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| PSV Frigg Viking in Aberdeen Harbour. Image courtesy of Jim Cargill |
Nexen has applied software developed by PlanSea Ltd., a Robert Gordon University spin-out company, to remove significant cost from its North Sea operations. Working with PlanSea, Nexen was able to simulate 65 weeks of its full North Sea marine operations using different schedules and combinations of its platform supply vessel (PSV) fleet. The results showed that significant reductions in fleet size and improvements in vessel utilization could be achieved by re-organizing its operations.
“In order to live at a low oil price, operators need to make a step change in eliminating waste in the supply chain and this requires a step change in thinking about new modes of operation,” said Ray Riddoch, managing director UK and senior vice president Europe, Nexen. “Through working with PlanSea, we have been able to enhance vessel utilization and so reduce our North Sea PSV fleet from four vessels to two, resulting in a 2016 saving of some £6.5 million (US$8.28 million).”
The system uses advanced algorithms to optimize vessel utilization and builds on years of working with industry partners, capturing the constraints and delays that make offshore logistics such a complex task, to model supply vessel operations, explained professor John McCall of RGU whose expert team at the university developed the system.
“The ability to accurately identify feasible ways in which reduced fleets can operate and validate that in realistic simulation is a game changer,” said Jim Cargill, managing director, PlanSea. “There is a tremendous opportunity for the industry to collaborate with shared PSV fleets, potentially taking 40-50% out of resource costs. In the North Sea that could mean continued viability for assets that are struggling to break even in the current environment. Looking forward to a recovery in price, the value of savings made now will increase - as activity rises the cost base will rise at a slower rate as efficient fleet sizing is maintained.”
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