Offshore staff
STAVANGER, Norway– The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has awarded its improved oil recovery (IOR) prize to the licensees for the Alvheim field in the North Sea because of their willingness to accept risk.
The licensees for the Alvheim field are Aker BP (operator with 65% interest), ConocoPhillips (20%), and Lundin (15%).
Adopting new technology, sharing data, and being able to view a wider area have helped to more than double available reserves from this area.
Alvheim came onstream in 2008. Since then, extensive data-gathering has led to the continuous identification, maturing, and drilling of new well targets. In addition, an exploration program around the field has resulted in further discoveries and the development of several new finds.
Discoveries beyond Alvheim’s immediate vicinity, such as Vilje, Volund, Bøyla and Skogul, have also been tied back to the field. This has helped to more than double reserves in the Alvheim area compared with the figure given in the approved plan for development and operation in 2004.
Drilling of pilot wells and multilaterals, extensive use of oil and water tracers, 4D seismic surveying, inflow control devices (ICDs) and autonomous ICDs (AICDs), the NPD said, are among the technologies which have made it possible to optimize Alvheim production and all the tiebacks of reservoirs which consist to a great extent of relatively thin oil columns.
Good experience with advanced completion solutions (the ICDs mentioned above) to reduce gas production and thereby increase oil output has led to a research project and plans to install AICDs as a further development to close off unwanted water or gas production.
“This year’s finalists for the IOR prize have shown that research, knowledge and technology development are crucial for improving oil recovery,” says Arvid Østhus, assistant director for development and operations in the northern North Sea at the NPD.
“The winner companies have demonstrated this by adopting new methods and technology as well as being able to view and develop a large area as a whole. They are now reaping the benefit in the form of improved recovery – and increased value.”
The other finalists nominated by the jury were the Resman technology company and professor Svein Skjæveland at the University of Stavanger.
08/29/2018
