BP – Teaming up with fellow operator to unlock UKCS resources

Submitted by BP

Impact

Shared exploration costs by cooperating on main wellbore and side-track locations, saving XYZ %

Description of Best Practice

BP has worked cooperatively with fellow operator, GDF SUEZ E&P UK Ltd (part of the ENGIE Group), to increase exploration activity and help maximise economic recovery from untapped oil and gas resources in a mature play in the Central North Sea. Using advanced seismic data enhancement techniques and careful analysis of preexisting well data, BP’s exploration team identified a prospect named ‘Vorlich’ in the central North Sea. The challenge was to see if they could drill and test this cost-effectively and expeditiously. In the UKCS, the days of simple quick finds are behind us. Finds are now in small and complex structures, which are challenging, requiring a large amount of time and forensic effort to properly understand. The high drilling costs in the basin can also quickly erode the value of smaller opportunities, making new discoveries increasingly rare.

Ronnie Parr, BP Geophysical Advisor, said: “We identified that drilling the main wellbore into the BP acreage was the optimum exploration location, but a side-track into GDF SUEZ E&P UK Ltd’s neighbouring licence block would allow us to confirm the scale of the resource and its extent, so BP and GDF SUEZ E&P UK Ltd jointly designed the well to test and appraise Vorlich across both blocks. GDF SUEZ E&P UK Ltd operated the well in 2014 in partnership with BP which allowed both companies to share exploration costs, resulting in a successful, potentially commercial, oil discovery”. “At a time when exploration in the UKCS is facing severe investment and cost pressures, we believe the Vorlich project has demonstrated that two UK operators can work together to apply their expertise, expedite a project efficiently and maximise recovery of the considerable remaining resource. We believe there is great potential for other operators on the UKCS to find new ways to work together to ensure that oil and gas is not left stranded and undeveloped.”

Other partners in Marconi / Vorlichare: DEA UK SNSLimited, Maersk Oil North Sea UK Limited and Total E&PUK Limited.

WorleyParsons and BG Group deliver industry first

In response to demand from customer BG Group to replace defective caissons more quickly, WorleyParsons introduced an industry first by developing a new technique for removing caissons, the pillars which underpin many North Sea platforms, a new method which not only allowed the job to be done in a third of the time but was also safer.

In April 2014, subsea defects on the Lomond platform’s C6 caisson were identified along with badly corroded internal dip pipes. Given that the caisson was located directly above a gas export line which it had the potential to damage if dropped, the risk of some part detaching during the removal process had to be mitigated.

WorleyParsons pumped expanding foam down the caisson, fully encapsulating corroded internal dip pipes. This removed the risk of them detaching during removal and falling onto a gas export line located below and allowed the top of the caisson to be cut away in larger sections than before, saving time and reducing cost.

This innovation improved efficiency by enabling the caisson to be removed in eight weeks, where more traditional methods would have taken 22. The process demonstrates the power of collaboration and holds promise for the future, as BG Group plans to use this technology for the removal of similar caissons on other North Sea assets.

Finding new, innovative ways of working is can help secure the future of our industry and will help to make the industry. BG Group’s Vice President, UK Operated Assets, Steve Cox, commented:

“As an industry, we need to work together to develop innovative methods and technologies. This solution has been an outstanding achievement and is testament to great team work and commitment from all companies involved and has the potential to be used for any other similar caissons in poor condition.”

View a video describing the project here.

Centrica – Unlocking the Portfolio: Hackathon

Submitted by Centrica

Impact

The Hackathon has been the catalyst for a culture change in how we do business. Centrica’s relationships with its supply chain partners are now closer and more collaborative, with regular, positive meetings with the likes of ADIL, Oceaneering, Ramboll and Cortez coming directly on the back of the event.

Through work with Ramboll, capital expenditure projections on the development of two gas fields was cut by nearly 50%, with the introduction of new equipment already in use outside the UKCS and the associated change in contracting strategy. This positive result stimulated further investigation into this equipment, and the investigation has now been widened to embrace the broader Centrica portfolio.

The Hackathon has also broken down barriers along the supply chain and created a wider spirit of collaboration with and between our contractors.  The culture shift has gone wider than just those involved in the Hackathon directly, however, and the positive results we have seen thanks to our improved relationships with these contractors has changed the way we do business with all of our supply chain partners.

Post-Hackathon, closer working with the companies such as Wood Group and Hydrawell has added value to our business and theirs.

The Hackathon has proved that by breaking down the barriers between operators and contracting companies and having honest conversations about what can be done better, projects and investment in the UK can be unlocked to the benefit of the supply chain, the wider industry and lead to a more sustainable, lower cost, efficient North Sea region.

Description of Best Practice

As 80% of Centrica’s annual spend is with our supply chain partners, we understand that working closely with these contracting companies is crucial to our success and the success of the basin.  At the Oil & Gas UK Share Fair 2014, we resolved to bring a more collaborative approach to our relationships with all our suppliers; the aim was to break the trend on steadily rising capital expenditure costs, whether that be with improved ways of working new technologies or standardising processes or equipment.

The Unlocking the Portfolio event was designed to find ways for the business and its partners to collaborate more closely on technology to make projects more competitive in the current low oil price climate. The event took place in March 2015 with around 70 new and existing contractors meeting us and each other to discuss projects stuck in the pipeline and the challenges we faced.  It was an opportunity for everyone to share knowledge, experience, and capabilities – as well as highlight areas where Centrica could improve its own processes and increase the viability of our projects.

During the day-long event, contractors were challenged to work together and find solutions for stalled projects.  Each session was facilitated by Centrica’s ‘Pioneering Practitioners’.  During each session ideas were generated, and these ideas and their cost savings potential were collated throughout the day, to give us a final estimate of the savings which could be made.  Hundreds of ideas were submitted across the day.  The business aims to develop these ideas in the months and years ahead to push ahead with projects, which are currently uneconomic.

Within our own organisation, several ideas have already been implemented on decommissioning projects as well as on a new project in Morecambe Bay – the use of a multi-skilled workforce on the North Morecambe Project which has provided efficiency without excessive strain on cost, as well as improving scheduling during a busy shutdown period.  The savings identified for individual projects range from 6% to more than 50%, and some of the ideas are applicable beyond the specific projects which were the focus of the Hackathon.

Since holding the Hackathon, we have shared our experiences with Oil & Gas UK, fellow operators and industry organisations.  Given the challenges everyone in the industry is facing, we also recognised that the learnings and ideas we collected during the day and in follow-up sessions would be beneficial to others. To that end, we have shared information with Oil & Gas UK and groups like the Small Pools Technology Development group.

Contact:  Ross Davidson, Centrica