The key for oilfield service and supply industry is technology

03-05-99 The key for the oilfield service and supply industry in the next century will be technology -- both exploration /production technology and information technology, said the vice chairman of the Petroleum Equipment Suppliers Association (PESA).
Peter D. Kinnear, president of FMC's Petroleum Equipment and Systems Division, pointed to the development of 4-dimensional seismic technology to lead the way in the face of new oil price pressures, diminishing reserves and harsh deepwater environments.
"Rapidly evolving visualisation techniques will allow companies to develop the data to evaluate drilling plans and well locations long before a rig is on-site, with greater accuracy than ever before," Kinnear said.
Intelligent reservoir management, smart wells and seabed processing all offer new technologies to both increase production from existing assets and develop new prospects more economically at current prices, Kinnear added.
"Through advanced subsea technologies, we are just beginning to tap the ultra deep waters of Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico and offshore West Africa," he said.
By combining high-tech communications and manufacturing methods, Kinnear said PESA companies are lowering costs and reducing cycle times.
"For example, drill bit designers in Houston are able to engineer and modify bits for a specific well and reservoir virtually anywhere in the world by viewing real-time data from the wellsite," he noted.
"These and other challenges are requiring our industry to spur the rapid acceleration of information technology to organise and access technical data on a world-wide basis."