverse between two axially spaced transducers in both the forward and reverse directions. The ultrasound traverses through the flowing fluid medium where the signal is attenuated and distorted to some level. Measurement signal diagnostics such as signal strength, signal to noise ratio (SNR) and signal amplification (gain) can be monitored and trended over time to give an indication of meter performance. If these diagnostics do not change over the time period, there is an added confidence that the meter is still operating within specification and does not need to be recalibrated.

In addition to these signal diagnostics, a functional diagnostic parameter can be used in the form of the calculated speed of sound from each measurement path in an ultrasonic meter. The speed of sound can also be calculated using knowledge of the process conditions i.e. temperature, pressure and gas composition alongside industry standard calculations. By comparing the metercalculated speed of sound with one calculated from other process measurements it is possible to further verify not only the meter’s performance but also the performance of the other measurement instruments involved.

This technique can be used to validate a full measurement system, which can be extremely powerful and beneficial. For example, if the temperature measurement began to operate with a systematic bias, this would ripple through the speed of sound calculation method resulting in a discrepancy between the meter calculated value and the process measurement calculated value. This discrepancy would be highlighted by the alarm software and the user could take the appropriate action.

The use of diagnostics is not limited to the correction of measurement faults. For example, the use of diagnostics and secondary information will enable a condition-based monitoring recalibration timescale rather than a calendarbased one.

Potentially, the benefits do not stop at extending recalibration intervals and diagnostics could take industry a step closer to the realisation of a recalibration-free utopia.

If shifts in diagnostics can be detected and attributed to a specific source then models could be used to predict and correct the measured result.

By having a good understanding of how diagnostics are generated in different metering technologies and how the different sources of shift in measurement performance influence their generation it may be possible to develop these relationships. Coupling this knowledge with new measurement techniques to identify and quantify the sources of shift would result in a very powerful tool for flow measurement technologies.

Technology is now advancing to a point where much more computer processing can be completed in real-time allowing for the opportunity to further develop the field of diagnostics and smart metering. In the near future, the use of diagnostics could eliminate the errors associated with issues that affect meter performance.

However, for true industrial scale uptake of smart meters, there will have to be evidence to support any models or systems developed in order to give end users confidence in their operation. At present, meters are much smarter than previous generations and are now able to qualitatively alert operators if something has gone wrong, but they are still unable to quantify the problem and correct themselves.

Anything that can reduce the input effort and cost for the end-user such as making meters recalibration free for the entirety of their operating lives will always be of interest. With the developments in technology and growing interest in diagnostics it can be said with confidence that smart meters are becoming smarter and are the future of flow measurement.

nel Craig Marshall is Project Engineer at NEL. NEL is a world-class provider of technical consultancy, research, measurement, testing and flow measurement services to the energy and oil & gas industries, as well as government.

For further information please visit: tuvnel.com

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mortar Bricks and

According to David McMillan, oil and gas companies are adjusting their corporate real estate strategies to respond to the new operational reality

T

he 18 months between July 2014 and the beginning of this year have been challenging for the oil and gas industry.

Oil prices have fallen by more than 70 per cent, putting significant pressure on companies’ profit margins. A recent uplift, albeit encouraging, does not yet guarantee a permanent revival.

Supply remains high, and is forecast to marginally surpass global requirements over the next two years, while oil producing countries continue to negotiate a joint protective strategy. As oil and gas companies tend to have significant capital expenditures and comparatively high space per employee ratios, they are looking at how real estate strategies can help them withstand market pressures.

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The effect the low oil price is having on real estate is multi-faceted. On the one hand, the overall impact on office real estate markets is quite limited. JLL continues to forecast increases in leasing and rental levels in 15 out of 24 key European markets in the next four years. Strong demand from other industries will maintain pressure on availability of space in prime locations, driving sustained rental growth and increasing office space costs for oil and gas companies in major European cities.

On the other hand, for oil producing regions and cities heavily exposed to the industry, notably Aberdeen, UK and Stavanger, Norway the impact has been more keenly felt. Falling demand for products and services from the oil sector has had a knock on effect on these markets,

Real estate

resulting in reduced workforce requirements and slowing demand for real estate. Space requirements from smaller players and oil service companies are likely to drop further as many may lack the financial resources of the oil majors to weather the storm.

In Aberdeen in particular there is a significant oversupply of corporate space. Prime headline office rents have been stable with increased incentives, which is in itself an indicator of weakened real estate market. In this time of market uncertainty, occupiers are reluctant to enter into pre-let agreements and are increasingly concerned about flexibility, workforce requirements, and space optimisation.

Many have realised that they need a proactive long-term real estate strategy to be able to future-proof their business.

Above: Strategic responses from oil and gas companies are heavily focused on cost reduction

An immediate response from the oil and gas sector has been to focus on cost cutting and postpone further spending.

For many companies this lead to headcount reductions and asset divestments. In the most acute examples, market pressures are forcing businesses to file bankruptcies and default on loans. According to Standard and Poor’s data, the oil and gas sector contributed to over a quarter of the total global corporate defaults in 2015. A number of oil and gas companies, especially those with low debt to equity ratios, are expected to explore options for raising capital and increase borrowing.

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Forward-looking companies are shaping their real estate strategies today around the talent needs of tomorrow. Whilst immediate market pressures force oil and gas companies to focus on cost reduction, there is still a strong argument for building a real estate strategy that can support the wider strategic objectives around growth, innovation, and talent

Real estate tends to be put under scrutiny when financial pressures are high. According to JLL’s latest Global Corporate Real Estate (CRE) Survey, 77 per cent of CRE teams reported increased demands to reduce operating expenses.

Furthermore, we observe that the expectation that real estate should deliver cost savings is now part of business as usual. Adverse market conditions put additional pressure on oil and gas companies, impacting real estate strategies and demanding a plan of action from real estate teams. Real estate can deliver significant savings to the organisation, which is why many oil and gas companies are turning to proactive real estate management.

Real estate strategies to support the cost-cutting agenda Portfolio analysis and review Many oil and gas companies are reviewing and analysing their real estate portfolios. Understanding the composition and usage patterns of their corporate space helps them estimate excess costs arising out of highly expensive and underutilised locations. Forensic review of assets can identify space inefficiencies, which, when addressed in a

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timely manner, can substantially reduce operating expenses.

General right sizing and consolidation of space equally supports the cost cutting agenda and improves efficiency of the corporate real estate portfolio, ensuring that the core operational requirements are met.

Cost reduction Oil and gas companies are actively reviewing high cost production locations and associated real estate requirements and identifying savings from expensive offices. Many are using lease break options, subletting, and releasing excess space where demand from space remains strong. This way oil and gas companies can substantially reduce their costs without compromising on key locations. Many companies are benefiting from lease restructuring for the core locations, improving efficiency of their contract arrangements.

Monetisation of assets Similarly, there has been a greater focus on capital-raising and exit options from core and non-operational portfolios, as occupiers with owned real estate seek to take advantage of wellperforming real estate investment markets. Since for many oil and gas leaders growth is still a priority, capital raised through

Real estate

the sale of real estate can be reinvested back into the business to support operations and business expansion.

Increasing flexibility and agility of the portfolio The results of JLL’s Global Corporate Real Estate Survey suggest that well over half (64 per cent) of CRE executives experienced increased demand for bringing more flexibility to the leasehold portfolio and on-demand space. This trend is particularly relevant to the oil and gas sector, which in the current climate, is exposed to volatilities in workforce requirements and increasing disruption of traditional operational models by transformative technologies.

Finally, as some larger and more financially robust companies are taking the opportunity to capitalise on the low oil price phenomenon and acquire assets and stakes at below-market value, the industry is likely to see some increase in targeted M&A activity in the near future. Those companies considering acquisitions should be preparing their real estate portfolios for the coming changes. M&A activity frequently becomes a catalyst for optimising space and taking a fresh look at how corporate real estate strategy can support wider strategic objectives.

Growing global concerns around talent attraction and

retention are encouraging business leaders to evaluate their workplace environments. For oil and gas companies this is a great time to tackle pending talent shortfall as the current generation of senior executives begin to look towards retirement. Forward-looking companies are shaping their real estate strategies today around the talent needs of tomorrow.

Whilst immediate market pressures force oil and gas companies to focus on cost reduction, there is still a strong argument for building a real estate strategy that can support the wider strategic objectives around growth, innovation, and talent.

jll David McMillan is Director & Energy Sector Lead, JLL. JLL is a professional services and investment management firm offering specialised real estate services to clients seeking increased value by owning, occupying and investing in real estate. On behalf of its clients, the firm provides management and real estate outsourcing services for a property portfolio of 4.0 billion square feet, or 372 million square metres, and completed $138 billion in sales, acquisitions and finance transactions in 2015.

For further information please visit: jll.com

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changes Strategic

Dan Ibbetson takes a look at offshore efficiency, and how certain improvements can support falling exploration budgets

W

hether they’re based in the North Sea or South America, oil storage tanks on platforms or Floating, Production, Storage Above and Offloading (FPSO) vessels require Dan Ibbetson, cleaning and maintenance once or twice Managing Director oC conditions are too hazardous, deadly a year.

The 90 for Aggreko Northern Europe in fact, for workers to operate in and even at 25oC after concentrated cooling, they can only work in the confined space for around 15 minutes.

The process would normally take three days; so reaching the required temperature in one day has significant financial benefits. The quicker a space is cooled to a safe temperature, the faster technicians can do their work and the operation

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can commence, and also reduce fuel costs. This mind-set should be adopted in every aspect of an operation.

Effective temperature control technology plays a major role in the health and safety of employees and an operation’s ability to function. Its level of efficiency and impact on energy demands however also have more underlying consequences for productivity, operational expenditure and a project’s bottom line.

While demand for fossil fuel grows in line with energy consumption, and the oil price falls, as global storage figures rise, producers are under increasing pressure to reduce overheads. Only those that can adapt will overcome this challenging environment and prove profitable in the long

Efficiency measures

term – particularly those still bold enough to explore further offshore. Reviewing the efficiency of energy and ancillary services, and potential opportunities to cut costs, is vital to achieving this.

In spring 2015 Wood Mackenzie predicted that offshore exploration budgets would fall by 33 per cent by 2016 as a result of declining opportunities, with improvements to efficiency expected to contribute five per cent towards cost cuts. More recently, Oil & Gas UK has announced that in spite of a rise in production last year, the declining oil price resulted in revenues falling by 30 per cent, again creating a stronger need to implement more cost-effective operations.

The formation of ‘The Efficiency Task Force’ (ETF) in September 2015, which is driving attitude and behavioural change, demonstrates how high up cutting costs is on the industry’s agenda. While some companies are cutting jobs and extending operating periods, standardising processes and enabling shared resources, as well as simplifying complex operations, are emerging as significant strategic changes to save costs. Reducing fuel and energy costs is only one component of the wider issue.

Re-assessing energy generation needs and adopting efficient, cost-effective energy strategies is a smart solution to avoid high operational costs but these are not always obvious. Similar to cooling, minimising downtime by mitigating the risk of power loss is vital to the operation regardless of expense. Doing this efficiently cannot only save, but also prevent rising costs. Reliability and flexibility are the keys here.

One of the first priorities at the start of a project is adopting a reliable power supply that is tailored to the operation’s specific needs. On-site energy generation is typically provided by gas turbines, which can be expensive to operate and emit high levels of CO2. If a platform can be self-sufficient in its energy generation, there are obvious fuel consumption savings with reduced financial and environmental impacts.

The economic and environmental benefits of offshore renewable energy sources on platforms are clear and as a result, gas-wind hybrid generation is growing in popularity, as is using operational waste gas. Reliability, however, remains a crucial factor. Reducing fuel consumption is meaningless if disruptions caused by intermittency cause greater expense and inefficiencies.

Regardless of how energy is generated, having a contingency plan in place such as on-site back-up generators will avoid interruptions and help to maintain optimal productivity levels if this failed. It will also avoid the added expense of re-start costs and prevent potential litigation expenses associated with compromised health and safety.

Minimising disruption, and loss of productivity during maintenance of turbines, whether it is planned or unplanned,

creates a smoother operation. The flexibility and relatively small footprint of modular power generation means that it can be easily integrated into a platform or FPSO’s generation infrastructure. They can also supplement the extra capacity demand associated with other operational maintenance needs, as and when needed.

Similarly, load testing of equipment plays a key role in mitigating the risk of disruptions. Powering FPSOs for example is a major ongoing cost for producers – carrying out load bank testing of power systems prior to completion is vital to ensure they will meet capacity needs when fully operational, hundreds of miles offshore. Not only does this process mitigate the risk of power loss and associated costs, it also ensures production levels are met throughout the duration of the production and voyage periods.

With energy consumption expected to rise by more than a third in the next 20 years, fossil fuels are set to supply around 60 per cent despite recent environmental policy changes. As a result, oil and gas operators can anticipate even greater pressures to meet demand while reducing costs.

As a result of diminishing deepwater exploration opportunities and the falling value of oil, firms are gradually moving their investment out of the sector into others in their portfolio. Some are coming out of the sector completely.

Improving efficiency and reducing costs will support the cause for continuing to invest in these operations.

The landscape will undoubtedly see more dramatic changes in coming decades. As the global energy agenda continues to evolve and carbon emission regulations become increasingly stringent, more efficient and environmentally friendly oil and gas operations are essential. Until the renewables sector becomes more reliable and takes ownership of a larger proportion of capacity generation, the pressure on oil producers will continue.

aggreko Dan Ibbetson is Aggreko Managing Director for Northern Europe.

Aggreko is the global leader in mobile power and temperature control solutions, operating in 204 locations worldwide. Its Power Solutions business operates in emerging markets, while its Rental Solutions arm is the market leader in oil and gas, petrochemical and refining, and mining industries, hiring equipment to customers to operate with the expertise and support of Aggreko technical teams.

For further information please visit: aggreko.com/industries/oil-gas

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37

Fluid

motion With over 140 years

of industry experience and currently in its fifth generation as a family owned venture, NETZSCH Pumps & Systems has grown from a humble beginning as a local supplier of pump wagons for firefighting and agricultural machines to a global powerhouse in the manufacture of positive displacement pumps. The business was founded by brothers Thomas and Christian Netzsch during 1873 in Selb in Upper Franconia, Germany and has continued to grow, beginning production of its iconic Mohnopumps (NEMO) pump range in 1952. “For more than 60 years, NETZSCH has manufactured positive displacement pumps worldwide. Designed specifically for difficult pumping situations, NETZSCH pumps range in size from the industry’s smallest metering pumps to high volume pumps for applications in the oil and gas or mining industries,” says Thomas Böhme, Head Of Business Field Oil & Gas Mid-/ Downstream for NETZSCH. “With a production of over 55,000 pumps per year NETZSCH underlines the technology and market leadership, which it has gained thanks to the quality of the pumps and spare parts and comprehensive service. The quality of NETZSCH pumps is guaranteed by the core competence and vertical manufacturing, which we have built up over many decades,” he continues. “With the worldwide implementation of common standards in accordance with DIN EN ISO 9001 in development and research the

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company guarantees the highest quality at each of the five production sites.”

“Our development and sales activities are focused along our core competences on trendsetting technologies and applications, to expand our market and technology leadership for the benefit of our customers,” Johann Vetter, head of project management at the German headquarters, adds. “We don’t see ourselves only as a developer and manufacturer, but more as your partner from project planning through case management to complete service concepts. Regular innovations are the key to our long-term market leadership.

But only innovations relevant to the market are successful, because they meet the current needs of customers. That is why innovations are a pillar of the NETZSCH strategy that supports the ongoing growth of the company.”

NETZSCH pumps are present in nearly all of the world’s major industry sectors, meaning that the downturn of a single industry can be countered by company’s activities in other markets.

Indeed, while the low cost of oil has naturally had an impact on the business, NETZSCH continued to win orders within the oil and gas sector while further strengthening its presence within the food and pharmaceutical; chemical, pulp and paper and mining sectors. “Of course we have been affected by the current crisis within the oil and gas market in the same way as everybody else, but we have also been successful in getting good oil and gas orders inside the EMEA region and in compensating for the challenges in the oil and gas market with strong sales in other industries,” Thomas Böhme elaborates.

Across its business NETZSCH divides its activities into several business fields focused on specific industry sectors, this allows the company to focus on the core needs of its clients and provide the most efficient pump solutions in both standard and bespoke models. “Within the company’s pumps and systems business unit for example, our oil and gas division specialises in the delivery of systems with progressing

PROFILE

cavity pumps for the production of crude oil and other highly viscous materials and these pumps are ultimately used throughout the world. Whether it is a large oilfield operator or a small production company – the experts at NETZSCH give their full attention to all projects. At the same time we keep pace with the increasing technological demands of the industry through highly efficient work. The successful co-operation of our own research and development teams with universities and operators of our pumps in the field globally proves this fact,” Johann Vetter details.

“Typically within oil and gas and mining applications the demand for larger pumps delivering higher flow rates and higher pressure is increasing faster than in other industries,” he adds. “Therefore NETZSCH has developed its range of L.Cap high-performance pumps for flow rates of up to 1000m³/h and pressures up to 24 bar. Over the last tens years NETZSCH has not only sold more than 280 pumps for multiphase applications but among them also the largest progressing cavity pumps currently used anywhere in the world.”

During March 2016, for example, NETZSCH announced that it had provided custom diluent injection pumps for a major energy transporter.

With a goal of reaching the highest operational efficiencies at the storage facility, the customer was looking to install a pumping system that would take the heavy crude oil from the tanks and blend it with diluents to lower the viscosity of the crude oil to be pumped to the main pipeline for distribution. Indeed, viscosity variability requires greater injection control of diluent as the crude oil sits in storage tanks over a long period of time, lighter product settles to the top and heavier product to the bottom.

“Crude oil is drawn off the bottom of the tanks first and this is where most amount of diluent injection is required. As the product changes in viscosity there is a constant need to adjust the amount of diluent being used. NETZSCH approached the design of this pumping system with progressing cavity pumps to take care of operating issues associated with constantly changing viscosity,” Thomas Böhme notes.

A critical design issue was the extremely cold operating temperatures during the winter months, with ambient conditions of as low as -22 to -40 °F / -30 to -40 °C and diluent temperatures as cold as -8 to -13 °F / -22 to -25 °C, NETZSCH engineers needed to carefully consider the elastomer selection for this application. Because the NETZSCH progressive

cavity pumps would operate outdoors, it was determined to use a reduced wall stator with heat tracing to insure that a 23 to 32 °F / -5 to 0 °C operating temperature was maintained within the elastomer. In addition, three resistance temperature detectors (RTD) were to be mounted in each pump to provide feedback data to the control system. To compensate for the cold temperatures, NETZSCH designed a rotor that is slightly over-sized in order to keep the interference fit at sub-zero temperatures.

This presented an additional hurdle at assembly time. The solution for assembling a stator on an oversize rotor was to pack the stators in ice in order to make assembly possible.

By using four custom-designed progressing cavity pumps piped to a common header NETZSCH was able to provide the customer with the level of diluent injection control that he was looking for. With the NETZSCH system, the customer has the ability to run anywhere from one to all four pumps and with the use of VFD’s one will have complete control over diluent injection. The large pump size (one of the largest ever built by NETZSCH) also allows the customer to run the pumps slower for a longer life cycle – a critical maintenance advantage in the extremely cold operating environment.

Although the oil and gas market remains depressed, NETZSCH is able to offset this volatility through the delivery of highly specialised projects for technically demanding applications and by expanding its reach in other markets. During the coming years the company is confident that it will continue to grow as a leading pump and system manufacturer within the oil and gas sector and beyond. “At present we are focused on market penetration with our launched products, while over the

NETZSCH gmbH

Across its business NETZSCH divides its activities into several business fields focused on specific industry sectors, this allows the company to focus on the core needs of its clients and provide the most efficient pump solutions in both standard and bespoke models

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PROFILE

NETZSCH gmbH

next three to five years we will be focusing on sustainability and, especially for the oil and gas market, increasing the awareness of our positive displacement pumps such as NEMO, TORNADO und NOTOS for the mid- downstream and especially multiphase applications of our customers. Despite the current oil price crisis we still see a growing demand for our pumps, as many new oil and gas resources are being found in remote and extreme environments. These challenging pump applications need reliable solutions to secure our customers processes and the increase in these application possibilities fuels a growing demand for pumping equipment for ever more difficult conditions. New reserves tend to be more contaminated than earlier finds.

These contaminated oils, sand water gas etc, play directly to the strengths of our products, also to the downhole PCPs, drive heads and accessories,” Thomas concludes.

“Our experience in these applications as well as our growing reputation and close partnerships with EPCs and end-users gives us the knowledge of many varied processes, which enables us

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to design and tailor our products to meet the requirements of our customers. Examples of this are our multiphase and large capacity progressive cavity pumps. The continuing demand within this market and our activities provides a positive outlook for NETZSCH PCP (progressing cavity pumps) for the Oil & Gas market.”

NETZSCH GmbH netzsch.com

Services Pumps and systems manufacturer

wandfluh

PROFILE

Hydraulics in extremely harsh conditions

By Markus von Niederh채usern, Sales Manager, Wandfluh AG, Frutigen, Switzerland

The shipbuilding sector

Below Markus von Niederh채usern, international sales at Wandfluh AG

is looking back on many years of proven development and is relying on solid and considered building. At the same time, the sector has invested in a large number of important innovations and the latest technologies. As a result of the development of new shipping routes and environmental requirements, the challenges are increasing at a distinctive rate.

Specifically, as a result of the development of the Arctic and its oilfields, ships are required for commercial shipping, which are suitable for Arctic conditions.

As a result of harsh climatic conditions in the Arctic on the one hand and the tropical climate at the equator on the other hand, the requirement profile for a versatile type of ship has been tightened up. All components must either face the challenge presented by this large spectrum of requirements, or alternatively,

they must be accordingly protected from the influences. Not only solutions have to be found for the cold Arctic temperatures, solutions have to be usable also in the subtropics and tropics.

Products for the Arctic as well as the tropics The Swiss company Wandfluh has recognised this subject and has decided to address it. For several years now, the hydraulic manufacturer has built up a wealth of experience with hydraulic components for explosion-protected zones 1 and 2 for low-temperature applications using certified products. Today, among other things, the products are successfully used on FPSO units (Floating Production, Storage and Offloading), oilrigs and in a variety of forms on the mainland. Thanks to the large environmental and operating temperature range with an upper limit of +70 째C and a lower limit of -60 째C, these hydraulic components can be successfully and safely used in both the Arctic and ENERGY,oil&gas

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41

Right Wandfluh valves for versatile types of ships for Arctic and tropical conditions

Below Applications at low temperatures

in the tropics. Alternatively, there is also a smaller temperature range of +70 °C to -40 °C for more moderate conditions.

Building on solid experience, a product solution has been developed which offers the same choices and options for explosionprotected zone 0. With this new product, which is based on the already existing MKZ45 solenoid, Wandfluh can make a contribution to the development of new trade routes.

As such, the realisation of VLCC (Very Large Crude Carriers), FLNG (Floating Liquefied Natural Gas) and FLPG freighters (Floating Liquefied Petroleum Gas) for Arctic and tropical environments is greatly simplified for the hydraulic valve control.

However, in developing the new valve solution for low-temperature use, the objective has been defined in a much more varied way.

Worldwide, environmental requirements are increasing, including those in the shipping industry. Therefore, the Swiss company looked for solutions in order to maximise the efficiency of hydraulic components. At the same time, the company was also aware that no compromise could be made when it came to switching safety and failure safety. Finally, a very compact solution is available to the customer with improved hydraulic efficiency and reduced electrical power.

The 30 to 50 per cent improvement in efficiency leads to a power reduction of up to 8 GW/kJs per year.

However, the benefits of increased hydraulic efficiency only result in reduced energy consumption to a limited extent. Most of the benefit lies in saving other system components.

For economic reasons, the development also flowed into a simplified electrical connection execution, which enabled connection expenses to be reduced. Besides this, increased installation efficiency brings the positive effect of a higher IP class, so that the customer can choose between IP65 and IP67.

Maximum corrosion protection requirements with AISI316L A lot of attention has been paid to the topic of protection against corrosion in recent years, and customer requirements have risen steadily. Products for zone 1 and 2 (with zinc/ nickel surface treatment) have long offered a higher standard of protection against corrosion.

Through the extension of the requirement profile of the MKZ45 solenoid for zone 0, the corrosion protection for the standard solution was adjusted to zinc/nickel surface treatment.

As such, the life span based on the salt spray test was improved by a factor of 8 (EN ISO 9227).

An efficient hydraulic solution An emphasis was therefore placed on a high level of hydraulic efficiency, wherein failure safety remains at the high level of Wandfluh products. The main objective for the client to continue to save on expensive repairs was and still is the overriding criterion. For several years, Wandfluh has successfully offered the unconventional solution for container freighters.

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Standard versions are often not enough for offshore projects. Compatibility with seawater or

PROFILE

a salty atmosphere is assumed. This is why acidresistant steel in accordance with AISI316L (K9) is often used for offshore applications. Recent experience confirms an increased demand for maximum protection against corrosion. Wandfluh, from inland Switzerland, has decade-long of expertise in the production of hydraulic valves made from stainless steel based on AISI316L. In order to meet the highest requirements, the entire valve according to the AISI316L standard has been available for some time. These products are identified under the designation K10 and are available for zones 0, 1, 2 and applications that are not protected against explosions.

Through a rich experience, it is possible to provide various solutions as well as the ideal product, and deep-rooted customer relations are built in the shipbuilding sector.

Markus von Niederhäusern has been working in international sales at the main office of Wandfluh AG, Hydraulik + Elektronik, in Frutigen, Switzerland since 2014. Wandfluh was founded in 1946 in Switzerland and originally manufactured production machines for the Swiss watch industry. The development and production of high-grade hydraulic valves was started in the early sixties. Also today, innovation, quality and precision are decisive keys for worldwide success. Own branches in Great Britain, USA, Germany, France and China, as well as representatives in all important industrial nations, assure worldwide support for Wandfluh products.

Apart from a complete range of hydraulic valves for mobile and industrial applications and a broad range of electronic controls for hydraulics, Wandfluh, together with the worldwide sales partners, provide broad support in the field of engineering and service.

wandfluh

Connections For the Ex-protection spool valve for zone 0 (T6), different types of connections are available

Wandfluh wandfluh.com

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underfoot Hidden

Operating from the strategically advantageous location of Etzel within Germany’s northern energy hub near Wilhelmshaven, STORAG ETZEL GmbH* represents a leading oil and gas storage business with a great deal of experience in constructing (solution-mining), operating and leasing caverns. The roots of the business date back to the global energy crises that occurred during the 1970’s, while today STORAG ETZEL manages 73 existing gas and oil storage caverns with a capacity of approximately 46 million cubic metres as of July 2016. “Historically the company was a state-owned storage facility that was established in 1971 as part of a state decision to create a strategic oil reserve,” elaborates STORAG ETZEL CEO, Thomas Kleefuß. “Soon after the idea of utilising the region’s salt deposit for storage purposes solution mining started and today STORAG ETZEL represents one of the favourite geological sites for storage caverns within Germany as well as northwest Europe.”

Indeed, the German government’s decree to establish a ‘Federal Petroleum Reserve’ quickly led to the commencement of leaching operations for 33 caverns during 1973. Ownership of the

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business was transferred to that of a private entity during a two-stage movement between 1986 and 1993 when the business was completely privatised, while the company acquired the cavern system in 2005 and extended the cavern site to its current dimensions.

The storage cavern field at Etzel has experienced significant growth and diversification throughout the history of the site, with the first phase of expansion taking place between 1994 and 2004. Since 2007 STORAG ETZEL has continued to redevelop the cavern facility from a mere crude oil storage site into one of the largest gas storage facilities in Europe.

“The past years have been very successful for the company, because we have continued to develop since 2009 by opening more than 30 new gas caverns,” Thomas reveals. “We are now in the process of completing a final two gas caverns, which will be handed over to the customer in the first quarter of 2017 – both on time and in budget according to this latest development period.”

The Etzel cavern site has been formed in association with engineering companies such as DEEP and KBB that can each demonstrate

PROFILE

STORAG ETZEL GOT - German Oil Tools

stockpiling rather the rapid transition and sale of oil. “We are focused on providing a long-term storage capacity, where the average contract for storage is between three and eight years,” Thomas says. “STORAG ETZEL has been successful at a time when the oil price is low and operators are speculating on rising prices. The past two to three years have been very positive for us on the oil side but limited in terms of growth activities because we were not able to market new caverns for the long-term. The leadtime for developing caverns is relatively long and the volatility in the market has meant that expectation is short.”

Despite the implications of the fall in the price of oil, the market for the storage of oil and gas is becoming more important than ever.

Increasingly the extraction of most raw materials takes place in politically unstable regions, meaning that both commodity pricing and supply are subject to strong fluctuations. Both oil and gas operators and European governing bodies are actively seeking to counteract the effects of these fluctuations by establishing an appropriate storage infrastructure. “Our position here in Etzel is quite advantageous

GOT is specialised in well completion and liner hanger systems, therefore it provides an extensive range of products, innovative solutions and comprehensive services.

In the range of ‘well completion in open hole’ GOT offers among others liner hanger systems, integrated liner hanger packers or tie back strings. Also GOT is the partner for the further product line ‘well completion in cased hole’, because it supplies solutions for your drilling projects from gravel packs over packer systems, inflatables right up to ECP’s. Products for workover and also customised design or solutions for extreme conditions of the soil complete the extensive portfolio.

Hartmann Valves For 70 years Hartmann has delivered high quality valves and wellheads.

With their gas-tight components and long service life they are ideally suited for underground gas storage facilities.

Ball valves with entirely metallic sealing meet API 6 A requirements and guarantee reliable and maintenance free operation. Its experienced 24/7 service team supports in projects worldwide.

Hartmann equipped the underground gas storage in Etzel with numerous ball valves for the brine pumping and gas storage facility. Several wellheads have been delivered for the change from oil to gas storage, the solution mining process as well as for new gas storage caverns.

proven experience in the construction of storage caverns. STORAG ETZEL utilises two 44” pipelines in close proximity with the North Sea that work in unison to both import water for the leaching process and to then return saturated brine back to the sea. Salt cavern capacity is standardised between 600,000 and 900,000 cubic metres at depths of more than 1000 metres. The deep caverns are favourable for gas storage, offering maximum pressures of 200bar and the large working gas capacity of 75 million cubic metres, which are of great benefit to its clients.

The completed caverns are rented to companies operating within the energy market and to Europe’s petroleum stockpiling agencies.

The caverns are further connected to the European energy grid via oil and gas pipelines and are employed by clients to cover peaks in consumption and as an interim storage medium for import deliveries, in addition to its role as a significant contributor to the storage of Germany’s strategic oil reserves. This has shielded the business to some degree against the impact of the global fall in oil prices, as the focus of the business has been on long-term ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

concludes. “The first of these is the on-going discussion relating to a future LNG terminal in the region, while the potential for upgraded gas transport pipelines could bring more gas into Western Europe. Currently our focus will remain on oil and gas, however our advantageous position means that we are also well placed to offer solutions for alternative energy types.” *STORAG ETZEL GmbH is a wholly owned subsidiary of IVG Immobilien AG, a conglomerate headquartered in Bonn, Germany, focusing on office real estate in various domestic metropolitan areas. Mid 2016, IVG completed the project of renaming its subsidiaries, resulting; amongst others; in the company name STORAG ETZEL. Enabling the company to pursue a self-contained and committed market approach, independent from other business lines of the parent company, was the primary objective of the company’s rebranding. STORAG ETZEL was formerly known as IVG Caverns GmbH.

STORAG ETZEL

The storage caverns governed

by STORAG ETZEL are currently fully booked for the next 12 months, as clients have moved quickly to take advantage of the availability of long-term oil and gas storage STORAG ETZEL GmbH storag-etzel.de E-Mail: info@storag-etzel.de

Services Caverns for storage of oil and gas

in that we have the potential to develop more than 24 caverns in the area,” Thomas explains.

“If you look at Europe in general, there are not a lot of states other than Germany that have already built up their strategic reserves. Given the current geopolitical risks occurring globally, there is a possibility that other states will look to store their oil here, as we are situation close to a comprehensive export network. Customers including Belgium and the Netherlands store part of their strategic reserves here for example.”

The storage caverns governed by STORAG ETZEL are currently fully booked for the next 12 months, as clients have moved quickly to take advantage of the availability of longterm oil and gas storage. The development of alternative energy solutions such as LNG and renewables are increasingly changing the face of the global energy market and offer interesting future possibilities for STORAG ETZEL to further increase its storage capacity in the near future. “In the mid-term there are two projects in particular that could result in an interesting opportunities for STORAG ETZEL,” Thomas ENERGY,oil&gas

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breakers Record

When

Energy, Oil & Gas last spoke with Chan Eng Yew, CEO of TRIYARDS Holdings, back in July 2015, we found out how the company was successfully diversifying around the world and into new sectors following its establishment in 2005. With a number of vessels under its belt, chief amongst the company’s achievements at the time was the successful delivery of its multilay offshore construction vessel, the Lewek Constellation in late 2014.

Costing over $650 million over a five-year build programme, the 178-metre vessel delivers ultra deepwater pipelaying and heavylift capabilities to a range of applications and is already demonstrating TRIYARDS’s engineering excellence on a global stage. In 2016, Lewek Constellation was named the Support Vessel of the Year at the annual Offshore Support Journal (OSJ) Awards, where only three other vessels were shortlisted.

“The Lewek Constellation has successfully executed every project she has undertaken and has even set new industry records along the way,” Chan reports. “For example, while undertaking three challenging subsea tie-back projects for Noble Energy at the Big Bend and Dantzler field developments in the Gulf of Mexico, she installed the heaviest pipe-inpipe (PIP) system ever deployed in the world, working at water depths of 2,100 metres.

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The vessel also set an industry first when she successfully laid a test pipe at a tension of 632mT – a record breaker for rigid, reeled-lay operations. Winning this OSJ award attests to TRIYARD’s strong engineering expertise and our ability to develop groundbreaking solutions that meet the industry’s ever-evolving needs.”

Indeed, since it was last profiled, the Singapore-headquartered firm has made even more significant progress in its diversification strategy. Chan highlights two contracts from 2015 in particular that represent the success of its strategy to grow its footprint both in terms

of its product offering and its client base. “We will be constructing three chemical tankers for ship-owner Swiss-Canadian Maritime Ltd to be managed by ABC Maritime AG, one of the world’s leading managers of floating accommodation barges,” he outlines. “Each

PROFILE

of the new IMO Type 2-certified, double-hull ice-classed tankers will have a storage capacity of 24,000 cubic metres and will be specially adapted for operating in colder climates.

“Then there is the scientific research vessel that will be constructed for the Taiwan Ocean Research Institute (TORI) to be used to support on-going research activities.”

In April 2016, TRIYARDS announced even more success by securing four contracts worth a combined $17.8 million and expanding its client base even further. Out of three wind farm support vessels plus one luxury river cruiser, three of these new projects are with new customers. “Regarding the wind farm vessels, each will come equipped with either the Quad Volvo IPS or Quad WaterJet propulsion engines and can cruise at a speed of at least 25 knots,” Chan describes. “These aluminium craft can carry up to 24 passengers and will be fitted with deck cranes with lifting capacities up to ten tonnes. We already have a solid track record for the construction of wind farm vessels, as well as extensive experience in handling complex vessel projects. As such, we are confident of delivering the luxury cruise vessel on time and within budget.”

The 65-metre luxury river cruiser will be built for Compagnie Fluviale du Mekong to ply the Mekong River between Vietnam and Siem Reap, Cambodia. Designed with a rustic charm and with the utmost passenger comfort in mind, the vessel will boast 30 cabins with private balconies as well as a swimming pool on the sub deck.

Looking forward, diversification continues to remain the buzzword of TRIYARDS’ growth strategy. In 2012, 100 per cent of the company’s order book came from the oil and gas sector; yet today this figure has decreased to 60 per cent and ensuring this reliance on a currently unpredictable market continues to decline will be key. “Right now, we see good prospects for the renewable energy segment as it is a growing clean energy source around the world,” Chan highlights. “Europe continues to remain the largest market for windfarm support vessels with Taiwan also becoming a promising area.”

TRIYARDS Holdings

With continued investment helping its sites around the world to develop greater levels of expertise and capacity, the company also remains busy in building a strong and versatile engineering and fabrication team that will enable it to move into new markets as it carries on into the future. For instance, TRIYARDS is one of only five companies worldwide able to manufacture leg-encircling cranes, which help to maximise deck space. To date, TRIYARDS has already delivered 30 cranes of varying types – mostly on its new build vessels – but setting up a dedicated commercial arm to grow this will also feature in its outlook.

“It’s all part of a plan to add more business, which will generate recurrent income streams to supplement our earnings from new build construction,” says Chan. “These businesses will be well-supported by our existing core of engineering and fabrication excellence.

Supplementing this, our shorter term vision will remain focused on delivering our order book and gearing up to execute this diversification strategy.”

TRIYARDS Holdings Ltd triyards.com

Services Provides integrated full-service engineering, fabrication and ship construction solutions for the global offshore and marine industries

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PROFILE

Ansaldo NES

core Strong to the

With roots dating back

as far as 1810, Ansaldo NES represents a proven solution provider for the design and manufacture of bespoke engineering solutions to the nuclear, new build, defence and decommissioning sectors. The company secured its first nuclear contract in 1955 to supply the reactor housing for the UK’s Dounreay site. following the success of this operation, Ansaldo NES quickly became a trusted player within the nuclear industry, specialising in highly bespoke design engineering. To date the company has provided critical components for applications including fuel routes, remote handling, inspection, encapsulation, waste handling, glove boxes, shielded containment and reprocessing to most of the UK’s nuclear power stations.

The company operated as Nuclear Engineering Services (NES) until 2014, when NES announced that the company had ben purchased by Italian nuclear engineering specialist Ansaldo Nucleare, a subsidiary of Ansaldo Energia (AEN) - an international expert in power generation operating with over 3300 employees worldwide.

The sale was valued at some €36 million and allowed the newly rebranded Ansaldo NES to offer an even broader range of services to meet the evolving needs of the international market, particularly in the UK with its promising market for decommissioning and the construction of newbuild nuclear power plants.

As of 2016 the range of services provided

by Ansaldo NES covers the entire life cycle of nuclear power plant, new build and defence activities. The company specialises in design from concept through to detail, manufacturing, assembly, test, installation and commissioning of unique engineering designs, manufactured products and services. In terms of engineering experience Ansaldo NES delivers innovation through all stages of the design life of contracts.

With over six decades of accumulated experience, nuclear culture is deeply engrained into the company’s engineering department.

This places Ansaldo NES in a unique position to work closely with the client to ensure a clear understanding of the exacting requirements of each project, ensuring that the final solution not only meets but exceeds client expectations.

Core to its culture of nuclear engineering excellence, is the use of proven technology. This is used as the basis for design and integration of innovative solutions from other high-integrity markets, including oil and gas, chemical and pharmaceutical and the further application of them to the nuclear environment. This is further underpinned by the company’s belief in getting each project completed correctly the first time. This is achieved through the use of specialist 3D design tools and finite element analysis (FEA) software, which allows Ansaldo NES to ensure that the transition from concept ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

Ansaldo NES

to design to manufacturing is a continual process. This results in leading-edge innovation amalgamated with practical solutions. To further ensure excellent results both today and into the future, the engineering department at Ansaldo NES in comprised of both time-served nuclear experienced engineers and a number of nuclear graduates working through the company’s graduate engineering scheme. This scheme has been accredited by IMechE’s Professional Development Standards Committee for the development of Incorporated Engineers (IEng) and Chartered Engineers (CEng) and plays an important role in ‘future-proofing’ the business for the needs of tomorrow’s nuclear industry.

Further to its comprehensive base of bespoke engineering services, Ansaldo NES embraces project management as a core competence of the business, guiding projects in accordance to best industry practices. The company’s project management capacity is structured to deliver multi-disciplined engineering solutions through dedicated integrated project teams (IPT) to the nuclear decommissioning, defence and nuclear new build markets.

Ansaldo NES maintains an impressive track record for the delivery of project management services into the defence market, with specialist tooling and techniques developed for work on the current UK submarine fleet, while it also represents an approved supplier to the MoD. The company has provided onsite servicing and spares to the MoD for over 20 years and its presence within the commercial market is equally

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impressive with clients including Sellafield Ltd, Babcock, Nuvia, eDF, Rolls Royce, Areva, Magnox and Costain. With Sellafield Ltd in particular, Ansaldo NES enjoys a longstanding relationship as a trusted Tier 2 supplier. Projects include the provision of three silo emptying plant machines, each weighing 500 tonnes. The first of these is already assembled on site and will be commissioned and tested for operations during 2017, while the second is under construction and the third remains in the design stage.

Despite the current uncertainty within the global market, Ansaldo NES remains in a strong position to deliver technically demanding projects to clients throughout its core industry sectors.

During March 2016 for example, the company was awarded an £88 million contract set to last ten years to supply cranes to Sellafield in a joint venture with a French crane manufacturer. The Reel/Ansaldo NES international joint venture will provide cranes that are intended to speed up the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s (NDA) 100year programme to clean up the site. This project represents part of the wider strategy of Ansaldo NES over the coming years. The company attended the Paris World Nuclear Conference during June 2016, where it announced its focus on working more closely with is parent business, Ansaldo Nucleare and to officially launch the venture as a single business. As the venture moves forward, Ansaldo NES will continue to look for opportunities to tender for projects jointly, making the company a trusted and valuable player in the nuclear and defence industries.

Ansaldo NES maintains an impressive track record for the delivery of project management services into the defence market, with specialist tooling and techniques developed for work on the current UK submarine fleet, while it also represents an approved supplier to the MoD

Ansaldo NES ansaldo-nes.com

Services Design and engineering solutions

PROFILE

Endress+Hauser

A measured

partnership

Operating as a family-owned business founded in Lörrach, Germany, Endress+Hauser is a proven-market leader in the design and manufacture of instrumentation and measurement systems. Today, the instruments and measurement systems manufactured by Endress+Hauser are employed by clients across the industry segments including Oil & Gas, Petrochemical, Utilities, Primaries & Metal and Food & Beverage and are supported by a comprehensive package of consulting, training, and after sales services.

Sixty-three years after its foundation during February 1953, Endress+Hauser still continues to expand as a trusted measurement-engineering specialist. Its success is due to the continuity of a prudently run family-owned business that is fully committed to the critical principle of satisfying both the needs and requirements of its clients. ‘First serve, then earn’ was one of the mottos of company founder Georg H

Endress (1924- 2008) and it has lost none of its validity to this day! As of 2016, 47 sales centres and more than 80 representatives around the globe sell products, services and solutions delivered by Endress+Hauser, while production sites in 12 countries are engaged in continued manufacturing and development. Thanks to the established global roots of the business in various different regions and industries, the Endress+Hauser Group is well placed and able to cope with cyclical fluctuations within various industries. The lean and highly networked organisation of the company guarantees a high level of flexibility and a rapid response as required. The Group presently employs around 13,000 personnel across the globe and has crossed €2.1 billion in annual sales.

Further to its growing manufacturing and sales capability, Endress+Hauser supports its customers in optimising their own processes in terms of reliability, safety, economic efficiency and environmental impact. Its products and solutions are well accepted by respected end-users across a broad base of industry applications and as a result, the installed base of Endress+Hauser products has constantly increased over the years to more than 40 million devices worldwide.

To ensure that the company is able to provide excellent service to its growing customer base, Endress+Hauser manages a comprehensive support network of professionals to aid customers at every stage of product ENERGY,oil&gas

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IYYM EPS FZE IYYM EPS FZE is an end-to-end solution provider for fluid handling in the domain of water, wastewater, industry and the petroleum storage & distribution sector. IYYM designs/ manufactures customised package pump skids, drive systems, control panels & automation, metering/ dispensing and fuel management systems.

IYYM has the in-house ability to supply mechanical, electrical and instrumentation as a fully integrated package. IYYM works with international manufacturers of repute and has factory trained and certified personnel to support the projects and solutions.

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implementation and usage. “Our dedicated service organisation supports the customer during the installation, commissioning and full life-cycle of Endress+Hauser devices. Service is an important and integral part of our offerings.

Today’s challenges include heightened cost pressures, tightening of regulations, lack of skilled staff willing to work in a process plant and the complexity of a multi-vendor installed base with a mix of new and old technologies,” observes Prasanth Sreekumar, Head of Marketing at Endress+Hauser’s Middle East Support Centre.

“Whatever the location or the industry, our service force of over 1000 experts is strategically located worldwide ensuring active local presence to help the customer to achieve their business goals. These are divided into three main aspects; support, service and optimisation and are taken care of by our experts and based on process knowledge and technical expertise obtained over more than six decades.”

The full Endress+Hauser product portfolio comprises of a comprehensive selection of instruments designed to measure variables such as flow, level, pressure and temperature.

In addition to its collection of measurement

energy-oil-gas.com

devices, the company is also able to deliver associated packages including analytical tools, software and system products.

Strategic acquisitions of recent years reinforce Endress+Hauser’s position and expand the fields of activities. Subsidiaries as Analytik Jena, SpectraSensors and Kaiser Optical Systems added know-how in the areas of laboratory analysis and advanced process analyser systems for liquids, solids and gases. This extensive portfolio allows Endress+Hauser to offer proven solutions that address several measurement tasks and is fully standardised and aligned for enhanced safety and efficiency.

Setting up of Endress+Hauser sales centres around the world has paid off time and again as it helps in being closer to the customer and provides even better customer service.

Endress+Hauser started operations in the Middle East region in 2006 as a branch of Endress+Hauser Instruments International focused on regional support and development.

Over the past years, it has grown to more than 250 personnel and has dedicated resources for sales, service, marketing and project support for the region. Sales Centre Qatar in Doha has been operational since 2009; the Saudi Arabia subsidiary started operations in 2012 with head office in Al Khobar and branch offices in Riyadh and Jeddah.

As a commitment to the Middle East region and to optimise customer support on the Arabian Peninsula, Endress+Hauser established another sales centre in 2014 in the UAE and now operates in the market with two offices at locations in Abu Dhabi and in Dubai.

Endress+Hauser UAE LLC has a dedicated and strong team of 50 employees. The sales centre is equipped with resources for sales, services and project management. “We fulfilled our primary goal to ‘support the region from the region’,” says Prasanth Sreekumar.

During March 2016, Endress+Hauser further enhanced its service offering with the introduction of the world’s first radar for measuring liquid levels using a transmitting frequency of 79 GHz. The new Micropilot NMR81 is specially designed for high accuracy custody transfer applications and is certified by independent test authorities to an accuracy of up to ±0.5mm. The device utilises a transmitting frequency of 79 GHz, which produces a sharply focused beam angle of 3°. In contrast, a 10 GHz radar instrument with an antenna of the same size has a beam angle of 21°. Measurement even in tall narrow tanks or near to the tank wall is

PROFILE

highly reliable because the radar beam avoids objects such as pipes or baffles on tank walls.

By making use of targeted focusing, Micropilot NMR81 makes it easier to measure down to the tank bottom, because by using 79 GHz technology the beam does not hit the converging interior walls. In general, longer measuring ranges than with other technologies are possible while the accuracy stays the same.

Heartbeat Technology™ is another unique concept introduced by Endress+Hauser. This technology basically stands for reliable selfmonitoring of a measuring point without process interruption and diagnostic signal output according to NE107. Heartbeat Technology™ provides full flexibility for traceable proof testing, thanks to built-in diagnostics, verification and continuous monitoring functions. Heartbeat Technology™ has been designed to add value in critical dimensions, such as the safety of the processes, the quality of the products and the availability not only of the metering point itself, but of the entire plant.

Endress+Hauser

The continued introduction of new technologies and its dedicated focus on after sales and full service support has made Endress+Hauser a steady industry leader.

This position will further allow the business to continue to expand its global presence throughout the rest of 2016 and beyond.

“Endress+Hauser has been the technology leader with best-in-class products and solutions to cater to critical and challenging applications in the process industry. Its research and development programme in Europe has strived to keep up the market pace in terms of technology and innovation and more than 6500 active patents and patent applications explain the technology superiority attached to them,” Prasanth concludes.

The Group has developed from a specialist in level measurement to a provider of complete solutions for industrial measuring technology and automation, with constant expansion into new territories and markets.

Endress+Hauser mesc.endress.com

Services Industrial measurement and automation equipment

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Future

innovation Above Ben van Bilderbeek, CEO Plexus Holding PLC

Above POS-GRIP HG Production Wellhead

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Despite the challenges present

throughout the oil and gas market in the wake of the 2015 drop in oil prices, Plexus Holding PLC (Plexus) has continued to move ahead, forging new partnerships and pursuing new markets.

Indeed, since CEO Bernard van Bilderbeek (‘Ben’) founded the business Plexus has built a reputation for challenging the wellhead market through the development of new methods of engineering. Core to the success of the company has been the 1997 invention of its patented POS-GRIP® friction grip method of engineering, which offers significantly enhanced safety features and minimises costs through significant time savings and other operational efficiencies.

The company was previously featured in Energy, Oil & Gas during July 2015 and although Plexus has naturally felt the impact of the current decrease in activity throughout the oil and gas market, it has continued to develop its unique POS-GRIP technology while taking energy-oil-gas.com

the time to expand its Plexus product range through ongoing R&D initiatives. Indeed, one of the main strengths of the business is that by offering a unique propriety patented system Plexus is able to differentiate itself from competing conventional solutions and address the requirements of the market in critical areas like high pressure and high temperature (‘HPHT’). “Everything we do is centred around our superior proprietary method of engineering.

POS-GRIP offers several unique safety and operation advantages and is backed up the company’s recently demonstrated ability to test and deliver wellhead seals to the same standards and requirements of premium couplings,” explains Finance Director, Graham Stevens.

“Plexus has been working for ten years to get its technology into the market and continually made good progress. The point of difference with our solution is that POS-GRIP technology is proven in the rental jack-up drilling exploration

PROFILE

space and we are now striving to take it into the significantly larger land and platform and subsea market sectors.”

Plexus believes that one of the key requirements for wellhead equipment and wellhead seals is the need to ensure that they are not a weak link in the well architecture chain. It is therefore critical that qualification standards for casing hangers and annular seals are aligned with those for casing and tubing couplings, and importantly Plexus is uniquely able to deliver such a standard. “Shell some time ago provided new casing hanger qualification test procedure guidelines, for surface and subsea wellhead equipment. We chose to adopt these as the standard for the Python® prototype subsea wellhead system. In essence these new specifications address the anomaly that in conventional systems the connection between the wellhead housing and the well casing is qualified to a standard, which is much lower and totally different from what is required of tubular couplings in the well casing.

“As a result a ‘weak link’ exists in all well systems, because test procedures for casing hanger annular seals are conducted in special adapted fixtures, where seals are isolated from pressure and temperature induced loadings.

Effectively conventional annular seals are tested as components in the laboratory, rather than as part of a system exposed to real life well conditions,” Ben elaborates.

“Additionally tubular couplings are engaged by using verifiable methods of torque delivery, so that metal interface seals are engaged in compliance with Hertzian Contact Stress principals. Such control is simply not provided in subsea wellhead systems,” he continues.

“Today, after five years and six million pounds of R&D investment for which Plexus paid, we now have delivered a proto-type Subsea Wellhead system, which has been independently tested to be fully compliant with the new higher specification standards and we are, as far as we know, the first and only company in the world to be able to do so.”

Whilst the oil market continues to recover and as Plexus begins planning for increased exploration activity in the near term, the company can count on proven technology and a trusted reputation, to leverage its position outside the North Sea in the coming years.

“Like all companies operating within the oil and gas sector, the rapid and sharp decline seen in the oil price over the last 18 months, particularly since late 2015, has significantly impacted our

Plexus Holding

financial performance. Despite this we remain positive about the future as, unlike many other oil and gas services and engineering companies, Plexus is a proprietary IP driven business, thanks to our patent protected POS-GRIP technology which is the heart of our best-in-class wellhead equipment. This sets us apart from our competitors who use conventional methods of wellhead engineering which cannot deliver our unique standard of safety and time savings benefits, and metal to metal seal integrity,” Ben elaborates. “Having successfully deployed our wellhead equipment in over 400 wells around the world, we believe that the superior performance, reliability and safety of our equipment is now proven. As a result, we are confident that when exploration activity reignites we will be well placed to pick up where we left off before the downturn took hold. The basis of such confidence is perhaps best illustrated by the £3.3m Total E&P Norge AS Solaris exploration well contract win in June 2015 for a technically challenging Ultra High Pressure High Temperature well offshore Norway.”

In addition to continuing to deliver POS-GRIP technologies to its established markets, Plexus has also made significant inroads in expending its presence within Russia and the CIS region.

In January 2016 the company was pleased to announce the formation of a licence agreement with Gusar and CJSC Konar (ZAO Konar) (‘Konar’) for the manufacture and supply of

Everything we do is centred around our superior proprietary method of engineering.

POS-GRIP offers several unique safety and operation advantages and is backed up the company’s recently demonstrated ability to test and deliver wellhead seals to the same standards and requirements of premium couplings

Below POS-GRIP HPHT 15k Exploration Wellhead

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PROFILE

Plexus Holding

Plexus’ jack-up exploration wellhead equipment in the Russian Federation and other CIS states (the ‘Territories’). This was followed by an announcement in April 2016 that the company had raised $5 million through the issue of 6,764,893 new ordinary shares in the business at a price of 52.05 pence per share pursuant to a share subscription agreement with the Russian oil and gas equipment manufacturer, Gusar. At the same time as the Subscription, Plexus, Gusar and Konar have also entered into a Commercial Agreement under which Plexus will work with LLC Gusar (OOO Gusar) (‘Gusar’) and Konar to finalise an additional licence agreement to enter the Territories’ larger and more active surface land and platform production wellhead equipment markets. The expansion into Russia again represents an important and exciting opportunity for Plexus to strengthen its global presence once the market becomes active again.

“Russia has for some time been a key potential target market for Plexus. I am confident that our unique technology will over the coming years play an important role in improving the integrity of drilling and production systems in

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this important market, particularly in potentially sensitive environmental areas where drilling activities are likely to take place in the future,” Ben concludes. “The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) in 2014 ranked Russia the third largest producer of petroleum and other liquids and estimated it holds almost a quarter of the world’s proven natural gas reserves. With gas forming the vast majority of the Russian energy sector and our best in class wellhead equipment being ideally suited for the most challenging gas service conditions, this dynamic market offers considerable commercial opportunities for Plexus, Gusar and Konar.”

The expansion into Russia again represents an important and exciting opportunity for Plexus to strengthen its global presence once the market becomes active again

Plexus Holding PLC plexusplc.com

Services Engineering wellhead solutions

PROFILE

Northern Gas Networks

Considerate

deconstruction Gas holders

Below Mark Johnson, NGN’s Major Projects Team Lead

have been an iconic part of the British skyline since the nineteenth century, yet as modern natural gas networks now have the capacity to cope with demand, many of these towers have now become obsolete and a UK-wide programme to dismantle them is underway. Northern Gas Networks (NGN), whose area covers much of Yorkshire, the North East and northern Cumbria, initially had a network of circa 47 gas holders but is currently in the process of removing just under half of these between now and 2021.

A legacy from another time, the towers are often held in fond regard by local communities, who have strong attachments to them dating back decades. So the project is a fantastic opportunity to involve residents in commemorating the structures before they disappear from the nation’s skyline.

NGN’s community artist Mick Hand hosts workshops at nearby schools where children create giant murals of the holders, and residents can also share memories of them through a Gas Holder Memories social media campaign. This offers people a chance to talk about the towers, using the hashtag #gasholdermemories on Twitter and Facebook.

NGN’s Major Projects Team Lead, Mark Johnson, explains the challenges surrounding the removal of such structures and the company’s progress so far.

“Over the first three years we have taken down six gas holders, working closely with the local community and stakeholders to influence how we deliver our programme.”

In March 2016, the company began the dismantling of two above ground gas holder tanks in Howdon, Newcastle upon Tyne.

Representing £680,000 of investment, the project is set to take 32 weeks. In April another major project followed to remove a single belowground tank at Ayres Quay, Sunderland.

Only estimated to take 23 weeks, £500,000 has been invested into the project. Mark also notes that a third scheme will begin at the end of June in Leeds city centre.

Emptying the containers of potentially hazardous materials and removing tonnes of metal from structures that in some cases are over a century old is no mean feat, and NGN’s commitment to doing so in as safe and as environmentally friendly a way as possible is exemplary. “After making the site and the surrounding area operationally safe, one of the first challenges we have to overcome is making the sure the water sealed gas holders are emptied of their tank water and associated residuals,” Mark explains. “There is an element of water within the tanks that we have to discharge to foul. However, this is always accompanied by a layer of emulsion that also needs removing, so we pump all the water through a filtration ENERGY,oil&gas

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system and then a methane stripper and associated equipment before discharging it.

“Throughout this process we have to monitor the water quality and gain consent from both the local water authority and the Environment Agency to ensure the discharge meets the correct standards. The next complex challenge comes in the form of a layer of sludge that has formed on the bottom of the tank and requires several stages of pumping before being removed separately as hazardous waste.”

The next stage involves following a detailed technical specification to dismantle the structure. “We begin by removing around 30 per cent of the tank’s crown to allow light and air into the tank so that specialist colleagues can work safely,” Mark continues. Once the cleaning phase is done we widen the openings to send in an excavator with snips to start dismantling each lift of the tank at a time, the resulting scrap metal is the also processed within the tank itself.”

During the dismantling phase numerous safety measures are taken and as with any major demolition project hazards need careful planning and control. Mark highlights that building strong relationships with local stakeholders is essential to alleviating significant concerns.

Some of its sites, such as that at Howdon, can be placed in close proximity to live rail lines or residential properties, so engaging with local communities to ensure people understand the process, are aware of the safety measures being taken and that the contractors understand the potential impact their activities could have on them is a key part of NGN’s philosophy.

Northern Gas Networks

Such responsibility does not stop there.

Keen to improve its de-construction and environmental understanding and to operate within the Considerate Constructors Scheme, NGN constantly monitors its inspection processes so that it can see exactly where scrap materials are headed. “We are legally required to be able to see exactly where, for instance, the tonnes of scrap metal are being recycled,” adds Mark. “We have also been able to support local contractors in utilising recycled aggregates from other projects to back-fill the voids left behind by removing belowground tanks.”

Working in close partnership with its contracting partners KDC and G O’Brien & Sons, NGN demonstrates an exemplary approach to conducting these works in a responsible manner. Mark sums up the overriding philosophy that continues to allow the team to achieve such success: “Our top priority first and foremost is safety,” he says. “Completing the work on time, within programme and on budget follows closely, as does ensuring we operate within the principles of the Considerate Constructors Scheme. At the heart of everything we do is ensuring that we’re true to NGN’s core values of working in partnership and engaging with our customers and local stakeholders throughout the process.”

Share your gas holder memories with NGN by using #gasholdermemories on Facebook.com/ northerngasnetworks and Twitter @NGNgas, or by emailing gasholdermemories@northerngas.co.uk or writing to NGN, 1st Floor, 1 Emperor Way, Doxford International Business Park, Sunderland SR3 3XR.

Northern Gas Networks northerngasnetworks.co.uk

Services Responsible for operating and maintaining the gas network in the North of England

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A base to

build on

Based in the

Malaysian state of Sabah, Asian Supply Base sdn. Bhd. (ASB) operates as wholly owned entity of Sabah Energy Corporation Sdn. Bhd. (SEC). The company was founded on 17th March 1984 and operates as a fully integrated logistics hub that is tailored to the requirements of the oil and gas exploration, development and production activities in the Asian region. The business is located within the Ranca-Ranca Industrial Estate and its operational base sprawls across more than 345 acres of developed land areas situated approximately six kilometres away from Labuan town.

The formation of ASB as an offshore supply base managed by Malaysian expertise is linked to the Malaysian Government’s aspiration to provide a way forward in participating and supporting exploration and production activities within the oil and gas market. As such, the key objective of ASB is to serve as a central stocking point for offshore drilling, development and production consumables. The company’s mission is to be ‘globally recognised as an efficient and reliable supply base for the oil and gas industry’ and its mission is to achieve this vision through the delivery of an efficient and cost-effective service 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

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To enable the company to serve it clients, ASB maintains a comprehensive portfolio of facilities and supporting services across its Sabah base. The company has access to 1066 metres of sheltered sea frontage with a water depth of 9-11 metres, as well as an all-weather jetty, quay wharf and a mooring/breasting dolphin jetty. The dolphin jetty has space for 14 supply boats at any one time and a turnaround time of between five and six hours, while flood lights located at strategic work areas provide clear visibility for night operations.

The ASB quay wharf is situated at the Northern Foreshore of the company’s base and encompasses an area of approximately ten acres with a concrete platform with a width of approximately 26 metres for shore works that runs along the perimeter of the wharf.

The wharf also boasts four berthing facilities, each of which is capable of supplying potable water, fuel, liquid mud and drilling fluids and dry bulk, as well as the loading and unloading of equipment, tools and offshore supplies. The quay wharf is supported by 12 well-equipped workshop facilities with an overall size of 5940 m2 complete with overhead cranes, which are available to provide support services including cargo handling equipment, engineering and fabrication works, equipment installation, commissioning support and repair and maintenance solutions.

ASB also provides inclusive infrastructure and storage facilities, all of which are available with basic amenities as required. Warehouses with a total floor storage area of 42,204 m2 are available to accommodate the storage of chemical drums, drilling tools and other consumables to meet the current and future needs of exploration, development and production activities of clients operating within the oil and gas industry. Further to its conventional storage capacity, ASB is fully licensed under rules five and 48 of the Malaysian Explosives Act 1957 (Cap 200) to store, import, export or remove explosive materials for oil and gas exploration activities. Specially constructed containers are available for the storage of explosive materials that may be used in and around oil wells, with the storage bunkers themselves situated in a safe and secure environment.

During the last five years, ASB has invested significantly in transforming itself from a ‘one stop’ shop’ into a fully integrated logistics hub tailored to meet the requirements of oil and gas exploration, development and production activities. The company’s on-going objective

PROFILE

in this regard is to achieve optimal results by providing its customers with the best operational service and value, securing further oil and gas related businesses, hiring and developing the best-qualified people, utilising a well-maintained equipment fleet and new technologies, emphasising high expectations for performance and integrity, and upholding the highest safety standards.

This transformation has seen the development of ASB as an integrated hub for ultra deep and deep-water exploration activities through the acquisition of further land, as well as the upgrade of its existing facilities and infrastructure to meet the upsurge of oil and gas activities in the region. This has allowed ASB to provide comprehensive logistical and support services to major oil and gas companies including Sabah Shell Petroleum Co. Ltd, Exxonmobil Exploration & Production Malaysia Inc, Talisman Malaysia Ltd, PCPP Operating Co. Sdn. Bhd and JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration (Malaysia) Ltd to name a few.

Asian Supply Base

Furthermore, the company also represents an important operational base for leading support service companies such as Baker Hughes (M) Sdn. Bhd, Cameron (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd, Halliburton Energy Services (M) Sdn. Bhd and Schlumberger WTA (M) Sdn. Bhd. “In order to stay ahead in the global marine and offshore arena ASB is fully committed to continually improving its competitive edge.

A cost-competitive and efficient business environment, with strong infrastructure and comprehensive supporting industries will be critical success factors to bring new investors to the business,” concludes Chief Executive Officer ASB Dato’ Harris Tan. “The up cycle and surge in oil and gas activity, especially in deep water, has intensified in this region with an increase in the level of exploration, development and production activities. With nine major finds in offshore Sabah waters and current drilling campaign for exploration, there is definitely an increase in business opportunities in the oil and gas sector within our region.”

With nine major finds in offshore Sabah waters and current drilling campaign for exploration, there is definitely an increase in business opportunities in the oil and gas sector within our region

Asian Supply Base asiansupplybase.com

Services Integrated logistics hub, exploration and production support

ENERGY,oil&gas

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Global success for Howco with iMetal

Howco successfully implements iMetal in over 14 locations, across eight countries Howco is the largest independent supplier and processor of steel, chrome moly, duplex, stainless and nickel based alloys for the oil and gas industry. Howco’s worldwide investment in manufacturing and processing facilities enables the company to provide an outstanding and cost-effective solution to metals and components supply around the globe.

To maintain its continued development as a leading global supplier, Howco required the benefits that a modern ERP system designed for the metals, distributing and processing industries would bring, thus allowing it to operate efficiently across many disciplines and locations.

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Implementing Metalogic’s iMetal system has provided this. iMetal is one of the leading specific ERP systems designed and developed

by Metalogic explicitly to meet the unique requirements of stockholders, processors and metal service centres.

Implementation The implementation of the metals ERP software solution, iMetal included sales quotations, purchase order processing, integrated costing, office management, process costing, production planning, stock forecasting, delivery and logistics planning, invoicing, and financials.

With iMetal, Howco now has at its disposal a flexible system that allows it easy and secure

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howco

With iMetal, Howco now has at its disposal a flexible system that allows it easy and secure access from remote locations and the ability to create customised processes, data and documents that meet its unique business requirements

access from remote locations and the ability to create customised processes, data and documents that meet its unique business requirements.

This includes custom applications and screens from within the iMetal application. Stanton Fraser, Head of Global Information Technology of Howco Group, noted: “One of our biggest challenges as a global manufacturing company was understanding our recoveries on the work that we are shipping out. Whilst this did not impact our overall financial reporting, our previous ERP system did not give full visibility of our financial performance within specific manufacturing areas. With the implementation of iMetal, we now fully understand our financial performance of each department and ensure ENERGY,oil&gas

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Benefits

all our costs are recoverable. This knowledge allows us to focus on increasing efficiency within departments to increase profitability as well as expand in areas that are doing well.”

Through its multi-language user interface and forms iMetal has enabled the company to improve its data management and maintain customer service levels. iMetal was implemented in 14 locations in eight countries including North America, Europe and Middle East and Asia Pacific (MEAP). The first phase of implementation was in Canada, which took place within three months followed

by MEAP, North America and Europe within ten months. Howco now operates over 240 licences across the group.

“One of the greatest cost savings that we saw from Metalogic came from its licensing. Because we are a globally positioned company, we are able to have concurrent licensing allowing us to only pay for ‘active’ licenses rather than named licenses. Initially during our RFP processes other ERP packages only allowed named licenses, which would have required 1100 user licenses.

The savings from this alone in concurrent licensing reduced our annual spend on our ERP by 50 per cent,” added Stanton.

Howco has access to the support coverage provided by Metalogic via its helpdesk from 9.00 am through to 5.30pm GMT plus out of hours support if required thus ensuring the benefit of Metalogic support services. This effectiveness was tested recently following the severe flooding suffered in Houston earlier this year. Should there have been a potential requirement to transfer operation from the live system to the business continuity system Metalogic staff were on hand at all times to ensure this could have been successfully completed.

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As an industry specific package, iMetal was able to provide Howco with the support it required by maximising commercial opportunity while minimising administrative and business costs. iMetal provides integration across the full business processes, including pro-active customer management through fully traceable stock control, accounts and reporting. It also contains a number of specific items to work with processing inventory, optimisation and unique modules in relation to material testing and quality requirements.

Because iMetal is implemented as a totally integrated core system with the benefits of additional functions, each module is designed to give the user the maximum information with the minimum effort, allowing improvement in productivity and providing data on a real time basis through business intelligent systems integrated within the application.

Stanton explained: “After reviewing several systems we made the decision to go with iMetal.

During that review it was evident that there were several areas where iMetal outperforms other ERP systems in our space and where it had significant synergies with the way we operated. Our first implementation site was more than a year ago and we are seeing the benefits of both the performance and the synergies in the measurable process improvements we have today.”

As iMetal is built as a packaged system specifically for the processing and metal industries, Howco was confident in working with a team of professionals who have a precise understanding of its business and the sector in which it operates. Additionally with iMetal’s integration into Sage this also satisfies all tax requirements on a global basis along with full international audit requirements. Stanton concluded: “iMetal and Sage’s integrated application controls have enabled us to successfully complete three audits in Q4 of 2015 through to Q1 of 2016. The overwhelming success of these audits (two customer and one internal) provides senior management, as well as our shareholders, with reassurance that the proper controls are in place to ensure adherence to modern day corporate compliance requirements. Openly, we did initially evaluate 21 other ERP systems, but I felt that the knowledge of our business that Metalogic has far exceeded any benefits that we saw with other products and significantly reduced the risk of business disruption during the implementation

PROFILE

process. Additionally when comparing multiple ERP systems, we took into consideration the learning curve for each of the 21 systems that we evaluated. iMetal clearly won in this review.

Instead of spending endless capital on making modifications to a new ERP system to work with our internal processes and procedures, iMetal’s flexible work flows made the transition almost seamless.”

About Metalogic Metalogic is one of the world’s leading suppliers of integrated IT systems to the metals, stockholding, service centre and processing industries. Metalogic’s iMetal range of software products is now supplying the enterprise-wide needs of metal manufacturers, processors and distributors across the globe. Offering multibranch, multi-product and multi-process functionality their highly scalable products can be efficiently and cost effectively implemented at every type of metals manufacturing and distribution business and supported in businesses ranging from five to over 700+ users.

howco

After reviewing several systems we made the decision to go with iMetal. During that review it was evident that there were several areas where iMetal outperforms other ERP systems in our space and where it had significant synergies with the way we operated

howcogroup.com metalogicltd.com

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Balltec

Engineering

Since the company was incorporated during 2004, Balltec Ltd. has successfully installed more than 1000 components across in excess of 150 products around the world. Throughout its history, Balltec has pioneered the development of ball and taper technology for the oil and gas industry, while its engineers have always placed a significant emphasis on research and development activities that ensure the delivery of problem-solving products to market. Initially these developments focused on the deployment of the ball and taper mechanism, which has since been diversified to accommodate a range of applications, including mooring connectors, heavy lifting and pipeline and abandonment recovery tools.

The company was previously profiled in Energy, Oil & Gas magazine during October 2015, when Managing Director, Russell Benson discussed how the company’s ability to provide turnkey and innovative solutions has made Balltec Engineered Solutions the partner of choice for operators all over the world, working with leading subsea players including Subsea7 and Technip, as well as major oil and gas operators including Shell, BP and Total. In recent months, the company’s agility in addressing the specific needs of the market and its clients has proven to be an invaluable strength as the drop in oil price and the resulting downturn in subsea activities has driven a need for diversification for many players within the subsea oil and gas industry.

“We actually made the decision to focus on less traditional markets around 24 months ago by looking more at the renewable and decommissioning sectors as well as by taking a lighter approach into the nuclear industry.

Balltec has been quite successful in its focus on the renewable market and we have picked

up several projects with clients operating off the eastern coast of Canada and we are looking for further contracts with clients operating in Australia. We have also been heavily focused on the R&D side of the business at the same time to allow the company to really focus on the market and understand what technologies are needed,” details Vice President of the company’s activities in the Eastern Hemisphere, Martyn Conroy.

“We have 12 internal design engineers, including Dr Marco Andre Teixeira, who is the company’s technical director who leads this technical development. We have finite element analysis (FEA) and use Solid Works as far as the design package is concerned, as well as an effective process that we work towards during R&D operations,” he adds. “We can either take on a full R&D project, where we will do a full feed study for a company, or we actually do all the R&D on our own cost to finally win the project in the end. Therefore, we do a lot of specific special R&D projects.”

By moving into new sectors, Balltec has been able to adapt and develop unique technologies that address the problems encountered to operators within the renewable, offshore and decommissioning spheres while developing new products that it is able to continue to sell into the market. For example, the company has recently designed and manufactured its LiftLOK connector lifting solution as a primary component in the deployment and recovery system for subsea turbines produced by Openhydro. The new handling system will be used in the deployment of the latest generation of open centre technologies, which is currently being produced by OpenHydro across projects in Europe and Atlantic Canada.

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Balltec

to connect a frame to the vertices of a triangular subsea base through the use of three Balltec LiftLOK connectors. The connectors are in turn fixed to a sheave block that is housed within the recovery frame that serves to space the tools apart and guide each unit into the correct position to engage with three receptacles on the subsea base. “This project required full DNV certification to 2.22 Lifting Appliances,” explains Jon Jackson, Balltec Engineering Manager. “Due to the extreme environmental conditions of this project, with its shallow water and a short installation window, Balltec developed a fully automated system utilising integrated hydraulics, sensors and live data streaming.”

Further to its development of new technologies for the renewable and decommissioning sectors, Balltec has also continued in its strategy of developing relationships with clients within new market locations around the world. “During the past several months we have carefully looked at a few areas of growth, one of which is geographic expansion through strategically placed agents.

Most importantly, we are looking to partner

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with the right agents. We are looking to work with agents that have engineering experience that links up well with ours, to allow them to become a strategic partner in their respective region and not just a sales agent. We currently have new agents in China and Malaysia and are currently in negotiations with a new client in Australia. We have also recently established a new agent in Newfoundland to cover the east base of Canada,” Martyn reveals.

“One of the key things that we say is that as a company we want to find solutions, but to also provide solutions that result in new products.

We’re not a pure design and engineering company, instead we want to design, engineer, manufacture, build, test and deliver a full service package,” he concludes. “During the next 12 months we will continue to look at delivering specifically problem based solutions and engineering projects for subsea products in the renewable, decommissioning and offshore markets. We offer a quick turnaround, but I think our biggest selling point is our engineering capability and our ability to find innovative solutions.”

We’re not a pure design and engineering company, instead we want to design, engineer, manufacture, build, test and deliver a full service package

Balltec Ltd balltec.com

Services Mechanical connectors and engineering solutions

PROFILE

Technip India

Local expansion

globally

Kirloskar Pneumatic Co Ltd Kirloskar Pneumatic Co Ltd (KPCL) has over 25 years of experience in providing refrigeration and gas compression systems and has been associated with Technip for over ten years as a major supplier.

Recently KPCL was involved in the execution of a refrigeration package for the gas fields of Vashishta & S1 in the Krishna Godavari (KG) offshore basin of M/s Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Onshore terminal. [Application: Hydrocarbon Gas Dew point Reduction – HCDP project. 1133 kW Capacity. Package comprising of Screw Compressor, Air Cooled Condenser, receiver chiller etc.]

The complete LSTK contract is done by Technip India.

Below Mr. Bhaskar Patel, Managing Director of Technip India

Last appearing in the pages of Energy, Oil & Gas magazine during July 2015, Technip India has completed its ‘One Technip’ restructuring programme and today continues to strive for the greatest added-value and efficiency across all of its project management, engineering and construction activities. The company successfully completed the process of amalgamating all of its Indian operations under a single umbrella during April 2014, by way of a court approved merger to create the legal entity of Technip India. The aim of this merger was to provide a consistent value proposition to all of the company’s customers/stakeholders in India as One Technip. This has enhanced the collaboration between Technip India and other Technip group entities, allowing the business to leverage the synergies of its combined operations from three centres located in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai.

Technip India operates as a 100 per cent wholly owned entity and presently maintains a workforce of some 2700 employees, which enables it to deliver a broad base of services across a range of applications within the oil and gas, onshore refining, petrochemical, LNG and fertilizer sectors and the business remains wellplaced to serve clients both domestically and abroad to this day. Indeed, since EOG previously profiled Technip India, Mr. Bhaskar Patel has taken over from Mr. Samik Mukherjee as the company’s Managing Director, inheriting a dedicated core of staff as well as a robust business

that is ready to take on the market challenges generated by the depressed price of oil.

“I took over the role of CEO on June 1 2015, so have held the position of managing director for a little over a year. My predecessor left me with a very good core of management and engineering staff, so my challenge has not been with working with the company within India, but more to do with the low oil price and the resulting downturn in workload,” Bhaskar reveals. “Around a year ago Technip made some announcements relating to restructuring and reorganisation within the business and in India we have taken some of this to heart. We have reduced our personnel by around five per cent, which has not been achieved through layoffs but through natural attrition and by not replacing members of staff when they leave. Eighteen months or so ago we had around 2900 staff and today we are at around 2700 and we expect to be at around that number for the foreseeable future.”

Across the business, Technip India serves a prestigious portfolio of clients including Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL); Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC); Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL): Reliance Industries Limited; Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited (IPCL); Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL); Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited; GAIL (India) Limited and Gujarat State Fertilizer and Chemicals Limited. Its association with the wider Technip Group, coupled with the company’s local

knowledge and experience allow Technip India to offer a unique service offering to fellow Technip subsidiaries as well as direct clients globally.

“We certainly bring a level of service to market that can be considered to be quite different.

For example, we have a range that begins with consulting, meaning that we can collaborate with colleagues in the UK and France to provide conceptual field assessment studies. We have a lot of data within the Technip subsidiary company, Genesis Oil and Gas Consultants as ENERGY,oil&gas

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well as through the Paris and Rome offices where there is a lot of data relating to past projects,” Bhaskar explains. “From that concept stage we are able to move on to engineering, including feed and EPC operations, commissioning and pre-commissioning, which we are able to deliver through our own suite of technologies in the refining and petrochemical markets.”

Traditionally Technip India has relied on its partners within the wider Technip organisation to provide the majority of its projects, however with global oil and gas operations remaining in a period of decreased activity the company is increasingly focused on winning new contracts with clients directly. “Like everybody currently operating within the oil and gas industry we have felt the impact of the drop in oil price,” Bhaskar elaborates. “Currently around 70 per cent of our work comes from outside of India through our colleagues throughout the Technip Group while 30 per cent comes from the local market. We aim to grow the local share and once the market begins to rise and we see the same levels of external work coming into the business that we have done previously, we anticipate an

overall increase in projects that will necessitate more people.”

Indeed, despite the current crisis across the oil and gas space the market for Technip India remains relatively positive, as there is currently untapped potential within the region’s subsea industry as India continues to develop its energy market. The company has been further encouraged through being awarded the title of the ‘Top Employer within India and Asia’ for the second year consecutively. This recognition demonstrates the company’s ability to ensure that it has the best people on hand as the business continues to grow during the coming years. “We are proud to have been awarded this recognition as it allows us to market ourselves in a very positive way. When it comes to bringing graduates into the business for example, we can attract good talent and to also maintain high levels of retention of these talented new employees,” Bhaskar concludes. “Currently our key focus is to execute our backlog of work in a very efficient manner and our second priority is to secure more work, which is something that we can achieve in the local Indian market in the near future.”

Technip India

Technip India technip.com

Services Project management, engineering and construction

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blows When the wind

Founded during 2009

Above TuuliSaimaa, CEO, Petteri Laaksonen

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and based in Lappeenranta, Finland, TuuliSaimaa Oy provides full EPC services to clients operating within the emerging Finnish wind industry. “We operate throughout the entire life cycle of wind farms and are also significantly involved in the finance and equity side of these operations. Our service portfolio includes project management, competitive bidding and financing, land-use planning and authorisation and business stores,” expands TuuliSaimaa CEO, Petteri Laaksonen.

“When the company was founded, its main focus was on developing wind farms in Finland. Tariff approvals for wind energy were reached in 2010 and we had been active within the market slightly before that.”

During early 2016 TuuliSaimaa separated its operations into two companies comprised of TuuliSaimaa Oy and LähiTuuli Oy, which includes the wind farm holdings of TuuliMuukko Ky and Vartinoja I Ky, as well as further wind farm projects currently under development.

Following this process of diversification, LähiTuuli Oy acts as the owner of the TuuliMuukko and Vartinoja I wind farms, while TuuliSaimaa Oy operates and manages the sites.

“Due to the increasing demand for wind farm services TuuliSaimaa now operates as an independent company that is able to meet the growing requirement for greater flexibility.

The scheme was also designed to distinguish ministry ownership of the parks so that the overall business management and operation of wind farms involving so many partners and customers becomes easier. At the same time we have focused on the preparation of the creation of a comprehensive wind energy service market within Finland,” Petteri explains.

“Our experience in wind farms and the sale

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and purchase of development projects, as well as operating wind farms, has resulted in the creation of a strong co-operation network.

We believe that through the service market development of wind farms, separate ownership will create new demand in the market.”

Its early entry into the Finnish wind market has placed TuuliSaimaa at the forefront of the industry’s evolution and established the company as a reliable partner within a proven track record. As previously discussed, the company acts as the operator and manager of the 21 MW TulliMuukko and the 24.3 MW Vartinoja I wind farms and these service contracts also include consultancy services to TuuliTapiola Ky (wind power fund of the LähiTapiola and ELO insurance companies), which represents a 90 per cent asset owner of Muukko and Vartinoja wind farms and owner of the Vartinoja II and Isoneva development projects. TuuliSaimaa further acts as an advisor to LähiTuuli Oy, which operates as the ten per cent owner of the Muukko and Vartinoja windfarms and the owner of the Metsälamminkangas, Kaukkorpi and Lemi, Pyhtää development projects.

The company is also taking an active role in the construction of approximately 27 wind turbines in Vaala nearby Oulujärvi. The sizable vacant area enables large-scale wind park construction, while its location nearby to one of the biggest lakes in Finland offers highly suitable wind conditions.

The development of the site is almost complete, with just an Administrative Court decision on one appeal pending for the approval of the general plan. An environmental impact assessment (EIA) has been completed and wind measurements at the site are presently ongoing.

In addition to its activities in supporting the commercial development and management

PROFILE

of wind farms, TuuliSaimaa takes a leading role in the development of the wind industry through scientific research and consulting. For example, the company has made investments into the development of wind, solar, energy storage solutions such as E2Gas systems, while engaging in research management services with leading Finnish partners including VTT and the Lappeenranta University of Technology. This has resulted in TuuliSaimaa taking a leading role in research activities such as the management of the ‘New Business arising from the Energy Market’s Strategic Change’ project, as well as continued wind measurements at Siikajoki (TuuliTapiola) and Vaala (LähiTuuli).

Within Finland the future focus of TuuliSaimaa is on further consolidation of the company’s service business in the region as well as the provision of advisory work relating to sales and acquisitions of wind farms including international investment opportunities. In terms of energy production the business will seek to strengthen its presence in the areas of industrial

TuuliSaimaa Oy

wind, solar and energy storage. In accordance with the targets set by the Paris Convention for 2015, TuuliSaimaa is set to ready itself in the market for wind power as the most cost-effective form of renewable energy at present, while the Finnish market waits for the country’s government to decide on its future renewable strategy.

“Within the Finnish market is it clear that at everybody is waiting for decisions to be made on the political side. We are ready for further operations but cannot go ahead until these discussions are completed,” Petteri concludes.

“We are very much an independent business, rather than a traditional energy company meaning that we are not constrained by the operation of old-fashioned energy production plants. During the future I think that wind farms will become more prominent and that more organisations will begin to merge and co-operate.

I am sure that we will be able to find partners that will enable us to work together to create bigger entities within the wind energy market.”

FCG FCG – Your Partner in Wind Power - is one of the largest multi-sector consultant companies in Finland. In community planning it takes energy efficiency, emissions and mitigation of climate change into account in all planning phases. It also considers these factors in project development, investments and developing the use of areas.

FCG’s aim is to plan efficient and low emission community structures that utilise regional or local energy solutions based on renewable energy sources. Wind power is currently the most important low-emission energy production method, and therefore FCG wants to be involved in developing wind power production in Finland.

TuuliSaimaa Oy tuulisaimaa.fi

Services Full EPC services to the wind industry

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75

depth Unrivalled

As it celebrates

Oleum Resourcing Oleum Resourcing, part of the STR Group, is a leading recruitment business that specialises in the supply of skilled engineering, technical and managerial personnel. Oleum’s consultative approach has provided FoundOcean with full turnkey staffing solutions, for a number of years, providing project teams for offshore subsea grouting operations that include experienced Grout Technicians, Mechanical Fitters and Project Engineers.

Rob Moyes, Business Development Manager for Oleum commented: “We are well placed to assist FoundOcean with all their recruitment requirements, and continue to partner on current and future projects.”

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its 50th year providing expert grouting services to offshore applications, FoundOcean continues to build on its global reputation for world-class engineering and technical delivery. Energy, Oil & Gas last spoke with the company back in 2014, when MD Jim Bell highlighted FoundOcean’s continued expansion around the world and into new areas of the market. Two years on and the same strategy has seen it remain active, despite the challenges facing today’s oil and gas industry.

“After we last spoke, we acquired a new business from the Netherlands called CAPE Holland, a specialist in developing and manufacturing innovative vibro-piling solutions,” Jim reports. “This is an alternative to the impact hammer system, which has long been established as the standard, and has entered the market as a somewhat disruptive force. It is already making its way into the mainstream.”

Having been adopted by various projects and contractors, such as Seaway Heavy Lifting, Heerema and with Saipem on a project in the Caspian Sea, CAPE Holland’s vibro-piling technology eliminates the need for internal lifting tools and subsea guide frames with a single-lift operation, therefore saving time, space and equipment. “Strategically, this was a great acquisition to make at the time,” he continues.

“As it is still growing into its market it hasn’t been affected by the general reduction in oil

energy-oil-gas.com

and gas activity so has allowed us to remain particularly active.”

In terms of its core business of grouting however, FoundOcean has seen a significant impact on the amount of work it has been able to carry out, particularly in Europe. Despite this, its leading technical expertise has meant that in 2016 it has secured a vast proportion of offshore wind farm work, currently completing five out of a total of eight grouted turbine projects including Burbo Bank, Dudgeon and Race Bank and five out of seven substation projects in Europe.

“Crucially, the oil and gas sector isn’t completely dead,” Jim highlights. “We continue to do ongoing repair work on aging North Sea platforms on a rolling programme of repair and maintenance, and have just completed some strengthening work for the decommissioning of a concrete platform. There is also a reasonable level of activity in the Greenfield construction market in South East Asia, which continues to hold up. In fact, we’re still active there to such an extent that at the start of July this year we will be opening a permanent office in Singapore to support ongoing projects and to recognise the fact that this is where the majority of oil and gas work is currently centred.”

Indeed, Asia continues to represent one of FoundOcean’s key growth opportunities, particularly as China starts to invest heavily into its own renewable energy portfolio. In June, the

PROFILE

company will start its first offshore wind project in Taiwan for a Chinese installation contractor and, although not a huge contract with only two turbines (a further 28 will follow in 2017) it indicates a significant presence for FoundOcean in that market. “Thanks to the ready availability of investment and the government’s desire to improve China’s environmental climate at the moment, there is a huge and rapid push towards developing an offshore wind capacity over the coming years,” Jim explains.

“What is great is that the Chinese contractors and developers are recognising that there are a lot of specialist skills that have been learned and developed in the European offshore industry, so they are keen to use certain European expertise to carry out parts of work. Our specialist capabilities are included in this. Whilst there are some challenges concerning the different contractual and operational environment in this market, requiring us to traverse quite a steep learning curve, it represents a great opportunity as we move forward.”

As FoundOcean continues to develop its international presence with offices in the UK, the US, Singapore, and India, plus agencies in Mexico, Canada and Australia, it is its unrivalled leadership of quality service and engineering standards that allows it to remain successful through challenging times. “We are an engineering-led and solutions-led business,

The last couple of years for FoundOcean have been both challenging and positive, with progress being made around the world amidst the industry’s downturn. Jim notes that the company reacted well in reshaping to retain its core strength and remain healthy to withstand such pressures, and expects that as the market picks up the business will be able scale up and increase activity accordingly. Its strategic partnership with BASF, its high-tech grouting materials provider, will remain as important as ever as it moves forward, as will its focus on acqusitional growth.

“Part of the success in acquiring CAPE Holland was that we were able to take its technical expertise and inject it into our international network,” he says. “As we look to become more multi-disciplinary in our foundation services, we hope that similar acquisitions over the next 12 months and beyond will help us achieve even greater success around the world for years to come.”

FoundOcean

FoundOcean foundocean.com

Services World leading offshore grouting company

often called upon to take on the more difficult and technically demanding projects around the world,” Jim outlines. “We have lost out on projects before because they were deemed too simple and straight-forward for us, but have made up for this by delivering projects where we truly occupy a niche, such as ultra-deep water support. Last year, for instance, we set a new record by executing non-routine grouting procedures 1615m deep in the Gulf of Mexico.”

ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com

77

Bringing energy to

life

A fully-owned subsidiary of Euromold NV Belgium, Castleford (West Yorkshire) based Nexans Power Accessories Ltd. is responsible for the sales/marketing and technical issues related to the cable accessories that are manufactured within Nexans and then sold to the UK market.

“The basis of our activity was Euromold, the European subsidiary of Elastimold, which was acquired by Nexans in 1987,” begins Roland De Wolf, Marketing Director of Nexans Power Accessories Business Group. “In parallel to this, Nexans had a heat shrink operation in Italy, low and medium voltage joints operations in France and ferrules and lugs in Germany; these activities were all merged together in the 90s under one management and further expanded with several acquisitions in Italy, Germany, Australia and South Africa. Lately participations have been taken in start-up companies that are active in promising markets such as tidal energy or electrical vehicles.”

Today the main customers are primarily DNOs in all western European countries as well as major OEMs, EPCs and distributors in sectors such as power distribution, renewables, oil and gas, rolling stock and rail infrastructure. “Our

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biggest market remains Europe, however Asia Pacific and the Middle East are rapidly growing in our portfolio also,” says Roland. “The main products provided to our customer base include plug in connectors, cold and heat shrink joints, bushings, terminations, surge arrestors, shear bolt connectors and lugs; crimp connectors and lugs, solutions such as junction boxes, jumpers and smart accessories with sensors. Voltage class responsibility ranges from one kV to 132 kV. We also produce high voltage accessories in Belgium, which are sold in systems with cables in the network.”

A growing sector for Nexans is wind, within which it has won a number of several large contracts, as Roland notes: “We are involved in many wind projects, both on and offshore with Siemens, Schneider, ABB, GE, Nordex, Enercon, and Gamesa to name a few from the OEM market. We are also working with Enedis, Iberdrola, DONG and Enel and others for the infrastructure connection of wind farms to the grid. Even connections in wind substations are part of our activities. We propose solutions to connect the incoming submarine cables to junction boxes to reduce precious space and set-up time.”

PROFILE

To ensure optimum quality, safety and environmental awareness during the manufacture, delivery and utilisation of its products, Euromold’s independent electrical laboratory ELAB, in Belgium, is fully equipped and has received BELAC accreditation. This means its highly competent and experienced employees can perform type tests on low and medium voltage cable accessories in accordance with international standards EN50393, IEC 60502-4, IEC 61442 and HD 629. Furthermore, Euromold is certified according to DIN EN ISO 9001 as well as in the sectors of environmental protection and occupational safety.

“One of our major strengths is that we have all technologies localised in highly specialised European production sites. Our products can also be offered as a total solution, if required, together with cables produced in other parts of the group. On top of this, we have a highly reliable and experienced R&D department and sales team that is dedicated to offering solutions that strengthen the link with customer needs. Recent investments in our production include a new production unit in Germany for the increased production of our shear bolt technology, new heat shrink lines in Italy and more efficient robotised lines in Belgium and France; we also have electrical labs in every site,” says Roland.

This continued investment in enhancing operations has ensured Nexans Power Accessories remains at the forefront of releasing high quality products that meet the changing demands of the sectors in which it operates.

“The world demand for energy is increasing globally, of course with differences in speed, which is good news for Nexans. However, the real new challenge is the increasing impact of renewables in terms of how DNOs have to organise their network; this has a direct impact on how we have to develop our accessories to become smart as the network has to compensate for demand and production profiles that aren’t the same. This thus requires flexible decisions based on measurement and communication technology and our products are ready for this challenge,” highlights Roland.

For those in the renewables sector, the company is able to offer a number of services including complete solutions to facilitate the connections of submarine cables and their connection to a junction box. The boxes are themselves are connected with high quality jumpers to the switches. This

Nexans Power Accessories

ensures separation of responsibility between interconnection of the wind turbines and the tower manufacturers.

“Our global approach also makes it possible to connect the turbine to the transformers inside the tower through very long jumpers mounted and tested in Germany,” added Roland.

While it focuses on the successful completion of the projects it is currently undertaking, Nexans Power Accessories will also seek to continue developing its scope of solutions for customers and increase its presence in new markets, as Roland concludes: “We need to continue to enlarge our markets outside Europe by getting into new wind countries and new segments; we also need to support our customers needs by expanding our product range. Grid management will become increasingly more important and integration of sensors and communication devices into our traditional products will become a must. Smart solutions will be the future.”

Nexans Power Accessories nexanspoweraccessories.co.uk

Services Cable accessories

ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com

79

age New

NeoDrill’s story began 16 years

Below Wolfgang Mathis, Technical Manager, NeoDrill

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ago with the concept of pre-installing subsea well conductors to save rig time. Founded upon innovation, the company is responsible for developing ground-breaking technology with its CAN® (Conductor Anchor Node) and associated systems to help cut well construction time and costs, and enable complex drilling programmes in well construction.

“We started in 2000 with CAN, mainly as a problem solver for soft sea beds, based on suction anchor technology and its high load capacity to offer an efficient tool in this typically weak link in conventional well design,” begins MD, Harald Strand. “We installed the two CAN units in 2006 for ENI, at 860 m and 1100 m water depth, thus jumping in at the deep end of the pool. Following the CAN, we have developed our product range to include the CAN-ductor system, which has been built as

energy-oil-gas.com

a cost cutting solution, CAN-Slender, which enables slimmer and therefore cheaper wells for exploration purposes and CAN-Complete, a set of equipment for single-well producers. We have already installed one CAN for a production well in the UK for Endeavour, which has been producing since 2013.”

The company prides itself on finding unconventional solutions to conventional problems and, with a strong patent position, is in a unique position to serve the market with its constantly evolving technologies. Technical Manager, Wolfgang Mathis, outlines how the CAN offering has evolved and what benefits it brings to projects. “The CAN mitigates some of the instability issues with drilling in soft sea beds by taking the load off the conductor and preventing washout – this we have successfully installed 13 times,” he says. “Now we have moved onto the next step with the integration

PROFILE

of the conductor into the CAN, a product we named CAN-ductor. The integration is done in the workshop and delivers verified conditions, higher load capacities, reduced costs from less cutting and cementing works as well as greater risk mitigation.

“In addition to this we are also looking carefully at CAN-Slender, which allows exploration wells to use less steel with less seabed dig out volume and therefore less cost again. All the loads that the well is normally subjected to during the drilling process are taken by the top of the CAN, thus allowing for slimmer drilling components below the CAN. All of this work can be done from a vessel in less time and assures more predictable results.”

Demonstrating the advantages of NeoDrill’s technical expertise and its systems are two vastly different yet equally complex projects.

First up is a CAN system installed in 2014 for

Centrica’s Ivory Well at a depth of 1425m in the Norwegian Sea. With drilling to be carried out in late-November amidst harsh weather conditions, the Operator placed emphasis on reducing the amount of time spent out at sea.

“To carry this out we installed a standard CAN with a vessel before rig arrival, then the rig jetted the conductor into place complete with a pre-installed bottom hole assembly (BHA),” Wolfgang outlines. “The conductor had a hanger installed, which is a clamp on device that interfaces with the CAN. Therefore, once the conductor had been jetted down through the CAN the hanger latched onto the CAN and the load was transferred from the conductor housing via the hanger and into the CAN. At this point, we could simply disconnect the BHA from the conductor and continue to drill the next hole section without waiting for the conductor to set.”

The project illustrated a number of time and cost saving benefits. Primarily, work that would typically have involved at least three trips was carried out in one. In addition a lot of preparation work was carried out from a vessel, rather than from a more expensive rig, allowing the operator to log five rig-days saving. The use of a CAN system meant that a much shorter conductor length could withstand higher loads.

Wolfgang notes that the conductor was in place less than 24 hours after it arrived at the site – an overall time saving that significantly de-risked the operation when it came to weather exposure.

The second flagship project was at the Wisting well for OMV Norge and required an entirely different approach. “OMV had discovered substantial reserves about 250 m below the seabed, so it was an incredibly shallow and thin reservoir that needed a horizontal well in order to allow enough draining area,” Wolfgang describes. “Drilling horizontally in such shallow

NeoDrill

The company prides itself on finding unconventional solutions to conventional problems and, with a strong patent position, is in a unique position to serve the market with its constantly evolving technologies

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NeoDrill

With NeoDrill’s CAN system as one of the key enabling building blocks, OMV’s Wisting well now holds the world record for the shallowest horizontal well ever drilled from a floating drilling unit

conditions had never been done before, and you can imagine if you install a conductor that is 60m long, you have already lost a quarter of your vertical depth to make the curvature. Our CAN system was perfectly suited to this kind of scenario as with the pre-installed CAN-ductor system, we were able to stop the conductor at just ten metres below the seabed and thus allow enough distance for OMV to achieve the required angle for horizontal drilling.”

With NeoDrill’s CAN system as one of the key enabling building blocks, OMV’s Wisting well now holds the world record for the shallowest horizontal well ever drilled from a floating drilling unit. Consequently, not only has it proven the possibility of such a feat, but also the concept and technology put forward by NeoDrill in solving the most complex, and seemingly impossible, of challenges.

In an industry currently facing significant financial pressures, the need to look for innovative, cost cutting solutions is more critical than ever. Harald notes that there is significantly growing attention to sustainable cost reduction, particularly in the UK, as operators look to carry out operations in a more cost effective manner rather than a short term squeeze of the suppliers.

He also points out a future requirement for P&A operations, which, once again, CAN offers a suitable solution for.

The wealth of opportunity for NeoDrill is therefore vast and the future looks accordingly positive as NeoDrill aims to have doubled its installed capacity by the end of 2017, as it is presently involved with several field development projects, for which the CAN technology is a strong contender. “In the shorter term we are looking to garner greater market acceptance and gain access to overseas markets, and we have a number of potential projects lined up to help us achieve this,” Harald concludes.

“Our vision for the future is that the well design engineers will have to explain why they have not used the CAN system in their well design, as opposed to today when they have to explain why they want to. We have a highly innovative solution that solves a number of problems and we are committed to develop this alongside our clients. Our ability to respond to their changing requirements will be a major part of NeoDrill’s future.”

NeoDrill neodrill.no

Services Developers of innovative top-hole well technology; The CAN® System

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QUICK FIX OR LONG-TERM SOLUTION? AT KKI, WE KNOW VALVES. ESPECIALLY THOSE USED IN SEVERE SERVICE APPLICATIONS. We can quickly replace a part to get a faulty valve running again, no problem. But the better option might be a diagnostic review and a retro-fit or even an upgrade.

KKI’s highly-skilled aftermarket engineers can create technical, engineered solutions that benefit not only the valve but the efficiency of the whole application.

On your site or at our state-of-the-art facility in West Yorkshire, we’ll get to the root of the issue and give you the long-term resolution you need. We service our own and other manufacturer’s valves.

To find out how we can solve your severe service challenges in oil & gas, power or petrochemical applications, contact us today.

KOSO KENT INTROL LIMITED Armytage Road, Brighouse, West Yorkshire HD6 1QF T: +44 (0)1484 710311 E: info@kentintrol.com www.kentintrol.com

KKI Energy Oil and Gas Advert 06.16 v2.indd 1

17/06/2016 15:43

PROFILE

Online Valves

Fast

response KOSO Kent Introl KOSO Kent Introl (KKI) specialises in the design and manufacture of surface and subsea control and choke valves used in almost every major oil and gasproducing region, globally.

In addition, its valves, actuators and instruments are used across a wide range of applications, including in the petrochemical, power and utilities industries.

Aftermarket services include full valve servicing, spare parts supply for valves and associated equipment and upgrades for the replacement of existing equipment. This includes the refurbishment of subsea valves.

The company has three sites in Brighouse, Yorkshire, UK, and is represented in the US, Gulf of Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago by its appointed agent Online Valves Ltd. Online Valves Ltd provides local support for KKI’s customers on individual projects and aftermarket activities.

Below Dave Sim, Sales Director, Online Valves

Online Valves has witnessed rapid growth over the last five years thanks to a total commitment in providing a high quality service and fast response to companies requiring an urgent solution in the oil, gas and petrochemical markets Established in 2012, Online Valves Ltd operates as a stockist and distributor of valves for mainstream manufacturers and has developed a solid reputation for delivering a fast track for urgent requirements. A relatively small organisation, Online Valves is able to deliver a flexible, one-stop-shop service to clients operating in time-sensitive markets, such as oil and gas, as Sales Director Dave Sim comments: “Because of our size, we can deliver whatever the customer wants. We supply all types of valves, all sizes, all pressure classes and materials; both manual valves or actuated, topside or, subsea. We also supply the associated products such as flanges, fittings, caskets, the hubs, clamps and so on.

“This flexibility means we can provide a single supply of a single component at very little cost right through to complete supply contracts; it all depends on what the customer wants. For example, if the customer is running low on staffing, we could take over part of their procurement function to assist in a busy period perhaps, or, if a rig went down due to a valve problem, we would go to the extremes and ensure we provided an urgent solution; perhaps

flying a valve in to site and maybe carrying out urgent modifications to meet an unusal spec. We concentrate on delivering fast track supply with the goal of satisfying the clients urgent requirements for the oil and gas and petrochemical markets globally.”

Aware that those operating within the oil and gas industry require efficient solutions of

exceptional quality, Online Valves has developed a one-stop-shop solution that delivers on time.

“Customers tend to want results fast,” says Dave.

“In fact, the average lead time in the valve world is likely around 24 weeks delivery, which is not acceptable for the average oil company that has an issue with a valve. Recent projects for us include a major operator in Brazil requiring a fast response, for which we provided a solution in ten days. On a larger scale, we have completed ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

Online Valves

projects that weren’t urgent supply, however, we were still fast, with delivery ranging between 18 to 20 weeks.”

This adaptability to customer and market demand has resulted in strong global growth for Online Valves, which is currently trading in 28 countries, despite challenging market conditions.

“We have been very fortunate as a lot of our market is export and urgent supply, so a lot of big companies are being told don’t spend money unless you have to, but that is the case for us anyway,” notes Dave. “Because of the manner in which we work, we have experienced very strong growth over the last four years.”

In line with this growth, the company is preparing to receive the Queen’s Award For Enterprise in International Trade 2016 in July this year. “I would say around 90 per cent of our work is export and we have enjoyed significant growth for three years running, which is why we have won this award. It is a great honour to receive the Queen’s Award and is also good PR for us as it gives a potential customer confidence that we are

genuinely good at what we do,” says Dave.

Complementing this flexibility is the company’s combination of long-term experience in valves and related equipment and its global presence thanks to locations in Houston, Dubai and Trinidad. In addition to these strengths, Dave also praises the strength of its partners and suppliers: “Our supply chain is key for us; if you don’t have that you don’t have anything.

We treat our partners and suppliers like they are clients, which means we treat them well and are fair while conducting business. By making it easy for our suppliers to sell to us we have increasingly become the preferential customer for many of our suppliers; which brings with it many advantages.”

With five years of impressive growth behind the company, Dave is naturally positive about

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the future of Online Valves without showing a hint of complacency. “From what I see of the market, you can sit by and watch things happen and miss the boat or you can go out and chase it down and make things happen. This is the route we are going for. For example, we opened our office in Dubai last month and have a number of business trips taking place at the minute all over the world. I believe this face to face meetings are vital for successful business development.”

Keen to maintain growth levels in a consistent year-by-year basis, Online Valves is likely to expand further over the coming years in line with global market demand for its adaptable and high quality solutions. Alongside this strategic development, the company will also further develop its external branches in Houston and Dubai, as Dave concludes: “I would like to duplicate the success we have here in Aberdeen over in Houston particularly, but I also see opportunities for other branches over the next few years.”

TDC Quality Coatings TDC Quality Coatings congratulates Online Valves on receiving a Queen’s Award. A division of TDC (Aberdeen) Ltd, TDC Quality Coatings specialises in the surface preparation and protective coating of all types of industrial equipment, including subsea assets. Accredited to ISO 9001:2008 and OHSAS 18001:2007, and certified to NACE, ICORR and Norsok standards, TDC delivers high quality and safe services to a wide range of companies operating within the oil and gas sector, in the UK and globally.

Online Valves online-valves.com

Services Stockist and distributor of valves

PROFILE

Chart Ferox

Delivering

excellence

Above The first Chart LNG vehicle fuelling station for Shell in Holland

A wholly owned

subsidiary of Chart Industries, Inc., Czech Republic based Chart Ferox supplies equipment for the cryogenic storage and distribution of liquefied gases, including air gases (nitrogen, oxygen, argon), carbon dioxide (CO2), liquefied natural gas (LNG) and other hydrocarbons.

The range of equipment and systems available from Chart Ferox is very comprehensive, and thanks to its wealth of expertise and industry knowledge, the company is no stranger to working with blue chip clients on major contracts.

For example, recently it has been involved with a groundbreaking project where 35 nations are collaborating to build the world’s largest ‘tokamak’,

a magnetic fusion device. Called ITER, (‘The Way’ in Latin) it is one of the most ambitious energy projects in the world today, with the aim to prove the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale and carbonfree source of energy.

In May 2016, Chart Ferox manufactured two massive tanks each measuring 35 m x 4.5 m for ITER, which will form part of a cryoplant and will require special arrangements to be transported from the port of Marseille, Fos-surMer, to the ITER construction site at Cadarache.

The tanks will be used as ‘quench tanks’ for helium storage when needed, and represent a fundamental part of a project that includes a number of world firsts.

Right Biggest cryogenic tank in the world delivered to Norway in 2012

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87

Above Alternative energy source for cruise ships in the Port of Hamburg

Below Chart helium tanks for ‘tokamak’ project

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While the Chart Ferox name is synonymous with standard and custom engineered cryogenic storage technology, in fact the organisation’s portfolio extends far beyond these products and the company is paving the way for the adoption of LNG as a safe, economic and green alternative to diesel in Europe.

“The majority of our business is still focused on technical gases, however we are slowly moving towards a bigger portion of LNG, and we will be focusing on that area as that is where we see the most opportunity for growth,” commented Hans Lonsain, President of Chart D&S Europe. “Since we were last featured in Energy, Oil & Gas in 2013 the maritime LNG segment has seen expansion and we have been developing mobile bunkering solutions, including a project for a hybrid power ship in Hamburg, multiple LNG fuelling systems for maritime applications as well as nitrogen vaporisation and storage packages for floating LNG (FLNG). There are still big opportunities in

energy-oil-gas.com

the marine space, which is only just starting to develop and I think that sector will continue to mature and expand geographically.”

He added: “In a joint venture with VTG, Chart Ferox has developed a rail car for the safe transportation of LNG on Europe’s rail network.

The rail car has been fully approved and tested and made available to the market.”

Hans also noted that Chart Ferox is seeing clear opportunities in LNG for vehicle fuelling, with LNG fuelling stations being constructed across Europe. “This used to be a one off event but there is now a developing infrastructure of stations and an ever increasing amount of vehicles equipped to run on LNG in this emerging segment,” he said. “Despite the recent fall in global oil prices, LNG continues to offer an attractive, cost competitive alternative to diesel, while proving to be a more environmentally friendly option as well.”

PROFILE

A perfect example of how Chart Ferox works in this area is Shell’s first European LNG Fuelling Station, which opened in Rotterdam in March 2015. Chart Ferox’s detailed scope of supply included engineering, fabrication, installation and commissioning of the LNG storage tank, off-loading, pump skids, control and safety system, interconnecting pipe work and the LNG dispensers. The station has the capacity to fuel around 170 heavy-duty vehicles every day and, with Chart’s technology, meets the industry’s highest technical and safety standards. All Chart Ferox LNG stations can be supplied with a CNG fuelling option making them suitable for fuelling all natural gas powered vehicles.

From speaking to Hans about the variety of sophisticated projects Chart Ferox is undertaking, it is clear that the organisation’s commitment to continuous improvement is setting it apart from the competition. “I do believe our dedication to innovation, combined with our global supply capability and end-to-end product portfolio has put us where we are today,” Hans confirmed. “We have a global presence, which means we are one

of the only cryogenic suppliers who can really supply in every country in the world, and we have a manufacturing presence in all the major world economies, which is a huge asset. We supply throughout the complete LNG value chain, from liquefaction plants through to end use equipment, so I would say we are the most complete and innovative supplier in the market today.”

Maintaining this position is where the company’s focus remains and Hans believes the key to continued future success lies in a flexible approach: “We see demand for products is changing quickly, so what we need to do is create an adaptable, flexible and responsive organisation able to satisfy a range of different requirements with short lead times and without sacrificing quality.

“This will bring challenges such as retraining staff, changing the layouts of factories and finding the balance between just in time manufacturing while maintaining the level of expertise and excellence synonymous with Chart. But, the market is asking for flexibility and that is what we will be striving to deliver.”

Chart Ferox

I do believe our dedication to innovation, combined with our global supply capability and end-to-end product portfolio has put us where we are today

Chart Ferox chartindustries.com

Services Supplies equipment and systems for storage and distribution of liquefied air gases and hydrocarbons.

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Designed to

innovate Operating since its foundation

in 2009, Marine Assets Corporation (MAC Offshore) represents a pioneering supplier of modern and sophisticated vessels for clients within the offshore oil and gas industry. MAC Offshore is a founding developer of the compact semi-submersible concept and has since continued to develop, promote and deliver the technology to the oil and gas market from its base in the Jumeirah Lake Towers (JLT) free zone, Dubai. MAC Offshore was previously profiled by Energy, Oil & Gas magazine during August 2015, during which time CEO, Robin Reeves discussed the company’s contract to deliver the world’s first purpose built vessel for offshore mining for Nautilus Minerals Inc. “Since 2015 we have continued to focus on our business plan of building offshore support vessels for the offshore oil, gas and renewable sector, with a view to anticipate what the sector will require in 24-36 months time while addressing industry requirements as opposed to minimum standards,” Robin reveals. “We currently have several vessels in the pipeline and we have slowed down the construction of these to deliver the vessels 6-12 months later, taking into account the present depressed state of the market. We are also focusing on specifically diversifying into new areas, which leads on to the mining vessel for Nautilus Minerals. This is something that is outside of our conventional

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oil and gas market and really represents an exciting new market for the company.”

The contract to deliver the unique mining vessel was signed during November 2014 and calls for the vessel to be constructed at the Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding – China’s oldest shipyard. Once completed the vessel will chartered to Nautilus Minerals over a fiveyear term period with a further five one-year options. The involvement of MAC Offshore in the development of the vessel commenced with the company completing the final design of the ship prior to the beginning of construction.

“A broker initially introduced us to the client, Nautilus Minerals that wanted to build a specific vessel to operate their subsea mining operations.

They had a requirement in mind for the desired dimensions and sizes for example and had started the preliminary design of the vessel with Seatech in Singapore, however the design wasn’t actually finished,” Robin says.

“Our scope was to complete the design and gain class approval before finally building the ship and chartering it to the customer. Nautilus Minerals were focused on the mid-section of the vessel, which is where the company intended to store their mined ore as well as position their subsea mining equipment,” he adds. “They had started the development of that design and when we inherited the project we still had to finished the bow and the stern section, including the propulsion and engine room lay out.”

PROFILE

Construction of the vessel began in September 2015, with the ship is set to initially launch during March 2017. Sea trials are set to being in September 2017 prior to final delivery at the end of December 2017. The vessel is 227 metres in length and has a beam of 40 metres, it will have 32 Mw of installed power to support the vessel’s power management for DP positioning and supply power to the deck mounted mining equipment. The vessel will also include 199 beds to accommodate marine crew, hotel staff and operators for the mining equipment.

Further to the continued development of its mining vessel for Nautilus Minerals, MAC Offshore has also recently introduced a new Garbage Converter vessel, which provides a tangible solution to the problem of waste management in the offshore environment. “The recycling, removal and disposal of garbage is a significant issue within the offshore environment where there is limited space. Because it is waste, garbage tends to take last place in the queue in terms of deck space,” Robin explains. “We found a garbage converter machine that was designed by an Italian company and took that concept a stage further by working with them in collaboration to design a vessel on which to install the unit. This allows the vessel to proceed to offshore locations to collect and process garbage in a process that reduces the weight of the waste by 70 per cent and its volume by 30 per cent. The garbage is converted into a substance called RDF (Refuse Derived Fuel) which is essentially a sterile fluff.”

The garbage processing machine can handle waste ranging from tin cans, glass bottles and cardboard to food and plastics, while depending on the materials processed, the resulting RDF has a calorific value and can therefore be formed into logs and burned as fuel, or simply stored in landfill as sterile waste. “We have also produced a containerised unit that is basically an offshore container, meaning that it is certified

Marine Assets Corporation

for offshore use and can be positioned on an offshore platform or rig if the client does not want the expense of having a vessel operating in the field. We have similar units on trial with international oil companies in the UAE at present and the results there are looking very positive,” Robin adds.

“We also continue to develop our range of semi-submersible accommodation units and currently have two of these in operation, with one in Brazil and the other in Brunei. There are a further three units that are nearing completion, that have been destined for repeat orders for existing customers and we are also targeting a smaller version of this design for the wind farm market,” he concludes. “It is our forward vision that really differentiates us within the market and this has been our business plan since day one. This will continue to be the case through the delivery unique designs that can compete in terms of cost-effectiveness and out perform existing vessels.”

It is our forward vision that really differentiates us within the market and this has been our business plan since day one

Marine Assets Corporation macoffshore.net youtube.com/ watch?v=me4iJEw8mF8.

Services Offshore support vessels

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An integrated A world leader in the manufacture and maintenance of storage tanks, heat exchangers and gasholders, Motherwell Bridge Ltd has developed a solid reputation in the market thanks to its strong capabilities in design, engineering, maintenance, on-site build and project management. Known for delivering quality and accuracy at all stages of a project, the Lanarkshire, Scotland, based company boasts more than a century of experience in both the UK and global operations, onshore and offshore.

This long-term knowledge has resulted in a company with an extensive portfolio involving major projects across the globe, including the world’s largest built storage tank.

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Key to Motherwell Bridge’s success is its 300 strong multi-skilled labour force, which are adaptable against challenges and willing to tackle projects in harsh environments. For example, in December 2013, BP praised the company for its repair work on Clair Phase 1 in June the same year. However, upon seeing the capabilities of Motherwell Bridge’s staff, BP project leaders expanded the company’s workload to take on welding, plating and fitting work during the three-month platform shutdown.

This commitment to creating a one-stop-shop solution to clients has significantly enhanced over the last three years, particularly following the acquisition of Motherwell Bridge by Cape

PROFILE

motherwell bridge

facilities, secondly, it meant we have a partner with a strong financial balance sheet to support increased work and larger projects. From Cape Plc’s side, the company wanted to move into complementary yet new areas within the sectors it worked in, which meant stepping away from scaffolding and insulation and into more white collar engineering and construction services,” explains Russell Ward, Managing Director of Cape Specialist Services, which now incorporates Motherwell Bridge Ltd. With the backing of a leading industrial player, Motherwell Bridge has been able to accelerate its growth plans in the UK and overseas.

Meanwhile, Cape Plc has been able to broaden its portfolio and thus offer clients a comprehensive tank maintenance solution via Motherwell

Plc, the international provider of critical support services to the energy and mineral resources sectors, for £37.65 million in March 2014. The deal has enabled Motherwell Bridge to take advantage of resources, which in turn will lead to strong growth in the future as it takes on larger projects in overseas markets while also increasing its service offering.

“Cape Plc is a FTSE 250 corporation that operates globally and employs around 18,000 people around the world. Our three businesses, gasholding, storage and heat exchange, were all sold to Cape Plc for two reasons; firstly, it meant we could get access to a larger global footprint when it comes to clients, labour force and

Known for delivering quality and accuracy at all stages of a project, the Lanarkshire, Scotland, based company boasts more than a century of experience in both the UK and global operations, onshore and offshore

Bridge’s long-term expertise, strong market reputation and impressive workforce. “We have recently brought Motherwell Bridge with a number of other companies that I run under an umbrella known as Cape Specialist Services; there are a couple of environmental service businesses, both onshore and offshore, and as a result we are able to offer a complete suite of tank services including tank cleaning and repairs.

This development has led to us winning a project in Australia to do some large tanking cleaning scopes; the natural thing for us to do now is start expanding our tank building opportunities in Australia and Asia,” says Russell.

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motherwell bridge

a contract from Baoshan Iron & Steel Co. for a new 150,000 m3 Wiggins dry seal type blast furnace gasholder in July 2014. Meanwhile, more presently, the company is focused on completing the manufacture of a large Ethane tank in the North East of the UK as well as a project in the Middle East for double wall tanks.

In anticipation of further work in the Middle East and surrounding areas, the company has established a dedicated tank team, complete with engineers, designers and project managers, as Russell comments: “We replicated what we have in Motherwell in the Middle East, which means we have a self sufficient team there who can report back to our technical centre in the UK. This is up and running and we have had a number of projects take place from here.”

In addition to these areas, Russell says Motherwell Bridge Ltd is also continuing to target Africa: “We have a foothold in West Africa and have been involved in engineering and supply work in the Nigerian tank market while supporting a local construction partner there.

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This is generally a market we are seeking to expand further.”

Moving forward, Motherwell Bridge Ltd, soon-to-be Cape Motherwell Bridge, will undergo a rebrand over the coming months to accentuate the integration of strengths between the two organisations as it continues to progress into a one-stop-shop solution provider for clients, particularly in the cryogenic market.

“The immediate focus for us is to have these products and services that we have acquired available to those in the group. For example, we acquired Redhall Engineering in 2015, which has given us additional mechanical expertise; what we need to do now is pull all of these strengths together so we can go to the market and offer a one-stop-shop solution. A number of our clients are interested in this business model as it brings real value, particularly in a cost-focused market. Now that we have the scale and backing of Cape Plc, we plan to expand this business model globally over the coming years,” Russell concludes.

We replicated what we have in Motherwell in the Middle East, which means we have a self sufficient team there who can report back to our technical centre in the UK. This is up and running and we have had a number of projects take place from here Motherwell Bridge Ltd motherwellbridge.com

Services Storage tanks, heat exchangers and gasholders

PROFILE

MENCK

force Driving

Beginning operations as a Hamburg based steam and diesel shovel builder in 1868, Johannes MENCK and Dietrich Hambrock founded MENCK & Hambrock.

The company has since developed its services and honed its expertise in the production, rental and sale of pile driving hammers to become the major global player in the oil and gas industry operating as MENCK GmbH. With work beginning in a humble backyard, the two men developed the first steam-powered mobile vertically standing boiler unit, which was then used for a piling rig in 1871. This semiautomated piling rig was the first to be brought to market and by means of generating the energy to drive piles, it uses the same principles still applied by MENCK GmbH today.

Discussing the company’s developments over the last century, Fabian Hippe, Managing Director of MENCK GmbH told Energy, Oil & Gas magazine in October 2015: “Excavating machines were MENCK’s core business well into the mid 1900s, when in 1937 MENCK’s products consisted of excavator machines along with steam and diesel driven piling hammers and piling rigs. Since then piling systems have become our main service offering, and it has

helped that this business segment has been part of MENCK since day one as we have gained revenue and a strong reputation from this.”

Today an expert in the specialist field of offshore pile driving, MENCK GmbH uses its superior knowledge to deliver high quality, reliable products to customers within the oil and gas industry, renewable energy and civil and bridge sectors. Discussing the reasons behind the company’s success in challenging environments and demanding markets, Fabian says: “A major strength is our capability in using our hammers in any environment. They are primarily used above water but can be submerged to water depths of up to 3000 metres; we are the only company in the world that can drive piles in deep water. The deepest we have reached is 2250 metres at BP’s Block 31 development in Offshore West Africa.”

For customers seeking pile driving systems with hydraulic hammers, MENCK GmbH has a product portfolio ranging from 100 kJ to 3500 kJ, the latter of which is by far the largest in MENCK’s product portfolio. Standing at around 21 metres above ground in the vertical position and known as the ‘Gentle Giant’, the MENCK MHU 3500S’s hydraulic hammer exerts ENERGY,oil&gas

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a massive 6.0 kJ per tonne of weight, with a pile sleeve that has a diameter of 6.5 m. Weighing approximately 580 tonnes in air, it has a proven highest energy-to-weight ratio if compared to any other hammer in the world, but is also two to three db quieter than other hammers within MENCK’s portfolio. This ensures the MENCK MHU 3500S contributes to all environmental protection requirements.

Elaborating on the development of this milestone in pile driving history, Fabian comments: “In 2014 there was a change in the renewable energy market to extra-large diameter piles, which involved harsh regulatory requirements to maintain a certain noise levels.

This noise level was becoming mandatory in Germany and a maximum piling time was implemented and mandatory by then too. Both of these factors contributed to the need for a new approach in piling, to support the noise reduction as well the piling time.

“Our approach was to oversize the system for the undertaking you do, which means it wasn’t a requirement to run the hammer at maximum energy and in turn supports a lower noise profile. This still delivered sufficient contingency in terms of energy to maintain the installation time regulation.”

He continues: “In 2014 we successfully supplied the first MHU 3500S hydraulic hammer to assist Bilfinger Marine & Offshore Systems with the installation of monopile foundations for Vattenfall’s Project Sandbank, a new 72 strong turbine wind farm located in the North Sea.” Following this successful project, the company has focused on building a second unit, which in turn is fully contracted along with the first one throughout 2016 and 2017.

Complementing the company’s commitment to supporting the client in any direction that the operational phase may take it is its solid history for innovation and strong heritage.

Furthermore, MENCK GmbH is also part of the ACTEON Group of Companies, which acquired the company in 2003. “Being part of ACTEON enables us to collaborate with sister companies to provide integrated services in all industries.

This way of working has proven particularly beneficial in the growing renewables sector; an area in which we have invested heavily over the last two years to ensure we can supply the right size hammer combined with mature services,” says Fabian. “Our collaborations have given us an edge in the market through the development of intriguing business propositions that are becoming increasingly recognised by companies.

For example, by being flexible we can provide

MENCK

For customers seeking pile driving systems with hydraulic hammers, MENCK GmbH has a product portfolio ranging from 100 kJ to 3500 kJ, the latter of which is by far the largest in MENCK’s product portfolio the contractor with a wholly integrated package or play a key role in part of the project. This enables us to deliver the best possible solution for the client and the industry where we are operating.”

One example of this collaborative approach is the company’s current project alongside sister companies LDD and UTEC. This is to deliver a total foundation solution, including a subsea pre-piling template (PPT) to Offshore Windforce WIK (OWF) – a joint venture between Boskalis and Volker Stevin International. LDD’s PPT is being used to pre-install foundation piles into the seabed in advance of the placement and grouting of the four-legged jacket foundation structures off the Giant 7, a Boskalis vessel. This total pre-piling package offers both commercial and operational benefits in terms of productivity and the merging of complementary expertise, which has thus resulted in a first-class, costeffective solution for a challenging project.

“Through fully integrated group collaboration, we can deliver to the market a streamlined approach that is commercially interesting and technically viable. We can also provide solutions to the challenges that we see today. When it comes to cost reductions for the operator, we can integrate crew and equipment on a significant scale,” concludes Fabian.

Although the oil and gas market remains challenging for those operating in it, MENCK GmbH has come up with a new way of operating that benefits customers, as well as ensuring continued demand for services that have been strengthened through working alongside its sister companies.

MENCK GmbH menck.com

Services Global pile driving services

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quality

Dedicated to

Born in 1841

as a village blacksmith in Aldeboard, Friesland, today Machinefabriek Van der Ploeg is an ISO 9001 certified supplier of machines and equipment to a wide variety of industry sectors across the globe. Having moved to Leeuwarden in 1956, the company has continuously expanded its operation, targeting growth in areas of big, heavy machinery and construction, and this eventually led to the need for more spacious accommodation. The present site on the Plutoweg in Leeuwarden was occupied in 1981, and covering approx. 20,000 m², this offered ample room to continue to work towards the future.

Now part of the Van der Ploeg Group alongside Foma Engineering and Nieland, Van der Ploeg employs 70 colleagues who are each very experienced and knowledgeable, making it very well equipped and able to complete large projects exactly according to customer requirements.

From its high-tech facility, Machinefabriek Van der Ploeg provides access to a multifaceted knowledge centre in the field of machine building, high-quality constructions and materials, hydraulics and operating systems. Working with Van der Ploeg means customers can also benefit from superior processing techniques in the manufacturing process, such as welding and machining.

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Van der Ploeg’s welders are certified under EN ISO 9606-1 with regard to several welding processes and materials and in total the business holds more than 200 different welding certifications. During production it works with WPS specifications, which are based on certified welding method qualifications, such as EN ISO 15614-1 and ASME IX. With regards to machining, Van der Ploeg utilises equipment for CNC drilling and milling for parts of up to ten metres and above and 40 tons of weight, but it also accepts smaller, more labour intensive projects in single- or serial production. Furthermore, its capabilities within the CNC machining section combine perfectly with its experience in steel construction.

These technical capabilities combine with an ability to work in partnership with clients, from the design phase onwards. Van der Ploeg can take care of a large majority of the overall implementation process, beginning with the engineering and extending through to the assembly and testing. Indeed, the company has discovered through years of operation, that the earlier in the process that it liaises with clients, the more they will profit from its experience and strength in innovation.

Given the extensive range of its experience,

PROFILE

it is no surprise to learn that Machinefabriek Van der Ploeg’s products can be found in the offshore, defence, energy technologies, steel, machine building, food and renewable energy like offshore wind. As John Spruitenburg, general manager of the Van der Ploeg Group explained, the company really focuses its attention on three main areas: “We specialise, nationally and internationally, in building complex and heavy constructions for the offshore, industry and defence sectors,” he said. “Our factory is very efficiently (LEAN) and conscientiously organised in order to be able to consistently meet the demands of our customers.”

Focusing on offshore, this industry sector demands the highest quality designs and manufacturing equipment with industryspecific application materials, complete traceability, production manuals and recognised test methods. Van der Ploeg is able to meet the needs of these clients thanks to the experience in rigorous and specific welding processes and similarly complex cutting already mentioned. The complete process is also subject to a strict time schedule and control of international test centres – Van der Ploeg’s products leave its factory almost exclusively under certification, and it can offer DIN EN-ISO 3834-2, DIN 2303 Q2 BK2 and meet the requirements of VCA. Thanks to this guarantee of exemplary quality, Van der Ploeg has relationships with a host of recognised offshore industry names - for example, it has worked with Heerema Marine and Bluewater, as well as Ulstein, and recently completed a major new contract for Van Oord Ship Management. This contract saw the organisation manufacture a state-of-the-art piece of equipment for the new Van Oord subsea rock-dumping vessel Bravenes that is currently under construction in China. The crucial parts – carousels and bucket loaders - were a challenging assignment and as John explained, required a close working relationship with all parties: “This could only be successful through an intense co-operation with various business partners, amongst whom was Ulstein Engineering. But it really was a perfect construction,” he stated.

Two carousels with accessory loaders for the new fall pipe vessel have now passed the Factory Acceptance Test (FAT).

“It is great to participate in the making of such a revolutionary and innovative product. We always seize an opportunity to turn a challenge into a success,” he added.

Machinefabriek Van der Ploeg

What made this project so successful was Van der Ploeg’s dedication to putting the requirements and demands of the customer first, identifying them and acting accordingly.

Its mission is always to create maximum added value for its clients through professional application of core values: reliability, quality, innovation and versatility.

As the company’s website states, it is Van der Ploeg’s philosophy that the quality of its products is always the lead factor. ‘The client receives what he has paid for, it will conform to all specifications and requirements and we deliver the required result without delay,’ it says.

Thanks to this approach, the future for Van der Ploeg looks set to be filled with more successful contracts and satisfied clients well into the future.

Machinefabriek Van der Ploeg vdploeg.nl

Services Equipment builder

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Full service in

place

With a history dating back to 1873 when the company was founded as the Gebrüder NETZSCH Maschinenfabrik (NETZSCH Brothers Machine Works), the NETZSCH Group today represents a family owned enterprise with some 3000 employees.

The company was established as a family business in Selb, Germany, where it is still headquartered today and has since grown to encompass some 163 locations across 28 countries on five continents.

The NETZSCH Pumps & Systems division represents one of three distinctive organisational areas within the wider group, which also include its Analyzing and Testing and Grinding and Dispersing divisions.

NETZSCH Pumps & Systems manages a ‘full service in place’ philosophy that is targeted at delivering a comprehensive service configured to the exacting needs of its clients. For more than six decades, NETZSCH has developed, manufactured and marketed positive displacement pumps worldwide. Its products are specifically designed, developed and manufactured for use within some of the world’s most difficult pumping situations, throughout some of the most technically demanding industry sectors.

Indeed, NETZSCH pumps are present within a broad base of industry applications within the environmental and energy; paper and chemical; foods and pharmaceutical; mining and oil and gas sectors. “NETZSCH is essentially present in all industry sectors but our key markets are within the environment and energy area,

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which includes municipal sewage, marine, power generation and bio gas applications,” details NETZSCH Pumps & Systems Managing Director, Simon Williams. “However, we are also active within the food industry, which is grouped with the company’s pharmaceutical business, as well as within in the upstream and downstream oil and gas divisions. We currently have pumps pumping crude oil from below the ground to the surface in heavy oil applications and topside applications where NETZSCH pumps are pumping oil and gas process liquids around platforms and FPSO vessels.”

NETZSCH currently boasts a production capacity of 50,000 pumps per year with the worldwide implementation of universal standards in accordance with DIN EN ISO 9001 in development and research to guarantee the highest level of quality across the business.

Throughout its history, NETZSCH has supplied clients with its proven NEMO progressive cavity pumps, TORNADO rotary lobe pumps and its recently introduced NOTOS multi-screw pumps, as well as a macerators and grinders, dosing technology and equipment for custom built and challenging applications. “NETZSCH product ranges include our Progressing Cavity Pumps, which we have manufactured since 1952 and we have been a continuous design innovator throughout the years,” Simon reveals. “For example, we adopted the rotary pump range in 2000 because we saw that the technology was eroding our existing market for progressive cavities. Therefore we acquired the technology to ensure that the business was not standing

PROFILE

still. Ten years after we launched a revolutionary take on rotary technology, efficiently ‘ripping up’ the design manual to bring something really unique to the market place. In recent years we have also continued to develop the progressive cavity pump range with ‘full service in place’ features, including the ability to change the pump’s mechanical seal without the user having to remove its suction and discharge casings.”

Most recently, NETZSCH has introduced its

NETZSCH Pumps & Systems

unique family of NOTOS multiple screw pumps (MSP), which embodies highly recognisable NETZSCH design and superior quality standards to meet the needs of clients that demand the highest levels of service requirement.

“NETZSCH had previously manufactured a range of screw pumps under licence in Brazil for a good number of years and we realised that we had a good reliable install base and that we had the capability and experience to manufacture

ENERGY,oil&gas

We currently have pumps pumping crude oil from below the ground to the surface in heavy oil applications and topside applications where NETZSCH pumps are pumping oil and gas process liquids around platforms and FPSO vessels

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these products ourselves. Around ten years ago we decided to embark on a journey to release a new product to the market and this was fully realised during 2016. The NOTOS range is manufactured using an extremely clever machine tool system, which allows us to incorporate a complex screw-set and to produce a highly effective and mechanically accurate pump,” Simon explains. “We have also taken care with the design of the NOTOS family of pumps to ensure that is fits in with the wider design of the rest of our pumps so that the client can get to know the look of a NETZSCH pump.

We want to be more like a car manufacturer that has a personality and proven reliability, rather than just manufacturing a simple piece of machinery.”

Throughout its product range, NETZSCH employs cutting-edge design technology including computational flow modelling to

NETZSCH Pumps & Systems

ensure the most effective and efficient pump solutions. “During the design of the NOTOS family of pumps for example, we established that it was possible to achieve incremental increases in efficiency by machining deflector plates onto the shafts of the pump system. That was found through modelling techniques initially and then further improved in the test field,” Simon observes. “We are very heavily into the design, build and testing of prototypes, rather than building and releasing for prototyping.

This allows us to ensure the highest levels of efficiency.”

NETZSCH understands that time is a critical factor within all of today’s industry sectors.

Clients are increasing unwilling or unable to wait for deliveries, while global competition continually results in new products being introduced to market. To meet the needs of this challenging market NETZSCH has developed its ‘full service in place’ (FSIP) concept for its pump systems, which promises a full turnkey service from design to implementation, as well as the highest levels of quality and aftersales support.

With its growing family of proven pumps and associated technologies, NETZSCH is ready to support clients both old and new in an increasingly competitive environment.

“Our focus is to build on the foundations set by the potential of our new and existing products,” Simon concludes. “With the introduction of our NOTOS range we hope to ensure further sales and to continue to grow by meeting with customers that we have perhaps not met before.”

During the design of the NOTOS family of pumps for example, we established that it was possible to achieve incremental increases in efficiency by machining deflector plates onto the shafts of the pump system

NETZSCH Pumps & Systems Ltd netzsch.com

Services Machinery and instrumentation manufacture

ENERGY,oil&gas

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Fuel of the

future

CNG Fuels was founded

in 2014, as a spin out from natural gas and engineering services operator, CNG Services. It develops, owns and operates compressed natural gas (CNG) distribution infrastructure including CNG refuelling stations, trailers and vehicles, and currently offers customers both CNG or 100 per cent biomethane (Bio-CNG) at all of its current stations.

CNG dispensed from local transmission system (LTS) connected stations is the lowest cost fuel available to HGVs, as well as having the lowest well-to-wheel emissions of any fossilbased HGV fuel. This makes it a very attractive fuel for the UK transportation market, as Baden Gowrie-Smith, CFO at CNG Fuels highlights: “CNG at our stations is currently selling for around 65p/kg or 48.5p/litre. So the all in

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price is lower than just the fuel duty on diesel, which stands at 57.5p/litre and is set to climb.

Given the energy efficiency loss of gas engines compared to diesel is in the range of 10-15 per cent, the discount seen by customers is around 35-40 per cent.

“CNG Vehicles are more expensive to purchase, however payback periods for fleets running average mileage are just over two years, meaning there are savings for fleets running even comparatively short vehicle life cycles of four to five years.”

So the savings on fuel expenditure alone make a powerful argument for the use of CNG, but as Baden points out, the emissions figures are also very persuasive: “Natural gas vehicles have ultralow particulate and NOx emissions, and provide air quality benefits over even new Euro 6 diesel

PROFILE

vehicles. A natural gas vehicle running on fossil derived gas will emit around 20 per cent less GHG emissions based on CO2 equivalent emissions.

“Furthermore, CNG vehicles are up to 50 per cent quieter than their diesel counterparts, making them ideal for running in urban areas, and a potential solution to heavy goods traffic in peak hours.

“Finally, the CNG refuelling experience is as fast as a diesel refuelling at around three to five minutes. Given the absolute number of gas vehicles, and that the stations are dedicated to gas only, with multiple dispensers at our stations, waiting times are negligible too.

It is also technically safer due to the secure connection and nature of light gas venting over diesel which pools.”

Such are the advantages of CNG for vehicles

that customers such as Waitrose, John Lewis, Brit European, National Grid and Howard Tenens already utilise the services of CNG Fuels.

“Waitrose currently operates over 40 natural gas powered trucks from our Leyland facility, and has plans to significantly increase the rollout of gas into their fleet over the next few years,” added Baden. “Brit European and Howard Tenens both operate their own private stations, and have been early adopters in the natural gas vehicles space. Both are intending to continue to increase their gas fleets as the UK’s network of stations continue to improve.”

In order to facilitate both existing customers use of CNG and encourage more users into the space, CNG Fuels is rolling out a UK wide network of reliable and convenient refuelling facilities to service customers’ vehicle fleets and their off-grid energy needs. The company is already the operator of the UK’s two largest capacity CNG stations, which are located in Crewe and Leyland, serving local fleets and those using the M6 corridor. Both these two stations are accessible to any fleet that registers for use with the company. The stations are unmanned, and refuelling from the dispensers is easily carried out via drivers using their key-fobs to register usage.

Built in 2001, Crewe was the UK’s highest capacity CNG station until Leyland opened in 2016. Built with three compressors and significant storage, this station is extremely reliable and serves to back up CNG’s other stations, and is able to fill trailers for remote delivery when required.

Leyland is the UK’s first high pressure grid connected station; meaning the UK’s cleanest, lowest cost fuel available for heavy transport.

“The site was delivered from planning to commissioning in under a year, and is the highest capacity station in the UK, capable of serving over 500 trucks a day, with an annual capacity in excess of 30m kgs. It also already dispenses more biomethane into transport than any other facility in the UK,” noted Baden.

“We are the first company to utilise the UK’s extensive high-pressure gas grid network, which covers over 6300kms of pipeline. Connection to the high-pressure gas grid decreases the kWh electricity consumption of compressors required to take the gas to the usable pressure which reduces both emissions and costs. The capacity of the stations is also increased by up too 300 per cent, leaving significant room for future growth in demand for the fuel at sites.”

CNG Fuels

We are the first company to utilise the UK’s extensive high-pressure gas grid network, which covers over 6300kms of pipeline.

Connection to the high-pressure gas grid decreases the kWh electricity consumption of compressors required to take the gas to the usable pressure which reduces both emissions and costs

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CNG Fuels

The new stations that CNG Fuels plans to open include at least six public access CNG stations within the next 24 months, which will be located along major trucking routes, including near the M4/M5, M1 corridor, at industrial parks and several in close proximity to major cities, providing CNG/biomethane to buses and refuse fleets.

“We will also be developing a number of private on depot stations for customers to refuel their fleets where convenience of supply and/or more diverse trucking routes mean that an on depot solution is required,” added Baden.

It is clear that CNG Fuels has ambitious plans for the future, but as a relatively young company taking such a strong position in the UK’s gas market has been a huge effort using limited resources, so the company is now focusing on solidifying its foundation. “With the Leyland CNG station now showcasing our capabilities as a company, as well as the possibilities for LTS produced CNG, the focus will be on building a team that can best deliver stations that most benefit the UK’s transport fleet, and driving adoption by delivering a more attractive solution and better customer experience than the diesel status quo,” explained Baden.

“We believe the tide is turning away from diesel as a transport fuel. Even with the inclusion of bio-diesel into the fuelling mix, there is simply no way that emissions targets going out to 2030 will be achievable without a viable alternative.

“Many countries in the developing world have already embraced natural gas as the fuel choice for heavy applications, and there is no reason to believe the trend won’t continue. We foresee a future where there is a network of publicly accessible stations serving HGVs, which can also support on-depot refuelling points via trailer at large numbers of truck, bus and refuse depots all over the UK. We would expect CNG Fuels to be a significant market participant, owning many of these, and given our early entry to the market,

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having a number at the most strategic locations.

“We expect market entrants to be both home grown, and those that have been successful rolling out networks abroad. Evidence from abroad suggests that adoption rates increase exponentially with the number of available refuelling points, which create a network effect.

So there will come a point in the not too distant future where we will welcome collaboration and market development beyond our own stations.”

CNG Fuels Ltd cngfuels.com

Services Developer, owner and operator of compressed natural gas (CNG) distribution infrastructure

PROFILE

Parkwind NV

© Menno Mulder

Sustainable

growth

Belwind - ® Vanoord Menno Mulder photography

Founded from the joint venture between Colruyt Group, Korys and PMV, Parkwind already had its roots in the Greenline environmental commitment programme founded by the Belgian retail giant Colruyt Group two decades ago. Each partner demonstrates a clear and constant responsibility to social entrepreneurship and sustainable action, making Parkwind a perfect platform to grow a renewable energy business.

In 1999, Colruyt built its first onshore wind turbine in the city of Halle through the Greenline programme and formed a joint venture with Aspiravi in 2006 to develop the Eldepasco wind farm project (renamed Northwind) after winning the concession for the Lodewiikbank. Three years later Colruyt joined forces with its investment partners Korys and PMV to take over the financially distressed project Belwind and started construction in the same year. Belwind became operational in 2010.

In 2013 the newly formed Parkwind started construction of the Northwind project – one of the largest investments in recent years – which became operational in 2014.

With two operational offshore wind farms in the North Sea, Parkwind’s activities already contribute heavily towards meeting European climate and energy targets: SS Northwind offshore windfarm, comprises of 72 wind turbines with a total capacity of 216MW, and provides electricity to 250,000 Belgian homes, saving 255,000 tonnes of CO2.

SS Phase I of Belwind, composes of 55 turbines with a total capacity of 165M, provides electricity to 160,000 Belgian homes and

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DESIGN BUILD CONNECT Jan De Nul Group is a leading expert in dredging and marine construction activities, and provides services related to the installation of offshore wind farms and related subsea export cables and umbilicals.

The combination of design and detailed engineering and all aspects of civil works, dredging and rock and marine installation enable Jan De Nul Group to offer a total package on an EPC basis.

www.jandenul.com

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PROFILE

Parkwind NV

Belwind - ® Vanoord Menno Mulder photography

Parkwind is fully dedicated about finding innovative solutions to today’s energy problems.

Parkwind is confident that a low carbon future is possible and affordable

displaces 270,000 tonnes of CO2. For an investment worth €614 million, Belwind’s capacity alone contributes 4.7 per cent of the Belgian government’s target.

SS Keen to continue delivering more capacity, Parkwind has further extended the Belwind concession and is currently constructing its third wind farm: Nobelwind. The expected capacity is 165MW, with an estimated production of 679GWh a year. This is enough to provide 186,000 Belgian homes with electricity. Completion is set for December 2017.

Parkwind’s expertise in offshore windfarm development and construction is used to reduce environmental impact to the utmost

and to preserve the fauna and the flora. Both concessions are far out in the sea and are closed to shipping and fishing operations making them hotspots for marine animal and plant species to thrive around the foundations.

Parkwind is fully dedicated to finding innovative solutions to today’s energy problems.

Parkwind is confident that a low carbon future is possible and affordable. Parkwind focuses on sustainability to create long-term value to all its stakeholders.

Such is the extent of green energy generated

by Parkwind’s sites that Colruyt, a company with 400 of its own stores, 500 affiliated stores and 27,000 employees across France, Belgium and Luxembourg, produces more renewable energy than it uses.

Above Naamloos

Parkwind NV parkwind.eu

Services

© Menno Mulder

Leading offshore wind company in the Belgian North Sea

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www.ilf.com

ENGINEERING EXCELLENCE

Strategic decisions require a profound basis For decades, ILF is providing high-level consultancy and engineering services to major oil and gas companies, financing organisations in the private and public sector, as well as governmental institutions.

50 years of experience and innovation have shaped ILF into a trusted partner to support your investment decision, all over the world.

ILF Consulting Engineers Werner-Eckert-Strasse 7 81829 Munich, Germany Tel. +49 (89) 25 55 94 - 0 Fax +49 (89) 25 55 94 - 144 E-Mail postmaster@ilf.com 1110_einschaltung_oil_gas_spezial_TANAP.indd 1

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PROFILE

Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) Project

European

gateway With around 1.2 trillion cubic metres of natural gas in reserve, the Shah Deniz Field in Azerbaijan’s Caspian Sea is one of the largest natural gas reserves in the world. Creating a supply route to serve the ever-growing demands for gas on the European continent from the field is considered to be of great strategic importance for both European and global energy geopolitics.

Therefore, in 2012 an Intergovernmental Agreement cementing the bonds between the Republic of Turkey and the Republic of Azerbaijan was signed to secure the build of the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP).

Due to stretch 1850km across the length of Turkey from the district of Ardahan Posof on its border with Georgia to Edirne’s Ipsala crossing to Greece, TANAP will be the most critical link of the Southern Gas Corridor when it is completed.

Construction began in 2015 and it is forecast that 1.28 million tonnes and 160,000 pieces of X70-type steel will be required to complete all pipe and junction materials along what will be Turkey’s longest and the world’s largest

diameter gas pipeline at 56 inches from Ardahan to Eskisehir. In addition to the pipeline itself, numerous infrastructure services also have to be built along the route over the coming years.

These include two compressor stations, four measuring stations, 12 pigging stations, 49 block valve stations and two off-take stations to supply gas to Turkey’s national natural gas network at Eskisehir and Thrace.

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PROFILE

Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) Project

“The initial cost of the project amounted to $11.7 billion,” outlines Saltuk Duzyol, TANAP’s CEO. “However, the decline in world oil prices has made it possible to save $2.5 billion on its implementation and it currently costs $9.2 billion.”

Passing through 20 provinces, 67 districts and 600 villages across Turkey, TANAP is undoubtedly a hugely demanding and significant construction project. However, the importance of the project in the country goes further than just a mammoth engineering task. As a result of economic growth and subsequent increases in energy demands, it is vital for Turkey to boost its natural gas supply by gaining access to new resources.

Thanks to a strong partnership with Azerbaijan, Turkey holds shares in both TANAP and Shah Deniz Gas Field, making it more than just a transit country for the natural gas. Significantly, this means that the Turkish authorities have a say in every link of the value chain between the producer and the final consumer helping it to become a key energy hub in the region. Indeed, the TANAP project is one of the most concrete projects being realised for the purpose of ensuring Turkey’s energy supply security and its ability to meet ever-increasing demands well into the future. “TANAP will be a crucial addition to both Turkey’s and Europe’s energy security,” says Saltuk. “Moreover, the project’s international nature will contribute to stability and co-operation in the region.”

In terms of employment alone, it is estimated that the project has provided, and will continue to provide, jobs for over 15,000 people who are either directly or indirectly involved in construction, support services, pipe manufacturing plus a range of other associated sectors. Crucially, the development of TANAP and the Southern Gas Corridor opens up future opportunities for natural gas fields further upstream to be commercialised through Turkey.

However, the challenges of rising population and energy demands are not isolated to Turkey and are a trend noticeable across the rest of the European continent. The link provided by

TANAP’s stated vision is to open up new supply opportunities in order to enhance supply security and diversity across Turkish and European markets, whilst at the same time strengthening the economic co-operation between countries in the supply chain by stimulating investment and fostering gas-to-gas competition

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Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) Project

TANAP will at first be a crucial passage allowing resources in Azerbaijan to enter a high consumer market in the West. Furthermore, as time goes on other potential suppliers in Central Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean will be able to gain access to the market through this new gateway. Saltuk highlights, for instance, the possibility for Northern Iraqi and Turkmen gas to also enter the supply line and is on the agenda with negotiations underway.

Initial gas flow to Turkey will begin in 2018 with six billion cubic metres entering the country’s network, by the start of 2020 an additional ten billion cubic metres will be transferred on to the European network via the TAP (Trans-Adriatic Pipeline), which will take the gas through Greece and into Italy. Total capacity will gradually increase over the following years hitting 24 billion cubic metres by 2023 and 31 billion cubic metres three years later.

One key consideration that has underpinned the TANAP project from the start is its environmental impact – especially during its construction phase. In July 2014 the programme’s Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) was endorsed in compliance with national legislation as well as international standards.

Ecological studies, to determine impact and the necessary measures to avoid damage, air quality, noise and vibration assessments, to prevent and mitigate the effects of possible gas and dust emissions, water quality and soil quality studies were all undertaken in advance to develop appropriate management plans to create as little environmental impact as possible throughout the project. As too were studies on the landscape, to ensure that soil

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12 half page version TEKFEN CONSTRUCTION AND INSTALLATION CO., INC., TEKFEN CONSTRUCTION AND INSTALLATION CO., INC., Tekfen Construction and Installation Co., Inc., today a leading organisation in the challenging fields of contracting activities but also a studious environmentalist, traces its roots to an engineering consulting company established in 1956. An uncompromising dedication to global quality standards in its business conduct has underscored the company's consistent growth and stability for six decades.

Presently, Tekfen Construction, as an affiliate of Tekfen Holding Co., Inc., is a respectable signature as an international contractor with major accomplishments in Turkey, the Middle East, North Africa, Caucasia & Central Asia. Its wide span of activities range from heavy civil works to refineries and petrochemical plants; from high rise buildings to major industrial processing plants; from pipelines and marine structures to power plants, electrical and communication works.

With its sister companies and strategic partnerships, Tekfen is capable of extending its services to large span of clients, worldwide.

As an ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:2007 certified Company, Tekfen is dedicated to higher quality standards, aiming for excellence through ‘continual improvement’ and strict belief in ‘teamwork’ and that uncompromising commitment to people is evidenced by its outstanding accident-free record on projects throughout the world.

Within Tekfen’s ongoing projects, TANAP’s Lot 3, the Sivas Eskisehir section of the approximately 1.900 m long TANAP line, stretching through the provinces of Sivas, Yozgat, Kırsehir, Kırıkkale, Ankara and Eskisehir, is one of the most important ones. Ten percent complete in 2015, this 509-km section will be laid with 56 inch pipes and include 14 valve stations and two pigging stations. Contracted in 2014, and with 10 per cent completed in 2015, 71 per cent of the project is to be finished by the end of 2016, with full completion due at the end of 2017.

Added to the Lot 3 of TANAP’s main line, construction of three compressors and four metering stations are also within Tekfen’s scope with another contract.

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PROFILE

Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) Project

and vegetation along the pipe’s route could be restored both during and after construction, and archaeological and cultural studies. One hundred and six archaeological sites have been discovered during TANAP’s route selection studies and the cultural assessments were a key part of determining the least disruptive and damaging route.

In terms of its social consideration 146 meetings in 20 provinces were held to inform stakeholders and local communities of the project’s plans and activities and nearly 3000 surveys were made in settlements along the route to ensure that impact on local communities was as small as possible.

The vast scale of work undertaken by the TANAP project is unprecedented for this type of construction challenge in Turkey and the successful completion of it will be vital to the

country becoming a major player in Europe’s gas industry. The impact for markets on both sides of Turkey will surely be felt for years to come, and with population rising across the continent, opening up more resources through new corridors will be key to sustaining a consistent energy supply.

TANAP’s stated vision is to open up new supply opportunities in order to enhance supply security and diversity across Turkish and European markets, whilst at the same time strengthening the economic co-operation between countries in the supply chain by stimulating investment and fostering gas-to-gas competition. Thanks to a careful and responsible approach to its development, and with construction well on its way, the programme looks set to achieve this when the pipeline becomes operational in 2018.

Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) Project tanap.com

Services Project to build Turkey’s longest and largest diameter pipeline

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PROFILE

Archer UK

A renewed

approach First Integrated Solutions Ltd We are proud to have been supporting Archer since 2013. First Integrated Solutions Ltd was established in 1997 and is one of Scotland’s leading manufacturing and service companies.

The company’s core operations include the manufacture of wire rope slings, the supply and service of market leading lifting equipment, plant and tooling, as well as the provision of offshore and onshore inspection and load testing services. Our vision is to deliver a best in class experience to our clients around the world.

Operating as

global oil services company with a heritage in drilling and well services that dates back over more than 40 years, Archer currently employs more than 5000 people across 40 locations in 19 countries. The company provides services that range from well integrity and intervention, plug and abandonment to decommissioning operations, which is carried out in accordance to the highest levels of safety for the drilling and well service markets. The company was originally founded in 1972 as Smedvig Drilling AS, which provided mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU) and platform drilling and maintenance services to the Norwegian and UK sectors of the North Sea. During 2006 Smedvig Drilling AS was acquired by the Norwegian drilling contractor company Seadrill.

In 2007 the platform drilling, drilling facility engineering, wireline and oiltools divisions of Seadrill were spun off to create a new company called Seawell and Seadrill retained control of all of the existing semis, jack up and tender units. In February 2011, following a series of global land and offshore drilling, technology and service acquisitions, Seawell was subsequently rebranded as Archer Limited. Today Archer

operates with eight key product lines and services globally, consisting of platform drilling, offshore modular rigs, engineering, land drilling, wireline, oiltools, rental services and frac valves.

Within the UK, Archer currently maintains an operational headquarters in Blackburn, Aberdeenshire, located north of Aberdeen. “We currently employ over 700 on and offshore personnel at Archer UK Limited and the company is currently the largest provider of platform drilling operations and maintenance services on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS),” said Vice President for Platform Drilling for Archer UK, Kenny Dey. “This includes drilling, maintenance and plug and abandon operations relating to 24 platforms as well as a MODU tender barge, with the provided products and services including drilling facility engineering, survey and inspection; drilling equipment rentals; oiltools; and wireline services.”

Archer UK clients include globally recognised industry players such as Apache, Chevron, Fairfield Betula, Marathon Oil, Shell UK Limited, Talisman Sinopec Energy UK Limited as well as Energean Oil & Gas – a Greek operation supported from the UK. Elsewhere in the ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

Archer UK

We currently employ over 700 on and offshore personnel at Archer UK Limited and the company is currently the largest provider of platform drilling operations and maintenance services on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS)

MRDS Ltd MRDS Ltd operate from a world-class repair facility and base in Aberdeen.

Our team prides itself on having worked alongside Archer for a number of years to provide a comprehensive range of 24 hour services and flexible solutions to meet quick turnaround times.

This has enabled us to develop a strong relationship with Archer both here in the UK and worldwide giving them cost effective operating options and solutions for their rigs.

North Sea, Archer also provides extensive operation support services to market-leading operators within the Norwegian sector such as BP, ConocoPhillips, Repsol and Statoil. During March 2016, Archer announced a two-year extension to its contract to provide drilling platform services for Statoil. This includes the provision of onshore management teams and offshore drilling and maintenance personnel for Statoil’s Statfjord A, B, and C platforms. In addition Archer was awarded new assets as part of the re-bid exercise, these are the Njord, Sleipner A, Snorre A, Snorre B, and Visund.

These additional assets will be under Archer contract from October 1 2016.

“Archer will provide drilling and maintenance personnel and onshore management of the drilling facilities located on these contracted assets. For the operational assets, Archer provides the core operational drilling personnel to carry out all out client’s well programme

activities as safely and as efficiently as possible, while the support of our maintenance teams ensure that the drilling facilities deliver strong operational performance,” Mr Dey said. “Where the asset is non-operational, Archer offshore maintenance personnel supplemented by key designated operations support, preserve and maintain the drilling facility, to ensure that the assets are available as and when required to support remedial well intervention work and that a return to or from operational mode is conducted effectively.

“Our onshore support teams help to ensure that all assets under Archer’s control deliver safe and efficient operations and that these assets are maintained to a high standard. This includes the management of relevant certification and legislative requirements.”

While the low cost of oil has resulted in a significant slowdown of activity within the oil and gas market globally, Archer remains ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

Archer UK

confident that its proven excellence in delivering cost-saving efficiencies and reliable maintenance solutions will enable the company to continue to win new contracts during the coming years.

“Right now we are in one of the worst, if not, the worst downturns the industry has experienced.

However, there are opportunities out there, as many operators are looking to the market to establish what technical and commercial advantages there are. As a company, we are working hard on both a local and global level to seek these out and deliver strong technical and commercial solutions to these prospective clients.

We believe the unique combination of the people and technology that Archer offers, combined with the performance of our personnel, will give us opportunities to grow our business despite challenging conditions,” Mr Dey said.

“Archer endeavours to have a partnership approach with our key suppliers as we strongly believe this benefits both parties. Suppliers also need to have vision and a willingness to adapt quickly to support market conditions and their clients’ operational demands,” he said.

“A good supplier is one that offers strong service, high quality and solid reliability. Good communication is also key because we believe that working in close partnership with suppliers to improve systems and processes brings

visibility and a better understanding of one another’s needs. This adds value to supporting operational demands and client base, whilst helping to drive efficiencies and support a sustainable industry.”

Throughout all of its operations, Archer ensures that it works closely with its clients to ensure that it acts as a solution provider to technically demanding challenges. In recent years the company has invested significant time, resources and funds in focusing on its core values of safety, integrity and performance, with investments ranging from personnel training

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to competency development programmes to and new systems and technologies that make operations safer and ultimately save time and money for its customers. These values will continue to be of vital importance over the coming months and years as the offshore industry works to emerge from its current downturn and generate new growth in the future.

“During the next 12 months, Archer is focusing on safety and high quality service delivery to our clients and on ensuring a continuous improvement process to ensure a sustainable future performance,” Mr Dey said.

“Over the next three to five years, Archer will continue to build on our existing service and technology portfolio with one key focus area being plug and abandonment (P&A) service offerings. P&A activity is anticipated to increase significantly in the North Sea region over this period and Archer will seek to build on some of our technology and service offering differentiators.

In general, any opportunities for growth, whether organic, through acquisition and or collaboration will be addressed on a case by case basis.”

Archer UK Ltd archerwell.com

Services Offshore platform drilling and engineering

PROFILE

Shazand (Arak) Petrochemical Company

A grand

production Established as a

Below Sasan Talebnejad, Pd. D., Head of Market Research at Shazand Petrochemical Company

grass root complex for the production of a range of petrochemical products such as plastics, synthetic rubber and other chemicals from naphtha as feedstock, Shazand Petrochemical Company (ARPC) has grown since the initial approval of the project in 1984 and the production phase becoming operational in 1993. “The company was founded in 1984 for the production of versatile petrochemical products near Arak city in the centre of Iran. Its area is approximately 523 hectares and it has private sector ownership,” begins Sasan Talebnejad, Pd. D., Head of Market Research at Shazand Petrochemical Company (ARPC). “Revamp and expansion projects were accomplished in 2003, which boosted the total annual capacity by 15 per cent. Presently, the total sellable annual production capacity of the complex is around 870 KT/Y, which serves the domestic market as well as the global market.”

Today operating 18 production plants integrated in one larger industrial complex, the company is one of the leading producers of plastics, chemicals and second most consuming synthetic rubber (PBR) from naphtha feedstock in Iran and boasts a considerable annual production capacity. Approximately half of the products are sold to the domestic market through the Iran Mercantile Exchange (IME), while the rest is exported to key markets such

as China, Turkey and India. “Other regions such as Middle Asia, SEA and our Iranian neighbours are also considered significant markets for us as well,” notes Talebnejad. “Our end user clients utilise our products in diversified applications such as plastic pipes, paints, adhesives, packaging films, fibres, serum vials, polyester production, solvents, detergents and anti-foams, to name a few.”

By adapting modern technologies such as TPL, Axsens, Lyondell Basell, Ineos, Zeon, Oxiteno and Balestra and focusing on reliable quality control monitoring, Shazand Company ensures its production processes are wholly tailored to meet the internationally acceptable

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requirements for polymeric and chemical products. “Polyolefins such as PP, HDPE and LLPDE, as well as chemicals such as generic amines, oxo-alcohols, glycols and fuels comprising different kinds of gasolines are all

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produced by our company,” says Talebnejad.

To further strengthen its operations, the company established and put into operation a compounder section at its polypropylene unit in May 2015. Viewed as a great success to the company, this investment was established to improve the productivity of the PP unit by enabling the production of the corresponding valuable compounds and increasing extruder productivity by up to four tones per hour. With its machinery being supplied by Germany and Italy, the new compounder has the highest compounding capacity among all compounders in operation in Iran.

“Producing high quality PP compounds necessitates both high tech machinery and a stable supply of high quality polypropylene material. We thought that since we could produce our own raw PP material, installation of an industrial modern compounder would thus enable us to meet the automotive and appliance industry enquiries in both the domestic and export market,” explains Talebnejad. “In the near future Shazand Company will use its proprietary know-how to manufacture high performance, specialty PP compounds in accordance with formulas developed by its research and technology department. This formula will be widely used in the production of exterior and interior automotive components, including bumpers, instrument panels, door trim panels and other applications.”

Since this major investment, the company has been selected once again as one of the top companies of the country. Discussing the selection and the reasons behind this adulation, Talebnejad states: “Ranking top companies in Iran is accomplished in order to clarify business atmosphere and develop competitiveness among Iranian companies.

Among the selected top companies in terms of ranking parameters, Shazand Petrochemical Company has been one of the first three top exporters for several consecutive years. The main strengths of our organisation lie in the versatility of our production capabilities, our unique central location, and our medium range capacities that make grade change faster and more flexible. Furthermore, our network of customer-orientated sales and marketing systems in different locations has made us one of the most influential petrochemical companies in the Middle East.”

Although the company appears to be going from strength-to-strength, it faces the challenge

PROFILE

Shazand (Arak) Petrochemical Company CHIMEC

of feed price, as Talebnejad comments: “Margin of products out of naphtha is considerably lower than gas cracker margins. For promoting competitiveness, some modification on liquid feed prices should be done. That is the case; our wise managers are pursuing this process in both the oil ministry and parliament. Some revamping like using cheap condensate feed is also under study in ARPC to strengthen our margin in the future.”

Despite these challenges, the company is currently seeking to expand its presence across the globe following the lifting of economic sanctions on Iran in January 2016. “After the Iran and world powers nuclear deal and the lifting of imposed sanctions, Shazand Petrochemical Company and the entire Iranian petrochemical industry will be doing their best to regenerate lost European market share,” says Talebnejad.

Moving forward, the highly successful firm will not only focus on expansion but will also remain true to its four key objectives: to maintain and enhance value of the stock in the long-term, to meet the satisfaction of

key stakeholders or beneficiaries, to increase the proportion of new target markets, and to manufacture new or developed products as a way to hold its leading position in a competitive market. “Although many delayed and new petrochemical projects will be implemented in the country, especially after lifting up sanctions based on feed availability, none of these developments can affect Shazand Petrochemical Company effectively because of the great strengths and reputation for excellence that we have,” concludes Talebnejad.

CHIMEC are an Italian company that have been active worldwide for over 45 years. We have distinguished ourselves in developing and providing innovative chemical treatments, technologies and consulting services to the upstream, refining and petrochemical industries.

CHIMEC’s philosophy is to apply tailored solutions aimed at optimising processes, maximising profits and reducing environmental impact.

The experience gained in an intense field activity in more than 50 countries, supported by our proprietary monitoring systems, allows us to solve even the most peculiar issues. Thanks to our qualified technical assistance, we are often known as the company providing the highest level of service.

Shazand (Arak) Petrochemical Company arpc.ir

Services Produces versatile petrochemical products

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Surging Established in 1981

ahead

as the first Asian-based valve automation centre for Bettis actuators, Matco Asia provides a comprehensive service of mounting, calibration and testing of valves and actuators. With over three decades of experience within the oil and gas industry, the company has grown to represent a market-leader in the actuator and valve automation sector that incorporates a network of professional supply, distribution and representative firms across the South East Asia region. Matco Asia also plays an active role in the promotion and distribution of valve and actuation equipment through the engineering and supply of technologies to a diverse spectrum of industries including the petrochemical, chemical, pulp and paper, water treatment and process sectors.

The company was last profiled in Energy, Oil & Gas magazine during November 2013, at which time the company reported continued growth and the award of several new contracts, including a three-year service contract with Petronas Carigali Vietnam (PVCL). Although the company has remained strong during the subsequent years and continued to be awarded the contract of supplying all the actuated valves packages for Chevron Thailand Exploration & Production ( CTEP ) the depressed price of oil and its impact on global oil and gas operations has

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had a knock-on effect on the business. As such Matco Asia has implemented a strategy of further diversification while developing additional value adding solutions within its existing business.

“The impact of the low oil price has had a significant effect on everyone operating within the oil and gas industry and Matco Asia is no different, however we as a business are not resting on our laurels and are actively looking to diversify into other industries. These include the pharmaceutical and power plant industries, as well as other sectors relating to energy infrastructure,” reveals CEO, William Fong.

“Just as significant for the company is further value creation, through the development of new systems and competencies with the objective of creating a brand new product or service to differentiate Matco Asia from the competition.

For example we have recently enhanced our service offering by introducing high pressure testing facilities, which is something that has been greatly appreciated by our clients.”

The Matco Asia high-pressure gas testing facility is a state-of-the-art resource that is fully capable of pressure testing valves with capacities including hydro testing up to 20,000 psi; gas testing up to 6000 psi with portable blast proof wall; and flange testing with ASME of up 30 inches and all API sizes. The test centre includes four CCTV cameras and recording equipment, which allows both customers and inspectors to witness pressure testing from a safe distance and to record testing for future reference. This also enables Matco to provide clients with visual

PROFILE

documentation of their products being tested, which enables them to order from Matco Asia with the complete peace of mind of knowing that the product is tested and up to the job at hand.

The integrated valve automation packages provided by Matco Asia are specifically designed and assembled efficiently and reliably to suit the customer’s control loop requirements.

These packages are fitted to existing valves and extensively tested, calibrated and warranted by the company’s valve automation experts.

To ensure that the company is able to provide an excellent level of customer service, Matco Asia also manages its own strategically located valve automation centres (VAC) that allow it to provide services when and where they are needed. These VAC facilities provide access to the company’s complete product line and offer a broad variety of services, as well as a broad variety of automation solutions for virtually any valve. In addition, Matco Asia works in collaboration with a global network of authorised manufacturers and distributors that augment its own facilities.

This global support means that Matco Asia is always on hand to deliver a series of value adding services that support valve and automation implementation.

For example, clients are able to schedule actuator maintenance during plant shutdown periods or other convenient times. The company’s technicians work according to the customer’s scheduled downtime to provide a comprehensive preventative maintenance programme. Matco Asia is also able to provide an extensive retrofit package, which allows the customer to modernise their plant facilities for increased efficiency, better control, easier operation or improved security of all types of valves and dampers.

The company ensures that its technicians visit the client’s site to discuss the necessary requirements and take measurements where appropriate before installing and commissioning actuators on location.

During 2014 Matco Asia also began the implementation of its A3 problem solving methodology – a structured problem solving and continuous improvement approach first employed at Toyota in Japan. This provides a simple and relatively strict approach that systematically leads to problem solving solutions and is commonly employed by lean manufacturing practitioners. “Essentially through A3 we identify any existing problems and utilise an eight step column structure that

Matco Asia Pte

visualises the problems and the required steps to solve them,” William explains. “Problems are identified by both clients and Matco Asia staff and representatives from all departments within the company are encouraged to participate and offer solutions, which are then checked to ensure that the solution is effective and sustainable.”

Throughout its history, Matco Asia has developed a trusted reputation with clients operating within a broad base of industries.

During May 2016 the company celebrated its 35th year in operation, representing a significant milestone for the business as it continues to move forward and develop into new markets. “Not many companies can remain profitable within the same area for 35 years and this is something that we are very proud of,” William concludes. “Our strength comes from our ability to be flexible in a way that giants in this field are unable to, as we are able to implement changes at the last minute if required and deliver excellent designed solutions to the client.”

Not many companies can remain profitable within the same area for 35 years and this is something that we are very proud of Matco Asia Pte Ltd matcoasia.com

Services Actuators, valve automation and engineering

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A sturdy

platform Discovered in 2008

by Maersk Oil and its co-venturers, JX Nippon and BP, the Culzean gas condensate field is one of the most significant of its kind and is estimated to hold up to 250m-300m boe. Development of the field was approved by the UK Oil and Gas Authority in August 2015 with first gas set to be drawn in 2019 and peak production of an estimated 60,000 to 90,000 boepd reached in 2020. Production will run for at least 13 years and, in line with the UK’s commitment to bringing increased gas-fired electricity generation capacity online, is expected to contribute five per cent of the UK’s total demand. “It’s UK gas to the UK market,” notes

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Martin Urquhart, Culzean’s Project Director at Maersk Oil. Indeed, the UK doesn’t even have to wait until 2019 before it starts seeing some of the benefits.

The project represents a total investment value of $4.5 billion, and over the lifetime of the development an anticipated $3.3 billion in operating expenditure will be spent directly in the UK domestic market. Moreover, in addition to the 400 jobs that will be created directly, the development and ongoing operation of the Culzean Gas Field is set to support around 6000 jobs across the UK. Located 260km east of the coast of Aberdeen in the UK North Sea, the field is made up of

PROFILE

Maersk Oil – Culzean Gas Field

Main picture left The WHP jacket undergoing final checks ahead of sailaway Bottom left The steel cutting for the first of the three topsides took place in April 2016 Left WHP jacket installation Below The WHP jacket prior to sailaway earlier in 2016

need three wells to meet the required capacity, so we need to start drilling approximately two years before the topside is installed.”

The second significant challenge is ensuring the processes and materials are suitable for reliable operation in such conditions. Andrew Lough, Wells Project Manager explains: “The complexities of the drilling programme are driven by the challenges of the pressures and the temperatures. That’s what makes this type of field unique in its development. It’s not just a challenge for Maersk Oil, but also the

MODEC MODEC delivers and operates highquality, innovative floating production solutions for the offshore oil and gas industry. It does so by cultivating a talented team that works with integrity, communicates openly, serves the community and protects the environment. In 2015, MODEC gained entry into the important North Sea oil and gas industry with a contract for supply of a FSO awarded by Maersk Oil North Sea UK Limited.

two deep reservoirs at a depth of 15,000 feet.

Sitting beneath traditional reservoir depth and a large chalk package, the hydrocarbons are present in some extremely harsh conditions.

With temperatures of 175 degrees Celsius and pressures of 13,500 PSI, this ultra high pressure, high temperature (HPHT) environment poses a number of complex challenges.

First of these is the amount of time that will be needed to complete drilling works. “Because we’re operating in a HPHT environment, we’re required to start drilling years before the platform is installed,” explains Stuart McAuley, Engineering Manager for the project. “It will take around nine months to drill one well and we ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

entire industry in order to be able to deal with the conditions throughout both drilling and production operations.

“Because of the dimensions of the well, for instance, we’re limited in the well thickness that we can use to gain strength,” he continues.

“The problem with high strength steel is that it doesn’t like the sour service nature, so we’re asking the industry to supply steels that are very strong. In this respect we are being supported by some very bespoke steel making capabilities in Japan which is dedicated to making high-end oil field tubulars.”

The depth of the wells also poses a challenge requiring a vertical jacket that has to be installed in a number of campaigns. The wellhead jacket has recently been installed. This section demonstrates an unusual twisted base in order to allow the rig to come in as close as possible.

In 2017, two further jackets will follow allowing drilling operations to commence, and a year later the top side, including processing facilities, wellhead platform, CPF (central processing facility) and ULQ (utility and living quarters) will all be installed. “By splitting the jackets from the topside we have de-risked the top side’s installation by getting the jackets out of the way and in the water as the piling activities can take several months,” notes Martin.

Across all of its operations Maersk Oil places safety as its top priority to ensure that all activities are incident free. Nowhere is this more evident with the Culzean project than above water, where a unique platform design puts all possible safety-critical distances between its personnel and the production facilities.

“Personnel safety is key and is the most important factor in how we lay the platform out,” outlines Stuart. “The wellhead platform is separated from the main CPF by a 150 metre bridge, which itself is separated from the ULQ by another 100 metre bridge, so we have maximum separation between the high pressure wellhead and the accommodation.”

At the time of writing (May 2016) numerous significant milestones have recently been passed. Chief amongst these is the successful installation of the wellhead jacket, which left the shores of the Netherlands on 13 April 2016. The EPC contract for the wellhead jacket, access deck and access ways, was awarded to Heerema Fabrication Group in 2014, with the jacket being constructed at the firm’s Vlissingen site in Holland. The twisted jacket has a height of 114 metres, a footprint of

Maersk Oil – Culzean Gas Field

31x31 metres at the bottom and 22x22 metres at the top, and complete with the access deck and access ways weighs in at 7100 tonnes.

“We were pleased to see the first of three jackets leave on schedule,” notes Koos-Jan van Brouwershaven, CEO of HFG. “This first one was challenging because of its complicated shape. Maersk Oil has pushed us as a company to deliver the highest possible quality and we are very proud to have achieved this.”

In addition to this, on 7 April 2016, the steel-cutting ceremony for the first of the three topside modules took place at the Sembcorp Marine Offshore Platforms (SMOP) shipyard in Singapore. SMOP was awarded the contract for all three topside modules and the two interconnecting bridges worth over $1 billion in September 2015. The topside modules will also include digital monitoring technology, which as Martin explains, will be key to improving the operational performance of the platform: “We will be harnessing technology to develop a 21st century facility with the ability to remotely monitor critical equipment 24 hours a day, and enable offshore colleagues to access real time data and immediate technical evaluation and onshore support. The technology will minimise time spent on plant and enhance safety and efficiency. Maersk Oil estimates this digital toolkit can save more than $10m annually.”

It’s a significant project in both its size and complexity, but also in the impact it can have on the UK economy as demand for gas and cleaner electricity rises. Maersk Oil, together with BP and JX Nippon, is demonstrating a key commitment to delivering this in as safe and efficient way as possible.

Top Culzean Middle above The WHP jacket is now installed on location

Maersk Oil – Culzean Gas Field maerskoil.com

Services The largest field discovered in the UK North Sea for more than a decade

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Simultaneous

opportunities

With roots dating back

to the late 2000s, VBMS specialises in subsea power cable and SURF installation. The company was founded as a subsidiary of Visser & Smit Hanab during 2007, and originally named VSMC (Visser & Smit Marine Contracting). With a strong base of power cable laying experience the company quickly became highly successful and in 2013 the company reached a significant milestone when Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. acquired a 50 per cent stake in the business. This allowed VSMC to further leverage its existing resources with those of Boskalis to allow the company to fulfil larger contracts while drawing on the expertise of two highly successful companies. During 2014 VSMC was rebranded as VBMS and today the company is the leading European subsea power cable installation company, offering total subsea power installation solutions for offshore grids, onshore and in shallow and deep water.

Today VBMS specialises in subsea power cable

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installation and since its inception, the scope of VBMS operations has grown to further include activities such as ‘balance of plant’ maintenance for the renewable industry, SURF installation for the oil and gas sector and the installation of cable interconnectors.

During its early history, VBMS was primarily involved with the installation of export and electrical power cables. During its second year in operation the company acquired its first cablelaying vessel, while today VBMS operates four fully owned cable overlay spread vessels (COV).

As part of its total solutions offering VBMS has developed a unique technology that enables the company to simultaneously lay and bury power cables and umbilicals, rather than having to complete these operations on two separate occasions. This offers the client significant benefits in terms of reduced cost, risk and installation time.

“Traditionally, companies contracted to lay cable would lay cable on the surface of the

PROFILE

seabed and subcontract a separate company to bury the cables. In time the development of larger cables to deal with the higher capacities required to transport energy from A to B was increasingly tied to the need to lay greater lengths of cable.

“We observed that the lengths of cable we were laying were getting longer, reaching between 40km to 80km for example, or crossing directly from the Netherlands to the UK,” explains Commercial Business Director – Oil & Gas, Leo van Vliet. “Laying cable on the seabed leaves cable exposed and also requires the use of a guard vessel to be employed every 5km.

This is less safe and in terms of cost, the offshore wind market is very competitive meaning that it is important to reduce cost as much as possible.

By installing and burying power cable or umbilical in a single simultaneous operation, it is possible to increase safety and reduce cost. So for example, if a vessel lays 4km of cable a day that 4km of cable will also be buried. Although

VBMS

the first few projects were difficult, this is now a proven technology and we have installed around 600km of power cable and umbilical, which is quite an achievement.”

Indeed, during August 2015 it was announced that VBMS had been contracted by E.ON for the installation of Rampion export cabling off the Sussex coast. The company will undertake the installation of two 16 kilometre-long export cables for the Rampion Offshore Wind Farm.

These 150kV HVAC cables will transport power ashore from the 400 MW wind farm to the onshore cable in Brooklands Pleasure Park in Worthing, South East England. VBMS will deploy its proven DP2 cable-laying vessel Stemat Spirit during the operation, which is set to be executed in Q3 2016. The simultaneous laying and burial of cables is a critical aspect in the scope of the project and VBMS has recently added a new plough to its existing spread, which provides a high-performance trenching solution

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VBMS

for large diameter cables. The Stemat Spirit has previously demonstrated its capacity in this type of project during the Humber Gateway OWF export cable installation for E.ON in 2013.

VBMS has demonstrated the strength and capacity of its cable and umbilical laying installation method in both the renewable and oil and gas sectors, however the company is also able to deliver interconnector, nearshore and repair services as required. “Over the last few years many companies within the oil and gas industry have expanded more into the offshore wind market, while we are doing just the opposite. We started in this market almost two years ago when we installed our first umbilical for Wintershall and in 2015 we installed the second umbilical for the company.

We have also installed power cables for Statoil.

These projects were undertaken using our simultaneous laying and burial technology, which is a real achievement because this is not a widely recognised technique within the oil and gas market – even the largest operators in this market still use two vessels to lay cable, while we can do it with only one,” Leo concludes. “The market is

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very challenging at present, however especially mid-size operators are increasingly looking for alternative, cheaper solutions meaning that they are willing to adapt to new technologies. In one way, yes it is a very difficult market, but equally the market is more open for us and we want to achieve several projects to further demonstrate our capability in the oil and gas market.”

VBMS vbms.com

Services Subsea power cable and SURF installation

PROFILE

JDR Cable Systems

Building

connections The JDR name first emerged back in the 1990s after the merger of UK-based Jacques Cable Systems and Dutch De Regt Special Cable, but the combined experience in the design and manufacture of subsea umbilicals and power cables spans three-quarters of a century. In 2007, the company was acquired by Vision Capital, Goldman Sachs and Management from Bridgepoint Capital, enabling the commencement of a ÂŁ30 million investment programme in 2009 to develop a new state-ofthe-art facility in Hartlepool. Following the sale of its Marine Cables division in 2011 and the subsequent financial injection, the past five years have been marked by significant growth.

Today, JDR specialises in the design and manufacture of subsea production umbilicals, power cables and IWOCS (Intervention ENERGY,oil&gas

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JDR Cable Systems

Balmoral Offshore Engineering We have listened to our customers, including JDR Cable Systems, and acted upon this feedback to innovate subsea buoyancy, insulation and elastomer products for more than 35 years. Our hugely experienced engineering team works closely with clients to provide optimum valueadded solutions for their projects.

Many of our SURF-related products have been approved by Bureau Veritas (BV) in line with American Petroleum Institute specification (API 17L) including distributed and umbilical buoyancy, associated clamping systems and ancillary products such as bend stiffeners and restrictors.

Workover Control Systems) and is making strong progress across the offshore renewables and oil and gas markets around the world.

Close collaborative relationships with both its customers and supply chain have marked the company out in the market and have resulted in an unrivalled responsiveness. “We have developed an ability to respond quickly and are very agile to the changing market needs and conditions. Because of this we have seen a number of successes,” says Richard Turner, Chief Operating Officer at JDR. “With our focus on technology, our customers are recognising our breadth and depth of knowledge for offshore energy projects.”

It is from this sturdy foundation of agility that the company has experienced remarkable levels of growth over recent years. In 2015 alone JDR saw a 30 per cent increase in performance levels and a similar trend is expected in 2016. “Our ability to supply leading products to both the oil and gas and renewable energy markets has been key to this success,” Richard continues.

“We have seen growing demand for wind farm projects and have secured a large number of projects within Europe. At the same time we continue to lead the market for IWOCS umbilicals and are growing our presence in the

umbilical market through expansion into steel tube applications.”

A number of important contracts have been central to achieving this level of growth, including two recent framework agreements signed with DONG Energy and Atlantis Resources for offshore renewables projects.

“These are both examples of how we are entering into collaborations with customers to help develop technologies, optimise solutions and reduce costs together for the offshore energy industry,” notes Richard. The North Sea market has shown particularly positive signs for JDR over recent months as well with a number of projects delivered to leading energy companies. Richard also highlights the delivery of thermoplastic and steel tube umbilicals to the North Sea and African regions, pointing out a noticeable rise in demand for such systems as customers look to be supported with new technologies. “This has been one of the main drivers of our ongoing investment,” he says.

In 2015 the company commenced the second stage of investment, with a programme to build brand new facilities in Hartlepool.

The plant is due for completion later in

The Hotchkiss Group of Companies The Hotchkiss Group of Companies, John D. Hotchkiss Ltd and Westwell Developments Ltd, provide a complete engineering service through a unique combination of workshop-based heavy engineering machining and in-situ services. Drawing from over 78 years’ experience and utilising up to date technology, their highly skilled and experienced staff pride themselves on their innovative problem-solving capabilities.

Over the past ten years, John D. Hotchkiss Ltd have worked with JDR Cable Systems Ltd on a number of different projects, both workshop based and in-situ, providing their bespoke 3D 2016 Inventor design, manufacture, installation and maintenance services.

One of the largest projects undertaken with JDR Cables involved the design, manufacture and installation of a 35 metre diameter main carousel production machine for the sub sea cable market.

The Hotchkiss Group of Companies have a proven track record of meeting individual customers' needs, within both budget and deadline, and thrive on new and exciting projects.

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JDR Cable Systems

JDR already sees a number of these new opportunities opening up within the offshore market as it looks forward. One amongst these is the market’s move towards subsea electrification, for which Richard notes the company is uniquely positioned to provide solutions given its knowledge and experience of subsea cables for both oil and gas and renewable energy power delivery. “We can provide a wide range of products and services for this market and believe that this could be a growth area moving forward,” he says.

In terms of the future more generally, gearing up to become fully operational within its new facility will be a strong focus over the coming 12 months. “The next year will be about continuing to deliver our current projects whilst completing the investment programme,” Richard concludes.

“We have already secured work for our new machine and will be building on this through continued customer collaboration, so the future is looking good.”

JDR Cable Systems Ltd jdrglobal.com

Services A world-leading supplier of subsea production umbilicals, power cables and IWOCS for global oil, gas and renewable energy markets

2016 and will be absolutely key to the future delivery of new technologies and contracts, plus the required capacity growth. “The expansion includes a facility that will house a large capacity Helical Assembly Machine for the manufacture of umbilical cables,” Richard continues to outline. “We see the market moving into harsher environments and this investment will enable us to efficiently manufacture long length, high pressure, deep water umbilicals. The machine itself has a capacity of 320Te total functional components, through 16 20-tonne reels. The investment also includes the installation of new large capacity carousels and handling equipment.”

Further international expansion has also been high on the agenda of JDR over recent months.

In Brazil for example, the company recently became a qualified supplier to Petrobras’ oil and gas projects in the region, and in Nigeria it has led the introduction of local development through the training of Nigerian nationals in the manufacture, testing and installation of subsea production umbilicals. “We have a number of service centres around the world providing local solutions to key markets and customers, so the project in Nigeria is key to helping to develop our presence in West Africa,” Richard explains.

“The advantage of growing this international network is key to closely monitoring and taking advantage of any growth opportunities in the future.”

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power Aesthetic

Operating from Mosjøen

, Norway, Helgeland Kraft AS is engaged in the production, transmission, distribution and power sale of renewable energy throughout Norway. Although the roots of the business can be traced back to the development of Norway’s first hydropower plant to be built on the Revelfossen section of the Tverråga River during 1907, the company as it is recognised today was founded in 1946. The introduction of new energy legislation in the 1990s led to the restructuring of the organisation as a stock-based Aksjeselskap (AS) company, which is today still owned by 14 Helgeland municipalities.

In 2001 the company was restructured from a co-operative venture into a limited company, while retaining the same ownership and reorganising its hydropower, networks and power sales business areas into separate divisions. During 2014 the business was finally rebranded as Helgeland Kraft AS. Today the goal of Helgeland Kraft is to increase the security of energy supply throughout Helgeland, while continuing to provide increased value to its customers and partners.

Helgeland Kraft Nett for example, operates

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as the company’s infrastructure division that is currently engaged in a significant renewal of the power network throughout the region of Helgeland, which commenced during 2010 and is set to continue well into 2020. Helgeland Kraft Nett manages a network of power lines that spans 7800 kilometres, which roughly translates to 3.5 times the length of Norway! The Helgeland Kraft energy grid provides power for approximately 45,000 customers, with around 6TWh carried on the network.

Helgeland Kraft Vannkraft is responsible for the development and operation of power production across 12 hydroelectric plants within Helgeland as well as the further construction of seven new plants over the coming years. Two of these plants will be constructed in Rødøy in co-operation with SKS, while the other five will be built at Tosbotn in the Brønnøy municipality.

Helgeland Kraft is keen to build plants that utilise the regions available water assets, while working to safeguard the natural beauty of the area. All of the new plants along the Tosboth are expertly designed to provide the best possible balance of productivity, sustainability and responsible operation. The first of the company’s

PROFILE

new plants, Øvre Forsland, was completed in August 2015 and the remaining plants are set to be built between now and 2018. The completed Øvre Forsland plant is located on the riverbank in a clearing at the edge of a spruce forest.

Its unique design is fully inspired by nature intentionally environmentally friendly, which has earned the plant an international architectural prize and a description as ‘paradoxically beautiful’ by the world’s media.

Helgeland Kraft Strøm is responsible for the power sale, supplying 80 per cent of total customers within the region with a 35 per cent of turnover throughout the rest of Norway.

Helgeland Kraft’s 296 employees work according to the company’s vision of operating as a value creating enterprise with a strong focus on preventative health and safety management systems. This has allowed Helgeland Kraft to generate a turnover of 1,155,509 million NOK and pre-tax profits of 224,791 million NOK as of 2015. While the business has enjoyed stabile income and profitability in recent years, Helgeland Kraft remains fully committed to further expanding protecting the power generation security of Helgeland and increasing its market position.

Indeed, the company has significant development plans in place for the next ten years and currently has five license applications in process with the possibility of increasing power production by 10 GWh. With investment in a new generation of power facilities and new investment and maintenance on its existing network, Helgeland Kraft has earmarked around 2.5 billion NOK of capital for investment over the coming ten years. The construction of its seven new power plants represents an investment of 1100 million NOK and will increase its total power generation capacity by 25 per cent.

The development of Øvre Forsland and the five remaining new hydroelectric power plants in Tosbotn was in part facilitated by a loan of 470 million NOK, which was provided by the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB). “It has been

Helgeland Kraft

important for us to show that it is possible to build hydropower plants that are both beautiful and adapt to surrounding nature. We are proud of our hydropower projects in Tosbotn and Øvre Forsland, and that they qualify for a loan from NIB. NIB provides us with long term funding and is a new funding source for us,” says Helgeland Kraft CEO, Ove Brattbakk.

During May 2016, representatives from both Helgeland Kraft and the designers of the Øvre Forsland plant, Stein Hamre Arkitektkontor travelled to New York to attend the Architizers 2016 A + Awards. There they received major recognition for the Upper Forsland power plants as the winner of the Architecture and Sustainability category following a poll in which about 400,000 votes from 100 countries were submitted. While this recognition and global acclaim are indeed welcomed by Helgeland Kraft, the real benefit for the company and its clients will come from the additional power that the business is able to supply to the Helgeland grid, which is an area in which the business is set to continue to expand during the coming years.

Helgeland Kraft AS helgelandkraft.no

Services Renewable infrastructure and power generation

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Perfect

solution

DUC Marine Group

first emerged in 1984 focusing predominantly on providing diving services to inshore projects. An initial foray into offshore work began in 1987, and since then the company has steadily been expanding both into the international inshore market and the offshore sector. Today, DUC operates two vessels on its own fleet, the largest being a 56-metre multipurpose diving support vessel (DSV) called Ram, perfectly suited to undertake coastal operations with two cranes and a four-point mooring system.

However, as the company looks towards the offshore renewables and oil and gas markets as its major opportunity for the future, a second state-of-the-art vessel is currently being built.

“Ram is employed throughout the year and we have been chartering several vessels that were either too big or too small for the required services,” explains Henk Kapitein, Owner of DUC Marine Group. “The charter vessels would have insufficient accommodation, deck space or cranage, no proper mooring system, or they were simply too overkill and completely cost ineffective. Some of the bigger vessels were using up to 12 tonnes of fuel per day.”

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The decision was made then to order a purpose built vessel to support the growing demand for DUC’s services in the offshore market. Appropriately named the MPSV Solution and with the official naming ceremony taking place in May 2016, it was decided that the vessel would remain a Dutch enterprise with naval architects Hernand Jansen, hull yard Shipcon and outfitting-yard Hoekman Shipbuilding all based in Holland.

“We believe that at 55 metres, Solution is perfectly sized with 42 beds on board, 250 square metres of deck space and a proper four point mooring system, which can be radio controlled,” details Henk. “It has a shallow draught, so can be operated near to shore, is capable of beaching, and has two moon pools for survey work. There are two knuckle boom cranes mid-ship (90Tm) and on the aft deck (290Tm), and the main crane includes a tentonne active heave compensated winch. It is more or less the Swiss army knife of vessels, particularly for the offshore wind industry.”

Displaying an average fuel consumption of around three tonnes a day, the smaller but well-equipped MPSV Solution is a perfect fit for today’s offshore industries, particularly amidst challenging economic conditions. Henk notes that with the state of the current oil price, more and more service companies are starting to diversify from oil and gas into renewables

PROFILE

making it a very crowded and competitive market place. “It is getting tougher, but we think with this new vessel we can provide a one-stop-shop for clients,” Henk adds.

“We can provide rope access, we have the divers, we can perform the surveys and so on, so as soon as Solution is ready we can start promoting ourselves as a complete service package and we think this will be of interest to the market.”

Alongside this fleet expansion DUC has also been making significant progress towards gaining full accreditation within the industry.

Over the past few years the company has invested heavily to achieve ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001 and SCC two-star certification. Helping to deliver such quality is a team of committed and highly experienced divers. “We employ most of our divers directly, which means that our personnel are committed and we can keep that excellent know-how within DUC Marine Group,” says Henk. “With the business, many of these divers have amassed years of experience diving in inshore conditions with strong currents and with numerous vessels, so they have a DNA within the company to operate and adapt to changing conditions

DUC Marine Group

whether they be in or offshore.

“We’ve got a great family-feel and a lot of our operatives are able to use this open culture to think very inventively and apply new solutions to projects. We try to monitor our customer satisfaction scores with regular questionnaires and we have averaged about 8.8 over the past two years, which is fantastic for us.”

The addition of the MPSV Solution will be vital to DUC expanding its capacity within the market whilst at the same time providing a cost effective service within a highly competitive sector. Over the coming months the new vessel will enter service and the company is confident that it will start to show its talents immediately. “The focus for the next year is going to be trained mainly on the wind industry but oil and gas will also feature,” Henk concludes. “We expect to sign a joint venture agreement in Iran over the next couple of months to take advantage of the growing opportunities for offshore maintenance and inspection work in the Middle East. In the longer term we continue to see the biggest opportunities in offshore, rather than inshore projects, and I can see us expanding into ROV services as well.”

The challenges of low oil prices are sending reverberations throughout the offshore industry and these pressures are facing everybody.

However, the need to continue operation remains and companies like DUC that are able to adapt and refocus their market offering are those best equipped to overcome the stresses.

Whilst operators are looking to bring the cost of offshore work down, with a clear strategy and a growing fleet of perfectly suited vessels, it looks like DUC Marine Group may just have the solution.

The focus for the next year is going to be trained mainly on the wind industry but oil and gas will also feature

DUC Marine Group ducmarinegroup.com

Services Diving and construction services to offshore and inshore industries

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Pushing the

boundaries In February 2016

, Total announced that it had officially started production from the Laggan-Tormore gas and condensate fields.

The Laggan-Tormore development consists of a 140-kilometre tie-back of four subsea wells to the new onshore Shetland Gas Plant (SGP) site on the Shetland Islands. The fields themselves are located 125km north west of the island’s coastline and are set to produce 90,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day (boe/d). At the fields’ peak production, the 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day will contribute eight per cent to the UK’s total gas consumption. This makes it a hugely significant development project for Total and its partners DONG E&P (UK) and SSE E&P (UK).

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The Laggan field was first discovered in 1986, but it wasn’t until the discovery of the neighbouring Tormore field in 2007 that gas production in the region became economically viable and in 2010 the project to extract these resources and supply into the UK network via SGP and the Shetland Island Regional Gas Export pipeline (SIRGE) was sanctioned. Over the six years that followed, a hugely complex design, build and commissioning programme took place to develop the innovative subsea-toshore concept.

Located at a depth of 600 metres, four wells are connected back to the Shetland-based gas plant via two 143km long 18” import lines, one of the longest tiebacks in the world. “We

PROFILE

Laggan-Tormore Project – Total E&P UK

To mitigate many of the weather challenges during the construction phase of the gas plant, much of the construction work was carried out by building modules in the Middle East which were then shipped to and installed at site

are really pushing the extremes in terms of tieback distance whilst operating in such deep water,” explains Simon Hare, Operations Manager for the project. “In terms of technical feasibility, especially considering the harsh metocean conditions of this area, you can’t build a fixed platform in 600 metres of water.

Floating systems were also ruled out as being inappropriate for a gas field development, so it was decided that a subsea tieback solution would be best for the Laggan-Tormore project.

“This also eliminates the need to have personnel offshore, which has massive safety benefits. The onshore gas plant can be spread out and the risk of an incident occurring is reduced compared to an offshore installation.

Similarly, the logistics of operating an onshore plant are much simpler. We are also able to operate independent of the weather thanks to the whole design philosophy for the subsea installations which is centred on high reliability and redundancy. This means if we are unfortunate enough to experience any subsea equipment failures over the winter period we should be able to wait until a more clement time of the year when we can mobilise intervention vessels to fix them.”

To mitigate many of the weather challenges during the construction phase of the gas plant, much of the construction work was carried out by building modules in the Middle East which were then shipped to and installed at site.

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PROFILE

The Moorfield Hotel The Moorfield Hotel is a contemporary 100 bedroom property, nestled in the picturesque village of Brae, offering accommodation to employees at TOTAL’s gas plant at Sullom Voe. The hotel provides a welcoming, spacious and comfortable home away from home, boasting a restaurant with sea views, relaxing bar, function room and fitness suite. BDL Shetland Operations Ltd was set up to develop the £10m hotel. BDL Shetland worked closely with TOTAL on the specification and design of the hotel and an occupancy agreement was entered into when the hotel opened in 2013.

Laggan-Tormore Project – Total E&P UK

Working with multiple contractors and suppliers from around the world, a total of 2800 people were working on Shetland at the project’s peak.

The SGP facility is designed to dehydrate and process gas for export into the FUKA system and the UK distribution network via the newly installed 234km SIRGE export pipeline.

Condensate is partially stabilised on SGP prior to export to the Sullom Voe Terminal where it is stabilised and then exported via tankers.

In terms of equipment and processes used, Simon notes that the best available technology and components were used both in terms of performance and environmental impact.

“Two examples of this advanced technology are the MEG (mono-ethylene glycol – antifreeze) regeneration and water treatment systems,” he highlights. “The MEG is necessary

to stop hydrates forming in the subsea pipelines whilst transporting gas from the wells, but it is very expensive so we have installed a regeneration system to separate it from the gas, condensate and water before injecting it back into the subsea wells. Whilst it’s not the first time for a system like this to be used, it isn’t very common in the offshore industry, as it’s very complex with heat exchangers, pumps, distillation columns, separators, mixing vessels, filter presses and centrifuges.

“In terms of water treatment, for an offshore platform to put water back into the sea you have to have no more than 30mg of oil per litre, but because we are discharging close to the shoreline in a sensitive environment the limits tighten to just 3mg/l, meaning we have to employ completely different technologies that are closer to those you find in a refinery waste water treatment plant.”

This adherence to environmental regulation is an inherent part of developing any major oil and gas project, but Total’s responsibility to ecological and social sustainability has extended much further than this. The company has ensured that the plant can provide vital economic benefits to the Shetland Islands and has taken significant steps to engage local populations at every stage of the development. “We have worked with the communities right from day one to achieve two key things,” Simon indicates. “Firstly, that we cause as little disruption as possible to the local population, and secondly that we can benefit ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

Laggan-Tormore Project – Total E&P UK

the economy during the different phases of the project and in the future.

“For instance, in normal operation a total of around 230 people will be employed directly or indirectly by the plant and around 80 of these are Shetlanders. We employ 15 apprentices from the island and have put them through the OPITO training scheme to become production technicians – this has proven to be incredibly successful.

Beyond this, we have set up contracts with local businesses and suppliers to ensure that we make use of the services provided on the island and help contribute to the economy. We also work in partnership with schools, charitable organisations and the local authority on projects linked to our corporate social responsibility programme.

“In terms of environmental protection, our focus covers everything from the careful protection of local wildlife to the preservation of 700,000 cubic metres of peat, which is being held in two large peat stores on site ready to be put back when the plant is eventually decommissioned.” Simon points out that this culture and attention to detail has been adopted widely by all workers on site and has resulted in an ‘Excellent’ rating from SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency) in 2015 for its levels of compliance.

Safety remains a core value and has always been an important part of Total’s operations throughout the Laggan-Tormore Project. Across a total of 43 million man-hours, zero fatalities and only 16 lost time injuries occurred. This commitment to safety continues into the operational phase.

Helping to support the development and operation of the Laggan-Tormore project are DONG E&P (UK) and SSE E&P (UK), both of whom hold a 20 per cent share.

Simon highlights that DONG’s longstanding experience in the Shetland area and with deepwater tieback projects made DONG a very valuable partner throughout the programme, whilst SSE’s operational excellence brings key benefits as it looks to expand its own North Sea gas capacity.

Looking ahead, the development of the Laggan-Tormore fields and the Shetland Gas Plant provides a sturdy platform upon which to open up new opportunities. The Edradour and Glenlivet fields, for example, are both located in close proximity to the existing Laggan-Tormore subsea facilities.

“By themselves these would never have been economically viable, but because LagganTormore is already in place it allows us to install a relatively simple tieback into the existing pipelines and control systems in order to bring them in to production,” Simon outlines. “This project was given the go ahead in 2014 and Edradour is due to come on-stream in October 2017 with Glenlivet following in September 2018. This provides a great opportunity for the future of the gas industry in Shetland, as other stranded gas fields could be exploited through the existing infrastructure, making it a very exciting position to be in as we move forward.”

In terms of environmental protection, our focus covers everything from the careful protection of local wildlife to the preservation of 700,000 cubic metres of peat, which is being held in two large peat stores on site ready to be put back when the plant is eventually decommissioned

Total E&P total.uk

Project Shetland Gas Plant/ Laggan-Tormore Project

ENERGY,oil&gas

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economy

Energising an

Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) was first founded in 1936 by the Bolivian government following regional conflicts over the alleged existence of oil. What emerged was a very swift nationalisation of all Bolivia’s energy resources and the pillars of the company’s continued development were built through a thorough and professional training programme. For its first few decades YPFB experienced significant growth with the state supporting the construction of refineries, pipelines and important infrastructure to take its products to market in the forties. In the fifties, a decade often referred to as the business’s ‘Golden Stage’, the company hit a major milestone by, for the first time, exceeding domestic demand and allowing Bolivia to become an oil export nation, thus eliminating its need to import. Thanks to the construction of the Camiri-Yacuiba and Sica SicaArica pipelines, exports to neighbouring began.

The sixties continued much of this positive development as the firm started to attract foreign investment into the continued exploration and drilling and in 1966 excellent results were born from the Monteagudo well. This decade also marked the creation of the Gas Division, which began exporting to Argentina in the seventies.

Following this strong period of development, however, Bolivia and YPFB experienced social and political instability, which saw the company ‘dismembered’ by private investment. Yet during the 2000s, after continued civil unrest, nationalisation was restored and today, upon its 80th anniversary, the company continues its successful operation as the sole authority over the production and marketing of hydrocarbon products in Bolivia.

At present YPFB is heavily committed to developing the industrialisation of its energy resources across Bolivia, and as such numerous growth projects have been put in place over recent years. In August of 2015 for instance a new hydrocarbon liquid separation plant went

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into operation. With the capacity to produce 2247 metric tonnes per day (TMD) of LPG and process 32 million cubic metres of natural gas per day, the new Gran Chaco plant in the Tarija region of Bolivia cost around 640 million USD and is the largest in the country – in fact it is that third largest of its kind in Latin America.

Highlighting the significance of this plant, the current domestic consumption of LPG in Bolivia is around 1000 TMD making the state a key net exporter in the region.

This increase in capacity is a key indicator to YFPB’s current state-led development programme which, over the next few years to 2020, will see additional investment of 12,681 million USD into the strengthening of exploration activities and the development of marketing activities across Bolivia. The majority of this – 57 per cent to be precise – will be directed towards the exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons with the goal to increasing natural gas reserves from 10.45 trillion cubic feet (TCF) in 2013 to 17.45 TCF in 2020, and liquid hydrocarbon reserves from 211 MMbbl to 411 MMbbl over the same period. In turn this will allow for the increase of production from 60 MMmcd to 73 MMmcd, meeting the demand of both domestic supply and export contracts to Brazil and Argentina.

In addition to this 2657 million USD will be allocated to the industrialisation of hydrocarbon activities in the market, with much of this aimed at the conclusion of a Urea and Ammonia Plant in the town of Bulo Bulo in the province of Cochabamba Carrasco. Set to begin operations in the second half of 2016, with its first bags of fertiliser hitting the market in time for the 2017 harvest, the new complex will have a production capacity of 1200 TMD of ammonia, and subsequent output of 2100 TMD of urea fertiliser. The impact of the plant will help serve the growing demand for high quality fertiliser

PROFILE

in Bolivia, thus driving the modernisation of agriculture, whilst also creating value for its own natural gas supply and reducing the market’s import reliance. Further industrialisation projects include the building of a new propylene and polypropylene plant in Tarija, which is set for completion and start-up in 2021.

The investment will also help continue the development of the country’s hydrocarbon transport infrastructure and around 871 million USD will be allocated to an important social project to connect a million households to the LNG network. The aim is to create 100,000 additional connections every year from 2016 to 2020, benefiting more than 50 per cent of the country’s population.

Helping to deliver this is the establishment of a virtual gas network to compliment the conventional systems that fail to reach some of the most remote areas of Bolivia. By using a fleet of LNG tankers plus a network of satellite regasification stations, LNG will be transported from the Rio Grande liquid separation plant to

these remote populations, helping to not only boost the industrial productivity of Bolivia, but also improve the lives of its families and reduce their reliance on LPG and gasoline.

It is no secret that Bolivia has experienced a tumultuous and challenging history and this has often impacted YPFB quite considerably.

However, under a strong leadership and focused expansion strategy, the present state of growth and development as a national company serving the economic needs of its population, is extraordinary. Significant investment continues to be delivered into some of the most hugely important projects, which is allowing both reserve and production capacity to increase.

With a focus on not only the industrialisation of Bolivia’s hydrocarbon activity, but also on the support of its people, YPFB’s activities are playing a key role in the growth of both the country’s domestic and export economy and looks set to secure a bright future for years to come.

Source: all statistics taken from www.ypfb.gob.bo/es/

YPF Bolivia

YPFB’s activities are playing a key role in the growth of both the country’s domestic and export economy and looks set to secure a bright future for years to come

YPF Bolivia ypfb.gob.bo

Services Bolivia’s state owned oil and gas company

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Protected from the

elements

When

Energy, Oil and Gas last spoke with Shawcor back in October 2014, the company was known commonly as Bredero Shaw by the market. Over the time since, Shawcor, the world’s leading integrated energy services provider, has undergone a process of change under the leadership of a new CEO with many of its brands consolidating under one banner.

In total over the last 18 months, four individual businesses: namely Bredero Shaw, Socotherm,

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Dhatec and Canusa have been brought together under Shawcor’s pipeline performance group.

“The integration of Bredero Shaw and Socotherm began in January 2015,” explains Fernando Ulecia, VP Marketing and Global Sales Operations for Shawcor’s pipeline performance group. “These were the two biggest coating companies in the market so it was a complex programme to bring them in line with each other. The introduction of the other two

PROFILE

companies began at the start of 2016 and is still ongoing. Eventually the four businesses will fall under the same organisation and as a consequence we can provide a broader range of end-to-end coating solutions globally.”

The division now provides customers a variety of integrated coating targeted towards onshore and offshore applications. Bredero Shaw and Socotherm traditionally hold a leading position in thermal insulation coatings, anti-corrosion coatings, internal coatings and concrete weight coatings for on and offshore pipelines.

Canusa-CPS brings years of developing fieldapplied coatings. Dhatec’s preservation and transportation protection solutions complete the line-up.

“We are the only company that can provide a real end-to-end coating solution,” Fernando says. “I think this is where our strength as a business lies. We have the technical knowledge from two of the biggest companies in the market, combined with the leading expertise of more niche segments. The other big strength is our operational excellence in executing big projects. We can provide solutions from different plants across the world.”

One such project that perfectly illustrates this capability is a recently completed contract to coat 140 miles of 44” carbon steel pipe for the Wheatstone project, one of Australia’s largest and most prolific LNG resource programmes.

Using SureFlow internal coating and HeviCote concrete weight coating, Shawcor’s pipeline performance business was chosen to protect and optimise flow efficiency across the trunklines and flowlines needed for gas and condensate gathering, processing and exporting. To maximise offshore flow assurance and provide the required insulation necessary to maintain temperature on the infield flowlines, the company also coated 45 miles of 24” corrosionresistant alloy production lines, 14” CRA utility lines and 6” carbon mono ethylene glycol lines with a three-layer polypropylene anti-corrosion coating and Thermotite polypropylene insulation coating.

Shawcor was also able to employ its End Seal Tape solution, an innovative system designed to mitigate moisture absorption at the cutback areas, ensuring damage-free cutbacks during field application. Crucial to delivering the project on time and on budget, two of Shawcor’s worldclass manufacturing facilities based in Indonesia and Malaysia provided ideal local sites from which to deliver flexibility, rapid execution and

Shawcor

At present the business is in the commercialisation stage of a thick finish coating solution for thermal insulation and is diligently working on the development of high temperature insulation coatings for offshore projects that are entering ever harsher conditions

minimal risk across the project’s lifetime.

Complementing this operational strength, Shawcor’s consistent approach to product development continues to maintain a strong lead in the industry. Fernando highlights that by forming strong customer relationships the pipeline performance group is always working to develop advanced coatings for new solutions and applications. For instance, at present the business is in the commercialisation stage of a thick finish coating solution for thermal insulation and is diligently working on the development of high temperature insulation coatings for offshore projects that are entering ever harsher conditions. “These are both great examples of how we engage with the market challenges to develop new products and come up with new solutions that meet market needs,” Fernando notes.

With global coverage, the need to maintain a committed focus towards product development is critical for Shawcor to stay ahead of the ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

Shawcor

competition, particularly in today’s challenging market conditions. “We are not seeing much new activity out there at the moment,” Fernando explains. “Luckily, we are still executing on projects previously secured and look forward to winning bids on several large projects.”

Shawcor predicts that the market should start to show signs of picking back up by 2017, with

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the company’s activity rising accordingly shortly afterwards. “In the meantime it is important that we continue developing new solutions and over the coming months we will be looking at controlling our costs and consolidating our operations to improve overall performance in the market,” he says. “We are also looking to actively participate in more strategic partnerships with customers around the world, especially in relation to further product development – I think this is much the same across the rest of the Shawcor group.”

With the capacity to deliver a wide range of projects and services, Shawcor’s pipeline performance division is perfectly positioned to take advantage of any improving conditions in the oil and gas market as and when they come about. Like many companies however, using this downtime to consolidate operations, improve cost efficiencies and enhance performance, will likely prove key to emerging stronger than ever and taking on even more challenges well into the future.

In the meantime it is important that we continue developing new solutions and over the coming months we will be looking at controlling our costs and consolidating our operations to improve overall performance in the market Shawcor shawcor.com

Services Global leader in the development and manufacture of pipe coating solutions

PROFILE

Norfolk Marine

A co-operative

partner Since the company

was established during August 2003, Norfolk Marine Ltd has established a trusted reputation as a leading supplier of high quality diving and marine engineering solutions. From its base in Mountcharles, Ireland the company has

continued to develop and expand its range of services with a keen focus on quality and customer satisfaction. Today Norfolk Marine is able to deliver a comprehensive portfolio of service solutions to clients operating within a

broad base of industry sectors, including marine civil engineering; vessel maintenance and salvage; port and harbour authority; renewable energy; utility and infrastructure; nuclear; and oil and gas applications.

To further increase the value of its extensive service package for its clients, Norfolk Marine also operates as a member of the Achilles Community, allowing the company to share high-quality, real-time data in a global collaborative network. Achilles was founded in Norway in 1990 with the goal of helping organisations to identify, assess, qualify and monitor suppliers throughout the supply chain. Its community structure provides buyers with access to a broader range of verified and compliant suppliers, while buyers gain access to a broader base of potential buyers. Presently around 860 of the world’s leading buying organisations and some 133,000 key suppliers benefit form being members of the Achilles network. The organisation’s members comprise over 40 different communities in 11 industry sectors and include customers including wellknown brands such as Shell, Balfour Beatty, Toyota Motor Europe, E.ON, EDF, Vale, ABB, Santos, Petrobas, Chevron, Maersk, Skanska, Statoil, Vattenfall, Repsol YPF, Alstom, Iberdrola, Acciona, Abertis, National Grid, BHP Billiton, ENERGY,oil&gas

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Yamana Gold, Halliburton, Anglo American, Aston Martin, Jaguar Land Rover, Petrobras and Exxon Mobil.

“Norfolk Marine is able to provide a diverse range of services to customers through in house expertise and partnering specialist contractors,” says Senior Contracts Manager for Norfolk Marine, Laurie McCaughan.

“The company can offer a range of personnel and equipment resources from its various operation bases, which enables a timely and cost effective response to customers’ needs.

Joining the Achilles community presents the company’s services to a significant number of existing and potential customers and increased tendering opportunities.”

As the company has continued to grow, Norfolk Marine has worked to further develop its service offering throughout the UK, while embracing opportunities that are currently

being generated within the offshore renewable energy market. During August 2014 for example, the company opened a new operations base in the Port of Lowestoft. With Lowestoft rapidly developing as a hub for the offshore renewable sector and its vessels operating from the port’s harbour area for several years, Norfolk Marine considered it to be a natural progression to establish a permanent base in the region. Both mobile and containerised diving systems currently operate from the Lowestoft South Quays facility along with the company’s inspection class ROV units and a full range of in-house underwater non-destructive testing (NDT) equipment. This allows Norfolk Marine to carry out comprehensive inspections of

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clients’ underwater assets in both inland and offshore deployments.

Operations can be carried out from the company’s own fleet of vessels, meaning that customers have a single point of contact, hence minimising both logistical considerations and costs. “The operations base at Lowestoft has allowed Norfolk Marine to increase its scope of services in the UK and consists of extensive quay as well as office, storage, workshop and warehouse space,” Laurie explains. “This allows the company to provide a much greater range of resources including diving, ROV, survey and wind farm support vessel services from its own easily accessible location. With the current growth of Lowestoft and surrounding areas in the offshore renewable energy sector, Norfolk Marine is able to provide services and facilities locally and from a single supplier.”

It is envisaged that Lowestoft will grow to become the company’s operations headquarters during the coming years for both European and further international contracts, while the Norfolk Marine office in Ireland will continue as the administrative hub of the business.

Furthermore, space is also offered for rent within the Lowestoft office complex, which attracts complimentary service providers within the renewable sector and quay space is also made available along with storage facilities and equipment. This allows both the mobilisation and demobilisation of contracts through the facility as well as the opportunity for other parties to use and benefit from its resources.

With the opening of its operational base in Lowestoft, Norfolk Marine has continued to develop its service offering and delivered several projects within the offshore wind industry. During February 2016 for example, the company completed the installation of its tyre filled net (TFN) scour remediation system at E.ON’s Scroby Sands offshore wind farm. “The TFN project at Scroby Sands involved the installation of the company’s patented scour protection system to a number of turbine monopiles across the site. The TFN system utilises recycled car tyres to create a protective apron around the base of the monopiles, which not only prevents further scouring but also allows the reinstatement of seabed material by trapping migrating sand suspended in the tidal flow. The system presents significant benefits in cost, environmental impact, logistics and resources when compared to aggregate based solutions

PROFILE

Norfolk Marine

Renewable wind energy promotes the replacement of non-renewable resources, and the associated cost and environmental impact

that are currently used,” Laurie elaborates.

“Renewable wind energy promotes the replacement of non-renewable resources, and the associated cost and environmental impact.

The TFN system reinforces this goal. The supply and installation of the TFN system at Scroby Sands was carried out almost entirely in-house, from the company’s Lowestoft base, with assembly, diving, crew and material transfer being provided using existing personnel and equipment resources.”

In February 2016, Norfolk Marine also announced that it has entered into a co-operation agreement with the highresolution hydrographic and geophysical survey company, Geomara. Working from Norfolk Marine’s Lowestoft facility, the partnership will offer an extensive range of interrelated maritime services and forms part of the company’s strategy to further increase its service offering and market presence over the coming years. “The co-operation with Geomara allows both companies to expand the services they can provide and the resources available to them. Customers can source a single supplier capable of providing survey expertise, support vessels and equipment from a number of locations throughout the UK, Ireland, and further afield. Hydrographic surveys are currently being carried out jointly in West Africa from Norfolk Marine’s local facilities,” Laurie says.

“The next 12 months will see increased activity in the East Anglia area with a number of offshore wind farms being developed,” he concludes. “The primary focus will be to remain in a position to provide a range of support services during this growth phase.

Other activities will include further marketing and installation of the TFN scour protection system, development of the company’s activities in Africa and to continue providing new and existing customers in the UK and Ireland with quality services.”

Norfolk Marine norfolkmarine.ie

Services Diving and marine engineering solutions

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Favourable wind

for Finland through

renewable energy

Founded with a mission

OFFSHORE SERVICES JAN DE NUL GROUP Services for the offshore oil, gas and renewable energy industries are a key part of the services provided by Jan De Nul Group. The Group provides services related to the installation of offshore wind farms, including installation of export and inter array cables, transport and installation of all types of foundations and high voltage stations, installation of scour protection around the foundations, and installation of the entire wind turbines itself.

The combination of design and detailed engineering and all aspects of civil works, dredging works and rock and marine installation works enable Jan De Nul Group to offer a total package on an EPCI basis. The Group’s in-house engineering department provides clients with FEED design for the selection of foundation and for all aspects of the construction and installation.

to produce energy through wind power and to carry out marketing, research and development relating to wind power generation, Suomen Hyötytuuli Oy is owned by shareholders that comprise eight major Finnish energy companies. Across its operations, Suomen Hyötytuuli has significantly promoted Finnish wind power production, and was the first company in the country to introduce a megawatt-scale wind farm.

“Suomen Hyötytuuli was established in 1998, and the first one megawatt turbines were built in Pori, Finland, during 1999,” explains Managing Director Toni Sulameri. Since then, the company has grown into one of the most important Finnish companies within the field of wind power with two wind farms in Raahe, Northern Ostrobothnia, including Kuljunniemi wind farm, Nikkarinkaarto wind farm that will be inaugurated during summer 2016, and the Reposaari wind farm in Pori.

World’s first offshore wind farm for icy conditions Further to its existing assets, Suomen Hyötytuuli has just started a unique arctic Tahkoluoto offshore wind farm project. In the first phase, the company will build ten 4 MW Siemens offshore wind turbines outside Tahkoluoto in Pori. Marine operations are carried out by a Belgium-based company, Jan De

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Nul. The offshore wind turbines will be located around Finland’s first offshore wind pilot turbine completed in 2010.

Suomen Hyötytuuli expects wind power production to continue to expand into the sea due to better wind conditions and the possibility of building large-scale offshore wind farms. The project is feasible in terms of its technical requirements, as the area has excellent infrastructure and wind conditions.

Doubling the production Suomen Hyötytuuli is currently commissioning a wind farm comprised of ten wind turbines in Nikkarinkaarto in the city of Raahe. The wind turbines were delivered by Vestas Wind Systems.

The erection of the turbines started in March this year, and the production is due to commence during June. The Nikkarinkaarto wind farm will be connected to the local energy grid using technology from ABB. As of summer 2016, Suomen Hyötytuuli will produce at total of 71.6 MW of wind power with Reposaari producing 17.9 MW, Kuljunniemi generating 20.7 MW, and Nikkarinkaarto delivering a further 33 MW. Wind power is widely considered to be an important part of Finland’s energy future, and during the next two years Suomen Hyötytuuli plans to introduce 110 MW of wind energy, with the realisation of this target progressing well.

PROFILE

Suomen Hyötytuuli Oy

Potential renewable energy form for Finland

Plans to increase capacity

“As a company, we see the role of wind power in Finland as being very important. In comparison to other renewable energy forms, wind power undeniably has some of the most potential in helping to reach climate targets within the region. For example, there is an EU target to reduce greenhouse gases by 40 per cent between 1990 and 2030 which will increase the share of renewable energy to at least 27 per cent, while the carbon neutral Finland objective targets to reduce greenhouse gases by even 95 per cent from the 1990 level to 2050. There is also a national wind power production target of six TWh by 2020, and nine TWh by 2025,” Sulameri says.

“Currently Finland does not have enough of its own energy production, and old capacity is being taken out of use, which means that there will be a great need for new renewable energy production. Which part of that will be comprised of wind energy remains to be seen. Bioenergy is also a significant alternative for Finland.”

During the coming years, Suomen Hyötytuuli will continue in its mission to further Finland’s renewable energy capacity through the development of new wind farms. For example, the company is also planning a wind farm of ten wind turbines in Annankangas in the city of Raahe. Current and future projects, combined with the advantage of being owned by eight of Finland’s leading energy companies, will ensure that the company will remain a key player in the country’s energy future.

“Over the next 18 months, we will focus on building new wind power capacity. During the same period, we will plan further projects while taking into consideration that national subsidies for renewable energy producers are currently going through major changes, which raises some questions over the future energy price.”

Suomen Hyötytuuli Oy, Finland hyotytuuli.fi

Services Wind power production

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Total

commitment With roots dating back

to 1989, OceanMaster Engineering Pte Ltd (OceanMaster) has earned a strong reputation in the marine and offshore industry with its total commitment to customer service and satisfaction. The company is today a global leader in the delivery of marine and offshore solutions, providing expert capabilities in engineering design, fabrication, installation, commissioning and preventative maintenance services. The business incorporates full office, workshop, storage and warehousing facilities comprising more than 70,000 square feet, from which it currently employs over 100 employees, including well trained and experienced service teams capable of carrying out operations on various types of marine vessels.

OceanMaster is fully certified in compliance to ISO 9001 and OHSAS 18001 and further to its ship repair and general engineering capability, it also specialises in the field of marine refrigeration and air conditioning. Historically the

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company has maintained a niche specialisation in refrigeration, ventilation and air conditioning services and carries a large stock of new and reconditioned refrigeration compressors and spare parts. During its history OceanMaster has built a proven track record in the delivery of efficient refrigeration solutions and its capabilities in its steel, electrical, carpentry and machine works.

Over the years the business has achieved several milestones, including becoming an authorised service and training centre for Emerson Climate Technologies in 2014, with its RHVAC engineers acquiring Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certification during the same year. Following this success, OceanMaster has continued to service vessel owners across Southeast Asia as well as rig owners in Australia, Russia, India and Africa throughout 2015 and 2016.

The company is based in Singapore, from where OceanMaster is able to offer wellequipped workshop facilities that provide all of the necessary machinery and tools to cater to

PROFILE

various ship repair requirements. This includes specialist tools and equipment for electrical, refrigeration and air-conditioning repair works.

The company’s extensive fleet of equipment is further complemented by OceanMaster’s vast experience with advanced technologies to convert refrigeration systems from the use of the ozone refrigerant to ozone friendly refrigerant.

This provides the company with a strong position in Singapore as clients, including rig owners, are able to send equipment to OceanMaster’s workshop for repair and maintenance. Further to its workshop-based competency, the company also managed a team of highly trained offshore engineers who have received industry-approved offshore medical, firefighting as well as helicopter underwater escape training. This allows OceanMaster teams to travel by helicopter to rigs to carry out works on any offshore rigs, platforms, FPSOs and other offshore vessels around the world on an ad-hoc basis.

As the company has evolved it has continued to adapt to the changing needs of its customers.

For example when OceanMaster was previously featured in Energy, Oil & Gas during October 2015, Managing Director, Lee Ee Win discussed how over the past decade the company’s focus has changed from providing around 80 per cent of its services in marine repair operations to as much as 90 per cent of its business originating from the offshore sector. To ensure that the company is able to fully address the changing needs of its clients, OceanMaster ensures the highest levels of training and works in collaboration with both global and local certification and training houses. For example, the company is a Certified On-TheJob Training Centre (COJTC) accredited by the Institute of Technical Education, Singapore.

This is supported by its comprehensive in-house training facilities that allow OceanMaster to operate in accordance to its core values of customer focus, safety and people.

Although the market within the offshore sector has slowed due to the current low price of oil, resulting in less vessels arriving in Singapore for maintenance, OceanMaster Engineering continues to cultivate a consistent level of business through its on-going maintenance work on existing rigs.

Whatever the level of activity within the market, the company is differentiated from its competitors through its total commitment to customer satisfaction that is built on its focus on three key factors, comprising of the right team; the right process; and the correct control.

OceanMaster Engineering

With its high level of expertise and proven track record, OceanMaster has gained a trusted reputation in the industry, which will help it to continue to navigate offshore and marine markets throughout periods of both high activity and depression. While the market remains low in the wake of the low oil price, OceanMaster will focus on further increasing its level of service and developing cost-saving strategies that benefit both the business and it clients.

The company will also continue to work with the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) in Singapore to provide more on-the-job training to its customers and clients so they can be better educated on the maintenance of air conditioning systems onboard vessels and rigs. Through these strategies OceanMaster Engineering will continue on its journey to achieve its vision of being recognised as the global leader specialising in providing marine and offshore engineering solutions and maintenance, repair and overhauling (MRO) services.

During its history OceanMaster has built a proven track record in the delivery of efficient refrigeration solutions and its capabilities in its steel, electrical, carpentry and machine works

OceanMaster Engineering oceanmaster.com.sg

Services Ship repair, air conditioning and general engineering

ENERGY,oil&gas

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Connectivity, communication and technology solutions for the

energy industry Vysiion, with a heritage stretching back

The main strengths of Vysiion have always been in its flexibility and agility.

We are completely vender-agnostic, which means that that we are able to source and supply the best solution for the job at hand

to the early 1970s, has a long and proven track record in the supply of managed technology solutions across a number of distinct markets, with the Energy sector being key amongst them.

Previously operating as RFL Communications PLC (RFL), the company has developed as a reliable turnkey systems integrator able to provide full design and installation services, in addition to a 24/7 service and support facility.

Over time RFL quickly established itself as an internationally recognised company, offering clients full service packages covering everything from network upgrades to new offshore wind installation. Its customer base included the supply of systems for UK national and overseas national electricity grids within Jordan, Qatar, Azerbaijan, St Lucia, Abu Dhabi and Kenya, with further recent experience in the UK’s offshore wind farms.

Vysiion’s expertise has been further developed following the integration of ITS, a provider of ‘best in class’ computing and IT solutions, and JAD, whose focus was on providing IT services to the commercial and public sector markets.

2015 was a year of change for all three businesses. Vysiion was created following RFL’s acquisition of both JAD and ITS with support from the Business Growth Fund (BGF) in the form of a £4 million equity investment.

Vysiion has now become a full service integrator with a unique ability to support all aspects of systems integration, from hybrid, cloud and fixed hosting and enterprise solutions right through to full connectivity and communication options. The business today continues to provide turnkey integrated systems for the public and private sector as well as a full service of communication systems within the utilities market. With comprehensive accreditation and associated track record the reputation of Vysiion’s fibre team, for instance, is second to none.

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Bruce Brain, Vysiion’s Executive Chairman sums up the past 12 months: “This investment helped us to bring together these three companies to create one of the leading tier two companies supplying cloud-based managed services for computing and communications systems. The BGF’s funding was a key part of this. They have invested in other companies in our space, know our channel partners and trusted in the vision we have for the business.”

The company has also further built on the previous experience of RFL in the renewables market and today works with substations for offshore wind farms, where it provides everything from fibre laying and splicing through to the implementation of transmission equipment, multiplexers and full communications links.

Within this market operationally Vysiion broadly divides its specialist services into two areas, comprised of utility campus projects and renewable operations. These areas each represent around 40 per cent of the company’s overall business. “The main strengths of Vysiion have always been in its flexibility and agility. We are completely vender-agnostic, which means that that we are able to source and supply the best solution for the job at hand. We also have partners that we work with so we are essentially able to work completely across the board to give the customer the best solution to match their requirements. We work to be responsive, very customer focused, cost effective and ensure on-time deliveries,” elaborates Infrastructure Sales Manager, Michael Grimshaw.

Although the oil and gas markets are currently in the midst of a significant slowdown brought about by the depressed price of oil, the offshore wind market is presently experiencing a period of buoyancy. Vysiion is well placed to help support in this arena following significant 2015 activity to support Gwynt y Môr and the London

PROFILE

Array, representing the world’s second and first largest wind farms respectively.

The Vysiion team is currently working to deliver solutions to the Dudgeon project with Siemens and is also engaged on the Galloper wind farm with Alstom. The company also continues to work on the German Wikinger wind farm with Vodafone and anticipates that several other wind farm projects will be implemented in near future.

Within the field of wind farm operations, Vysiion is able to deliver a comprehensive package of telecommunications and securitybased solutions. “With the Dudgeon wind farm for example, our scope with Siemens is to design the network, to provide the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) network and all of the routing and switching for the SCADA devices. We also supply and install all of the CCTV and telephony equipment on the offshore platforms and onshore substations,” Michael reveals. “We provide communications to site offices, telephony services out on the platforms as well as the necessary telephone exchanges.

Finally we are also working on some security and perimeter detection systems for them. On a typical wind farm project the main required elements are SCADA networks, CCTV and telephony installation.”

While Vysiion is fully vender-agnostic, it nevertheless nurtures long-lasting and close relationships with both its clients and its partners to ensure the on-time delivery of the best and most suitable communication systems.

The company holds enhanced partner status with well-known brands such as Dell, Microsoft and VMWare, which allow it full access to the vendors’ range of products. Other partners in the field include Keymile, Alcatel, Siemens, ShoreTel and Hernis.

During 2016 and beyond Vysiion will remain focused on supporting the delivery of services to the growing offshore wind sector as well as on maintenance works for fibre networks on the National Grid. Additionally the enhanced capabilities of the company’s product-service offering provides customers with the opportunity to discuss and review other IT managed solution cost efficiencies.

Within the Energy sector Vysiion will seek to capitalise on the buoyancy of the offshore and utilities market, while leveraging its proven experience to secure further contracts with its existing and newly acquainted clients.

As Michael acknowledges: “The delivery

of wind farm projects will definitely be a great opportunity for the next three to five years because some of these projects are not due to commence until 2018 at the earliest.

Certainly in the next three to five years there will be more offshore wind work, however many future projects will be at the whim of the Government because wind farm projects need to be subsidised and that element of the market will need to be fortified by Government investment.”

Vysiion is definitely working in a number of interesting arenas and as Michael concludes.

“With our substation, communications and utilities capability we maintain a lot of diversification in the business. Since we have become larger this has extended further because we have a business that looks after public and private sector ICT, colocation and data centre support, which adds additional support to our respective markets – so we can provide quite a complete package.”

Vysiion

Vysiion vysiion.co.uk

Services Managed technology solutions

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Sole

Photographer : Thea van den Heuvel www.th-fotografie.nl

Photographer : Thea van den Heuvel www.th-fotografie.nl

supplier Operating predominantly within the oil and gas industry, MPP Systems is renowned around the world for its specialist treatment systems designed to remove dissolved and dispersed hydrocarbons from water. The company was first founded in the 1990s under the Dutch AkzoNobel chemicals group, and was later bought by global water treatment specialist Veolia in 2006.

“It was one of the best moves we could have made as a company,” says Erik Middelhoek, the Managing Director. “AkzoNobel had become a chemicals company, not so focused on neither water treatment systems nor the oil and gas industry. Veolia on the other hand is the world’s largest water business, present in almost all countries and working with most oil and gas companies. This made it a perfect fit for MPP. It means we are able to work closely with the rest of the group as we develop and can offer a complete and wide range of technologies when solving our clients’ problems.”

Product-wise MPP Systems splits into two channels: MPPE (Macro Porous Polymer Extraction) technology and TiPSS (Tilted Plate Separation Systems) technology. MPPE is one of the proven technologies in the world capable of removing dissolved and dispersed hydrocarbons, used to treat gas-produced water and clean up harmful discharges. TiPSS technology is used widely in numerous industries such as oil and gas, food, textile, automotive, steel and groundwater remediation to separate contaminants based on particle size and density differences.

Energy, Oil & Gas last spoke with Erik back in March 2015 and a year on he is happy

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to report another busy year. “We have been primarily focused on developing the Inpex Ichthys project, which is the most complex and technically demanding challenge we’ve ever faced as a company,” he says. “The level of specification is extremely high and the materials required are very difficult to purchase so with everyone on the project trying to buy them the market has become stressed. Therefore, it has been a struggle for our suppliers, and it has been a struggle for us understanding the exact specifications and ensuring we can deliver on them in time.”

INPEX’s Ichthys LNG project off the west coast of Australia is one of the largest hydrocarbon liquid discoveries in the region in 40 years, and its construction is currently ranked amongst the most significant oil and gas projects in the world. MPP Systems was awarded the contract by DSME shipbuilders to supply a MPPE unit to a brand new FPSO vessel, and with such high standards to meet the company has been able to demonstrate its leading operational expertise in developing and delivering such a complex system. “A number of changes were made throughout the project, many more than usual,” Erik continues. “For instance, the total number of on/off valves and instruments in the module has doubled since the initial instruction, but this still had to be designed into the same footprint. We contracted the final construction of the module to Hollandia Offshore in the Netherlands who only had a 12-month window (March 2015 to March 2016) to complete it, so that was another challenge.

“The unit has now been built and is currently on its way to Korea to be installed but I don’t

PROFILE

think we would have managed it without the close co-operation between us, Veolia, INPEX, DSME and Hollandia. In total it has involved about 30,000 man hours from Veolia for the fabrication and an additional 200,000 from Hollandia to build the module.”

Ichthys is a hugely important project for MPP Systems, especially amidst the internationally challenging oil and gas market. However, despite the pressures, Erik is confident that the gas industry will eventually pick itself back up and activity surrounding future projects in Mozambique and the Leviathan project in Israel is positive. Critical for MPP, is its unique position as one of the only solutions in the global market to meet the stringent zero discharge legislation that is being steadily applied to key markets around the world. Erik highlights that legislation is the company’s biggest opportunity and is an area where it is looking to capitalise with future developments.

“In the background we are working on a similar technology to remove other components from hydrocarbons such as heavy metals,” he

VWS MPP Systems

explains. “Metals like mercury are almost always present in gas produced water and feature highly on environmental concerns for discharged water. However, there is currently no solution to remove these and we are trying to change this.

Crucially, if we can develop a viable solution then legislation can follow and it will open up a big opportunity for us.”

MPP Systems is a highly unique company demonstrating the opportunities that can result from offering a quality and proven technology that is unrivalled in performance and availability.

Maintaining this position through continued development and market expansion therefore is a key part of its vision as it looks ahead. Erik talks positively about pushing its technology into new markets such as gas storage and tank cleaning, and even diversifying beyond oil and gas into groundwater remediation and other markets where water treatment is equally as important. Ultimately, as environmental legislation continues to put pressure on gas operators around the world, MPP Systems is perfectly positioned to provide the best solution.

VWS MPP Systems B.V. vwsmppsystems.com

Services Specialist manufacturer of wastewater treatment systems for oil and gas applications

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name Trusted

Based at the

Waterloo Industrial Estate in Pembroke Dock, the Welsh business Ledwood Mechanical Engineering (Ledwood) represents a market leader in delivering complex projects in support of the energy and process sectors. The company’s competence is applied to a number of market sectors, including heavy industry, allowing Ledwood to design, procure, fabricate, protective coat, construct, install and project manage the delivery of complex plant internationally. Ledwood specialises in handling complex, large facilities such as oil, petrochemical, gas processing and power generation, with an enviable track record of delivering quality projects on time, to budget and with an unbeaten safety record.

“One of the main reasons behind the foundation of the company was to service four large oil refineries that existed within its locality with engineering, fabrication, installation services, as well as maintenance and operational

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support. These refineries were all major facilities owned by international oil companies and it was later realised that we could further service refineries throughout the UK and indeed the world,” explains Managing Director, Nick Revell.

“Ledwood has continued to gain market share while entering into new markets within its traditional business sectors. Our skill sets and capabilities allow us to participate at the initial stages of a project lifecycle, which positions us for delivering the engineering, procurement and fabrication. We also have another business within the group, which is called Ledwood Protective Coatings (LPC), this business provides different types of protective coatings, including Thermal Spraying and Fireproof systems. LPC is complementary and vertically integrated in this respect and once we have completed the fabrication and coatings, we undertake the transportation wherever that may be prior to executing installation.”

Ledwood has represented a trusted name in engineering excellence for more than three decades, but it was during 2000 the company reformed under the name Ledwood Mechanical Engineering, supported by investment from the external shareholders. With this backing the business has continued to thrive and has become involved in a range of major engineering projects globally in recent years. Its ten-acre dockside location puts Ledwood in an ideal position to supply vital plant and equipment to clients worldwide via marine transport.

This has allowed clients within the offshore oil and gas exploration sector to take advantage of the company’s strategic location and core competence, through the delivery of equipment bound for oil rigs and similar installations and the shipment of modules globally.

During 2010 Ledwood was restructured under new ownership, with the business maintaining its independence by becoming owned by its management team. Today Ledwood continues to operate from its substantial engineering facilities in Pembroke Dock that incorporate workshops and paint facilities designed to accommodate major module production. Just adjacent to Ledwood is the Cleddau estuary, which offers quayside facilities with an 11-metre water depth for shipping. “The ownership of the business is all within the management team. Prior to 2010 there were some external investors in the company and to further the focus of the business we have reorganised so that there are no longer any external investors involved. We also have

PROFILE

zero debts meaning that we are not leveraged at all, which is a great position to be in,” Nick says.

“Over the years we have also brought a lot of new skills into the business, because at the end of 2010 there were a lot of personnel within the company who were reaching the end of their careers. We have now brought in the ‘next generation’ to a certain extent. This didn’t happen overnight, it has been a gradual process and we have continued to grow organically at the same time.”

As the company has continued to grow and diversify into new market sectors, Ledwood has made several investments into new equipment and facilities to ensure that it is able to offer best-in-class solutions to its new and existing clients. Recently the decision was taken to invest £1.5 million into the business for new coating equipment to expand the company’s overall service portfolio. “The decision to make this investment was primarily driven by wanting to change our profile and level of accreditation.

One aspect of our accreditation was focused on health and safety and environmental concerns and at the time we did have existing painting and coating facilities on site that were operated by another company owned by Ledwood, but the facility would not have met new legislative requirements. We decided that we would make an investment in new equipment to be self-sufficient, rather than having our own fabricated items coated by another company.

As result of this we have been able to secure further work from other clients. It is again very complementary to our overall skill set and helps us to deliver an extensive and more comprehensive service portfolio with vertical integration,” Nick elaborates.

“We have also opened up a new facility located in Teesside, which provides very much the same services that we have in our head office in Pembroke. This has given us greater geographic representation and has opened up our client base,” he adds. “The new site also improves our expertise and capability and we have certainly secured more market share in the petrochemical sector as a result of having a presence in the Teesside area. Furthermore we have also won additional work in onshore gas reception facilities that are operated by international offshore gas companies.”

Although the company’s traditional markets in the on shore oil and gas sectors are currently depressed owing to the low cost of oil, Ledwood has remained buoyant due to its broad customer base and diversification into the steel and renewable energy sectors. Moving forward

Ledwood Mechanical Engineering

Nick is presently on the Advisory Board for the planned Tidal Bay project in Swansea and believes that Ledwood is in an excellent position to supply this and other projects over the coming three to five years. “Around three years ago I had an introduction to the Tidal Bay project’s owners, Tidal Lagoon Power and the company asked me to assist on a steering committee, which I am today part of. Our facilities in Pembroke are on the quayside and some of the items that we have tendered are not road transportable and need to be fabricated and assembled near the quayside to be shipped to the final destination,” he concludes. “Over the next 12 months we have a very good order book and our revenue is set to be up on 2015.

We are focused on sustainability and underpin this with the competence of our personnel and the services that we provide in a cost-effective manner. We have an exemplary safety record, which is vital in the market sectors in which we are active and believe that we represent the company of choice for our clients.”

Ledwood Mechanical Engineering ledwood.co.uk

Services Turnkey engineering, procurement, fabrication, protective coatings and construction

ENERGY,oil&gas

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High integrity fasteners With close to three decades

KAL Technology KAL Technology produce fully traceable components to customer drawings and international industry standards in materials from B7/L7 and EN24 steels to heat resistant alloys and exotics including S32760, Inconel, Titanium and many others.

We specialise in threaded components for the energy and construction industries, often delivering custom solutions on very short lead times. We work extensively with leading fastener companies such as BST, where a focus on price, quality and on time delivery are paramount to customer satisfaction and success.

of industry experience, BST Supplies Ltd (BST) has developed a reputation as a leading independent manufacturer of top quality and fully traceable, high-integrity fasteners that are used in a host of critical applications in harsh environments. The business was founded by its current owners Tony Lawless and Stuart Mee during 1987 and has since grown to employ some 110 members of staff with a turnover of over £10 million per annum.

The company was previously featured in Energy, Oil & Gas magazine during October 2015, during which time BST had recently opened a new in-house testing laboratory. Over the following months the outlook has remained promising for the company, with positive audit results and the on-going development of its on-site facilities. “BST has seen customer growth since 2015, securing additional major OEM approvals in several market sectors as a direct result of audits to on site processes and working practice,” Sales Manager, Simon Peaty explains.

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“The company has also seen its in-house testing laboratory gain BSEN 17025 approval for a number of in-house testing processes and has recently installed a self-sufficient NDT facility with operators fully qualified to both PCN and ASNT Levels.”

BST Supplies manufactures a comprehensive portfolio of premium fastenings and machined components, whether they’re dimensionally standard components made from specialist materials, or unique design components constructed from standard materials. Since the business was founded, BST has maintained a high level of focus in delivering high-integrity, superior quality engineering and fully traceable nuts, bolts, fasteners and CNC precision machined components. Its proven reputation in supplying world-class engineered products has allowed BST to build a strong presence within some of the world’s most demanding market sectors, including the oil and gas, nuclear, defence and marine and power generation industries.

PROFILE

While BST does not design the fastenings that it manufactures, it does provide professional and expert guidance to the development of new components to meet new industry regulations.

Therefore the company is able to offer clients confident peace of mind and the guarantee that their safety critical applications will be fully protected. BST fastenings are high integrity, full traceable and manufactured using only the highest quality EU raw materials. It is not uncommon for clients to demand fastenings that will last for as long as 25-30 years and that are often incorporated into equipment that is not easily accessible, meaning that the exercise of reaching units for replacement or repair is very costly. As such, clients operating within technically demanding and remote environments recognise the value in investing into a reliable fastening solution that provides the dependable and robust nature that they need.

Throughout its history BST has continued to invest into the development of the business, beginning with the purchase of modern CNC multi axis machines and the establishment of a full in-house manufacturing plant early on in the company’s development. During the subsequent years, as BST has continued to grow the company has further re-invested a significant percentage of its profits in to the acquisition of new machines and infrastructure. In recent years, these have included the introduction of a new computer system and the building of its on-site UKAS approved laboratory. By maintaining a full manufacturing facility, BST is able to control the entire manufacturing process, from sourcing EU raw materials to delivering the final fully certified product.

In the past decade operators within the oil and gas industry in particular have further recognised the importance of high-integrity fasteners in the protecting their assets, resulting in significant growth for BST in this sector as a trusted supplier. “Our business has seen considerable growth as a supplier to the oil, gas and subsea markets over recent years, with EU raw materials and fully traceable fasteners being increasingly in demand. BST has become a supply partner to companies such as FMC Technologies, Aker Solutions and GE,” Simon reveals. “We have as a result of ‘dedicated on time delivery’ and ‘right first time’ quality expectations, seen global growth of BST’s product to customers with a global presence.”

Its dedication to providing the highest levels of excellence from the board room to the shop floor, has established BST as a world-leader in the supply of premium quality fastenings that

continues to welcome new customers. While the market remains depressed in the wake of the current low price of oil, the company has taken the opportunity to consolidate its leading market position to enable it to further develop its service offering. “In the current market, BST has taken the decision to restructure itself and invest in capital equipment. We have used this lean period to improve the strength of our internal team, make additions to CNC machine equipment / software and set up our own NDT facility so that we can offer our customers a greater service from order placement right through to final delivery,” Simon concludes.

“BST are working toward gaining API 20E accreditation to further expand our portfolio of product to an ever-growing customer base.

Our customer is at the heart of everything we do, as an independently owned company we believe that investment is the key to the future success. As such we are willing to position our business ahead of our competition by continued investment in the company’s people, processes and equipment.”

BST Supplies

BST Supplies Ltd bstsupplies.com

Services Fully traceable, high-integrity special fasteners

ENERGY,oil&gas

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A pipeline Welding Company With its head office based in Antwerp, Belgium, Welding Company is one of Europe’s leading suppliers in the heavy steel processing industry. Skilled technicians and engineers together with a team of technical consultants provide machinery and expertise for Europe’s largest projects.

Whether it is oil and gas, petrochemical, renewable energy or heavy wall construction, the business ensures the best solution for every industry.

Welding Company sells and rents Miller welding equipment, induction machinery and welding and cutting automation. It is specialised in induction equipment and has the largest rental fleet on the European mainland.

After thoroughly listening to its customers, Welding Company has developed the most versatile digital welding bug on the market: The Firefly.

It can be customised to fit your project and improve your overall welding quality. Clients can lower production costs and reduce construction time by using this easy to handle automation.

Welding Company is an expert in turnkey solutions and is happy to help you with all of your welding and heating challenges.

network

Over the course of more than

six decades, PPS Pipeline Systems (PPS) has grown from a mid-size service provider to an internationally acknowledged pipeline and plant builder. The roots of the business date back to 1954 and the foundation of Winter & Co – a core division of modern PPS – as a service company for North Germany’s growing oil and gas industry. PPS Pipeline Systems GmbH was finally founded during 1999, through a spin-off of the pipeline and plant construction unit of Preussag Water and Pipeline Engineering GmbH and has continued to develop as a leading supplier for the gas and oil industry. Although today around 80 per cent of its business is still generated within the oil and gas market, PPS is also highly renowned by companies operating within the chemical and water supply industries.

In 2002 HABAU Hoch- und Tiefbaugesellschaft mbH of Austria (HABAU) acquired a 100 per cent interest in PPS and moved to integrate its Eastern European and Russian activities into the business. The growth of the company and its ability to respond quickly to the needs of its clients were further enhanced during 2013 through the creation of the PPS Western Europe Business Unit, including new offices in Belgium and France that also incorporated the organisation’s activities in the UK. The scope of professional services provided by PPS today encompasses engineering, delivery, construction, and commissioning of pipelines and plants in the sectors of pumping, transport, storage, and distribution of oil, gas, and other media. As a general contractor the company further takes on an important role in the execution of large-scale projects across Europe

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and as part of the HABAU Group, PPS can also help to deliver a broad base of further technically demanding construction projects.

The PPS Group currently employs approximately 730 workers across the business and posted construction sales of circa €170 million for the fiscal year 2014-2015. To better serve its customers, PPS today divides its services across several divisions comprised of pipeline and plant construction, Winter Rohrbau, foreign units, PPS Western Europe, commercial and machine technical units. These units all ensure that PPS is able to supply leading technical solutions, where and when they are required.

Across the group, PPS remains in high demand all over Europe to undertake technically challenging projects and to act in the role of general contractor. Within its pipeline and plant construction division for example, the company’s daily business includes pipelines of every diameter, pressure rating and media of every type, open and closed crossing processes for streets, railways, and rivers - including the construction of pumping stations stations. In the field of plant construction the company’s services include the building of compressor stations, terminals, gas processing plants, measuring and regulation systems. Additionally, PPS’ services in plant construction also include the construction of underground storage caverns and since 2003 for example, the company has been involved in the development of several storage caverns for Essent, Nuon and Eneco.

Within Germany, the company’s Winter Rohrbau business unit offers customers customised solutions relating to pipes that are developed and realised in accordance to the client’s requirements. Winter Rohrbau manages plants throughout Germany that enable it to quickly reach its clients, with offices in Quakenbrück,

PROFILE

Ingolstadt, Landau Palintinate, Leipzig, Sande/ Wilhelmshaven and Stade. The range of projects undertaken by Winter Rohrbau includes gas plant construction, buried pipeline construction, industrial plant construction and maintenance and service operations. Furthermore, the unit is also able to provide EPC services during the full duration of site operations.

Throughout Western Europe, PPS manages a network of business locations that allow the company to implement projects across the region and to ensure that contracts are smoothly executed at all project phases. Its bases in Drongen, Belgium; Astley, UK; and Entzheim, France ensure that PPS can act as a trusted EPC contractor and to provide plant construction, buried pipe and industrial power plant construction. In addition to its comprehensive package of EPC and construction services, PPS Western Europe is also able to undertake special projects including API pipelines for mines and mining operations, pump skids for liquid media, construction and repairs of pressure vessels, and the repair of separators.

PPS Pipeline Systems

Further to its German and Eastern European divisions, PPS has also successfully positioned itself as a complete systems supplier for large plants and pipelines at the international level.

Its subsidiaries and partnerships in England, Benelux, France, Austria, Lithuania, Romania and Italy have already realised a number of challenging projects and have proven to be reliable and expert partners for the company’s customers. While extensive investments in the expansion of pipeline infrastructure are planned to enable Europe to tap into the crude oil and natural gas reserves of the Caspian Sea and Middle East regions, PPS is present within this market with its location in Istanbul and is focused on the development of pipeline, station, and gas storage projects.

As such PPS represents a turnkey partner in the construction of pipeline and plant projects, which will prove to be invaluable to clients both in the present and in the future as Europe’s need for pipeline infrastructure continues to grow.

The company’s daily business includes pipelines of every diameter, pressure rating and media of every type, open and closed crossing processes for streets, railways, and rivers - including the construction of pumping stations stations PPS Pipeline Systems ppspipelinesystems.com

Services Pipeline and plant construction solutions

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A gripping

answer Beginning operations

as Fa. A v/d Grijp during 1928 as a company focused on the selling and renting of flat top barges and houseboats, today the VandeGrijp Group has grown into an internationally operating company specialised in the production of steel tubes, piles, tubular constructions and the rental of pipeline systems and floating equipment for both onshore and offshore projects. The group currently comprises two companies, with one side of the business focused on manufacturing while the other operates within the rental market.

VandeGrijp was previously featured in Energy, Oil & Gas magazine in April 2015, during which time Managing Director, Paul Nederlof discussed the on-going development of a new pile hammer and the company has continued to progress positively in the months following its last appearance despite challenging market conditions. “Over the past 12 months we have completed the building of an innovative new pile hammer for a company that was developing this technology for the offshore wind sector. The pile hammer itself was delivered on time and was subsequently successfully tested. In spite of difficulties in the oil and gas market we completed a lot of work for offshore contractors and dredging companies, including the delivery of several spreader bars, pile followers and spud poles,” Paul elaborates. “Market conditions are not favourable since investments within the oil industry are significantly down and several big dredging projects are nearing an end, further

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reducing market investments in that industry.

The offshore wind industry however is still booming for many companies, which generates a market for tools and repairs that has continued to create work for us and we completed 475 projects during 2015. From small to large projects, our expertise is in the ability to carry out so many diverse projects at the same time.

The eye-catching projects last year naturally were the larger ones, like the pile hammer and the spreader bars, but the lower pipes and dredger board lines that we constructed were no mean feat either!”

Across all of it operations, VandeGrijp maintains the highest levels of quality and customer service and acts in accordance to ISO 9001 and ISO 3834-2 specifications and is fully EN-1090 qualified. The company further assures the quality of its output through detailed analysis of its production process and continually works to find ways to improve even further. VandeGrijp also currently has more than 150 weld qualifications and encourages the continuous education of its employees. At present it employs some 50 people plus subcontractors and maintains property that encompasses 85,000m2 of space, including three well-equipped production halls and a harbour with its own RORO quay. The company’s 3000m2 production hall is used for the construction of limited series and custom pieces while its hall with the smallest area contains a highly efficient pipe mill where VandeGrijp produces flanged pipes with a capacity of up to 4.5km per month as required.

The company’s third production hall has a floor space of 2600m2 but has increased height that

PROFILE

allows it to be used for the production of large tube sections up to 10,000mm in diameter.

“Our manufacturing facilities are located close to Rotterdam harbour providing good access to the world by road or water and we have our own harbour with RORO load out quay and 7000 square metres of covered production area.

The covered production area contains three roll bending machines with varying bending capacities of up to 150mm wall thickness and there is also a pipe mill for flanged dredge lines or pipes of up to 25mm wall thickness,” Paul says. “The main strength of VandeGrijp is our flexibility in terms of timescales and varying types of project. We are capable of delivering thick walled tubes within very short time periods, but at the same can also fabricate more complex projects.”

On the rental side of the business, VandeGrijp maintains a comprehensive fleet of equipment, including dredge line components that are ready for deployment following the culmination of several rental

VandeGrijp IGS

projects during 2015. Within both its rental and manufacturing operations it is the aim of the company to be able to deliver an expert service extremely quickly, therefore in addition to its stock of rental equipment VandeGrijp maintains close relationships with trusted steel suppliers to ensure the rapid turnover of manufactured projects.

During the duration of 2016 and beyond VandeGrijp will continue to work to deliver expert solutions in rented and manufactured pipes and equipment, while ensuring the highest levels of customer service. “The main focus of our company during the next 12 months is to continue to deliver quality products matching our customer’s specifications on time - every time. We aim to continuously reduce the fabrication period between order and delivery, thus helping our customers reach their goals,” Paul concludes. “Our long term strategy is to further strengthen our flexibility and be a smarter part in our customer’s supply chain.”

VandeGrijp IGS B.V. vandegrijp.com

Services Equipment manufacture and rental

ENERGY,oil&gas

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An offshore

partner From its headquarters

in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Caspian Offshore Construction (COC) owns and operates a fleet of 43 vessels that provide marine fleet operation and management services to offshore oil and gas industry. The business was incorporated during 2003 and finally commenced operations in 2005, following the acquisition, refurbishment and complete overhaul of the Shkotov and Caspian Princess floating living quarters. Today COC operates as a leading provider of marine fleet operation and management services in the North Caspian Sea as a 100 per cent private Kazakhstani entity, with offices in Aktau and Bautino in Kazakhstan, Astrakhan in Russia, Baku in Azerbaijan and Turkmenbashi In Turkmenistan.

Caspian Offshore Construction was previously featured in Energy, Oil & Gas magazine in March 2015. During the company’s previous profile, Aktau branch director, Stanislav Belov discuss on-going events in the company including the commencement of construction of a new operating base in Bautino incorporating accommodation, canteen and workshop facilities, the delivery of its new multicat Kulan and Kanysh Satpayev survey vessels and the further modernisation of its Shkotov and Caspian Princess floating living quarters.

Despite the impact of the depressed price of oil, COC has progressed well and remained highly active during the past 12 months. Further to completing the construction of a new offshore support base and continuing to expand its fleet of vessels, the company has also won a significant tender that will provide the business with activity for several years.

“Developments have been slow because the oil

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and gas business is suffering due to the low price of crude oil. The Caspian region is no exception and there has been a slowdown of the two major oil and gas projects that form our primary business, however, despite stiff competition, the company overcame to win a tender to manage a new vessel for Van Oord which operates as a Dutch dredging company,” reveals COC Deputy General Director, Shaun Daniels. “This vessel is an ultra shallow draught multi-cast general purpose tug called the Arlan. The work is to support the dredging of a channel of over 60 Km from the eastern approaches of the Caspian Sea, with the channel intended to land at shore at a place called Prorva. There is a facility also to be built at Prorva by the Tengizchevroil (TCO) Future Growth Project, which will serve as the offloading facility for the expansion of the Tengiz refinery. TCO are going to offload around 60 major modules using tugs, barges and speciality purpose-built vessels and the contract is set to last for approximately three years. It has allowed us to construct a new build vessel, at the Vard shipyard in Brăila, Romania. The vessel was built according to a design produced by Ship Design Group (SDG) and was part of a very competitive tender that we were proud to win.”

On October 2, 2015 COC also accepted delivery of the latest ship to join the company’s fleet of owned vessels. The ARLAN ultra shallow draft multi-cat AHT was ordered during February 2015 and constructed at the Vard Brăila shipyard. At a cost of $2.4 million, ARLAN was successfully launched during August 2015 to begin an extensive series of sea trials before IDU Shipping finally delivered the vessel from Romania to Kazakhstan. Co-operation between COC and the Vard shipyard dates back to 2009, when a contract for the ice-breaking standby support vessels of the ‘Mangistau’ series was closed. During the period between 2009 and 2011 five Mangistau vessels were constructed, while another survey vessel, Kanysh Satpayev, was built later in 2014.

“Kanysh Satpayev cost $9.2 million and is capable of carrying 20 scientists as well as ten crew. She was specifically designed to deploy various types of survey equipment for ecological, environmental and geophysical surveys. She is built to the latest standards with modern equipment and facilities onboard including laboratories and accommodation space with onboard recreation for scientists and the ship’s crew,” Shaun elaborates. “She can operate in as little as 1.5 metres of water, which is a must for

PROFILE

the client because their operating depths run from three metres to nothing. She is the most modern research vessel in the Caspian Sea at present and I would say the most versatile vessel in terms of research operations.”

Further to expanding its presence through the award of competitive new tender and the arrival of the ARLAN multi-cat AHT, COC has also invested in a new offshore support base in Bautino, Kazakhstan. The new base is comprised of three complexes that include office, hotel, crew change, canteen and gym facilities, which ensure that the base is fully equipped to provide accommodation to crew and engineering staff travelling through the region. Additionally, the Bautino complex also includes an education facility that offers expert training to both COC staff and external organisations as well as educational programmes for the local community.

Through its continued investment into the company’s facilities, COC is well prepared to carry out its current tenders while it continues to weather the tough trading conditions brought

Caspian Offshore Construction

on by the low price of oil. Over the coming years the business will seek to capitalise on its current success and continue to distinguish itself as a trusted partner within the Caspian Sea, which it will achieve through further investment in its people to match that of its fleet. “This is a fully Kazakh owned company and we have 60 Kazakh nationals currently undergoing various education programmes to get them qualified to progress into positions we have identified suitable for their skill sets,” Shaun concludes.

“Further to the Caspian Sea, we are looking at international markets. These include areas such as Venezuela, South East Asia and Africa and the challenge for the future is to identify opportunities within those markets and open up offices within those regions.”

Caspian Offshore Construction coc.kz

Services Marine fleet operation and management

ENERGY,oil&gas

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Bursting with

energy Delivering 24 hour service, seven days a week, 365 days a year for more than six decades, Bohlen & Doyen GmbH, previously known as Bohlen & Doyen GmbH Bauuternehmung GmbH, has long been renowned for its outstanding expertise in a comprehensive range of services for sectors including gas, water, waste water, electricity, oil and telecommunications.

Having set up a nationwide presence, the company is able to offer constant availability to customers while operating as a highly capable partner and complete service provider.

With a decentralised structure in place, the company guarantees rapid availability for clients

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requiring fully qualified personnel and the right equipment for each unique task. To ensure this way of operating remains at optimum levels of efficiency, Bohlen & Doyen’s permanently manned control centre in Wiesmoor co-ordinates the nationwide on-call services and makes contact with each customer’s contact person. This ongoing flexibility and co-operation with clients has created a relationship built on trust, reliability, quality and the ability to develop the best possible solutions.

To further enhance its reliability, the company’s on-call team and fault rectification service ensures grids continue to run smoothly and customers can remain competitive. This strong customer focus is merged with a broad service portfolio for the energy industry, which includes its own spare parts stock, cable measuring vehicles, 50 specially equipped vehicles and more than 150 technicians; all of which help ensure Bohlen & Doyen competitively meet the needs of those in the fields of electricity, gas, water and telecommunications.

Using its many years of experience in the power industry, the company has progressed into the offshore renewable sector where it offers grid connection and services to offshore platforms.

Indeed, the complete package is offered to

PROFILE

customers, which includes the laying of onshore and offshore cables as well as the connection of offshore wind farms to substations; this applies to all voltage levels. For this challenging industry, the company has its own high-quality equipment and a selection of well trained personnel to ensure projects are carried out in the most reliable and quality conscious manner.

Furthermore, the company works closely with other departments within its parent company, SAG Group, to take care of servicing and maintenance in this sector.

Committed to its motto of ‘Everything from a single source’ for all voltage levels, Bohlen & Doyen delivers a complete service to its clients who include, but are not limited to, energy suppliers and/or grid operators who are legally required to connect these wind power systems and cable manufacturers, private investors and regional energy suppliers. In more detail, these services include underwater cable-laying with its own ships and laying equipment such as vertical injectors, jetting sledges, vibration swords, vibration ploughs and chain ploughs; implementation planning, infield cabling of an offshore windfarm, civil engineering work, horizontal drilling technology, cable laying and cable installation and cable terminations up to 145 kV. As wind energy is one of the mainstays of renewable energy in Germany, the company is well versed in overcoming the challenges in connecting wind farms to the main grid, particularly when in harsh environments offshore. Operating as a general contractor, Bohlen & Doyen takes care of everything in the realms of configuration and set-up of the electro-technical infrastructure on offshore wind farms. For these specific projects, the company, alongside SAG, delivers internal windfarm cabling, transfer station, substations and high voltage overhead lines and cable systems. Once grid connection is complete, the company is able to take over the operation of the electro-technical infrastructure and monitor substations from its logistic center. Furthermore, it can deliver all maintenance, fault clearing, overhauling and repair services.

A recent project for the dynamic and dedicated firm was awarded in February 2015 from Prysmian, a market-leading cable manufacturer for the connection of the wind farm cluster Westlich Adlegrund in the Baltic Sea. Connected via HVAC cable systems, the cluster’s routes on-shore end in the 50Hertz transformer substation in Lubmin. Approximately 39 km

Bohlen & Doyen

of the cables, which are 90 km long on the sea and three km on-shore, will be laid by SAG Group, with construction of the grid connection scheduled to reach completion in the final quarter of 2018. Worth approximately 130 million euros, the order shows the confidence Prysmian has in the technical expertise of both SAG Group and Bohlen & Doyen and will further enable the company to cement its reputation in the offshore wind sector.

With its own fleet of vessels, trained personnel in the area of cable installation and cable and the ability to carry out cable checks with its own cable test vehicles, Bohlen & Doyen is truly able to carry out a one-stop-shop solution to customers seeking interdisciplinary clientspecific solutions while also delivering full documentation from A to Z. These capabilities, merged with a long history for reliability and a customer-centric approach to business, means Bohlen & Doylen is certain go from strength to strength for many decades to come.

Bohlen & Doyen GmbH bohlen-doyen.com

Services Digital documentation, electrical tests, EMC service, gas detection, cable measuring and other energy-related services

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grow Power to

The Cummins brand is recognised

Below Rachid Ouenniche, MD

around the world as a leader in the design and manufacture of heavy-duty diesel and natural gas power solutions. With its home in Indiana, USA, the company currently employs 55,000 people around the world in 190 countries and in 2015 achieved sales of $19.1 billion. Part of being able to deliver on such a global scale is Cummins’ extensive network, which includes approximately 600 company-owned and independent distributor locations and around 7200 dealerships.

The company took its first steps into the Middle East in 1956, appointing GCC Olayan as its first independent distributor in Saudi Arabia.

Over the years more distributors followed, until in 2000 Cummins established its first company-owned business in the UAE. In 2014, the Cummins Middle East ABO (Area Business Organisation) was set up and headquartered in the UAE. The ABO consists of all Cummins business units, each represented in the region by a commercial leadership team.

Energy, Oil & Gas last featured Cummins Middle East back in April 2015, and a year on MD Rachid Ouenniche is happy to report a strong 12 months. “It has been a very successful year for Cummins in the Middle East,” he says.

“We gained significant market share and grew across all segments. In particular, we experienced double digit growth in our power generation segment, a market that actually shrank overall. As a matter of fact, the Middle East was the fastest

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growing region for Cummins’ whole power generation division. This is due to our focus on adding value to our customers by providing engineered solutions. In 2015, to support this, we doubled our win ratio for turnkey power generation projects from two years ago and expanded our engineering group with significant investments in talent acquisition.”

In general the Middle Eastern region is a lucrative market with widespread economic development taking place across a number of countries. However, Rachid notes that with the recent drop in oil prices, governments in the gulf region have reigned in infrastructure investment that has seen a softening to Cummins’ power generation business. Yet, with significant power plant projects won across a variety of sectors from infrastructure, healthcare and airport developments to manufacturing and residential complexes, the opportunities to grow still remain.

“The oil and gas industry, which fuels much of this region’s growth, is a cyclical market and is bound to recover in the next few quarters and our ability to gain market share will allow us to continue capitalising on the momentum we have gained over the last couple of years as it does so,” he says.

Indeed, despite the prospect of challenging market conditions, Cummins continues to invest heavily into the development of its business in the Middle East. The company has become an engineering hub for the international group, and it has plans to expand its scope beyond the region to support other developing markets

PROFILE

around the world. It is also home to a Cummins High Horsepower Master Rebuild Centre, part of a global network of purpose-built facilities designed to provide high quality, high volume rebuilds for Cummins 19 to 95 litre engines.

“All engines of this sort require a rebuild at some point in the life cycle, so we moved away from a workshop environment into a manufacturing environment that has a production line and enables us to provide a complete rebuild in one location,” Rachid outlines. “We believe this is one of the best rebuild centres within Cummins Inc and the best in the region – it is generally benchmarked by other distributors around the world as best in class. Volumes have continued to grow as customers’ confidence that their Cummins engines will have much longer durability when they use this centre also rises.”

Developing the scope and strength of its distribution capabilities has also been the focus of investment over recent years in the Middle East. In 2012, for example, it established a joint venture with Jaidah Group, which has represented Cummins in Qatar for 35 years.

“Cummins manages the venture, using its people, systems and processes, allowing us to increase the focus on our customers,” Rachid continues. “It’s a much more efficient and effective model that allows us direct access to other Cummins business units that manufacture the products we sell and service in the region.”

More recently, in March 2016, the company announced another joint venture, this time with The Olayan Group, which has distributed Cummins products in Saudi Arabia since 1956. The move to create Cummins Arabia is significant in that it consolidates the distribution

Cummins Middle East

of Cummins products across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which represent three of the biggest markets in the Middle East. The partnership also allows Cummins to greatly expand access to the Saudi and Kuwaiti markets.

Another key part of Cummins Middle East’s development of recent years has been its exemplary approach to increasing the representation of women in the workplace. The company has doubled its ratio of women over the last four years since it launched its internship programme. In 2015, 16 of the 18 annual interns brought on board were female and the business is now working with five regional universities to develop the scheme. “Crucially, what started out as an initiative to increase the representation of women in the workplace has now developed to become a great pipeline of future leaders,” Rachid highlights. “This is important, as whilst we have the international brand recognition of Cummins behind us, it is the dedicated, innovative and agile workforce that gives us a competitive advantage in the region so supporting their development opportunities is key to our continued success.”

The future for Cummins in the Middle East looks bright then. Rachid notes that over the next 12 months continuing with the current growth strategy will be the primary focus.

In particular, will be the integration of the Cummins Arabia joint venture, which is due to become operational by the second half of 2016 and which will improve the company’s service capabilities, especially in the oil and gas sector. “We also aim to continue market share growth in our power generation segment over the coming months despite what appears to be a shrinking market,” Rachid concludes.

Cummins Middle East middleeast.cummins.com

Services Middle Eastern business of global power leader, Cummins

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Expanding

focus “

Wilhelm Group started off in the 1980s as a small welding consumables distributor to various organisations in the oil and gas industry,” begins the Singapore-based company’s Managing Director William Chan. “With only three staff and modest annual turnover, we have grown significantly over the last 35 years.” Indeed, now turning over in excess of 15 million USD a year and employing 150 people under four subsidiaries in Singapore, Malaysia, Shanghai and Suzhou, growth has certainly been a defining piece of the company’s history.

Following approximately 20 million USD worth of investment into equipment and facilities, Wilhelm Group now offers a complete range of welding solutions to oil and gas end users and OEMs in the region.

“This includes advanced cladding services in hot-wire TIG (tungsten inert gas) and a laser cladding process, plus CNC precision machining with testing capabilities,” William outlines. “We offer turnkey solutions for corrosion resistant, wear and tear applications in the exploration, drilling and production of oil and gas. This helps to boost performance and prolong the lifetime of exploration tools, as well as surface and subsea components.”

Approximately 90 per cent of the company’s revenue stems from the oil and gas sector across

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Singapore, Malaysia, China and the Philippines.

Others include revenue from the general engineering, manufacturing, shipbuilding and offshore service customers.

Illustrating the high level of technical work carried out by Wilhelm Group is a recent development project carried out in collaboration with Emerson Process Management.

“Our most notable achievement recently, was the cladding of flow control valves,” William explains. “Through the development of new welding techniques and methods, we successfully achieved 100 per cent fullyautomated internal cladding for Fisher flow control valves with sizes ranging from 8-24 inch.

Previously, competitors were only able to achieve less than 40 per cent automated cladding, so this is the first of its kind in the Asia-Pacific region.”

Other recent developments within the group include the investment into a new batch of CNC systems at its newest subsidiary in Malaysia, set up in end 2014. “This is to complement our cladding capability so that we can offer turnkey solutions. It also enhances our ability to take on machining of more complex components and parts in the future – particularly when the oil price picks up,” adds William.

The challenges of the oil and gas market is faced by every company operating in this industry, not only Wilhelm Group. William shared, “people have realised that the oil and gas crisis might last for some time and it will be a game of who is able to wait out this crisis. It is therefore important to restructure and consolidate. Reposition yourself based on what you do best today as well as seek new opportunities going forward. Companies that invest in marketing and development during the tough times can potentially increase market share, putting them in a great position when the economy picks up again,” he says.

For Wilhelm Group, the approach is continued investment into new technologies and new solutions that can boost its competencies when the market returns to health. “With the present downturn, we are focusing on consolidating our resources,” William continues. “The aim is to look for a new direction, new growth opportunity and a competitive advantage in the welding market.

There is no doubt that the industry will certainly look very different in ten years’ time and we have to reinvent the way things are done now so that we can remain competitive.”

Wilhelm Group has a strong reputation

PROFILE

within its core markets. The company’s experience in the industry has resulted in an ingrained understanding of the high costs and risks associated with the infrastructure, extraction, transport and maintenance activities facing operators. Therefore, as a subcontractor providing value-added services, it is critical that it can offer high precision and quality services to support this as best as possible.

“Every mistake can have a major impact on profitability, productivity and safety,”

wilhelm group

highlights William. “With this in mind, we strongly believe in upholding the quality of the services we provide and represent. We also believe in adding value to the services we offer. Pre-sales consultation and timely delivery are what we regard as value-added services that customers are actively looking for today. Only by providing these are we able to secure the trust of customers and translate this into long-term partnerships.”

This attitude will be critical for Wilhelm Group to continue achieving its steady growth levels. Looking ahead, William is keen to take the company’s experience as a specialist welding provider to diversify into new industries and new markets around the world. “We want to diversify into other industries that also require high precision welding besides just oil and gas,” he concludes. “We aim to break into the much larger American and South American markets within the next three years. In the longer term we will also be looking at potential mergers and acquisitions to support this vision.”

Through the development of new welding techniques and methods, we successfully achieved 100 per cent fullyautomated internal cladding for Fisher flow control valves with sizes ranging from 8-24 inch

Wilhelm Group wilhelm-group.com

Services A complete welding solutions provider to the oil and gas industry in South East Asia

ENERGY,oil&gas

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Focus on offshore wind and

Since the company

Innovative Input BV Innovative Input BV in Ridderkerk is a specialist in the area of conventional and unconventional mechanical engineering constructions. The keywords are: Knowledge, Creativity and Experience. It designs and produces cranes, winches, lifting gear and special equipment – for offshore, onshore and civil engineering applications. The company operates worldwide and serves the needs of dredging companies, shipyards and shipping companies for example. You can call on Innovative Input for all your mechanical engineering questions. It will provide a perfect solution - from a concept study all the way to final delivery. And, of course, all of its products come with the required certification.

was founded in 1995, Scaldis has established a reputation as a solid, reliable and customer-focused international marine offshore contractor for transportation, installation and heavy lifting operations in offshore markets. Today, Scaldis broadly divides its business into five market sectors: civil construction; O&G; renewables and environmental; deconstruction; and salvage.

Scaldis’ head office, located in Antwerp, Belgium, is home to a team of highly qualified and experienced engineers who work closely with clients to develop innovative and bespoke lifting techniques that form reliable and costeffective transport solutions.

“The market for offshore structures for the renewables sector, as well as the oil and gas market, remain important to our current business and we have gained an enviable track record and reputation in these sectors,” elaborates Linda Vanhaelst, Business Development and Marketing co-ordinator. “Within the oil and gas market, most large projects are currently related to decommissioning operations, because installation works is a little bit slow right now due to the low cost of oil.”

In all of its operations, Scaldis prioritises teams delivering unique solutions. This is a core value and a tangible strength that runs throughout the business. With over 20 years of industry experience, the company fully understands the difficulties that clients face and knows that the best way to find the right solution is to have an open mind and an innovative approach. This method has found effective solutions for heavy lifting operations for market-leading customers including ENI, Wintershall, Perenco and ConocoPhillips.

Within the wind industry, Scaldis has worked

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with leading names including DONG Energy, RWE and E.ON. “Scaldis works closely with its clients from the early stages of their projects in order to develop the most efficient and effective methodology for the task to be performed.

Additionally, optimisation of the planning and thorough preparation is key. Being a project-driven organisation we have the strength and flexibility to achieve the tasks that we undertake,” Linda reveals. “To anticipate the changes within the offshore industry, Scaldis is always looking for innovative technologies that will answer new and technically demanding challenges while reducing costs, limiting offshore time and mitigating risks.

Ultimately, we develop inventive solutions that make installation both safer and more efficient.”

To meet the demanding requirements of its clients within the offshore industry, Scaldis places a high level of emphasis on research and development to remain a leader in the heavy lifting field. In particular, in the offshore wind market R&D is of vital importance as the industry pushes the extremes of technology, location and water depth that all generate greater challenges in terms of equipment transport and installation. “What we are seeing in the wind industry is very rapid growth combined with new technology. Installation contractors throughout the industry must contend with the fact that the structures are getting larger and larger, and need to be installed in deeper and deeper water depths. These are essential elements to keep in mind when we develop inventive solutions to overcome the industry’s challenges,” Linda says.

“Decommissioning is another important segment for our company, as we have removed several platforms over the past few years,” continues Linda. “Decommissioning is, to a

PROFILE

certain extent, just reversing the installation sequence we use for the offshore wind and O&G industries. There are also some interesting developments for the minimum facility platforms that are planned in the North Sea. A good example is L6-B project that originally was fabricated in Rotterdam. Our Heavy Lift vessel RAMBIZ picked up the structure in Rotterdam and sailed with the complete platform, including suction cans, to the installation site in the Dutch North Sea. The installation work was completed in a tight offshore work window of less than 24 hours.”

As the company continues to develop new solutions for the expanding and evolving marketplace, it has taken the decision to invest in the construction of a new DP II heavy lift vessel.

“The new vessel will be in Europe in the middle of 2017. The vessel’s keel laying ceremony took place on Saturday 27 February 2016 at the Hong Qiang shipyard near Shanghai,” Linda explains.

“Following this event, it is now time to reveal the name of the vessel, which has been called Rambiz 4000 during the design phase. Scaldis and its shareholders are very proud to announce that the vessel will sail under the name of GULLIVER.” The new build heavy lift vessel GULLIVER will share many of the key assets of the company’s RAMBIZ vessel, but will also incorporate improved features including: increased lifting capacity of up to 4000 tonnes; increased workability; fully self-propelled; dynamic positioning; skidding cranes and its own helideck. With a proven track record and the future arrival of the GULLIVER vessel, Scaldis is on track to remain an important offshore fixture for years to come. “We look forward to the arrival of our new build vessel so that we can take on even more and bigger challenges to serve our clients better,” Linda concludes. “With the new vessel, Scaldis is ready for the future.”

Scaldis NV scaldis-smc.com

Services Heavy lifting and transportation ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com 183

Scaldis

Current

developments Operating from

Below Uwe Balasus-Lange, Head of DEA’s Germany/ Denmark division

its head office in Hamburg, Germany, DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG (DEA) represents an international exploration and production company for oil and gas. While the company has a 117-year history dating back to when the business was incorporated during 1899, DEA today operates as part of the LetterOne Group of businesses following the acquisition of the company from RWE AG during 2014 at a cost of around €5.1 billion.

“The acquisition completed during March 2015 when the final closing of the deal was achieved.

In my perception this was a very positive step for DEA because the company’s new owner, LetterOne, has a very strong exploration and production (E&P) background,” reveals Head of DEA’s Germany/Denmark division, Uwe Balasus-Lange. “Staff members of the new parent company have an in-depth knowledge of our business and as a result, decisions relating to the E&P sector can now be made much more rapidly than was previously possible.”

Beside Germany and Denmark DEA has operations within Egypt, Algeria, Guyana, Ireland, Libya, Norway, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and Turkmenistan. However according to Uwe, since taking on the role of Head of DEA’s Germany/Denmark division following the acquisition by LetterOne the company has also continued to enjoy exciting development within both Germany and Denmark. “The main responsibilities within my role are of course are to run the business safely as well as economically, the second of which is currently quite challenging due to the current low oil price. Nevertheless our OPEX in Germany are relatively low compared to the cost of assets in other regions that DEA is currently active in, meaning that we are still generating profit with our German activities,” he reveals. “In terms

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of production, during 2015 for example, we produced 60 billions of cubic feet (BCF) of gas and 4.7 million barrels of oil in Germany and almost 850,000 barrels of oil within Denmark (all DEA share).”

Within Germany DEA currently operates the Mittelplate field and production facilities in Holstein, including its artificial island situated seven kilometres west of the coast on the southern fringes of Schleswig-Holstein’s Wadden Sea National Park. The company also manages an onshore plant in Dieksand that also serves Mittelplate, meaning that the field has two facilities that produce from the same source and benefits from production that derives from both onshore and offshore exploitation.

DEA also maintains a strong presence within Lower Saxony, which represents the centre of Germany’s natural gas production with over 95 per cent of the natural gas produced in Germany coming from the federal state. The company’s facilities in the region comprise 38 natural gas production wells, a substantial gas treatment plant and a multi-compression plant, as well as a limited number of older oil wells.

The natural gas fields of Hemsbünde, Bötersen and Völkersen operated by DEA in the northwestern region of Lower Saxony are amongst the top ten of Germany’s highest-yielding fields and to date, the company has produced approximately 1,750 BCF of natural gas from a depth of around 5000 metres.

Within Bavaria DEA operates three underground storage facilities with a combined storage capacity of around 66 BCF, which makes the company one of the largest gas storage operators in Southern Germany. Its comprehensive network of storage infrastructure allows the company to provide gas storage solutions to third parties while supplying a

PROFILE

continued flow of gas to the German national grid. “As part of our overall strategy we do not store our own gas, meaning that the gas that we produce in Lower Saxony for example, is immediately sold and provided for use in the grid,” Uwe explains. “We currently operate short and long term contracts for both storage and injection activities with third party suppliers that rent our facilities.”

Within Denmark DEA has traditionally partnered with operator DONG Energy to undertake activities within the Nini East, Nini and Cecilie fields, however on 6 April 2016 the company was awarded with two new licenses that allow it to act as an operator within Denmark for the first time. DEA applied for two concessions as part of the 7th licensing round during October 2014. Together with the Dutch exploration and production company Dyas and the Danish state-owned company Nordsøfonden, DEA was recognised when awarding the licences and is now an operator in Denmark for the first time with a share of

DEA Deutsche Erdoel

50 per cent each in licences 8/16 and 9/16. The concession area of about 530 square kilometres is located in the southern Central Graben in the western part of the Danish North Sea. “We’re delighted to have been awarded these two licences as a positive supplement to our portfolio and that we’re now also represented as an operator in Denmark,” Uwe emphasises. “We see exploration potential in the region and it is certainly good news that we have been awarded two new exploration licences.”

Moving forward it is clear that DEA is in a strong position within the E&P market despite the current depressed price of oil.

Out of four major E&P companies operating within Germany today the company is the second largest and the only business to retain its own in-house drilling rigs. With a history of experience spanning over more than a century and the support of the LetterOne Group, DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG is set to continue as a market leading business in Germany, Denmark and beyond.

DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG dea-group.com

Services International exploration and production

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Reducing Operating as a highly regarded and

Imperative Energy Imperative Energy are the UK’s exclusive Schmid AG partner, having installed over 55MW of biomass boiler systems across the UK & Ireland since 2007. Every bespoke installation delivers a client focused solution. Facilitating Schmid’s entire range of industrial boiler technologies generating hot water & steam into diverse applications from education to distilling, agriculture, food process, dairy, sawmills and district heating.

Imperative Energy delivers complete turnkey design, assembly and installation service as well as lifetime service & maintenance including RHI guidance & support. We also provide competitive fuel supply contracts to complement your complete Schmid solution.

fully family owned business, Schmid AG Energy Solutions (Schmid) is a leading international specialist and manufacturer of systems and associated equipment for biomass energy applications. The company was founded during 1936 and has subsequently grown to employ around 300 people while establishing a trusted reputation with operators throughout the biomass energy industry globally. The willingness of Schmid to explore new avenues of opportunity is mirrored by its customer-focused services and company culture. Schmid develops pioneering innovations, while providing optimum levels of service through close proximity to its clients, a rapid decision making process and efficient manufacturing elements and procedures. “We are one of the oldest companies that is solely focused on the development of biomass energy,” observes Sales Director, Patrick Schär. “This is really quite important because we are always aware of biomass energy trends, normally as an industry pioneer.”

Schmid celebrated its 75th anniversary on the first weekend of July 2011 and held an open day event, during which guests were offered an insight into the company’s production procedures and its modern manufacturing facilities. During the celebrations the business officially entered into its third generation when after 52 years working for the company, the then CEO of Schmid Hans-Jürg Schmid handed over management of the organisation to his son-in-law Philipp Lüscher. Hans has since

186 ENERGY,oil&gas energy-oil-gas.com

taken on the role as Chairman of the Schmid advisory board and will continue to be involved with the company that he helped to build. “The company has defined my life, so it is obvious that I cannot simply give it up. I am withdrawing from the operational business and handing over management, but for the time being I will remain as chairman of the advisory board,” he explains.

“In addition I will continue as a consultant for the Innovations and Client Service division but with a smaller workload. The future CEO and company management have my full confidence.

I am certain that the Schmid Group will continue to lead the market with ground-breaking innovations and will remain an important player in the field of wood energy.”

With almost 80 years of industry experience, Schmid today continues to deliver marketleading biomass energy solutions. The comprehensive portfolio of product solutions provided by the company includes applications for domestic, industrial and cogeneration systems as well as dedicated aftersales support.

Within the domestic market it delivers power plants with a capacity of up to 250kW through the provision of an efficient wood firing system for detached homes or apartment buildings, while its industrial wood fire systems begin at 250kW upwards. Its most powerful installations serve the needs of a broad range of customers including individuals, the public sector, the timber industry, contractors and the agricultural and forestry sector. The company’s cogeneration systems provide intelligent furnace and gasifier units for generating sustainable electricity from wood, including organic rankine cycle (ORC) systems, hot-air turbines and wood gasifier units. “We’re a market leader in a country that implements one of the strictest standards in environmental protection worldwide. We have a long tradition in the industry, pushing and mastering the technology for decades,” says CEO, Philipp Lüscher. “We focus on what clients need and not on what we want to sell them. Every installation is customised to give the customer the best solution every time.”

The research and development of new technologies is regarded as a high priority for Schmid, which has greatly contributed to the company’s leading position within the biomass energy sector. Schmid maintains its own in-house testing installation at its company headquarters and has installed an air-cooled and water-cooled moving grate boiler and pellet furnaces, equipped with appropriate measuring

PROFILE

instruments. This allows Schmid energy to test innovative new solutions or carry out fuel trials on potential installations at any time and by undertaking in-house research and development operations the company is also able to ensure continued operation according to ISO 9001 certification as well as maintain the highest levels of environmental control.

Schmid actively promotes sustainable development by behaving in a professional and environmentally conscious way. By acting as a leading provider of biomass-based energy generation systems, the company not only aims to make a positive contribution towards mitigating climate change with its products, but also works to fulfil its environmental responsibilities as a leading business. “Within Switzerland there is an incentive tax on all hydrocarbon fuels that are not used for energy,” Patrick details. “Therefore there is increased interest within the renewable sector across an number of industry applications. This is something that is not as prevalent in most other

Schmid AG Energy Solutions

countries yet, but we expect similar incentives to come into existence. In countries where subsidies are awarded according to certification according to European standards we believe our technology has a significant advantage and this is something we expect to increase.”

During the coming months Schmid AG Energy Solutions will continue to build on its reputation as a leading European supplier of systems for biomass energy, while looking to increase its presence in international markets. There is currently significant interest in CO2 reduction technology in the US and the company is also interested in exploring potential markets in South America as well as opportunities in South Korea, Taiwan and mainland China. “We are excited to explore the growing international market with companies that have considerable background in energy and mechanical engineering,” Philipp concludes.

“We are also willing to invest in training potential new partners in all aspects of the business to cover client needs from end to end.”

We’re a market leader in a country that implements one of the strictest standards in environmental protection worldwide. We have a long tradition in the industry, pushing and mastering the technology for decades Schmid AG Energy Solutions schmid-energy.ch

Services Systems for biomass energy

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New

horizons Now a part of the

Rigmar group of companies, a globally leading source of support services to the offshore energy sector, Interocean was originally formed in 2007 to provide rig move services to the industry. “We were established primarily to focus on the marine and engineering services surrounding the requirement to relocate semi-submersible and jack-up rigs, and we have been very successful in doing this,” begins Group Development Manager, Duncan Cuthill. Historically the company has been active internationally in the UK, Canada, Angola, UAE and Singapore.

Interocean’s success comes from its market leading technical expertise and know-how in marine operations and offshore engineering, combined with its ability to provide flexible and cost effective solutions. The expansive range of services offered by Rigmar also helps to support and add value to its clients. Critically, with such a robust set of strengths at its core, the company is able to adapt its market offering in response to market conditions, something that is proving particularly useful in today’s pressurised oil and gas market.

“It is a very challenging environment to be in at the moment,” Duncan explains. “This means that we have to focus carefully on making our core business as efficient as possible. However, we have also found that a lot of our skills and

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competencies are very transferable and as such we are making significant efforts to diversify the business, both geographically and in terms of the service lines that we can provide.”

Over the past year, for example, Interocean has taken great strides in introducing an improved business management system, which underpins many of its activities, and this has allowed it to implement a new survey and positioning service in the market whilst ensuring quality demands are met. “Historically we would contract rig positioning services out to trusted third parties, but we have now brought this in-house, secured two major rig positioning contracts in the North Sea and recently completed our fourth rig positioning operation,” he continues. “We have also opened a new office in Newfoundland, Canada, as we have been carrying out offshore work in the region for a while and thought it necessary to develop our local presence further, especially amidst an increase in activity there. In addition to establishing and staffing our new office, our financial commitment to the area has included a significant investment in marine equipment.

This has already rewarded us with a contract with a major operator and we are starting to integrate with the local supply chain.”

Back in the North Sea, Interocean has recently secured a five year marine technical services

PROFILE

contract with a major oil & gas operating company and also been awarded the marine and engineering work for a major decommissioning project for a floating production installation.

Due to be completed in the third quarter of 2016, this contract is very important for the company as it looks to apply its skill set to a much broader range of activities. “This is almost a step change for us as it allows us to use our full range of marine and engineering expertise, and decommissioning will be a significant direction for us moving forward,” Duncan adds.

“However, beyond this we would also like to change the perception that we are firmly set within the oil and gas market.”

As a company, Interocean performs a number of other services in the wider marine industry, including being flag state inspectors for the Republic of Marshall Islands and the Republic of Vanuatu, providing casualty response, marine warranty and assurance services and mooring equipment hire and installation services. “It

company has been rewarded with new contracts, plus two contract renewals in the UKCS and the Eastern Mediterranean regions, Duncan carefully recognises that this doesn’t equal security. “We are very lucky having won these contracts and it demonstrates confidence in the quality of our services, but in order for us to get the work the activity needs to be there,” he says. “This is why we have made an effort to look outside of our traditional sphere of work to apply our skills to other applications and industries. Being part of the Rigmar Group helps to support this and gives us the chance to think a little bit more creatively as to where we can target our efforts.”

In this respect then it is no surprise that Interocean has set itself the vision to be recognised as a contractor perfectly capable of working across a broad range of sectors over the coming years. With a number of contracts under its belt and a clearly outlined expansion strategy, the business looks ready to experience even more success.

Interocean

Interocean interocean.co.uk

Services Marine and engineering consultant and contractor

is a real benefit for clients who would usually employ mainstream consultants to turn to someone like us who also has long standing experience of being a contractor,” Duncan says, commenting on the business’ consultancy capabilities. “We’ve done the hands-on stuff so it’s not a challenge for us to monitor work being carried out by another contractor.”

Breaking into the renewables sector will also be a key part of the company’s vision as it moves forward, with it recently completing a major survey and positioning project for offshore cable repair at a wind farm off the west coast of the UK. Diversifying in this way is a smart reaction to the current market conditions, and whilst the ENERGY,oil&gas

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further Reaching

aluminium dual drill pipe to counteract high torque and drag. “The special equipment that we have developed and proven through successful operations features a new drill string partly made of aluminium and that has the benefit of being very resistant to high torque that can cause wear and damage to components. We are also able to make the string buoyant so that the torque and drag in the horizontal drill section is greatly reduced, which is one of the main challenges with both horizontal and extended reach drilling,” explains Chief Technical Officer, Ola Vestavik. “This is possible since our solution allows the use of two different drilling fluids within the well at the same time. This enables improved wellbore stability due to stable pressure in the well during the drilling process and torque and drag reduction due to the buoyant pipe.”

Since the company

was founded during 2004, Reelwell AS has dedicated over a decade to the development and promotion of its pioneering Reelwell Drilling Method (RDM). Reelwell operates from its base within Stavanger, Norway from where it unveiled its RDM technology introducing new concepts that challenge traditional methods of Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) and Extended Reach Drilling (ERD). RDM employs revolutionary technology that utilises accurate pressure management and superior well control through the use of closed loop fluid circulation to push the limits of what was previously thought possible by the wider drilling industry. The application of RDM technology allows operators to access reservoirs that are considered to be extremely challenging or even impossible to drill conventionally, as well as to increase the overall efficiency of drilling operations.

The technology employed by the RDM is based on the use of a Dual Drill String (DDS) in which drilling fluid flows to the drill bit via the string annulus, while the return flow of liquid to the surface is through an inner string.

This process is achieved through the use of Top Drive Adapter (TDA), a dual conduit swivel that allows rotation of the drill string with the top drive. The TDA also routes drilling fluid from the top drive to the DDS annulus before the return flow is taken out via the TDA housing.

Since Reelwell was previously featured in Energy, Oil & Gas magazine during October 2015, the company has continued to develop its RDM technology through the introduction of a new ERD solution that incorporates an

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The RDM Inner Pipe Valve (IPV) features a barrier for controlled pressure drilling and enables pressure-less pipe connections. The RDM is regulated through the Flow Control Unit (FCU), a control valve arrangement through which all active drill fluid is routed. The FCU assures constant downhole pressure during drilling and pipeline connection, and the unit is equipped with pressure and flow sensors on both the drilling fluid inlet and return lines. Furthermore the Reelwell control panel is fully integrated with the well control and monitoring system of the drilling facility. The result of the process is that drilling fluid is pumped into the DDS annulus via the TDA and down to the IPV at the top of a conventional Bottom Hole Assembly (BHA). From the IPV, cuttings are transported back to the surface inside the inner string, ensuring that the hole remains clean at all times.

During March 2016, Reelwell announced the successful completion of trial well operations at the Killam land well in Alberta, Canada. Prior to being deployed in the field, the Ensign 127 rig was adapted and tested with the Reelwell equipment at a site in Nisku. The spud of the Killam land well in Alberta was performed on February 27, drilling a 20” vertical hole to 90 m and installing and cementing a 16” casing. The

PROFILE

Reelwell Drilling Method was deployed, using the Halliburton Geopilot Rotary Steerable System to drill the first part of the horizontal section to 1100m using the single fluid with a density of 1.1 sg. The well annulus fluid in the casing was displaced to a heavy fluid of density 1.6 sg.

The Reelwell Heavy Over Light (HOL) solution was used to continue drilling down to the target depth of 1510 m MD, 452 m TVD. The effect of HOL on torque and drag was measured by comparing torque and drag when the drill string was filled with respectively light and heavy fluid in both channels when the bit was at TD. The project was undertaken with support from Total, DEA, Petrobras, Halliburton and the Research Council of Norway and was concluded positively. The results including no lost time incidents, reduction of the MPD casing pressure from 25 bar to 3 bar, superior hole cleaning

and significant reduction of torque on the drill string, as predicted by the models. “We have been working hard on this technology for the past ten years now and we have done a lot of trialling and we have performed operations that have allowed us to adapt and further develop the technology. That takes time because there is a lot of testing required. We are grateful to our sponsors for the funds that has allowed us to demonstrate everything we wanted to demonstrate in terms of time and scope and can show that our equipment will work perfectly well every time with no downtime,” Ola concludes. “One of the reasons that the oil industry is so conservative is that it cannot afford mistakes, because everything is so expensive.

Now we can show that our solution is both proven and reliable and we plan to further penetrate the market and to execute operations all around the world. Our technology can make it easier to access hard to reach reserves more economically and allow operators to improve the recovery from the fields.”

Reelwell

One of the reasons that the oil industry is so conservative is that it cannot afford mistakes, because everything is so expensive. Now we can show that our solution is both proven and reliable and we plan to further penetrate the market and to execute operations all around the world Reelwell AS reelwell.no

Services Innovative drilling technology

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Conditioned for

success

AHI Carrier

, formerly known as AirConditioning & Heating International (AHI), became a Carrier joint venture company on December 18th 2008; however, the partnership between the companies dates back to December 1997, when the two signed their first agreement for the distribution of Carrier products in Russia as well as all CIS countries (12 countries).

Following this development, Carrier and Toshiba Air-conditioning entered into a joint venture, which led to Toshiba’s air-conditioning product portfolio being added for distribution in AHI Carrier’s territories. Success came quickly, with Carrier rewarding AHI Carrier with expanded distribution rights to East and Central Africa; more countries were added after the creation of AHI Carrier in 2008, such as the Middle East, Central and South Eastern Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, bringing the total to 42 countries.

Key to the success of AHI Carrier is its versatile and aggressive sales structure, which is comprised of sales offices and dealer network, and builds sales support functions in a centralised back office in Sharjah, UAE. This strategic way of operating focuses on economies of scale and enables AHI Carrier to respond swiftly to opportunities when it comes to sales;

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alongside this, the company has built a superior system of product specification and technical support, logistics co-ordination, finance and MIS. However, the most critical factor in AHI Carrier’s trend for success and profit is its commitment to service, a commitment that will only grow over the coming years.

Indeed, setting the foundation for AHI Carrier’s strong global reputation is its dedication to customer care; with the provision of the best possible service a top priority, the company aims to achieve 100 per cent satisfaction, which will further build on its strong, loyal and ever-increasing client base. On top of this, the company focuses on performance, which it views as a testament to its abilitities in delivering on its promises to clients; employee development through the building of a culture centred on inspiration and mutual respect and good business practices. Indeed, the company is driven by a fundamental sense of global citizenship and responsibility through maintaining the highest ethical and environmental standards; it also actively supports the communities where it conducts business.

Another key strength for the company is its connection to Darwish Bin Ahmed Group UAE, one of the major business houses in UAE,

PROFILE

which has diversified interests in construction, automotive and real estate in addition to HVAC. Under the Darwish Bin Ahmed Group UAE, AHI Carrier is further able to perform with confidence in the market.

In locations such as Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East the company has set up TOTALINE stores, with many more stores due to be added. These stores stock and sell a comprehensive range of HVACR parts, consumables and tools for residential and commercial applications. Moreover, AHI Carrier also now distributes Carrier and Toshiba HVAC products in 63 and 50 countries respectively.

With an annual turnover close to $500 million dollars, the company has developed a strong reputation in sectors such as airport, commercial, educational, hospital, hotel, industrial, office complex and the oil & gas. Within the oil & gas industry AHI Carrier provides engineered solutions for HVAC, E&I systems for oil and gas, energy, mining and petrochemical projects across the globe; this work includes providing appropriate HVAC, E&I system designs that are capable of handling challenging and harsh environments such as extreme temperatures, corrosive conditions and explosion proof zones. Services include HVAC engineering and

AHI Carrier FZC

design validation, customisation, electrical and instrumentation, project delivery, commissioning and completion and after-sales support.

HVAC engineering and design validation includes cooling/heating load estimation, optimised selection of HVAC equipment and subsystems, detailed data sheets, ducting and piping layouts, layout detailing with service/maintenance access; inter-discipline co-ordination, 3D modeling, compliance to international standards and technical document translation. Meanwhile, customisation offers customers protection from corrosion, extremely low temperature, highly efficient air filtration and hazardous environments. Electrical and instrumentation services include SLD, panel internal arrangement and wiring design and assembly and functional testing at the motor control centre for HVAC equipment. This service also includes control panel and instrumentation for HVAC systems, such as control philosophy, cause and effect analysis, D & ID, P & ID, instrument calibration, instrument calibration, control panel internal arrangement and wiring design, loop drawings and field interface diagrams and integrated FAT. Project delivery includes project scheduling and planning, procurement, export documentation,

Setting the foundation for AHI Carrier’s strong global reputation is its dedication to customer care; with the provision of the best possible service a top priority, the company aims to achieve 100 per cent satisfaction, which will further build on its strong, loyal and ever-increasing client base

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PROFILE

AHI Carrier FZC

packing and storage and insurance, while commissioning and completion includes services such as integrity check for full systems, verification on compliance to intent/specifications and technical service reporting to conclude all systems components work to the design reference.

After-sales support includes the establishment of SPIL/SPIR, the provision of quote support for operational spares, option to provide local/remote annual inspection/ maintenance contract and the maintaining of the information database for technical updates and upgrades.

With blue chip organisations such as Shell, Technip, Total and Siemens within its impressive customer base, AHI Carrier has cemented its reputation for delivering optimum quality solutions. Recent projects for the company include working on Ichthys Onshore LNG Facilities in Australia, which represents the largest discovery of hydrocarbon liquids in Australia in 40 years and has a total project value of $33 billion.

Currently in the construction phase, the Ichthys LNG project is viewed as one of the most significant oil and gas projects in the world as it involves some of the largest offshore facilities in the industry, a cutting edge onshore processing facility and an 889 km pipeline that connects them for an operational life of at least four decades. AHI Carrier’s part in this major project involved the design, validation and supply of major HVAC equipment; this was completed in 2013.

One year later, the company was awarded a contract for work for the South Tambey field LNG plant project in Yamal peninsula.

One of the largest industrial undertakings in the Arctic, this project is focused on the development of one of the largest natural gas projects and is estimated to cost $27 billion in total. AHI Carrier’s role in this project includes the detailed engineering of 52 modules, including 3D modeling, procurement and delivery as well as certification and permits and services on site. This project is particularly challenging due to its location in the estuary of the Ob river, which is ice bound nine months of the year. The company is the main HVAC subcontractor, installation scope excluded, for this project; engineering is due for completion in the final quarter of 2016, while the delivery of equipment is anticipated to be completed by summer 2017.

With an experienced team at its helm, wholly

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capable of taking on challenges in the industry, AHI Carrier appears to have a bright future ahead as it further cements its leading position in the market through the successful delivery of demanding projects across the globe.

AHI Carrier FZC ahi-carrier.com

Services HVAC distribution

PROFILE

St1 Biofuels Oy

Challenging the

conventional Established in 2006

as a subsidiary of Nordic energy firm St1 Nordic Oy, St1 Biofuels Oy’s mission is to replace fossil fuels in a competitive and sustainable way through the creation of a sustainable bioethanol production concept that can be used widely.

“We were set up within the St1 group because of a bio mandate that states bio components must be added to the fuel St1 sells. Since our formation we have focused on developing and producing technology and bio components from different waste and side streams; at first we did this as a joint venture between a Finnish based research centre to provide technology for the production of ethanol from food industry waste.

When the research centre sold its shares to St1, we continued on this track and have since built several plants for the production of ethanol from food industry waste; we have also developed a plant for bio waste from kitchen waste,” begins Patrick Pitkanen, Head of Sales and Business Development at St1 Biofuels Oy. Today a pioneer in waste-based bioethanol production, the ISO9001:2008 certified company has five plants built in Finland, four of which are Etanolix plants and one is Bionolix; all plants produce ethanol from biowaste. These locations include Hameenlinna Bionolix, which is integrated with a biogas plant and uses municipal biowaste collected by municipality company Kiertokapula Oy, biowaste from household, retail and industries for feedstock. With a production capacity of 1 MI/a bioethanol, the location also creates electricity, heat and stillage as side products.

Another location is Lahti Etanolix, which is

integrated with Oy Hartwall Ab brewery, has a production capacity of one MI/a bioethanol and uses brewery, bakery waste and process residues bread waste for feedstock; side products produced are liquid animal feed. There is also the Hamina dehydration plant, which dehydrates the hydrous ethanol that is produced in St1 Biofuel’s Etanolix and Bionolix plants as well as from third party producers; this plant has a production capacity of 88 MI/a of 99.8 per cent of bioethanol.

As fossil resources become scarcer, climate concerns grow and renewable energy obligations increase, St1 Biofuels’ solution of recycling waste into bioethanol is both profitable and sustainable. Indeed, bioethanol made from waste not only reduces CO2 emissions by up to 90 per cent in comparison to fossil fuels, but also makes no direct or indirect change to farmland usage. The company currently offers Etanolix or Bionolix alternatives to customers, with Etanolix plants refining waste and residues that are rich in starch and sugar into 99.8 per cent bioethanol; this can then be used in high blend ethanol fuels or as a bio component in low blends. A Bionolix plant, meanwhile, makes it possible to produce sustainable biofuel from municipal and commercial biowaste, including out-of-date food; the ethanol produced can be used for a number of applications.

However, as a forerunner in technology, the company is keen to continue growing through the development of new innovative solutions and announced the construction of the world’s first commercial facility to produce cellulosic ethanol from sawdust, which will initially ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

St1 Biofuels Oy

produce 10 Mliters of the biofuel annually.

This major milestone follows research and development that has resulted in a technology that enables the company to use sawdust from soft wood such as pine and spurge at a reduced production cost; it also enables cost efficient logistics and limited capital exposure.

Located in Kajaani, Finland, the facility is to be co-located at a sawmill site and will use steamexplosion to open the cellulosic structures of the sawdust before using enzymatic hydrolysis to get cellulose to sugars for ethanol fermentation.

“It soon became clear that the volumes of waste technology are limited; in response to this we made the strategic decision to develop the Cellunolix ethanol plant in Finland, which will use sawdust as its raw material,” explains Patrick. “This plant will generate ten million litres of bioethanol per year once it is complete; it is currently under construction and should be commissioning in 2016 and ready for operation in 2017.” The plant is owned by North European Bio Tech (NEB) a joint venture between St1 and a retail specialist associated company of SOK Corporation.

Because Northern Europe has a large industrial sector based on forestry, the development of this new plant opens up opportunities for the commercial production of cellulosic ethanol based on softwood.

Furthermore, the biorefinery supports the climate and energy strategy of Finland following the implementation of a mandate to increase the share of renewable energy in transport up to 20 per cent by 2020. “Using sawdust is economical for many countries as there are big players who can deliver large quantities; because of this, we are now looking at expanding into the US,

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Canada and also Europe where soft wood is largely harvested. Our plan is to finalise the plant and then look for the next plant, which will be bigger, in Finland, Sweden or Norway. Although there is a lot of opportunity to expand into new markets with our technology, right now we will be focused on seeing how this plant operates,” says Patrick.

Indeed, with a strong reputation and several successful plants in place, the next step for St1 Biofuels is expansion into Western Europe through licensing agreements that will enable other firms to use its cutting-edge production technology. However, for now the company will continue with getting its new plant online, while also continuing with research projects that will optimise the production process. “We believe this plant has great potential for being licensed to other countries, which is why we want to ensure to product is operating well before we seek out the right customers in the future,” concludes Patrick.

It soon became clear that the volumes of waste technology are limited; in response to this we made the strategic decision to develop the Cellunolix ethanol plant in Finland, which will use sawdust as its raw material St1 Biofuels Oy st1biofuels.com

Products Waste-based advanced biofuels

RAVESTEIN

SKYJACK Ravestein is building a 3000 tonne capacity submersible jack-up dock (patent) called SKYJACK 3000.

The SKYJACK 3000 is 60 metres long and 28 metres wide with a payload of 3000 tonnes.

The legs are 52 metres long with a diameter of two metres.

The submersible SKYJACK 3000 is currently under construction at Ravestein’s own shipyard facility on the River Waal at Deest, The Netherlands and will be ready for charter in June 2016.

SKYJACK is a submersible jack-up dock, which is able to operate offshore at high capacity to enable the delivery of equipment needed for offshore projects and to take redundant equipment away for repair or re-cycling, as well as for the transport of heavy parts for the purpose of offshore windfarms.

The design is unique, as it does not need cranes, being a float-on float-off submersible and towable platform. Which also gives the SKYJACK the ability to be used as a barge to transport equipment, as it has a large deck area complete with a control room on top of the jackhouse.

By being non-propelled, this kept the unit simple and cost effective to construct and to transport by way of a tug.

Ravestein is able to offer a complete package of full logistics and operations, including marine engineering and project management.

Ravestein has also developed a 16,000 tonnes capacity SKYJACK (with Lloyd’s Class) that could be built for specific jobs. For example, the transport of gravity bases for offshore wind farms and dismantling oilrigs - a market that it expected to grow significantly during the next 20 years. Two SKYJACKS with a total capacity of 32,000 tonnes can be used for oil & gas platform de-commissioning works. This is to be done by jacking it up from its jacket and removing it. A methodology for dismantling rigs has been devised by Ravestein.

Ravestein BV Waalbandijk 11 6653KD Deest Netherlands +31 (0) 487 51 20 34 sales@ravestein.nl

Full power control for industry grids ENEAS power management

Integrated monitoring and control with automatic generation control and fast load shedding improves reliability of industrial power grids. We support your grid operator with the ENEAS power management system (PMS). This leads to reduced downtime for production and optimum spinning reserve. You don’t have to worry about power import control and stable frequency/voltage in island mode.

PMS automatically detects different island conditions and selects the optimal operation mode.

The all-in-one user interface provides fast and easy access to all required information. Various levels of operator training will support improved grid operation. Scenario analysis using real-time simulation adds even more security for complex grid situations.

Give your industry grid a kick and profit from full power system control with ENEAS power management.

siemens.com/eneas-pms

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Schofield Publishing Ltd 10 Cringleford Business Centre Intwood Road Cringleford Norwich NR4 6AU T: +44 (0) 1603 274130 F: +44 (0) 1603 274131 Editor Libbie Hammond libbie@schofieldpublishing.co.uk Sales Director Joe Woolsgrove jwoolsgrove@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

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