Careful planning and advanced directional drilling technology extend the extended range drilling (ERD) envelope. ERD is commonly described in terms of well profiles with measured depth (MD) to true vertical depth... more

Often, only one or two precisely placed wells are needed to optimally exploit the reservoir. Knowing how to construct them requires expert drilling and completion planning. When asked why D-Day took... more

Production optimization (PO) can potentially impact the cost per barrel of oil lifted more than any previous technology advances. As long as artificial lift systems have been employed in oil... more

Web-based flowmeter and pump-off control monitoring leads to fewer workovers and lower operating costs. A Web-based remote monitoring and data collection system is proving to be an effective management and... more

The umbilical is an essential item of equipment for offshore oil and gas developments based on the use of subsea facilities. It provides the link from the host facility through... more

A new electric subsea control system is being evaluated by BP on its North Sea Magnus field, which uses direct-current (DC) for valve actuation. The newly developed subsea production system is... more

A new method of prospect evaluation leverages some of the unique technology and tools available in 3-D modeling software and expands the workflow into reservoir simulation and uncertainty analysis. The overall... more

Previously drilled wells can provide useful information about undrilled locations. In the last 20 years the adoption of 3-D seismic imaging for oil and gas exploration has dramatically reduced the risk... more

This new offshore vehicle could become a common sight offshore removing platforms starting with the North Sea Frigg field. Monitor Oil Production has placed a contract with a Chinese shipyard to... more

High pressure (~20,000 psi) hydraulic fracturing jobs usually require setting permanent packers. While permanent packers can handle the high differential pressures they are not easily removed, causing unacceptable delays in... more

Performadril drilling fluid from Halliburton contains unique polymer chemistry that allows a water-based mud to emulate an invert fluid. For many years efficient drilling has been impeded by heaving or... more

An interview with Tom Morrow, president, and Chuck Hauf, vice president and general manager, of Challenger Minerals Inc. (CMI). This year, as a minority partner in the UK Broom field development,... more

NORTH AMERICA Mexican President Vicente Fox named Fernando Elizondo as the country's new energy minister, replacing Felipe Calderon. Clive Mather succeeded Linda Cook as president and chief executive officer of Shell... more

Libya, by dismantling its weapons of mass destruction programs, cast off the pariah status the country had endured for nearly two decades. Nowhere has the return of Libya been more welcomed... more

1. Hamar Associates LLC, Ojai, Calif., has applied for a number of wells, including a wildcat in Sutter County in northern California. The wildcat is the 3-25 Guisti in Section... more

1. The Faeroese government is planning a second offshore licensing round by offering new deepwater acreage for which applications open on Aug. 17, 2004. The Faeroes Petroleum Administration said the... more

1. First Calgary Petroleum is moving to the development stage after its latest successful well on the giant MLE field in Algeria. The company announced test results on the MLE-5... more

1. Unocal discovered 50 ft (15 m) of net oil pay in a high-quality sand reservoir at its Tobago prospect in Alaminos Canyon 859, in the block immediately north of... more

1. Petrobank Energy and Resources Ltd. of Canada completed its initial work commitments on the Neiva and Orito blocks in Colombia and produced an average 1,702 bbl of oil a... more

1. Azerbaijan's giant Shah Deniz gas field could begin exporting natural gas by pipeline to Turkey as early as 2007, according to Natik Aliyev, president of the State Oil Co.... more

1. Kuwait is intending to speed up the development of its North oil fields, which was subject to lengthy and positive discussions by the government, state institutions and competent authorities,... more

1. BHP Billiton Petroleum is evaluating an oil and gas exploration and development project in the Philippines' Sulu Sea. The Manila government has invited BHP to the negotiating table regarding... more

It may be in a haphazard fashion, but good ideas do sometimes find their way to the people who need them. While any oil and gas or service company might wish... more

Technology fuels growth, but there are some who are still stubbornly cooking on wood fires. One of America's top independents tells how innovation in drilling technology is paying off in... more

Process management calls for process measurement. One of the more comprehensive offerings we have seen took center-stage at Canada's Global Petroleum Show recently concluded in Calgary. With Stampede just around... more

"Reaching the limit" is the goal of Norway's Statoil, and it hopes to achieve this through an aggressive strategy of technology development in nine key areas. Taking a global perspective, Statoil... more

I stole a weekend off from the heat and humidity of Houston in mid-July to abscond to the mountains of West Texas - Fort Davis, specifically. It's a high, mainly... more

This is part one of a series of quarterly articles that discuss issues and strategies for introduction of new technology in the upstream oil and gas industry. The price collapse... more

Excerpts from a speech by an engineering company executive to the International Compressed Air and Associated Machinery Committee explain metrics at work in engineering. I am actually the chief executive officer... more

Underwater compressors offer tremendous cost saving. Engineers working on Norway's Ormen Lange gas project have launched a technology qualification program intended to finalize a subsea gas compression designed to operate in... more

We can count on change in the oil industry. Markets change constantly, and so does technology. Even the corporate landscape has evolved through the consolidation of giants like ExxonMobil, ChevronTexaco and... more