Fairfield Energy recently announced the removal of the topsides from Dunlin Alpha platform which is the latest milestone in the decommissioning of the four fields which make up the Greater Dunlin Area.
Following the hook down and removal activities undertaken by the HAF Consortium (Heerema Marine Contractors and AF Offshore Decom) last month, Heerema’s SSCV Sleipnir transferred the remaining modules to its deck before removing the main 11,750-tonne Module Support Frame (MSF) in a single lift. The Sleipnir then returned to AF Offshore Decom’s Environmental Base at Vats where more than 95% of the Dunlin topsides will be recycled.
The Dunlin Alpha installation, located approximately 137 km northeast of Shetland and in a water depth of 151 m, produced its first oil in 1978. In the 37 years that followed, more than 522 million barrels of oil were recovered from the Greater Dunlin Area, comprising the Dunlin, Dunlin S/W, Osprey and Merlin fields. Fairfield Energy acquired the assets in 2008 and took over full operatorship in 2014, maximising production during its late-life stage and then progressing its subsequent decommissioning programmes.
Alan Scott, General Manager for the Greater Dunlin Area Decommissioning Project said, “This is a poignant milestone for an installation which has been a central part of UK North Sea production since the industry’s earlier days. Notably, in 1978 it was the first field to produce into the Sullom Voe Terminal on Shetland, paving the way for the many which came after.
“The Greater Dunlin Area itself has made its mark but it’s important not to forget the thousands of people who have visited or called the platform their working home. Dunlin has always been blessed with a strong team spirit and this is another core part of its legacy, having influenced the careers of many across the industry. I’d like to thank everyone who has been involved with Dunlin over the years, helping the asset overcome any challenges and achieve its many successes,” Alan Scott added.
An agreement was reached with the UK authorities in 2015 that the fields had reached Maximum Economic Recovery (MER), enabling Fairfield to begin the multi-asset, multi-year decommissioning of the Greater Dunlin Area. Since then, Fairfield has developed, consulted upon and gained the approval for its decommissioning proposals and executed a series of scopes which, at their peak, employed 600 personnel from over 26 drilling, subsea and topside operations companies.
Gary Farquhar, Platform and Infrastructure Decommissioning Manager said, “Project execution has involved the P&A of 12 Osprey and four Merlin subsea wells; the decommissioning of the extensive subsea infrastructure associated with those satellite fields; the decommissioning of subsea power import, gas import and oil export infrastructure; the P&A of 45 platform wells; and the engineering down of the Dunlin Alpha topsides. We are pleased to have added Topsides Removal to the list of activities that have been safely and efficiently executed.”
Global well integrity and production optimisation expert Coretrax has successfully deployed the ReLineMNS system across three wells and expanded a total of more than 27,000 ft of tubulars, a world record-breaking project in the Utica Basin, for a major gas operator with its ReLine Expandable Technology.
With one of the expandable liners reaching 9,000 ft in its expansion, all installations smashed the previously held record of 7,243 ft by at least 1,000 ft.
The total setting time from beginning expansion to exiting the top of the liner took only nine hours per well over a total of seven days on location. Covering the well integrity issue with one full-length liner, the overall setting time was significantly less than that of competing products on the market, setting at approximately 1,000ft per hour.
Coretrax’s technology was deployed into each of the wells with a 4.25” outer diameter liner. On expansion of the liner, the post-expansion of the inner diameter was 4.1” with an internal pressure capability of well over 10,000 psi, covering the wellbore issues identified.
Scott Benzie, Chief Technical Officer at Coretrax said, "Our advanced no shoe expandable technology allows operators to effectively isolate well integrity issues and immediately proceed with their next operations without the requirement to drill out a shoe, enabling our clients access to huge time and cost savings on their projects."
“The engineered materials used in the expandable technology ensure reliability is maintained through the operation, resulting in a consistent expansion reflecting our attention to detail.
“Our highly skilled team members from the operations and applications departments were key to the success of this world record, and delivering our valuable services for each well. This project pays testament to the strong and trusting relationship we have built with our client.”
Ithaca Energy, an oil and gas operator has contracted Well-Safe Solutions to plug and abandon (P&A) six wells on the Anglia Platform in the Southern North Sea.
The contract – for an undisclosed sum – will see the Aberdeen-based well decommissioning specialists provide project management, well engineering and all managed delivery services for the project.
The Well-Safe Protector, a heavy-duty harsh environment jack-up rig, is nearing the end of extensive technical preparations and will mobilise to the field in late summer 2022.
Matt Jenkins, Chief Operating Officer at Well-Safe Solutions, said, “This full-service contract is further vindication of our operating model and allows Ithaca to realise the benefits of Well-Safe’s extensive experience in the Southern North Sea. Well-Safe delivers environmentally-friendly and cost-effective well decommissioning operations, unlocking key learnings over multi-well, multi-operator campaigns."
An option to P&A an additional three subsea wells is also available during 2023.
Jane Eddie, Bid Manager, added, “We have worked closely with Ithaca Energy to design a contract which meets their needs and – crucially – those of Offshore Energies UK, the North Sea Transition Authority and other industry stakeholders.”
“Our team is uniquely positioned to support Ithaca Energy with their decommissioning obligations, as we are the first UK-based company with owner-operated rigs to exclusively perform well P&A operations.”
Ricky Thomson, OEUK Decommissioning Manager, said, “Decommissioning has a crucial role to play in helping the UK deliver its net zero ambitions, as outlined in the North Sea Transition Deal. The UK’s decommissioning industry has an incredibly exciting future ahead, and projects like this will be vitally important to realising those ambitions.
This contract announcement follows recent news of Well-Safe Solutions’ purchase of the WilPhoenix semi-submersible rig from Awilco Drilling. The rig will now undergo conversion for well P&A activity and has been renamed the Well-Safe Defender.
Esso Australia Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil Australia Pty Ltd and operator of the Gippsland Basin Joint Venture recently announced the commencement of a technical tender process for decommissioning of a number of its facilities in the Bass Strait.
The company is said to be requesting technical submissions from a number of experienced offshore heavy lift contractors for this initial tender phase, who will each outline how they propose to undertake the platform removal activities required.
“Given the complexity of decommissioning offshore facilities, we expect each vendor will propose a unique approach to platform removal in the Bass Strait, based on their capabilities and experience,” said ExxonMobil Australia Chair, Dylan Pugh.
“We will then consider all the options presented, ensuring they meet our own, community and regulator expectations, before moving onto the final commercial tender process next year,” added Dylan.
Over the last few years, Esso Australia has completed around $600mn of early decommissioning works in the Bass Strait, including successfully removing the Seahorse and Tarwhine facilities, completing plug and abandonment activities on our Blackback and Whiting wells, and significantly progressing well-decommissioning activities on Kingfish B and Mackerel.
“As the operator of some of Australia’s most mature oil and gas fields, Esso Australia is committed to safely and responsibly decommissioning our Bass Strait offshore facilities,” said Pugh.
“As we continue to progress these important early decommissioning works, this technical tender is an important step in preparing for the eventual decommissioning of a number of our facilities that are to cease production in the near future.”
Energy services provider Danos has been awarded the opportunity to support the Promethean Decommissioning Company (PDC) and Petrofac alliance, to decommission multiple facilities in shallow water fields in the Gulf of Mexico.
CEO Paul Danos said, “Danos is honoured to join the efforts with PDC and Petrofac to provide safe and efficient operational and construction support for the alliance. We look forward to planning and executing this project with our partners and applying our 75 years of experience, safety and operational excellence in the Gulf of Mexico.”
The project, which began at the end of May, includes ten platforms, 196 wells and 32 pipeline segments in the South Pass and East Break fields of the Gulf.
This multi-year programme will allow Danos to support the PDC and Petrofac alliance and its decommissioning program with several of its service lines, including production workforce, construction, fabrication, and instrumentation and electrical.
Danos has many years of experience supporting decommissioning work through various service lines in the Gulf of Mexico as well as internationally.
“Having been appointed decommissioning operator for this project, we are delighted to have Danos join us and support the alliance we have formed with Petrofac. Together, our mission is to deliver safe, lean, integrated, best practices and technology-driven decommissioning operations which will reflect the highest ESG standards and include the minimising of GHG emissions/intensity and the environmental footprint of operations. Danos’ experience and knowledge will prove invaluable to the successful delivery of this program,” said Aditya Singh, President of Promethean Energy.
“Danos’ longstanding relationships in the Gulf of Mexico and comprehensive range of services positions them to provide the expertise needed for the programme,” a Petrofac representative said.
The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) has given OKEA consent to use COSL Promoter for permanent plug and abandonment of wells on the Draugen field.
COSLPromoter is a semi-submersible drilling rig designed to operate in water depths up to 750 metres. This compact unit is designed for North Sea / Norwegian Sea and worldwide use in harsh environments. Station keeping is maintained by an 8-line mooring system or by dynamic position mode maintained by 6 fixed pitch, variable speed thrusters (DP3).
Draugen is a field in the southern part of the Norwegian Sea. The field has been developed with a concrete fixed facility and integrated topside, and has both platform and subsea wells. Stabilised oil is stored in tanks at the base of the facility. Two pipelines connect the facility to a floating loading-buoy. Production started in 1993.
The water depth in the area is 250 metres. Draugen was discovered in 1984, and the plan for development and production (PDO) was approved in 1988. It produces oil from two formations. The main reservoir is in sandstone of Late Jurassic age in the Rogn Formation. The western part of the field also produces from sandstone of Middle Jurassic age in the Garn Formation. The reservoirs lie at a depth of 1,600 metres and are known to be relatively homogeneous, with good reservoir quality.
Tailwind Energy has successfully completed a well intervention in the Dana-operated Bittern Field, located in the North Sea.
On well PA-A2, new perforations were added to the upper reservoir and a water shut-off plug in the lower reservoir section.
This intervention has increased the oil rate from c. 1,000 boe/d to c.3,000 boe/d, marking a significant boast to production.
The news comes soon after the company reported a strong financial performance across 2021 with robust figures. In the 2021 CEO review, it was reported that actual production averaged 14,000 boe/d and all assets performed at, or over plan except for Columbus. As a result, the company recorded an increase in revenue to US$382mn relative to US$263mn in 2020. Such a strong performance has allowed the company to recycle cash back into the business and last year it invested the highest capital spend programme to date which included two wells being successfuly drilled and completed.
Schlumberger and Subsea 7 have signed an agreement to renew Subsea Integration Alliance for a further seven years.
Subsea Integration Alliance is a worldwide non-incorporated alliance between Subsea 7 and Schlumberger’s OneSubsea subsea technologies, production and processing systems business, to jointly design, develop and deliver integrated subsea development solutions.
Over the past seven years, the alliance has successfully combined the complementary capabilities and market-leading technologies of OneSubsea and Subsea 7, and worked collaboratively with clients to design, develop and deliver integrated SPS and SURF solutions proven to optimise the cost and efficiency of deepwater developments.
John Evans, CEO of Subsea 7 commented, “The success of Subsea Integration Alliance is a result of the drive and commitment of both Subsea 7 and OneSubsea to deliver an enhanced experience and outcome for our clients. Driven by the demonstrable benefits to clients of this mode of collaborating, integrated projects are expected to remain a significant component of the subsea market. We look forward to extending our relationship with OneSubsea as we address the opportunities of the offshore energy market.”
The alliance continues to build momentum and, in recent years, has been awarded major greenfield projects in Australia, Brazil, Africa and Turkey, as well as significant tie-back work in the Gulf of Mexico and Norway.
“Subsea Integration Alliance has proven to be a tremendous success,” said Abdellah Merad, EVP, Core Services and Equipment, Schlumberger. “Having been awarded 12 integrated projects and more than 130 early engineering studies around the world, it has helped– and will continue to help – customers achieve maximum value from their subsea developments through industry-leading innovation and expertise.”
BiSN, a leading supplier of sealing solutions and technology to the global oil and gas industry, has reached a significant milestone after completing its 300th deployment, helping operators around the world to effectively solve common downhole flow issues.
The operations were carried out on six continents (Australia, The Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and South Asia) and took place in a range of challenging conditions and location; onshore, offshore, high temperature or high pressure.
By providing critical production enhancement, intervention, completion, and plug and abandonment services, using its patented Wel-lok sealing technology, BiSN reduced costs, improved production, and dramatically extended the life of hundreds of wells.
By working with specially developed chemical reaction heaters to carefully melt unique bismuth-based eutectic alloys into plugs, BiSN developed its Wel-lok technology to create a bismuth plug that is not only safer, but much more reliable and easier to deploy. It makes it possible to form a gas tight (v0) seal and with a density that is 10 times higher than water it effectively displaces all wellbore fluids.
Paul Carragher, CEO of BiSN said, “As operators strive to address downhole flow issues safely, increasing production while reducing costs, we have made it our mission to help them achieve this. We have the extensive real world experience in applying this method. As a result of carrying out more than 300 deployments globally, we know how to successfully use our technology to complete operations aimed at enhancing production, completions, plug and abandonment, and intervention. These jobs represent operations carried out for many repeat customers, illustrating the value and confidence they continue to place in our work.”
To help operators tackle complex challenges downhole, BiSN draws upon its varied experience and services. These range from shutting off water production and isolating zones to setting a gas-tight plug, repairing damaged casing or tubing, and permanently sealing multiple annuli, among others.
While the company continues to provide downhole sealing solutions to new and existing customers in the US, Canada and Australia, BiSN is actively expanding in Europe and Africa and has recently opened an office in Aberdeen.
Well decommissioning specialist Well-Safe Solutions, has officially added WilPhoenix, a semi-submersible drilling rig to its fleet.
The company stated that the WilPhoenix will now undergo improvements as part of its repurposing as a dedicated P&A asset, and will soon be known as the Well-Safe Defender. In May, Awilco Drilling had made the deal to sell it to Well-safe Solutions.
The WilPhoenix is one of Awilco Drilling's two Enhanced Pacesetter semi-submersible drilling rigs. It was built in 1982 and upgraded in 2011. WilHunter, Awilco Drilling’s other semi-submersible, is in the process of being sold for recycling.
Phil Milton, CEO at Well-Safe Solutions, said, “The addition of our second semi-submersible rig, to be known as the Well-Safe Defender, is a landmark achievement for the business.”
Built in 1983, the WilPhoenix is an established presence in the North Sea, having been extensively refurbished and upgraded in 2016. Well-Safe Solutions expect to take delivery of the rig in June 2022 and will carry out optimisation and recertification requirements for future well plug and abandonment (P&A) activity.
The rig acquisition is expected to create around 100 jobs in a variety of onshore and offshore roles, in addition to the 231 personnel already employed by Well-Safe Solutions.
Neil Ferguson, Operations Manager at Well-Safe Solutions, added, “The WilPhoenix has a strong track record and is the right candidate to undergo conversion for well P&A.”
Well-Safe Solutions is the first UK company with its own assets to provide a Tier 1 well decommissioning service focused exclusively on P&A, with the Aberdeen-headquartered company owning and operating the Well-Safe Guardian semi-submersible and Well-Safe Protector jack-up rig.
The WilPhoenix is expected to enter service with its new owners as the Well-Safe Defender in late 2022.
Energy technology start-up Clearwell Technology has taken up a feasibility testing programme for a new tool that could cut the costs and emissions of well decommissioning projects by half, following support from Scottish Enterprise.
Bruce Cardno and Paul Ray set up Clearwell Technology to develop their thermal milling technology, Therm-X-Mill, and transform the current methods of oil and gas well decommissioning by eliminating the use of drilling rigs and their associated equipment.
SMART:Scotland grant funding of £84,000 from Scottish Enterprise helped Clearwell Technology perform a testing programme. The company is now looking ahead to the next stage of development which will involve further testing, development of a prototype tool and field trials prior to full-scale commercialisation.
Scottish Enterprise head of low carbon transition Andy McDonald said, “Industry reports highlight that the decommissioning market is growing, especially as more focus is spent on energy transition activities and less on drilling new wells.
“This creates opportunities for companies like Clearwell Technology to provide decommissioning technology that will help aid the wider global energy transition agenda and it is fantastic to see a company from Aberdeenshire take forward this innovation.
“Scottish Enterprise aims to support entrepreneurial talent to build a stronger more sustainable Scottish economy and projects like this highlight the collaborative approach to delivering net zero solutions taking place here in Scotland.”
According to a Decom Insights report from Offshore Energies UK, the decommissioning market is currently around 12% of UK offshore industry expenditure with forecasts of over £16bn due to be spent over the next decade and around 4,000 wells estimated still to be decommissioned.
In addition, the recent North Sea Transition Deal set out the sector’s decommissioning supply chain target to ensure 50% local content around projects – all creating opportunities for Scottish businesses.
Bruce Cardno, Director of Clearwell Technology, said, “As energy companies focus on transition our technology aims to make the oil and gas well decommissioning process simpler and more environmentally friendly, while also releasing resources to drive net zero projects in the industry.
“Almost half the cost of any decommissioning project is spent on the plugging and abandonment of the wells so by reducing this cost with our Therm-X-Mill tool we aim to transform the industry’s approach.
“We are ramping up our testing from our site in Aboyne as we progress towards prototype development so this is a really exciting time for us, and we are hugely thankful for the support from Scottish Enterprise to help drive our technology.”
Norwell Engineering, a global well engineering and project management firm, has secured a multi-million dollar contract to deliver an integrated offshore decommissioning project in the UAE on behalf of operator Sinochem Corporation (Sinochem).
Norwell Engineering will develop the abandonment strategy for Sinochem’s UAQ Gas Field as well as detailed well and facilities decommissioning planning, tendering and procurement services, logistics, marine support and operational execution.
Mike Adams, General Manager of Norwell Engineering, said the company partners with client decommissioning teams to address technical, safety, environmental and legislative considerations.
He commented, “While the decommissioning sector is heating up with several well engineering firms active in the space, our experience and technical focus across the entire field provides operators with a different perspective – reducing risks and identifying efficiency savings during every phase.
“The wells are the most complex and costly element of an integrated decommissioning scope and this is what Norwell has specialised in for more than 30 years. Together, with our subsurface partners, and growing topsides decommissioning team, we are in an excellent position to support clients such as Sinochem with end-to-end project management of their integrated decommissioning scopes.”
Sinochem, is a leading, state-owned, player in the global oil exploration and production sector. The UAQ Gas Field was the first offshore gas field independently developed and built overseas by Sinochem. As part of the integrated project, Norwell will be responsible for developing the abandonment strategy, as well as detailed well and facilities decommissioning planning, tendering and procurement services, logistics, marine support and operational execution.
Norwell will then deliver dismantling of the platform equipment before moving the platform onshore, where it will be handed over to the UAE government.
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