E&P Highlights: Sept. 11, 2023

Activity headlines

Survey Starts, Bids in for Anning, Somerville Project

Hartshead Resources announced on Sept. 7 that the Gardline Vessel Ocean Observer had mobilized to Anning and Somerville fields in the U.K. Southern Gas Basin. 

The vessel is carrying out a pipeline route survey, expected to be complete in October.

Hartshead also said engineering, procurement, installation and commissioning contract bids for the Anning and Somerville wellhead platforms have been received and that the company will review the technical and commercial elements of each bid before making a recommendation to the joint venture operating committee as to which company to award the contract to. 

Final investment decision for the project is expected in the third quarter, with first gas expected in 2025. 

Perenco Updates Recent Drilling Campaign

Perenco Mexico reported on Sept. 8 that its latest drilling campaign at Santuario Noreste has contributed to production more than tripling on the Santuario & El Golpe permit — from 5,500 bbl/d to 17,000 bbl/d.

The latest drilling campaign entailed the drilling of six new wells, including three producing wells and three wells dedicated to water injection as part of a secondary recovery project.

The first production well started in April 2023 and is averaging about 2,300 bbl/d. The second is averaging 1,500 bbl/d. The third well is ramping up production from an average 1,300 bbl/d. Perenco Mexico expects to further increase production by 2024.

Using artificial lift technologies, Perenco has converted seven wells to electric submersible pumps (ESP) on the Santuario Main and El Golpe fields, doubling their production since 2018.  Before the Sept. 8 announcement, Santuario Noreste had already seen a threefold increase in production over recent years through the rehabilitation of existing wells, bringing more layers into production, drilling new wells, increasing the capacity of treatment facilities and the early implementation of recovery, Perenco said.

Contracts and company news

Oceaneering Buying USV

Oceaneering International announced on Sept. 5 that its Subsea Robotics group has introduced a new uncrewed surface vessel (USV) service to support remote survey work scopes. 

Oceaneering will purchase its first DriX USV from Exail to support deepwater geophysical and asset inspection operations, including AUV positioning and offshore and nearshore surveys.  

Eric Smith, Oceaneering’s senior director of survey services, said combining USVs into the company’s existing ROV and AUV fleets is a “natural progression” for the company. 

Unique Group Releases Subsea AI Chat Offering

Unique Group announced on Sept. 4 that it was launching Aquila Subsea, a generative AI chat solution to provide instant responses to a range of subsea-related queries. The chat solution is intended to empower survey engineers and researchers to quickly understand manuals, troubleshoot issues and access critical information.

Aquila Subsea was developed in-house by Unique Group's Research and Development Team.

SLB, INEOS Energy Sign Subsurface Agreement

SLB said on Sept. 5 it has signed a subsurface technology partnership with INEOS Energy to collaborate and innovate subsurface technologies, including AI capabilities, to help it drive operational performance for continued growth, new acquisitions and carbon capture and storage (CCS).  

Under the agreement, INEOS Energy will integrate the SLB Delfi digital platform into its oil and gas operations, especially subsurface, wells, transport and monitoring. Delfi will integrate into current assets and new acquisitions, a critical element of the company’s emissions-reducing CCS strategy for a sustainable low carbon future. 

New Digital Platform Optimizes ESP Performance

Halliburton Co. on Sept. 5 launched Intelevate, a new data science driven platform that helps operators design, build and operate end-to-end ESP monitoring solutions. 

The Intelevate platform from Summit ESP, a Halliburton Service, integrates historical engineering and performance data with active operational information to provide a holistic view of an operator’s ESP system. The service processes, analyzes and models production data with real-time visualization and reporting to develop a comprehensive production optimization plan, including remote changes and interventions, Halliburton said. 

Saipem Wins Baleine Phase 2, FSRU Contracts

Saipem announced Sept. 8 it had been awarded two new contracts valued at $913 million for offshore activities in Côte d’Ivoire and Italy.

Eni Côte d’Ivoire and partner Petroci awarded Saipem a subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines contract for the Baleine Phase 2 development project in 1,200 m water depth. Baleine Phase 1 went onstream in August. 

The scope for Phase 2 encompasses engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) of approximately 20 km of rigid lines, 10 km of flexible risers and jumpers and 15 km of umbilicals connected to a dedicated floating unit. Saipem will carry out offshore installation in 2024.

Snam Rete Gas awarded a contract to Saipem to construct the facilities for the new floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) to be located in the Adriatic Sea offshore Ravenna, Italy.

The EPCI project covers the new offshore facility, which will be linked to the existing facility, the docking and mooring of the FSRU, which will be connected to shore via an 8.5-km, 26-in. offshore pipeline, plus a 2.6-km onshore pipeline and a parallel fiber optic cable. Saipem pipelay barge Castoro 10 will carry out offshore operations.

Jereh Completes IntelliFrac Field Trial

Jereh said on Sept. 7 it had wrapped up the field trial of its IntelliFrac electric fracturing unit. 

During the field trial conducted in U.S. shale starting in May 2023, the IntelliFrac accumulated more than 1,200 operating hours. Jereh's control and data acquisition software provided real-time monitoring and precise control over the fracturing process, the company said. 

The IntelliFrac can operate on gas turbine power generators and reciprocating gas engines. 

TWMA Launches Drilling Waste Treatment Tech

TWMA has launched the latest evolution of its RotoMill technology, the company announced on Sept. 7.

The latest version integrates TWMA’s XLink remote monitoring software to deliver operational insights while automating the wellsite processing system, the company said.

The RotoMill 2.0 processes drilling waste at the wellsite to eliminate the need to transport drilling waste long distances for treatment, and it recovers oil, water and solids from drill cuttings, allowing the reuse and recycling of all materials from the drilling waste, the company said.

Nauticus, MMA Offshore Sign MOU

Nauticus Robotics Inc. announced Sept. 11 it had signed a memorandum of understanding with MMA Offshore Ltd. for the development of an integrated service offering in Asia-Pacific.

Aquanaut’s capabilities enable the use of smaller service vessels previously not used for IMR, such as those owned and operated by MMA.