E&P Magazine - May 2001
As I See It
Convert e-fizzle to e-sizzle
Six basic shifts mark the new economy, and most oil company executives don't know how to take advantage of them.
Cover Story
Matching words and deeds
People are our most important asset. Our goal is to be the low-cost producer. Mix these two lofty ideals together, and the results may not be pretty. However, at least in hindsight and to the outside observer, they may be humorous.
Drilling Technologies
UBD tools head offshore
Investigations of underbalanced drilling tools and technology offshore have shown remarkable progress and acceptance.
Features
Namibe basin object of joint collaboration
Angola and Namibia team up to encourage foreign investment.
Tech Watch
Big money follows oil
By any crystal ball, 2001 looks like a good year for oil and gas, and big money already is moving toward the sweet spots.
Activity Highlights
Two centuries meet
I am not in the habit of using artwork in my column, mainly because it is hard to find something to illustrate my often rather broad themes.
Another Perspective
Adding to the intervention toolbox
As operators continue to look for cost savings in every aspect of their business, well operations have come under particular scrutiny, and several contractors are offering new tools for intervention assignments traditionally performed only by drilling units. Versatility is the key word as operators seek flexibility and multitasking capabilities from the latest offshore equipment.
Combination runs faster, cheaper
A simultaneous application of rotary steerable and reaming-while-drilling (RWD) technology on an Ursa horizontal well eliminated a separate underreamer run and increased net rate of penetration (ROP) by 85% compared to the best offset drilled with bent-housing mud motors and bicenter PDC bits.
Completion valves continue evolution
Step changes in design are overcoming earlier prototype difficulties.
Construction comes off the blocks
Azerbaijan has had the upper hand in terms of new offshore developments among the Caspian Sea states during the past decade, but it is about to be paralleled by Kazakhstan, believed to have the largest oil and gas reserves in the region.
Dragon breathes new fire into old flame
Companies have been eager to tap the huge reserves of the Caspian region. However, not all such aspirations have translated into oil revenue.
From dolphins to sailars
Offshore oil and gas has become the industry where the latest high-tech robot swimmers are deployed and developed.
Level 5 and 6 junctions really function
Advanced multilateral junction technologies are beginning to establish successful track records.
Socar so good
Set to remain a major force in the region, the State Oil Co. of Azerbaijan Republic (Socar) will continue to rely heavily on foreign investment to increase its oil and gas production from old and new fields.
Successfully drill unstable formations
A complex inhibitor drilling mud (CIDM) has allowed Russian operators to complete former problem wells.
System enhances North Sea field
Installing a new Level 5 multilateral junction at the Troll Olje field took only two trips after drilling the lateral.
World Map
Technology gets connected
It's not quite point-and-click, but technology shopping is getting almost that easy on the Internet.