SPE Event Focuses on New Subsea Technological Developments

The Aberdeen section of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) is holding an evening event on the topic of New Subsea Technology Development at the Hilton Treetops in Aberdeen on Wednesday 27 February 2008 from 6.00pm.  The event is sponsored by READ Well Services, and welcomes guest speaker Steinar Strøm, from StatoilHydro in Stavanger. 

Following the merger between Statoil and Hydro, the firm has reorganised its research and development efforts and established a new programme: IOR Increased Oil Recovery - Reservoir, Drilling and Well.  Steinar’s presentation will cover a range of subsea technologies from automation to managed pressure drilling and look at slender well solutions in subsea wells.

Steinar, IOR project manager for StatoilHydro says, “Human error is often the cause of incidents in drilling and well operations and in order to minimise this risk, an automation of routine type operations is required.  Automated drilling is seen as the future in drilling operations; from our perspective the onshore industry is far ahead of its offshore counterparts when it comes to the robotisation of the processes.  This approach involves real time data from the well, closed loop regulation of the process and importantly a change of mindset, as decisions are made by a computer or machine.

“I will be giving delegates an insight into StatoilHydro’s way of thinking in technological areas such as riserless light well interventions and slender well solutions in the subsea sector.  We see Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) as a necessity in many areas of the world and our experience in the mature fields of the Norwegian Continental Shelf will require MPD solutions when the pressure depletion has reached a certain level.”

Anette Poulsen of Chevron North Sea Ltd and chairperson of the SPE Aberdeen section says, “StatoilHydro is a lead player in the active promotion of the development of subsea technology and SPE is pleased to be able to provide an opportunity for our members and guests to learn from its experiences.  Aberdeen plays a worldwide role in subsea expertise and Steinar’s presentation will provide an invaluable insight into StatoilHydro’s technological approach to the sector.”

Andy Gorrara, engineering and development manager at READ Well Services says, “We are proud to be sponsoring this event, StatoilHydro has been a major supporter  of READ’s subsea and subsurface development projects since 2000, and we are keen to encourage the valuable work of the SPE in informing and developing the city’s oil and gas community.”

The SPE section in Aberdeen is one of the largest in the world, with a membership of more than 2,000 oil and gas professionals and a further 500 students from higher education across Scotland.  For further information or to book a place on this event log onto www.hulse-rodger.com or call 0844 561 1226.