The Shelf in 2006 - Continued commitment to integrated operations/e-operations
05/01/2007 The petroleum industry is well underway in the implementation of integrated operations. The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate will continue its commitment to the e-driftforum (Integrated Operations Forum) and be a driving force in those areas where there the activity is insufficient.
Integrated operations means implementing new forms of operation based on ICT solutions and including use of (near) real-time data to integrate work processes between disciplines, offshore and land and different organizations. The intention is to achieve faster and better decisions.
The NPD has requested that the companies report on measures implemented in 2006 as well as plans for the future.
All of the major companies report a significant commitment to integrated operations. Considerable integrated operations activity has been reported from 21 fields on the Norwegian shelf in 2006. The primary result is production optimization. For example, the Heidrun field in the Norwegian Sea has achieved production that is nearly five percent higher than previously.
The reported consequences of this commitment include increased regularity, faster decisions, better well placement and more control over wells during production. Better cooperation has also been reported between offshore and land, operator and supplier, as well as better inter-disciplinary cooperation. There is improved exploitation of ICT and new technology is developed.
There are still fields that have not reported commencing any integrated operations activity in 2006, even though the potential exists. Several of these fields also report no plans to implement integrated operations in 2007. Some of these are satellite fields and fields in their final phases, but they also include several large fields with long expected lifetimes.
The NPD's role as regards integrated operations was stipulated in Storting White Paper No. 38 (2003-2004). The Integrated Operations Forum was established in the autumn of 2004. This is an arena where key players from all oil companies, many suppliers, research institutions, trade unions and the authorities can meet to exchange knowledge and experience. The Forum meets twice per year.
Updated: 04/09/2009