Oil and Gas Technology NEWS

Operational Excellence (Opex) Group has backed a multimillion pound contract with Cnooc. It is a three-year deal for Cnooc International's North Sea assets. Opex will roll out its predictive analysis technology at the Buzzard, Golden Eagle and Scott platforms. Also, ts X-pas service will use data science to monitor all the installations. "We are pleased to have extended our scope across the company’s UKCS assets", said Chief Executive of Opex.

A new single-trip openhole and sidetrack system has been launched by Weatherford. The system can initiate sidetrack operations without a cement plug. AlphaST will enhance operator flexibility, eliminate multiple trips, and avoid costly cementing operations. Weatherford's President said, "AlphaST enables operators to avoid the cost and time of setting a cement plug; waiting on cement to dry and time drilling".

With an aim to enhance the drilling efficiency, Halliburton has released first 3D reservoir mapping technology. This is a new logging-while-drilling (LWD) capability which will significantly improve well placement in complex reservoirs. It will give a detailed representation of subsurface structures. "In complex formations, visualizing data in a 3D environment helps operators significantly enhance reservoir understanding to drive better drilling decisions and maximize asset value", said VP of Sperry Drilling.

BHGE and C3.ai are entering into a joint venture with an aim to deliver digital transformation technologies to the industry. BHGE's CEO said, "The oil and gas industry is rapidly evolving, and digital technology is critical to achieving increased levels of productivity, efficiency and safety for ourselves and for our customers,". C3.ai technologies including C3 AI Suite and applications will be marketed and deployed in the industry business immediately.

Halliburton has introduced new technology in the market, Flex Managed Pressure Drilling System (MPD). It is a scalable and mobile technology which is designed to deliver greater rig efficiency. It assists the driller to control backpressure or choke position while drilling, tripping and making connections by providing a single, straightforward display. By deploying real-time hydraulic modelling, the system can also be used as a full MPD solution.

Expro is an international oilfield services company which has recently added two new well access solutions in its portfolio. Apart from this, the company has also established subsea landing string system technologies. These advancements have led to the expansion of its subsea intervention capabilities. The Intervention Riser System (IRS) and Riserless Well Intervention (RWI) system are the two new solutions introduced by Expro.

Last year, Total signed an agreement with Alphabet Inc.’s Google to work on developing AI solutions for the subsurface data analysis. Working on the same lines, Arnaud Breuillac, Total's head of E&P, recently informed in a conference about the digital factory to be set up by the company. This factory will employ 200 to 300 engineers in order to build the North sea project successfully using AI.

The world's first remote-activated, single-trip deepwater completion system has been introduced by Weatherford. This system reduces the installation time between 40% and 60% and rig time by four to six days. The system deploys radio-frequency identification technology and delivers intervention less operation in producer and injector wells. Weatherford's TR1P combines the upper and lower completions in one trip and has set a new industry benchmark.

Transocean has entered into an agreement with its customer, Equinor, wherein the company will license and install Automated Drilling Control (ADC). ADC will be installed on the four rigs which are currently working in Norway and the fifth rig which is expected to commence its operations soon in the Norweigan sea. CEO commented, "The ADC upgrades advance our automation efforts and further enhance our industry-leading fleet of semi-submersibles".

Baker Hughes, a GE Company has introduced MILLITE lightweight frac plug. This frac plug is said to be different from the conventional plugs available in the market. The plug has been constructed using alloy material and does not contain any heavy metal or ceramic part. MILLITE enables smooth milling and enhanced clean up. Further, it eliminates the preset risk and has safe run-in rates in excess of 600 ft/min.

Baker Hughes, a GE company has taken an initiative to enhance oil production, optimize production and save costs in Oman. The energy major has joined forces with the Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) for the same. They will be opening the first artificial lift systems assembly and repair facility in Oman in order to support PDO’s operations and customers in the region.

Siemens and Aker Solutions have decided to improve digital offerings in engineering, operations and services. Both the companies have joined a pact for the same and will aim at creating software applications and joint service offerings. This will help in the efficiency growth during the entire plant lifecycle. The oil and gas sector specific offerings will be inspired from Siemens’ Comos engineering platform which will reduce engineering and operational costs.

BHGE has come up with a new deepwater modular technology, combining planning and risk management. The company has informed about the launch of Subsea Connect, and Aptara TOTEX-lite subsea system, a new approach towards subsea development. It also unravels additional 16 Bbbl of global reserves. It will provide 4 key solutions: Project Connect, Reservoir to Topsides Technology Solutions, Flexible Partnerships and Commercial Models and Digital Enablement.

Focusing on digital transformation, Gazprom Neft has decided on improving the efficiency of oil business processes through it. The board of directors of the company have reviewed and approved on the use of innovative digital technologies for the same. Gazprom is developing its strategy for the digital transformation of business, the first stage of which is expected to finish by 2022.

Many technologies have been developed in the recent past to soak oil spills, but they suffered from one or the other limitation. Recently, researchers at the Chinese Academy of Forestry have developed reusable wood sponges to soak oil spills from water bodies. It has been made by Xiaoqing Wang and colleagues from the Academy. The tests revealed that the sponge absorbs 16 to 41 times its own weight.

Houston’s Nine Energy Service acquired downhole technology provider company, Magnum Oil Tools International. With this acquisition, Nine Energy becomes one of the premier providers of completion focused technology. Magnum has a large scale of proprietary downhole completion products like dissolvable and composite frac plugs, and other patented consumables. Nine’s President and CEO commented, “We could not be more thrilled to partner with Magnum.”

Saudi Aramco Exploration and Petroleum Engineering Centre is planning on developing an Extreme Expandable Packer for its Thru-tubing Water Shut-off challenge. For this, Saudi Aramco has awarded a three year contract to Pragma Well Technology Ltd. worth over $700,000. Pragma's Technical Director says, 'These printing machines can manufacture parts that would be impossible using traditional reductive techniques, making extreme expansion solutions possible'.

Tendeka is an international global completion service company of Europe. The company has launched a collection of applications, known as MajiFrac Solution. This new technology is designed to specifically reduce usage of water and pumping time in shale plays during completion operations in the US. The various technologies and product ranges under MajiFrac can be used individually or collectively.