Page 12: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (September 2011)

NEWSDNV?s summer students presented the results of seven weeks of intense and targeted work with a concept for year- round drilling and exploration offshore north-east reenland. More than any- thing their work unfolded a massive need for new technologies, improved standards and increased arctic research.But that?s not all; the students predict that drilling in the Arctic could be up to four times as expensive as drilling in the North Sea. DNV?s summer project is an annual program organied during the summer months for students in their final year of a master?s degree program. This year, 10 students with varied cultural and aca- demic backgrounds have been working intensely for seven weeks with the proj- ect Drilling in the Arctic. The focus has been on developing a comprehensive concept for drilling in the complex, rough and challenging conditions thatare prevalent around the north-east coast of reenland. One of the premises for the projectwas that the risk associated with drilling in this part of the Arctic should be simi- lar to the risk of drilling in the NorthSea.We know that the world needs more energy. And we know that much of this energy is located in unfriendly areas of the world. These are complex issues that the world?s leading scientists, re- searchers and engineers spend consider- able time and resources on. I amtherefore impressed by what these tenstudents have been able to process and produce throughout seven short summer weeks.And even though their calculations show that the costs associated with drilling in the Arctic could be substan- tially higher when compared to drillingcosts in the North Sea - their conceptalso clearly demonstrates that it is pos-sible to engage in safe and sustainabledrilling in these areas of the earth in thefuture, said CEO enrik O. Madsen. AU - A EASC CNCEP esearch shows that about 22 25 of the world?s undiscovered petroleum resources are located in the Arctic. ow- ever, there are many complex challenges related to drilling in this region. Not least due to factors such as a harsh cli- mate, geography, costs and geopolitics. Thus, in order to extract the resources from deep below the sea bed we need to develop and deploy new methods and technologies. In their concept, named Allu after the reenlandic words for hole in the ice, the students present a realistic blue print for how stakeholders can engage in exploration and drilling in the Arctic on a year-round basis, with a risk level similar to that in the North Sea. Among other things the students suggest how stakeholders can proceed to develop new methods and technological solutions as well as how the same stake- holders can adapt existing standards, technologies, communication equip-ment and vessels to the prevailing cir- cumstances.In a comparative analysis the students have found that the estimated total cost per day of Allu against traditional North Sea solutions is four times higher. ow- ever the students emphasie that in the future, factors such as economies of scale and innovations in technology have the potential to reduce these costs. In combination with accurate data on ac-tual arctic field sies this will provide a better decision foundation for whetheror not to engage in Arctic drilling oper- ations. In the end, more than anything, the student?s work unfolded a massive need for further Arctic research, new technologies and improved standards. First U.S. Navy Ship Visit to Vietnam in 38 Years Military Sealift Command dry cargo/ammu- nition ship USNS Richard E. Byrd (pic-tured) left Cam Ranh Bay in southern Vietnam, marking the end of a historic visit ? the first by a U.S. Navy ship to the port in more than three decades. Byrd spent seven days at Cam Ranh Shipyard for rou- tine maintenance and repairs that included underwater hull cleaning, polishing of theship's propeller, repairing shipboard piping, and overhaul of the salt water cooling sys-tem that keeps the ship's engines cool andruns the air conditioning.MSC Ship Support Unit Singapore routinely contracts shipyards throughout Southeast Asia to conduct maintenance and repairs on the command's Combat Logistics Force ships. The Navy saves both time andmoney by using multiple commercial ship- yards throughout the region, reducing tran- sit times to more distant shipyards, and thereby also reducing the amount of time these ships are off-mission. Cam Ranh Bay is a deep-water and shel-tered harbor which can easily accommo- date larger naval vessels with deep drafts. Byrd measures more than 680 feet in length and displaces more than 41,000 tons. DNV Summer Students Projection Arctic Drilling 4x More Expensive Maple City, MI 49664
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