Technology Focus: Field Development (September 2020)

Abstract

Field developers have shifted the usual approach to planning and operations to a “dare to try” approach, experimenting, piloting, and directly implementing from the start a digital transformation of their activities. Under the mandate of decarbonization and safe operations embraced by many international, national, and service oil companies, there is no turning back on an accelerated journey of field-development projects that are moving toward automatic production optimization and predictive maintenance loops. Real and tangible results are available, proving that shifting the focus on operations to a digital approach, using digital twins, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI) truly benefits operators in three main aspects: safety, monetization of investment, and low carbon. Operators who do not engage in this wave most probably will lose competitive advantage soon. Swift innovation in field development was accelerated by the commanding need to reduce operating costs because of low oil prices during the last 2 years and by the imperative urgency of enabling remote and distance-conscious working during the current pandemic. The developments in engineering and digital technology are being integrated to launch solutions never envisioned before, such as wind farms offshore to provide more electricity where it is needed without affecting the environment and North Sea developments modeled on digital twins with little or no staffing. Collaboration among a variety of companies, big and small, is also a preferred approach, leading the way toward the sure digital future in oil and gas. What I consider extremely relevant is the speed with which these improvements are taking place. The selection of articles in this section illustrates three main facets of this vertiginous speed: offshore developments modeled on digital twins that include decarbonization and digitalization implementations that take only months (literally), AI percolating the modeling strategies and consultancy services for large oil and gas operators, and the remarkable innovation of producing electricity with floating wind farms in offshore fields. We live in an exciting transformation era, in which “dare to try” is needed, and we need to learn from any mistakes quickly to shape better field developments that take care of the environment, reduce costs, and increase safety. A failure to dare now will penalize operators who did not grip the imminent change.