Continuing Education

SPE Aberdeen and InstMC Join Forces to Discuss the Opportunities and Challenges of Digitalisation

Digitalisation offers considerable opportunities for the energy industry as it moves towards achieving 2050 net zero targets, which includes increasing efficiency and decreasing costs. These opportunities and the challenges, which need to be overcome to maximise these opportunities, will take centre stage at next month’s joint virtual conference between SPE Aberdeen and the Institute of Measurement Control (InstMC).

The keynote presentation will be delivered by Michael Joinson, Global Discipline Head – Instrumentation, Control and Electrical at Shell, who will share the operator’s approach to digitalisation across its assets, both greenfield and brownfield, as well as the benefits and challenges that have been experienced.

The recent OGUK Digital Maturity Survey revealed that a third of UKCS companies do not have a digital strategy and for those who do, it is less than three years old. The survey also identified collaboration as a key component of the industry’s digitalisation journey. Attendees at this event will hear the results of a major collaborative research project assessing the pace and extent of digitalisation across the oil and gas sector from Common Data Access Ltd (OGUK). This presentation will explore data and digital maturity in the North Sea oil and gas industry and will offer a view on the current state of affairs, against which the wider conference presentations can be considered.

Although the main focus of the conference is digitalisation, cyber security is never far away and Cisco will be providing a workshop with a live demonstration of its Cyber Vision software as part of the session ‘Current state of attacks and threats that are impacting oil and gas operations’. Event organisers recognise the importance for conferences to provide solutions in addition to discussing theory, and this workshop will be a key part of that approach.

Another highlight of this conference will be ABB’s workshop on ‘Layers of Network Protections – a Journey into Fundamentals of OT Network Reference Architecture’. This represents an area which still poses challenges for many engineers working to bring Operational Technology (OT) and Information Technology (IT) closer together, a necessary part of digitalisation. This workshop will be delivered by Marina Krotofil who has extensive experience in both OT and IT, a perspective that is highly sought as the two disciplines come closer together.

Ahead of the event Megan Hine, conference chair, commented: “I’m very pleased to be chairing the SPE Aberdeen and InstMC annual conference once again, despite the challenges created by COVID-19. Our theme of ‘Digitalisation of Process Control’ seems even more relevant now. Reductions in movement of people means that access to instruments and data in the field has become very limited for the workforce. Connected devices and systems can alleviate the strain in a world where individuals are not always permitted to physically connect with both people and plant.”

This programme of virtual events will take place 25-26 November. Details and booking here.

SPE Aberdeen Section Focuses on the Energy Transition

The clock is now ticking to reach the target of Net Zero by 2050 in the UK (2045 in Scotland).  The oil and gas industry is a critical part of this transition to net zero and has the potential to be the leader in developing the solutions which will unlock a new, low carbon economy. This pivotal role of the oil and gas industry was clearly recognised recently by the Scottish Government with the £62 million Energy Transition Fund to support net zero projects.

Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) is an essential component of delivering these Net Zero commitments. Success in developing CCUS will help transform the UKCS into a net zero oil and gas basin. Developing solutions for the full chain process of capturing, treating, compressing, transporting and then injecting CO₂ deep underground will require the skills and experience that are prevalent in this industry.

The energy transition is at the forefront of the Aberdeen Section of the Society of Petroleum Engineers’ (SPE) agenda and next month, in association with the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain (PESGB), the section will host its inaugural Carbon Capture, Usage and Storage (CCUS) conference.

Taking place as an online conference from 26-29 October 2020, the conference will underline the importance of CCUS in helping the UK and Scotland achieve net zero targets and will highlight the emerging low carbon job opportunities for oil and gas professionals. Themes covered during the conference will include full chain, reservoir, wells, facilities and commercial. Organisers are delighted to announce that Paul Wheelhouse, Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands, will deliver the keynote address on day one.

Chairman of the conference, Russ Gilbert, said: “This conference is a fantastic opportunity to learn about this essential decarbonisation technology. This online SPE conference is held over four days, with each day containing 2.5 hours of high quality and insightful presentations, techbytes and Q&A sessions.

The case studies on Day 1 will be of particular interest, in addition to the lessons learned from the Norwegian Northern Lights CCS project and the Scottish Acorn CCS project on Day 2. SPE Aberdeen invites both members and non-members alike to join us and learn how to become involved in an integrated energy future, of which CCUS will play a key role.”

Last month SPE Aberdeen held the 34^th Offshore Achievement Awards and this year’s event included the new category ‘Energy Transition for Future Generations’, which was jointly won by BP and Pale Blue Dot Energy. Kenny McAllister, chair of the SPE Aberdeen Section commented: “The energy transition is one of the biggest challenges facing our industry, but also presents a significant opportunity for the oil and gas skills base. As we start our new session, this is a priority area for SPE Aberdeen and in line with this, we are delighted to be hosting the inaugural CCUS conference.”

More information and booking here.

The Surveillance Fishbones are a product of breakout session by the participants of the SPE Aberdeen’s 3^rd Inwell Flow Surveillance and Control Seminar 3^rd October 2017.

The output is a snapshot of the collective input and knowledge on the day and is by no means a definitive list.  The information presented is not representative of the conference sponsors.

The fishbones are intended to be an introduction to the various tools and techniques that exist in the oilfield to study various reservoir, wells and optimisation themes.

They are grouped into the themes of pressure, integrity, vertical lift, inflow performance, reservoir characterisation and well testing & performance.

Different tools and techniques should be easily searched for and discovered on the web, the fishbones should serve as a handy reminder or a prompt for engineers and managers.

The concept of publishing a surveillance toolbox arose of out the Oil and Gas UK’s Reservoir and Wells Optimisation Taskgroup’s annual forum where the challenge to get appropriate surveillance was identified in the top 5 initiatives that could promote more  production benefitting interventions.  The SPE surveillance committee adopted the initiative and incorporated it into their 2017 agenda.

Distribution and use of the diagrams is widely encouraged by the SPE’s surveillance organising committee, any updates, forgotten best practices or new techniques can be incorporated into a similar breakout session in the conference to be held in 2019.

Download here.

Over 25 industry experts were today announced as speakers for Topsides UK 2017, an SPE Aberdeen conference and exhibition taking place on 13^th and 14^th June at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre. The conference will focus on sharing innovations and case studies, and provide a platform for the oil and gas industry to explore the key areas affecting topsides operations.

The two-day event welcomes speakers from BP, Centrica, ConocoPhillips, Maersk, OGA, OGTC, Shell and TAQA, each sharing case studies of how new technologies and behaviours have led to more efficient ways of working.

This year’s conference, which is sponsored by the Oil and Gas Authority and TAQA, will also include a new and exciting Technology Showcase session, where innovative products and services from within the supply chain will be presented and discussed in short, high-energy 5-minute slots.

While the Topsides UK conference offers a platform to share knowledge and lessons learned, the exhibition offers supply chain companies the chance to showcase their latest technology and services, some of which have only just been brought to market, with the aim of securing new contracts and hopefully becoming the case studies of Topsides UK 2018.

Steve Cromar, Chair of SPE Continued Education for Aberdeen said “To ensure that Topsides UK 2017 reflected the needs of the industry, we engaged with subject matter experts from within oil and gas operators, and asked them to highlight areas that are currently of interest within topsides operations.

“Whilst finalising the Topsides UK conference programme was an extremely difficult task this year due to the volume and quality of abstracts received, we now have a strong, focused technical programme that reflects the excellent work being done to embrace the challenges the industry is facing.”

Brenda Wyllie, Northern North Sea and West of Shetland Area Manager at The Oil & Gas Authority, said “The OGA is delighted to be supporting Topsides UK for a second year, and we are looking forward to facilitating discussions between subject matter experts from within, and out with the industry.

“The high number of operator case studies in this year’s programme, across a range of themes including “Maintaining and Improving Integrity”, “Culture and Behaviours” and “Appropriate Topsides Technology”, will help to ensure that we have the right people together, at the same time, to ensure we keep working together to maximise the economic recovery of the UKCS’ oil and gas.”

For the full list of this year’s Topsides UK conference speakers and topics, or to secure your conference pass, please visit www.spe-aberdeen.org

For further information on how you can be part of Topsides UK 2017, please visit http://www.topsidesuk.com/ or email aberdeen.events@spe-uk.org