Are you hunting in the right place for new barrels?

STAVANGER -- The hunt for new barrels of oil is often focused on exploration activity. But what if additional hydrocarbons could be found right where there is already existing infrastructure? Well intervention operations present an opportunity for operators to improve their production levels and leverage their assets base to maintain or improve cash flow.

With an estimated 1 in 5 wells in the North Sea alone currently shut in, the ability to identify potential wells for production enhancement and executing interventions efficiently with the right service partner is crucial. Current successes have been driven by the prioritisation of opportunities, coupled with service company collaboration. This is an approach that also presents challenges related to ownership and central points of contact.

If the market returns and vessel/rig rates increase, the challenge will be to perform these interventions even more efficiently to maintain their value to the operator. Lighter, smaller and more efficient technology solutions could be a driver for broadening vessel options for undertaking well intervention operations, while maximising vessel utilisation when under contract.

Another challenge is the balance on priorities for operators, for example CAPEX/new field investment versus intervention and the need for appropriate internal resourcing. Loss of talent through this latest cycle may well mean that operators look to the service sector to ‘own’ more of this space.

Driving radical improvements in project economics is key and, at Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE), we continue moving forward with our ‘50-50-50’ strategy, designed to drive lower cost outcomes and longer-fuelled productivity. As part of that vision we offer a fully-integrated intervention solution, from evaluating reservoir potential and downhole services, to the provision of well access equipment and commercially-innovative, outcome-based contracts. This allows us to drive greater value creation, with lower total cost solutions that focus on customer returns. Simply put, the customer wins. We believe that a long-term view of the customer-supplier relationship can also be beneficial, with a more complete series of interactions unlocking additional efficiencies beyond plans for a singular well or field basis.