The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) has highlighted the crucial nature of new technologies in improving and speeding up P&A operations in cementing the UK’s position as a world-leader in cost-effective decommissioning.
Over the last few years, smart technologies have been piloted in the UK Continental Shelf to help the sector build upon its reputation for innovation and cost-efficiency. Despite strong process, many more are still awaiting field trials.
Last month NSTA, along with the Net Zero Technology Centre, hosted a showcase event where more than 20 technology providers displayed their new technology to an audience of around 20 international operators. The event aimed to raise awareness of the technologies and encourage operators to facilitate more field trials every year.
Some of the showcased technologies included alternative materials with the potential to create barriers in the well, such as resigns, polymers and bismuth, and logging and perforating tools designed to make the P&A process more efficient.
In the UKCS, around 1,500 wells will be due for decommissioning between 2026 and 2030, presenting the industry a golden opportunity to test innovative P&A technologies to demonstrate how they can save operators time and money.
Not only do innovative technologies play an integral role in ensuring operators comply with their regulatory obligations in terms of decommissioning assets, but those technologies which prove successful will likely be in demand globally in areas such as Australia, Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico as the demand for decommissioning processes in those basins continues to rise.
Carlo Procaccini, Chief Technical Officer at the NSTA, said, “In the UK, we’re fortunate to have a supply chain which consistently produces ground-breaking technologies for offshore operations, including well decommissioning. However, the full potential of this innovation can only be unleashed if suppliers are given a chance to show what they can do in the field. With the current high volumes of well P&A activity, I encourage operators to offer field trials to progress innovation and make the most of the savings on offer.”
