Page 7: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Jul/Aug 2019)

6 8

EDITOR’S LETTER

Look Back, forge Ahead he world today is an increasingly contentious place, with rising amounts of geo-political con? ict and economic uncertainties. The price of oil has been on a ? gurative rollercoaster ride for more than ? ve years, and on August 1 Brent and WTI prices declined by more than 7% when the U.S.

Tannounced new tariffs on China. According to the recent ‘Short Term Energy Outlook’ from the

U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), “Energy high yield corporate bonds have increased for energy companies by more than those for the broader market,” re? ecting increased risk default and poten- tially higher borrowing costs for some oil producers. That’s the bad news.

What’s the good news? While there has been an in? ux of renewable sources to the energy mix, oil and gas remain the cornerstone of global energy for the coming generation. And according to that same EIA re- port, energy markets should remain stable in the short term through 2020, averaging $65/barrel through the end of next year. While I generally eschew clichés, ‘When the going gets tough, the tough get going’ is apt in this instance as it applies to offshore energy leaders that have been forced to innovate to reduce the cost of extracting oil from under the world’s seas. Reporting on the technologies that help offshore companies operate in a safer, more ef? cient and economical manner has been the province of Offshore Engineer since its founding in 1975, an editorial mandate that continues today.

In this edition, starting on page 8, Jennifer Pallanich reports on a technology launched by Schulmberger – the IriSphere look-ahead-while-drilling service – that uses electromagnetic technology to allow operators to ‘see’ ahead of the bit, helping to ? ll in the gaps when seismic data and reservoir modeling is not enough.

On page 12, Elaine Maslin offers a look at a fresh take on a xmas tree which offers operators the ability to more quickly and easily change functions to suit needs, helping to reduce cost and schedule, which have historically been driven by imagining and engineering a system that was designed and built for the life of the ? eld. Bigger picture, the digitalization and automation trends are undeniable as operators increasingly test, trust and tap next-generation tech to streamline operations and reduce costs. These trends are summa- rized in a number of features in this edition, from “A Piece of the Puzzle” starting on page 32; to our spe- cial report on “Automation: Big Data, Security and Remote Ops” starting on page 42; and ? nishing with an insightful look at the progress and future prospects of creating a “Digital Twin”, starting on page 46.

It was just 12 months ago that we were ? nalizing the deal to acquire this prestigious title and starting the process to relaunch Offshore Engineer, OEDigital.com and AOGdigital.com. This, like the market, has been an exhilarating rollercoaster ride.

Of all of the uncertainties in the world and in your business, one thing you can count on is that this venerable brand is in good hands. The wheels are in motion to add Offshore Engineer to our family of

BPA-audited publications, as BPA is the undeniable ‘Gold Standard’ when it comes to B2B magazine cir- culation audits. This is part of our commitment and assurance to this industry to deliver insightful, timely and compelling articles, analytics and insights to a global, targeted, quali? ed audience. While we are new drivers of the Offshore Engineer brand, we are long-tenured publishers in the maritime, energy and subsea spaces, as this year our company celebrates its 80th anniversary. As we look back on eight decades and ahead to the next, we thank you for your interest and support, and we look forward to exploring an excit- ing new era of offshore energy discovery and recovery.

Gregory R. Trauthwein

Editorial Director & Associate Publisher [email protected] t: +1.212.477.6700 • m: +1-516.810.7405

JULY/AUGUST 2019 OFFSHORE ENGINEER 7 1-17 OE JulyAug 2019.indd 7 8/9/2019 12:01:52 PM