Sunday, December 22, 2024

Digital Technology News

Digitalization is Drawing CCS a New Learning Curve

SLB and Microsoft have partnered with Northern Lights on a data platform that will serve as the digital infrastructure for the Northern Lights project.
Image courtesy of SLB

Digital solutions are accelerating the progress required to ensure CCS earns its place in climate change mitigation history.Carbon capture has been around since the 90s, but the behavior of CO2 in pipelines is still not that well understood. A lack of suitable multiphase flow assurance models has meant that past CCS projects have had to apply large, costly safety margins to transport and injection systems. Between 2020 and 2022, the CO2FACT project addressed the shortfalls, and along with the development of the LedaFlow simulator, the knowledge gaps are being closed. LedaFlow will come with an improved module for pure CO2 in the spring of 2024.

Meet the World's First Digital Smart Ship, the Japanese Built LNG-Fueled PCTC Sakura Leader

Photo: NYK

The run up to 2050 and dramatic reductions in emissions from ships will, by most expert’s thinking, be an evolution of small steps premised on melding new fuels and digitalization technologies. The recent delivery of the LNG-fueled PCTC Sakura Leader to NYK can be considered a sizable leap in this regard, as the ship has been designated as the world’s first digital smart ship.A Big Step Toward CO2 Reduction TargetsOn October 28, NYK took delivery of Sakura Leader, a pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) capable of navigating oceans with only LNG as the ship’s main fuel.

Marine Scrubbers: Yara Marine Plots the Path Forward, Post-COVID-19

The coronavirus turned our world upside down virtually overnight,” said Ina Reksten, COO, Yara Marine Technologies.

Yara Marine Technologies COO Ina Reksten and Research and Development Manager Shyam Bahadur Thapa reflect on the effects of the coronavirus crisis and share their vision for a future beyond the pandemic.2020 will go down in history as the year that changed everything for many industries, not least the marine exhaust gas cleaning segment. “The coronavirus turned our world upside down virtually overnight,” confirms Ina Reksten, Yara Marine Technologies COO. Driven by the impending IMO 2020 sulfur cap, the scrubber market was in the middle of a historic…

LR’s Nick Brown: Climate Emergency is “same magnitude, different time domain" to COVID-19

Nick Brown, Marine and Offshore Director, Lloyd’s Register

As the maritime industry settles in on a COVID-19 induced ‘new norm,’ and long-range planning is dramatically shortened,, Nick Brown, Marine and Offshore Director, Lloyd’s Register, said that while much deserved focus must be paid to the current crisis, the industry cannot lose sight of another one looming just as large: climate change. “We strongly maintain that the climate emergency is an event of the same magnitude, just with a different time domain to COVID-19," Brown told Maritime Reporter & Engineering News recently. "Whilst shipping only contributes a small amount to the overall climate emergency picture…

New Offshore Acreage Licensing to Drop 60% in 2020, Rystad says

An offshore drilling rig - Image by Namthip - AdobeStock

Newly licensed offshore oil and gas exploration acreage is likely to fall by about 60% and onshore acreage by 30% compared with 2019 levels, Rystad Energy has said, as the Norwegian energy market analytics company expects more than half of the world’s planned licensing rounds to be canceled this year due to the combined effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and the low oil prices."This year was slated to be another remarkable year for exploration with about 45 countries launching at least 52 lease rounds, about 60% of them in offshore areas. The decline in the expected number of lease rounds compared to last year’s 69 was not a sign of fewer countries offering new licenses…

Schlumberger Debuts At-bit Steerable System

The NeoSteer ABSSs aim to improve horizontal well drilling performance by providing high-dogleg capability and increased rate of penetration in the curve and the lateral, (Image: Schlumberger)

Schlumberger Introduces At-Bit Steerable System for Drilling Horizontal Wells in a Single RunNeoSteer at-bit steerable system design integrates a unique cutting structure and steering mechanismsSchlumberger introduced today the NeoSteer at-bit steerable system (ABSS) at Society of Petroleum Engineers Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition (SPE ATCE). The NeoSteer ABSSs improve horizontal well drilling performance by providing high-dogleg capability and increased rate of penetration in the curve and the lateral.Developed as a fit-for-basin solution…

DNV GL Mulls Digitalization in Wind Energy

Digitalization is already playing a major role in the growth of wind energy, but it can still drive further improvements in operational efficiency, decision making and cost efficiency – if it can overcome concerns around data sharing.According the report ‘Digitalization and the Future of the Wind Energy Industry’ published by DNV GL, iproving operational efficiency (identified by 52% of respondents), decision making (42%) and cost efficiency (40%) are top priorities for further digitalization.Balance between sharing data and protecting competitive advantage…

Digitalization Boosts Renewable Sector

Renewable energy investors and developers are increasingly turning to digital technology to build effective investment strategies, with almost half (47%) of the finance industry saying they have digitalization as a core part of their publicly stated strategy.New industry-wide report from DNV GL highlights benefits and challenges of digital technologies for renewable energy financing as market moves away from subsidies.DNV GL surveyed nearly 2000 senior stakeholders from across the energy industry. A lack of digital mindset is seen as a bigger barrier…

BHGE to Bring AI to Oilfield

Oilfield service company Baker Hughes, a GE Company (BHGE) has entered into a joint venture with the California-based Artificial Intelligence (AI) software provider C3.ai to accelerate the digital transformation in the oil and gas industry."AI in the oil and gas segment helps improve overall performance by ingesting massive quantities of data, becoming intelligent about specific operational environments and predicting problems before they occur so that operators can improve planning, staffing, sourcing and safety," said a press release from the fullstream provider of integrated oilfield products…

Schlumberger to Manage Equinor Project in Brazil

(Photo: Equinor)

Schlumberger signed a contract worth over $200 million with oil major Equinor to manage an offshore rig as part of a drilling program in Brazil's offshore Campos oil basin, a person familiar with the matter said on Thursday.The deal would be the first time an oil services company replaces a drilling-rig contractor, the person said, adding pressure to offshore drillers still reeling from an industry-wide contraction."Schlumberger will provide the full scope of well construction services, drilling management services, and advanced digital technology solutions…

Oil and Gas Digital Investment Set to Surge

Global oil and gas executives are preparing to accelerate their investment in digital technologies, primarily as they seek to double down on their cost-saving ambitions.An EY survey of 100 global oil and gas executives found that 89 percent expect to step up their investment in digital over the next two years.Despite oil prices reaching more attractive levels during the third quarter of 2018, operational efficiency remains a top priority owing to a legacy of falling prices in recent years.Forty-two percent of survey respondents say their primary motivation for investment in digital is to improve efficiency…

Petoro Flags Rising Costs for Oil Industry

Photo courtesy of Equinor

Norway's oil industry must harness digital technology and foster deeper partnerships across the sector to contain rising costs, Petoro, which manages the government's stakes in the country's offshore fields, said on Thursday.Executives of oil companies including Norway's Equinor have pledged to keep costs in check despite oil prices rising since the downturn of 2014-2016.Ahead of that downturn, Petoro had repeatedly warned about rising costs in the oil industry.They have since declined as companies sped up drilling, simplified projects and renegotiated supplier prices…

Digitization of the Norwegian Continental Shelf

The Goliat  Field (Photo: © Eni Norge)

A new web-based tool is being used for the first time offshore for collecting, systematizing and presenting safety critical information on the Goliat platform in the Barents Sea.The system, developed by Eni Norge in cooperation with Safetec and SINTEF, measures and monitors more than 10,600 technical components in real time.The solution reflects several years of intensive work in the industry to develop better methods and systems for risk management. Since 2013, Eni Norway with design and engineering support from Safetec and SINTEF, and software development of Eigen Ltd…

DNV GL Rolls-out Digital Hub in Singapore

DNV GL has launched a digital hub in Singapore as part of the transformation of the oil and gas, maritime and energy industries toward digitalization, including increased cyber security and smart infrastructure.The new Singapore hub is called Digital Consulting and Smart Cities, and will include three teams covering smart cities, cyber security and digital development – including support for DNV GL’s open industry platform Veracity.The digital hub, part of DNV GL – Digital Solutions, is set up to work closely with local and regional authorities and industry…

Petrofac Hires Chief Digital Officer

Fady Sleiman (Photo: Petrofac)

Petrofac has appointed Fady Sleiman Chief Digital Officer as the oilfield services company continues its digital transformation. He will be based in Petrofac’s Middle East office in Sharjah.Fady joins from MENA investment company Waha Capital, where he was Chief Information Officer/Group Head of IT for the Abu Dhabi based company from 2014. Prior to that Fady was CIO and Head of Innovation Centre Strategy for General Electric MEA based in Dubai, having held a number of roles across GE’s business portfolio in US, Europe, Middle East and South East Asia…

Kongsberg Wins Johan Sverdrup Phase 2 Contract

Phase 2 will add a fifth platform to the ‘The North Sea Giant’, Johan Sverdrup. Credit: Equinor

Equinor Energy AS has contracted Kongsberg Maritime to deliver the Safety and Automation Systems (SAS) for the recently announced phase 2 of the Johan Sverdrup development in the Norwegian North Sea.The phase 2 agreement includes delivery of SAS and digital technology for a new processing platform, which is due to start production in 2022. Kongsberg Maritime will also extend and modify already delivered systems for the field center, in addition to providing three Subsea Production System tie-backs and technology solutions for shore power at Haugsneset…

Op/Ed: Connecting to the Future of Offshore

(Photo: GE)

120 miles out at sea, 6,000-horsepower devices lift drilling equipment weighing up to 3 million pounds out of holes lying 10,000 feet beneath the water. Keeping such sea monsters in good working order, often for years at a time, is no mean feat. Oil companies spend between $300,000 and $800,000 per day on each vessel drilling offshore. Any failures can result in losses that run into hundreds of thousands of dollars per day.With such high costs and massive market pressures, including volatile oil prices, increasing competition and operations in complex environments, offshore companies are seeking new ways to boost efficiency and raise productivity.

OutSmart, Kongsberg Join Forces on Wind Energy

Independent wind asset operations management specialist OutSmart BV has selected Kongsberg Digital AS to provide an integrated management system on the innovative Kognifai digital platform and ecosystem. The sophisticated digital solution will be used to manage OutSmart’s extensive onshore and offshore wind turbine portfolio. OutSmart provides services to wind farm owners, fund managers, and wind project companies in Northwestern Europe to maximize the revenues of their wind assets. Part of Deutsche Windtechnik Offshore and Consulting GmbH, OutSmart currently operates more than 400 onshore and offshore wind and solar assets (1.8 GW in total) in Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK.

Big Oil turns to Big Data for Drilling Economies

In today's U.S. shale fields, tiny sensors attached to production gear harvest data on everything from pumping pressure to the heat and rotational speed of drill bits boring into the rocky earth. The sensors are leading Big Oil's mining of so-called big data, with some firms envisioning billions of dollars in savings over time by avoiding outages, managing supplies and identifying safety hazards. The industry has long used sophisticated technologies to find oil and gas. But only recently have oil firms pooled data from across the company for wider operating efficiencies - one of many cost-cutting efforts spurred by the two-year downturn in crude oil prices.

New Asset Integrity Management System Launched

(Photo: Bureau Veritas)

Bureau Veritas has launched Veristar AIM 3D asset integrity management system, based on technology partner Dassault Systems’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform. The new solution combines a digital twin of any marine or offshore assets with smart data in a collaborative environment. Veristar AIM 3D will be used in the design, development and implementation of the operational lifecycle, to reflect and predict the condition of any asset, or fleet of assets. The solution supports risk based inspection and condition based maintenance approaches. Veristar AIM 3D provides asset management dashboards for individual ships, rigs or facilities – or for whole fleets.