North Sea

BP announced two North Sea discoveries, adding to signs of a revival in play that was looking old, tired, and overpriced a couple years ago.

With $102 billion of decommissioning-related expenditure forecast to 2040 in Western Europe, opportunities are ripe for the supply chain to compete with innovative and cost-effective solutions for the E&P operators.

The long-term decommissioning of the historic Brent field has necessitated redevelopment of the younger Penguins field in the North Sea, where the UK hopes to see more revival projects in the coming years.

A new downhole-tool-based abandonment system was developed and deployed successfully on four wells for a major operator on a field in the North Sea.

Decommissioning experts in the UK examine the advantages and disadvantages of removing offshore installations vs. leaving them in place, discussing cost efficiencies, environmental factors, and long-term risks.

Intel and Cyberhawk released a case study outlining the successful inspection of a gas terminal near the coast of Scotland using commercially available drone technology.

The world still needs oil and gas, but it is also making room for renewable energy which will change how upstream companies do business.

Total’s acquisition of Maersk Oil includes holdings in the North Sea Johan Sverdrup and Culzean projects. Total will become the second-largest operator in the northwest Europe offshore region. Maersk’s strategy shifts to its transport and logistics division.

30 years after being discovered in the North Sea, this heavy-oilfield is now flowing.

Will the UK decommissioning yards have the capacity to handle the anticipated workload of 261 platforms? Some of the pressure may be relieved as a result of the continuing production from many fields forecast to be abandoned in the current price environment as Opex costs offshore UK have fallen.