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Production

North Sea renewal

After two years of planning, BP is about to launch a major renewal people on offshore facilities, without disrupting operations; shutting-in a program on its North Sea Magnus and ETAP facilities. BP explained feld for a year is not necessarily a the program—and its long term aims—to . Elaine Maslin prudent decision. Renewal is fnding a way of maintaining production, but perators in the North Sea are The diffculties facing operators are signifcantly increasing the amount of tackling a thorny problem— underlying integrity and reliability work that can be done offshore.” how to maintain and sustain issues, and large workscopes, due to What BP is doing BP’s renewal

O production on facilities reaching or the age of facili- program will address integrity and reli- past their design lives. ties, with limited ability and, ultimately, establish a more

Industry initiatives, through the bed space available sustainable operating model (SOM).

Health & Safety Executive (HSE), (persons on board Work on the renewal program started government/industry group PILOT and or POB) for staff to in 2011, with an overall review of the

Oil & Gas UK, have focused on overdue carry out the work. issues and opportunities across all BP’s safety critical maintenance, hydrocar- The discovery of North Sea assets.

bon leaks, and maintenance backlogs. additional resources Magnus and the Eastern Trough Area

Enrique Sandoval,

Now, attention is falling on produc- is also extending Project (ETAP) are the frst two assets program manager, tion effciency. According to Oil & the lives of these identifed for the program, starting

BP North Sea

Gas UK (O&G UK), in 2011 (the latest assets, further with the Magnus Life Extension Project available data), North Sea production increasing offshore scope, and demand (MLXP), with work scheduled to start effciency fell to 63%, compared to for bed space. in 1Q 2014. about 80% in 2004. O&G UK expects Enrique Sandoval, program man- The appraisal phase for the ETAP this to fall again to 60% in 2012. ager, is leading BP’s North Sea renewal Life Extension Project (ELXP) started program. This is a multi- in late 2012. The project team is cur- year multi-billion dollar rently evaluating potential vessels that investment across BP’s UK could be used to deliver the project, sector fxed platforms, so far mid 2015. including Magnus and ETAP. Appraisal of Clair, a third North Sea “If we continue at the asset, will start in 4Q, this year. current pace, we will not be

The renewal program will be car- able to catch up and plant ried out through: specifc interven- operating effciency (OE) tions, to give a short term increase will decline, leading to the in engineering and POB capacity, to need for a big intervention,” enable fabric maintenance work off- he says. shore and improvements in business

COSL Rival Flotel “That means a lot of processes, to reduce the requirement

OE | October 2013 oedigital.com 58 058_1013OE_ProdOps1BP.indd 58 9/29/13 10:07 PM