E&P Highlights: March 4, 2024

From new contracts to product launches, below is a compilation of the latest headlines in the E&P space. 

Activity headlines

Adriana Resources Increase Slightly 

An appraisal well near Wintershall Dea’s operated Dvalin Field in the Norwegian Sea has slightly increased the resource estimate for the Adriana discovery. 

The Norwegian Offshore Directorate announced Feb. 29 that resources for the initial discovery were estimated at 3 MMcm to 5 MMcm of recoverable oil equivalent and that the appraisal well has increased the reserves to 4 MMcm to 7 MMcm of recoverable oil equivalent.

Wintershall and its partners will consider tying Adriana back to existing infrastructure in the area.

The Transocean Norge drilled the 6507/4-4 S appraisal well in 446 m water depth 14 km north of the Dvalin Field. The well was not formation-tested, but extensive data acquisition and sampling were carried out before it was permanently plugged and abandoned.

Wintershall Dea operates PL211CS containing Adriana on behalf of partners Petoro, Aker BP and PGNiG.

Contracts and company news

DeepOcean to Inspect Equinor Pipelines

Equinor awarded DeepOcean a contract for pipeline inspection and surveys in the North Sea, DeepOcean announced Feb. 28.

DeepOcean’s scope includes pipeline inspections, seabed mapping and ad-hoc pipeline survey and light construction work. The agreement is valid for 2024.

DeepOcean will manage the contract delivery out of its headquarters in Haugesund, Norway, supported by the company’s operation in Aberdeen, U.K.

Upwing’s SCS on Tap for ENAP

Upwing Energy will deploy its first subsurface compressor system (SCS) in South America for Chile’s Empresa Nacional del Petróleo (ENAP), Upwing announced Feb. 27.

Upwing said it worked closely with ENAP to gather data and analyze gas assets, identifying opportunities for additional production and application of the SCS. Upwing will maintain and manage the SCS under its End2End solution model, encompassing analysis and predictions, planning and completions, deployment and startup and operations and monitoring. 

Kent Wins BP Commissioning Agreement

BP awarded integrated energy services company Kent a five-year global commissioning framework agreement, Kent announced March 4.

Under the agreement, Kent’s specialists will be fully integrated within BP’s commissioning and  completions management team. The framework agreement extends to the end of 2028, with a possible extension. The services will be executed by Kent’s CCS Center of Excellence and regional operations. 

Talos, Helix Agree on Decommissioning Work

Talos Energy agreed to give Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc. the first right of refusal for decommissioning work in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GoM), Helix announced Feb. 29.

Under a five-year joint framework agreement between Talos and Helix, Talos is giving Helix the first right of refusal regarding specific annual work scopes for Talos’ GoM decommissioning requirements. The agreement includes a base pricing structure and processes for determining and scheduling specific projects Talos requires. Work is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2024.

The projected scopes of work include Talos’ normal course abandonment of offshore wells, pipelines and platforms, primarily on the shelf. Helix’s Louisiana-based shallow water abandonment group, Helix Alliance, intends to use derrick barges for structure removals, liftboats for plug and abandonment activities and dive support vessels for pipeline abandonments, plus multiple offshore supply vessels and several other assets throughout the campaign.

Ocean BlackHornet Extended in GoM

 A BP subsidiary extended Diamond Offshore Drilling’s Ocean BlackHornet ultra deepwater drillship by two years for operations in the GoM.

Diamond announced on March 3 that the extension will begin in February 2025 in direct continuation of the rig's current contract. This contract extension represents approximately $350 million dollars of additional backlog.

TGS Releases FMB Cloud App 

TGS on Feb. 28 announced the release of the FMB Cloud app, marking an enhancement to its Facies Map Browser (FMB) platform. 

TGS said the new, cloud-based architecture provides users a means to access critical subsurface data from anywhere. FMB Cloud provides access to well-based stratigraphic interpretation and sequence-constrained facies maps. When integrated with other tools, TGS said it enables the user to perform a range of visualization, manipulation and data analysis techniques to improve geologic knowledge and accelerate regional hydrocarbon and carbon storage assessments.