Offshore Oil and Gas Technology

Transcription

1 Offshore Oil and Gas Technology Steven Marzuola American Translators Association 54th Annual Conference San Antonio, November 7, Importance of oil and gas Oil is directly responsible for about 2.5% of world GDP Represents 1/3rd of humanity s s primary energy supply (over half if you include natural gas). Oil/gas powers virtually 100% of all transportation. About 40% of all ocean cargo is oil Approx. 85 million barrels per day worldwide

2 Why use oil? Liquid fuel - convenient Safer to obtain / less pollution than coal Large amount of power in small volume ( Energy density ) Refined products: 45 megajoules / kg Coal: 24 megajoules / kg Club sandwich: 1.3 megajoules / kg One gallon carries one airline passenger 45 miles 3 Cost components Discovery and exploration Drilling Infrastructure Operating costs $ Costs are rising, but $ most profit goes to owners $ not always oil companies 4 $ not always oil companies

3 Seismic exploration 3D seismic images

4 Water depths Shallow Up to 1000 / 1500 ft deep Christmas tree at surface ( dry( tree ) Deepwater Up to 10,000 ft deep Christmas tree on bottom (subsea, wet tree ) 7 Subsea/offshore building blocks 8

5 Shallowest water Louisiana Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela 9 Jackup drilling rigs Mobile, flexible Usually up to 400 ft water depth Can handle surface trees on permanent platform, OR subsea trees 10

6 Subsea BOP stack 11 Anchor handling vessels Moored (anchors) Reduced operating cost (fuel) 12

7 Dynamic Positioning (DP) Thrusters Any water depth Faster to mobilize/demobilize, avoid bad weather No anchors to handle, drag on bottom BUT: Expensive to operate (fuel) Can Drive-Off or Drift-Off 13 Deepwater drilling rigs Semi Submersible More stable in rough weather Slow transit speed Drillship Faster deployment Less stable Increased Capacities Liquids, bulk material, personnel 14

8 Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) Controlled from rig or support vessel tether Multiple functions Video Operate wellheads or BOP stack Perform installation Classified by: Power Depth Number and type of manipulators 15 Production facilities: Conventional platform Depths up to 1000 feet Wells drilled directionally Usually use dry trees Drilling equipment often permanent Variations: guyed tower Source: California Department of Conservation

9 Norske Shell Troll A Installed in 1996 Water depth 303 meters Overall height 472 meters Weighs 656,000 tons. Produces gas from 40 wells Towed 200 km to the Norwegian Sea. Tallest structure ever moved by man. 17 Subsea ( wet ) Christmas trees Installed on top of wellhead, upper end of well casing Control flow of hydrocarbons - valves and choke Monitoring, signaling functions 18

10 Umbilicals Connect trees to control system Supply energy (electric, hydraulic) to operate tree valves Inject chemical (corrosion protection, hydrate formation) Send signals to surface 19 Production facilities TLP - Tension Leg Platform Semisubmersible, moored to seafloor Production through subsea manifolds More stable in rough weather (unless tendons fail!) Onboard drilling and production facilities 20

11 Independence Trail Hub Located 200 miles SE of New Orleans. Anchored in 7920 ft of water Cost $385 million. Service life of 20 years Receives flow from subsea wells up to 30 miles away, connected via 176 miles of flowlines Peak production 850 million cubic feet of gas per day Sent to shore via 24 pipeline (cost $280 million) Current price of $4.30 / MCF, provides cash flow of $3.5 million per day 21 Chevron Typhoon TLP Installed May 2001 Capsized during Hurricane Rita, drifted 70 miles away September

12 Production facilities -SPARS Large submerged cylinder, moored to seafloor Stable even when unmoored Surface BOP Stacks / trees Weather has less impact on operation 23 ChevronTexaco Genesis SPAR 24

13 FPSO - Floating Production Storage, Offtake 25 Pipelay vessels S-Lay Shallower water J-Lay Deeper water 26

14 Subsea pipeline - complications Concrete coating: Reel-lay 27 Drilling and installation costs Large vessels - up to $600,000 per day Total operating costs ( spread ) Up to $1,000,000 per day = $41,600 per hour $694 per minute $11.57 per second 28

15 Subsalt 29 Particular problems with salt Salt blurs seismic images Required advances in seismic technology Drilling problems Plastic salt movement Abnormal pressures Lost circulation Shale problems 30

16 Project lifecycle Consequence of size, expense, complexity Phases: Conceptual Pre-FEED FEED (Front End Engineering Design) Detailed Engineering 31 Construction, Installation, Factors that influence projects Long lead times 1-22 years for major equipment, longer for vessels and platforms Plans change due to Market prices Interest rates Other opportunities, access via pipelines built for nearby fields Mergers 32

17 Peak Oil, or Hubbert s Peak In 1956, Hubbert predicted peak of USA production late 1960s - early 1970s. Controversial, but proven right by Actual peak was in Is it applicable to world production? Rapidly growing demand in China, India New technologies, increased depletion rates What is the effect of higher real prices? 33 Historical oil production 34

18 Steven Marzuola Houston Interpreters and Translators Association American Translators Association 2011 Steven Marzuola 35