Automation on the drillfloor has been slow to take off – but it is coming as advances in enabling technologies are made. Elaine Maslin looks at work ongoing in the field. Automation on the drillfloor has been slow to take off – but it’s coming and there will be no going back…
Hercules Offshore received a notice from Saudi Aramco to terminate its drilling contract for the Hercules 261, effective 27 March 2015. Hercules says it is in the process of seeking a basis for continuing the Hercules 261 contract. The…
Maersk Drilling’s third XL Enhanced ultra harsh environment jackup was officially named Saturday morning at the Keppel FELS shipyard in Singapore. Margareth Øvrum, Executive Vice President in Statoil, named the rig - the third in a series…
Westcon Yards won a contract to conduct a special periodic survey (SPS) and inspection on the Transocean Leader semisubmersible. The Transocean Leader. From Transocean. The company said the original plan was for the rig to arrive in March…
Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin addressed the International Petroleum (IP) Week forum in London, stating that the oil markets are in a fairly acute crisis. Image from Rosneft. “In the second half of 2014 there was a drop in oil prices…
With the discovery of deepwater pre-salt reservoirs offshore Brazil, national operator Petrobras began complex drilling operations to uncork the massive hydrocarbon reserves under these salt layers, which acted as seals, preventing the oil and gas from escaping…
US oilfield services giant Weatherford has joined its big three competitors in announcing a headcount reduction amounting to thousands as the industry faces cut backs into 2015. Weatherford says it is targeting a 5000 cut in staff, more than 85% of which will be in the Western Hemisphere…
Jerry Lee reports on new guidelines for managed pressure drilling operations due out this year from both ABS and API. Pacific Drilling’s Pacific Santa Ana drillship, classed by ABS, has been outfitted…
Orderbooks reflect reined-in spending based on conservative near-term oil price estimates. ABS’ James Graf sets out the detail. MODU new construction projects through 4Q/14. Source: ABS. Weak demand…
Over supply of oil, diminishing returns and an increasing rig fleet will challenge rig operators in 2015. Rystad Energy’s Joachim Bjørni and Oddmund Føre look for a ray of light. Graphs from Rystad. Throughout 2014…
President Obama’s fiscal year 2016 budget request for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) is US$204.7 million, providing robust support that will enable BSEE to keep pace with industry activity and the technology developments…
ConocoPhillips has started drilling on the third well in its Barossa area exploration campaign, Barossa-4, in the Bonaparte basin, offshore Australia's Northern Territory. The latest well follows the Barossa-3 appraisal well…
Harland and Wolff (H&W) have won a contract award for dry docking and renewal/ special periodic survey of the Byford Dolphin mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU) from Aberdeen based Dolphin Drilling. Following on the successful completion of its sister rig the Blackford Dolphin in 2014…
The first new-build semisubmersible drilling rig incorporating Wood Group Mustang Norway's (WGMN's) GG5000 floating hull design has been delivered to COSL Drilling Europe (CDE). The COSLProspector was designed to operate in water depths up to 1500m (5000 feet) and drill wells up to 7600m (25…
Schnitger President Monica Schnitger urged oil and gas companies to explore and exploit the latest technologies to have successful projects at the 2014 Bentley Systems Year in Infrastructure conference. Meg Chesshyre has more. “I’m…
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