Jessica Tippee
Assistant Editor
The2014 Offshore Technology Conference gave more than 108,300 attendees the opportunity to learn about new products, services, and technologies and interact with industry colleagues and professionals from around the world at the recent edition in Houston.
This year's event featured nine panel sessions, 29 executive keynote presentations at luncheons and breakfasts, and 308 technical papers. The sold-out exhibition covered 680,025 sq ft (63,176 sq m) and featured 2,568 companies representing 43 countries.
Drilling technologies
A number of new products and technologies were featured for theoffshore drilling market.
Cameron unveiled the EVO 300 Bonnet, which addresses drillers' need to shear stronger, thicker tubulars and seal the wellbore. Building on the company's EVO BOP technology, the new bonnet provides 54% greater ram closing force versus earlier bonnets.
Caterpillar Oil & Gas introduced a new platform to the Cat C175-16 offshore generator set. The existing model is available with 1,833 ekW @ 60 Hz (1,200 rpm) of rated power. The new Cat C175-16 offshore generator set offers 2,300 ekW @ 50 Hz (1,500 rpm) of rated power.
The MCS type-approved, 50 Hz C175 offers 25° tilt capability, an integral feature for solutions providing emergency power on semisubmersible rigs. Driven by two ADEM A4 engine control modules, the IMO Tier II compliant engine features full redundancy and provides engine protection, and low emissions.
Baker Hughes announced the commercial release of its Cytadel ZX electronically actuated casing packer, a gas-tight packer with an electronic trigger mechanism used to provide wellbore integrity and to reduce risk of sustained casing pressure-related (SCP-related) blowouts.
The Cytadel ZX packer forms a V0-rated secondary mechanical pressure barrier above the primary cement job. The barrier eliminates gas migration and protects against dangerous SCP, even when downhole conditions compromise the sealing integrity of the casing cement.
The new system comprises three fundamental components. The downhole packer is built on a solid-body mandrel, eliminating ports and O-rings, and the potential for gas migration through the mandrel. The foundation of the packer is the zero-extrusion ZX seal element. Finally, a unique modular electronic trigger mechanism, deployed and activated in one trip, eliminates the need for pressure or pipe manipulation to set the packer, improving rig site efficiency and reducing risk.
The packer is run as part of a long-string completion and is positioned to isolate the casing-to-casing annulus. After the cementing operation, the packer is remotely actuated from the surface when a unique signal activates the onboard electronics module. Once set, the packer provides an ISO 14310 V0-rated annular seal, creating a permanent gas-tight barrier and eliminating the need for costly pressure bleed-off operations.
With drilling and production from high-pressure reservoirs at or more than 20,000 psi (138 MPa) becoming more likely in the near future, GE Oil & Gas unveiled a BOP program destined to meet the requirements.
Because the demands of drilling 20,000 psi wells at 12,500 ft (3,810 m) differ greatly from those for 15,000 psi wells, the company is working on components to meet the higher pressures. Key features include:
- Upgraded ram and annular BOPs
- SeaONYX BOP Control System designed to maximize uptime
- SeaLytics BOP Advisor software to give real-time information.
"GE's new BOP system will enable operators to explore deepwater basins that are currently inaccessible with conventional 15-ksi BOP systems," said Andrew Way, president and CEO of GE's Drilling & Surface business—GE Oil & Gas. "Our new BOP system utilizes all of GE's latest ‘Predictivity' communications software solutions to allow for real-time remote monitoring of equipment status and performance, thus offering new degrees of reliability and performance."
Subsea
New technologies and products were also on display for thesubsea market.
Schilling Robotics unveiled the UHD III ROV. The technology meets API 53 standards for BOP intervention with RAM closure in less than 45 seconds. The company says the system increases ROV pilot efficiency through intuitive ROV control interface, automated navigation, and positioning systems.
Cameron introduced the Cognition Stack Instrumentation Infrastructure Package. The Cognition package offers a new way to monitor subsea BOP stack functions from the surface while the stack is deployed subsea. The company says the package provides a network of new sensors, communication paths to transmit sensor data to the surface, and the analytics, alerts and alarms to turn the data into insights about the condition of the subsea BOP.
Milton Roy launched the Primeroyal X, an API 675 compliant metering pump. The company says the new pump is designed to give operators greater power and more accurate control to improve flow and deliver consistent product quality.
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