Energy Oil & Gas Issue 126 November 2015

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The tide of

change Tidal arrays and lagoons have the potential to supply significant amounts of energy and new technology is helping build confidence in the market

The full potential Emphasis is increasing on the use of cryogenic gases in hydraulic fracturing Survive and thrive ERP can bring advantages including easier asset management to businesses in the oil and gas sector

Also in this issue - Data analytics for upstream oil and gas

issue 126 OCTOBER

Editor Editors Chairman Andrew Schofield Editor Libbie Hammond libbie@schofieldpublishing.co.uk Profiles Editor Andrew Dann Staff Writers Jo Cooper Ben Clark Art Editor Gérard Roadley-Battin Production Manager Fleur Daniels Studio Assistant Barnaby Schofield Business Development Director David Garner Corporate Advertising Sales David King dking@schofieldpublishing.co.uk Sales Director Joe Woolsgrove Operations Director Philip Monument Business Development Manager Mark Cawston Research Managers Ben Richell Natalie Griffiths Editorial Researchers Jeff Johnson Wendy Russell

It is important that we do not lose sight of the continuing need for a mix of sources of energy generation if we are to achieve greater national energy security in the short, medium and long term,”

it's not easy being green

The

news that the UK had fallen out of the top ten in the influential Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index since it began 12 years ago came as a blow to those looking to invest in low carbon energy options.

Add in the proposals to end key subsidy schemes, and the denial of planning permission for new wind energy developments and the UK’s renewable landscape is looking murky.

It would seem logical that continuing to invest in renewable energy is critical to the UK, as Mark Worcester from Turley agrees: “It is important that we do not lose sight of the continuing need for a mix of sources of energy generation if we are to achieve greater national energy security in the short, medium and long term,” he said.

­Office Manager/Advertisement Administrator Tracy Chynoweth Digital Subscriptions Iain Kidd digital @schofieldpublishing.co.uk

editor LIBBIE HAMMOND

© 2015 Schofield Publishing Limited all rights reserved 10 Cringleford Business Centre Intwood Road Cringleford Norwich NR4 6AU T: +44 (0) 1603 274130 F: +44 (0) 1603 274131

@EOG_magazine please note: The opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers within this publication do not necessarily coincide with those of the editor and publisher. Every reasonable effort is made to ensure that the information published is accurate, but no legal responsibility for loss occasioned by the use of such information can be accepted by the publisher. All rights reserved. The contents of the magazine are strictly copyright, the property of Schofield Publishing, and may not be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or reproduced without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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Regulars

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Shale gas

Energised solutions for fracturing: safe, reservoir-friendly and water-saving well stimulation

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News

Some of the recent developments within the oil and gas industry

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Collaboration

A collaborative approach to supply chain management will create an opportunity for efficiency

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Tidal energy

The role that tidal energy can play when addressing climate change

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Renewable energy

The Government’s position on clean energy is still somewhat unclear, but thankfully it’s not all doom and gloom for onshore wind

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ERP

In the hands of the right partner, ERP can help reduce operational expenditure, maximise capital utilisations and generally shake up processes

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Data

Profiles

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24 North Sea Rigs 27 Energy Drilling 30 Gosan 33 Fire Protection Engineering 35 VTT Vasiliko 40 EDL 42 GDMC 44 Zeta-pdm 47 C-Power 30 49 Port of Den Helder

The entire upstream oil and gas industry needs to wake up to the value it can unlock by analysing data

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Contents

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53 Svitzer 56 Onstream Group 58 Baltic Chemical Terminal 60 Flowplant Group 63 OSTP Finland 64 Newarc 66 Wessington Cryogenics

80 PBP Services (Scotland) 82 Innovative Input 84 mh2 86 Surface Engineers 90 90 Infinis Energy 94 Mampaey Offshore Industries

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68 Albrehta 72 70 Top Oilfiled Industries 72 Peter Madsen Rederi A/S 74 Bord na M贸na 76 Fincantieri Group 78 Storengy 78

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potential The full

Robin Watts and Kevin Watts discuss energised solutions for fracturing: safe, reservoir-friendly and water-saving well stimulation

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hale gas and other hydrocarbons trapped within massive shale formations have become an important source of natural gas and oil in the United States since the start of the 21st century and interest has spread to potential gas shales across the rest of the world. Europe now stands at having an estimated 21 trillion cubic feet, as indicated in the latest environmental impact studies by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). In 2000, shale gas resources provided less than one per cent of total US natural gas production, but by 2010 shale gas accounted for over 20 per cent and the EIA predicts that by 2035, 46 per cent of the United States' natural gas supply will come from shale reservoirs. Some analysts expect that shale gas will come to play an expanding role in world energy supply with potential shale gas and shale oil reservoirs in India, Romania, Poland, Saudi Arabia and China, to name a few.

The combination of two existing technologies, horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, has made it possible to tap into this hydrocarbon-resource, leading to a shale gas and oil revolution that is seeing thousands of horizontal wells drilled and completed annually.

Challenges The most common extraction process has used water-based formulations to achieve sufficient viscosity or velocity to suspend and place a proppant. Water-based fracturing with fluids can leave liquids trapped in low-permeability, tight, depleted or water-sensitive formations. Water initially seemed ‘cheap’, readily available and forgiving – and water’s original attractiveness as the ultimate fracturing fluid became ‘conventional wisdom’ and evolved as unconventional resources did.

However, water life cycle costs have risen significantly, particularly in areas experiencing shortages or those with fewer regional disposal well options. At the same time, public awareness and subsequent negative perception, of the sheer

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amount of water required for each well – typically between 2.5 million and 5 million gallons (and as high as 10 million gallons) – led some communities to require producers to disclose consumption figures.

Energised solutions for extraction When it comes to hydraulic fracturing, there is significant room for improvement in productivity and also to reduce costs. Pumping more sand and fluid into longer laterals is not necessarily the most strategic approach. While bigger may sometime make better, in this case, it does not result in optimal wells.

Shale gas

The use of N2 and CO2 overcomes and mitigates many of the challenges associated with traditional water-based hydraulic fracturing fluids by reducing the high volumes of water, chemicals, and even proppant. CO2 serving to displace water in hydraulic fracturing, continues to be a proven method used in well stimulation of reservoirs from Saudi Arabia to South Texas. Energising solutions, using CO2 or nitrogen N2, provide a better approach for operating companies to increase oil and gas production from tight or water sensitive formations as well as unconventional reservoirs such as shale, tight sands and coalbed methane.

N2, an alternative to CO2 for well stimulation, has also been

proven effective for well stimulation of shallower reservoir environments. Nitrogen hydraulic fracturing formulations include using 100 per cent N2 for total water replacement to creating nitrified slick water or foams for well stimulation to improve productivity and reduce water footprint.

When injected into gas and oil wells the so-called ‘energised solutions’ are able to enhance hydrocarbon production rates and yield improved long-term economic recovery over the life of the well. Fracturing treatments energised with CO2 or N2 are increasingly being recognised for maximising long term well productivity as a result of minimising environmental damage with smaller wellsite

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Shale gas

footprint sans large water retention pond requirements.

It also reduces overall costs of water transport, treatment and disposal. A well designed energised treatment can in fact be more economical than water while also being more reservoirfriendly. Energised treatments place significantly less water into the reservoir. In addition it can take up valuable time during flowback, causing increased time to well clean-up of the water pumped downhole.

Recent studies indicate that, from an economic perspective, hydraulic fracturing with solutions energised

by CO2 or N2 can achieve significantly more hydrocarbon recovery than non-energised approaches. One such study1 found that use of energised fluids improved well performance by up to 2.1 times, compared with non-energised solutions.

Energising the fracturing fluid with CO2 or N2 also improves the total flowback water volume and rate, minimises fluid retention and reduces the required water volume, which can have significant economic implications.

Critically, energising fracturing fluid also helps avoid damage, defined as ‘any induced reservoir change that inhibits or restricts hydrocarbon flow during well stimulation’.

Additionally, the flexibility of energised solutions allows for the hydraulic fracturing fluid to be mixed according to the technological needs of unconventional reservoirs. They provide more rapid and complete treatment fluid recovery, help to clean without the need for swabbing and reduce formation damage by minimising the amount of aqueous fluids introduced to the formation.

Economics To realise the full potential value of an oil field and to achieve the highest recovery factor, using energised fluids during each stage of the recovery process is the best way to achieve optimal results. But achieving a field’s full potential value also means optimising recovery along with the costs of that production. Energised fluids offer the means to maximise the recovery factor and importantly, if planned from a field-wide perspective, the means to optimise the cost of production.

To strive for the greatest Estimated Ultimate Recovery (EUR) of the well in the most economically effective way, both performance and economy must be considered - or maximum productivity over time at the lowest overall cost.

Typically, EUR is projected over 10 years based on actual production rates taken at 30, 60 and 90 days. The decline curve, representing the drop in production over time, is projected from these actuals, with low, best and high estimates to cover the range of uncertainty.

Too often, much of the focus is on the well’s initial performance. Encouraged by time-to-production using familiar techniques such as water, producers may neglect to consider alternatives that could minimise the slope of the decline curve.

Adding CO2 or N2 to the fracturing treatment has been

shown to optimise overall productivity (increasing EUR), even though the initial acquisition cost of these gases can be higher than non-energised fluids such as slick or acid water.

However, beyond their ability to improve fracturing itself, energised fluids significantly boost flowback and production performance through enhanced clean-up and minimal fluid retention. They also boost production significantly in depleted formations.

Uniquely positioned As the industry continues to focus on reducing the amount of water required for hydraulic fracturing due to availability and disposal costs, greater emphasis is being placed on the use of cryogenic gases and associated field support services to achieve these goals. Linde Gas, a division of The Linde Group, a global leader in the international industrial gases market, was the first company to supply CO2 directly to the wellhead for hydraulic fracturing. Linde is uniquely positioned to work on a worldwide scale with oil and gas producers and oilfield service companies for fracturing and enhanced oil recovery. Services include a complete fleet of CO2 transports, even to remote locations, and a strong N2 supply network.

1 3 Burke, L.H. and Nevison, G. W. 2011. Improved Hydraulic Fracture Performance with Energized Fluids: A Montney Example. Recovery-2011 CSPG CSEG CWLS Convention.

LINDE Robin Watts is Oil & Gas Technology Manager with Linde’s Energy Solutions Group, and Kevin Watts is Director of EOR Business Development, The Linde Group. Linde is the largest industrial gases and engineering company globally with over 65,500 employees working in more than 100 countries.

Industrial gases are an integral part of our everyday lives – they used for a multitude of applications in manufacturing and production across a wide range of industries including oil & gas and refining.

For further information please visit: linde.com

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Better batteries Redflow, the Australian provider of energy storage flow batteries, has announced that it has decreased its zincbromide battery (ZBM) cost by 50 per cent through technology improvements and a stronger manufacturing relationship with Flextronics. The company is now able to offer its naked ZBM product at a cost of $20c per kWh throughput, down from $48c just six months ago. With this dramatic reduction, energy from Redflow’s ZBM product drops below grid price.

Redflow has already outsourced the majority of the manufacturing process for its key product, the ZBM, to global scalable manufacturing specialist Flextronics in North America. The ZBM electrode, which is currently still being manufactured in Brisbane, will now also be outsourced to Flextronics.

Following substantial R&D work over the last 12 months, Redflow has started the transition to the use of its latest electrode surface coating, ACN13, in its production batteries.

The use of ACN13 in production will be integrated with the outsourcing of electrode manufacturing to Flextronics.

In-house testing has shown a substantial improvement in physical operating characteristics and projected lifetime thanks to the new materials.

To allow for the full outsourcing to be completed efficiently, and to maximise the benefits of the transition to ACN13, the production rate of ZBM products by Flextronics will be substantially reduced until the full electrode outsourcing process is concluded. Operating cost reductions in Brisbane have been realised with manufacturing in Brisbane reducing.

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New contract signed XPD8 Solutions, an asset integrity management specialist, has secured a significant two-year contract with CNR International.

The agreement will see the Aberdeen-headquartered firm providing condition-monitoring services to five CNR platforms in the North Sea. Having already provided cover to CNR International’s UKCS assets over the past eight years, this latest contract will take XPD8 to a decade working for the Canadian independent oil and natural gas production company.

Gordon Ellis, operations director at XPD8, said: “This latest award from CNR International shows that as well as expanding globally we continue to provide a valuable service in our own back yard.

The downturn facing the oil & gas industry has made it more important than ever for operators to know their equipment is working at optimum levels. Effective condition monitoring is crucial in ensuring that production continues at the desired rate. In addition, the correct system will flag up where machinery is not running efficiently, helping to avoid breakdowns and the costs this ensues in downtime and repairs.”

Formed in 2003, XPD8 is a privately owned company, which provides skilled engineers for all areas of the asset management process. Earlier this year the company revealed it had secured a contract in Ghana with Tullow Oil to migrate its existing computerised maintenance management system (CMMS) to the Maximo software package. The system supports planning, scheduling, performance monitoring and reporting of asset integrity key performance indicators at the Jubilee floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel.

Working in partnership Schneider Electric has revealed its new BLISS (baseline integrated SCADA system) solution. BLISS combines Schneider Electric’s Enterprise OASyS SCADA - and its advanced application with IT infrastructure - with compute and networking provided by Cisco to deliver an IoT-enabled holistic pipeline management platform for new pipelines or upgrades to systems. A key aim is to provide operators with real-time visibility into the structural integrity of the pipeline to enable maintenance to be planned or immediate repairs to be effected.

“We are excited about the innovative possibilities this collaboration with Schneider Electric on Connected Pipeline solutions opens up for the oil and gas industry,” said Tony Shakib, VP of IoE Vertical Solutions Group, Cisco. “IT infrastructure development and the integration with SCADA services can represent a significant capital and time cost for companies. An all-in-one integrated design will significantly improve new project efficiency and quality and life cycle cost.”

“As a first-of-its-kind solution, we are proud to offer a more efficient, reliable and highly secure pipeline management service to oil and gas companies seeking to keep pace with a rapidly evolving industry, particularly in pipeline development,” said Larry Stack, senior vice president, Oil and Gas Pipeline Applications for Schneider Electric. “Our partnership with Cisco continues our tradition of creating cutting-edge solutions for the current and future challenges of our clients.”

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News

New offering for Brazil M.A.C. Solutions, developer of the ProcessVue suite of alarm management software, has announced a partnership agreement with Aquarius Software, a provider of industrial automation software for the manufacturing, oil & gas, biofuel and power generation markets in Brazil.

John Pritchard, Managing Director of M.A.C. Solutions commented: “The agreement with Aquarius is part of a much wider strategic initiative at M.A.C. Solutions to increase our presence in the South American and North American markets. Whilst ProcessVue already has a strong customer base in Europe and in parts of the US, Aquarius will open up new markets for us in Brazil, a key region, particularly in terms of its oil & gas, power generation and petrochemicals companies that are based there.”

Mario Simas, Managing Director at Aquarius Software added: “We are very excited about the agreement with M.A.C. Solutions, as it enables us to offer a premium software product such as ProcessVue to our existing and new customers in Brazil. There is now an increasing need amongst our customers to focus on alarms and alarm management. ProcessVue will therefore appeal to a wide range of our process industry customers, particularly in the oil & gas, petrochemicals, energy, and power generation industries.”

Driving the Canadian tidal market Leading international tidal developer Atlantis and global renewables company DP Energy have formed a partnership to develop a multi-turbine array at the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE) facility in Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is anticipated that the array will include AR1500 turbines from Atlantis’ turbine division. Financing and front end engineering design is expected to be completed in 2016 in anticipation of an offshore construction commencement date in 2017.

AOCL is the leaseholder of a berth at the FORCE facility in Canada, which was awarded a 4.5MW feed-in-tariff by the Nova Scotia Department of Energy in December 2014.

The partnership will enable DP Energy to take an active role alongside Atlantis in bringing AOCL’s opportunities to fruition and tapping into the huge potential of the Canadian tidal market.

Tim Cornelius, CEO of Atlantis, said: “We have now created a project development platform that the local supply chain can invest in, with confidence. Coupled with the unwavering support of the Nova Scotian Department of Energy and the leadership of FORCE, AOCL will be an attractive investment proposition for project financers looking to make use of the feed in tariffs available for tidal stream projects in the Province.

“This partnership is further demonstration of the inevitable consolidation that is occurring across the tidal power sector globally, and Atlantis is proud to be leading the charge. DP Energy is a well-established developer of renewable energy projects globally, and Simon’s energy and vision will no doubt help drive this multi-turbine initiative to a successful conclusion.”

Closer integration In a move that will enable the company to offer its customers a wider range of CHP based low carbon energy solutions across all market sectors Veolia has announced its specialist combined heat and power (CHP) company, Cogenco Limited, will be fully integrating with the UK group and adopting the Veolia name.

While the name change reflects the closer integration of the group, the business will continue to provide customers with its expertise in developing, constructing and operating greener and more economical energy solutions using the latest CHP technology. It coincides with an expansion of the current product range and introduction of enhanced efficiency packaged CHP units with power outputs ranging from 50kWe to 4MWe, and will have the added benefit of incorporating the expertise from the other areas of the business.

Veolia currently operates over 600 CHP units across a range of applications covering the industrial, district heating, hotels, leisure, retail, hospitals, universities and water industry sectors.

Steve Guttridge, Managing Director of Cogenco, said: “This move fully integrates our CHP services under the ‘Resourcing the World’ brand and our CHP customers will benefit from a larger range of on-site energy solutions that can help them be more sustainable into the future.”

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Opportunities for According to Malcolm Wilson, collaboration can reduce contract risk

Below Malcolm Wilson FPAL Director, Achilles

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ith the $50 barrel, there is sustained pressure for oil and gas companies to improve efficiency and reduce costs. In the UK alone, over 5500 direct jobs have been cut and the knock-on effect in the support sector adds an estimated further 60,000 lost jobs. This picture is mirrored worldwide.

Is the rush to cut jobs also removing in-house expertise that could expose operators and main contractors to higher contract risk? Where do accidents and non-compliance issues typically arise? Research shows that these companies typically spend around 80 per cent of their annual revenue with their suppliers and this introduces potential contract risk on health and safety, quality and compliance with a growing number of new laws concerning anti-bribery and

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corruption and the Modern Slavery Act. Global supplier information firm Achilles works on behalf of 300 oil and gas companies across the world to manage business critical information about 25,000+ suppliers. The firm commissioned independent research agency IFF to carry out telephone interviews with 300 supply chain professionals across the UK, USA, Spain, Brazil and The Nordics. This included 65 major oil and gas buying organisations.

It has been said that if you think safety is expensive, try having an accident but many oil and gas companies don’t have an effective method of supplier selection that assesses suppliers’ HSE management systems and other important compliance issues. Knowing that the information held on suppliers is comprehensive and up to date is critical but that can be an expensive task if a collaborative approach is not taken.

Collaboration

The survey results showed that: 66 Many oil and gas companies don’t have basic information about their suppliers – such as financial reports, and policies for health and safety and anti-bribery and corruption 66 This is compounded because the data they do have is not updated regularly 66 A high number don’t have clear processes for assessing and selecting suppliers, leaving decisions to chance 66 Despite a high level of synergy, oil and gas companies are still unwilling to work collaboratively on collecting, updating and managing critical information about suppliers.

Selecting suppliers With ever-increasing scrutiny on oil and gas firms, it is more important than ever that they are seen to be operating, and treating suppliers, in a fair and transparent way.

66 Yet one in five firms (19 per cent) used only their own judgement to select suppliers 66 27 per cent used only a risk model, without any of their own expertise 66 Only 36 per cent used the ‘best practice’ combination of a risk model supported by individuals’ own expertise and experience 66 More concerning still is that more than one in 10 (13 per cent) don’t use either their own judgement or a formal risk model when it comes to choosing suppliers.

Community collaboration With the global oil and gas industry facing challenging times it is vital that businesses within the sector put perceived ‘competition’ on managing supplier risk to one side and join forces for the benefit of the industry as a whole.

Malcolm Wilson, Director of Achilles FPAL, said: “True collaboration is the cost effective solution to managing supply chains. It takes a certain amount of culture change but by working together, oil and gas companies can benefit from very significant cost savings and reduce contract risk.

We know this approach works but there huge room for improvement in behaviour and now is certainly the right time to take a renewed look at how a collaborative approach to supply chain management can help to deliver the cost saving that the industry currently demands.

“In our experience, best practice is for buying organisations to agree a standard pre-qualification approach to capture all non-commercial, mandatory information from suppliers. The data can then be published on a central portal, allowing all buyers to view official documents and use the information to make decisions about which companies to add to their supply chains. Suppliers cannot see each other’s data.

“This allows buyers flexibility in how they manage their supply chains – centrally or by region. It also presents new business opportunities for suppliers, since they become visible to a new pool of buyers. This approach introduces an important element of transparency to the supplier selection process and this fits in well with the ethical standards expected by senior management and shareholders.”

A collaborative approach to supply chain management will not on its own solve the current challenges of the oil and gas industry but applying the principle of a marginal gains management style means that the industry must exploit opportunity for efficiency.

ACHILLES Malcolm Wilson is FPAL Director, Achilles. Achilles creates and manages a global network of collaborative industry communities, allowing trading partners to share high quality, structured, real-time data. Using cloud-based technology and industry expertise it acts as an independent partner, providing validated data and insightful analytics to enable buyers across a sector to identify and manage risk and suppliers to increase market reach while increasing compliance and minimising costs for the network as a whole.

For further information please visit: achilles.com

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The tide of

change As the UK’s leading renewable energy trade association, RenewableUK represents a leading voice in championing renewable energy as a key component in tackLing climate change.

Andrew Dann speaks with Wave and Tidal Development Manager, Dee Nunn regarding the role played by tidal energy in addressing this complex issue

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oday more than ever climate change is a critical concern for governments all over the world. This was recently highlighted by the Foreign Secretary’s Special Representative for Climate Change, Professor Sir David King, in his keynote speech at RenewableUK’s annual conference in Liverpool on October 7th 2015. During his address Sir David discussed the importance of renewable energy, describing it as ‘key to tackling the huge risk posed by climate change’ as well as ‘a big part of the British economy which will continue to grow.’ As a former Government Chief Scientific Advisor, the Professor was speaking ahead of the UN Climate Change

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Conference scheduled to take place in Paris at the end of October 2015. While speaking to senior figures within the renewable industry, he further described 2015 as a ‘seminal year for the planet’, observing that while the UK continues to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels, during 2014 more renewable energy capacity was installed worldwide than fossil fuels. However he further mentioned that there remains a significant gap to be bridged within the global energy market to allow the future preservation of the environment.

RenewableUK was founded during 1978 as the British Wind Energy Association to focus solely on the concerns of the emerging wind industry. Later during 2004 it was decided that the association should incorporate wave and

Tidal energy

carries out networking and talks to the government and media. This can involve research and the organisation of events including the Wave and Tidal Conference, which is February 2016 and during 2016 we will also be hosting the International Conference of Ocean Energy.”

In line with its mission to champion the generation, development and use of renewable power, RenewableUK is committed to empowering the future growth of the wind, tidal and wave power generation industries. For example, it continues to be a key supporter of projects such as the groundbreaking Seagen tidal stream generator that has been in operation in Strangford Lough, Northern Ireland since 2008, generating over 9GWh as of March 2014.

Furthermore the world’s first tidal stream array (a series of identical devices in the water, rather than just one of them) is currently under construction within the UK. The MeyGen Inner Sound project is located in Pentland Firth, Scotland and there are several other wave and tidal stream array projects currently under development in the UK. The sector has ambitions to develop ten arrays reaching financial close by 2020 across Europe, with the UK well placed to capture the lion’s share of development in its waters.

MeyGen Limited intends to deploy up to 398MW of offshore tidal stream turbines to supply clean and renewable electricity to Britain’s National Grid by the early 2020s. The initial stage of the project will deploy a demonstration array of up four turbines, generating 1.5MW as a precursor to subsequent development of the remaining lease area. This will allow MeyGen to develop proof of concept and later begin to seek investment for the project’s first phase, which will consist of some 86 turbines that will generate 86MW. During the initial array development the project will employ a ‘deploy and monitor strategy’ over its first two years to provide information regarding interactions between the array and the environment to increase the understanding for subsequent phases. “The initial 6MW generated by MeyGen will be comprised of four 1.5MW turbines. Three of those are Andritz Hydro Hammerfest (AHH) HS1000 turbines, while the other is an Atlantis Resources Limited (ARL) AR1500 turbine,” Dee elaborates. “This is a demonstration of two different technology types in one project and helps tidal energy into its remit before the trade association took its present name later during 2010. “The intention was to focus on the synergies between the offshore wind, wave and tidal energy sectors and the challenges that those technologies were facing in the offshore environment. Furthermore a lot of companies that were active in wind energy had also expressed an interest in tidal and wave energy, so it made sense to address them,” Dee explains. “Today our role is really to maximise the deployment of these technologies by acting as a central point of information. We provided a united voice for the renewable sector by bringing together the views of our membership and providing a clear message. RenewableUK

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us to develop understanding of the technology and build confidence in the market. We would certainly like to see more arrays to help develop confidence in the development of the next stage of MeyGen.” RenewableUK is also a leading representative and ambassador for tidal lagoon technology. On 9th June 2015 the Energy Secretary, Amber Rudd approved a planning application for Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon. Negotiations over financial support for the scheme through a ‘Contract for Difference’ are currently on going, with support being sought for the initial 35 years of the project. Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon has a projected operational life of 120 years and it

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Tidal energy

A study has been undertaken on tidal lagoons that estimates that eight per cent of the UK’s energy could also be generated through the implementation of tidal lagoon technology. One of the advantages of these lagoons is the high level of predictability of tidal power, which can be predicted for years in advance

has been suggested that it could usher in a new tidal lagoon industry within the UK. This potential landmark could be reached as soon as mid-2016 with the completion of what would be the world’s first tidal lagoon.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) estimates that wave and tidal stream energy combined has the potential to deliver around 20 per cent of the UK’s current electricity needs, equating to an installed capacity of around 30-50GW. RenewableUK is keenly aware of the potential benefits of both wave and tidal energy in reducing carbon emissions and safeguarding the environment, while ensuring that the UK’s energy demands are still met. “With

regards to tidal energy specifically, studies carried out by the Carbon Trust have shown that tidal energy has the potential supply around six per cent of the UK’s total energy supply, which is quite a significant proportion. This figure relates to the use of tidal stream energy, however recently there has also been strong development in the use of tidal lagoons,” she explains. “For example a study has been undertaken on tidal lagoons that estimates that eight per cent of the UK’s energy could also be generated through the implementation of tidal lagoon technology. One of the advantages of these lagoons is the high level of predictability of tidal power, which can be predicted for years in advance. This is a level of predictability that can be planned and accounted for much further ahead than other forms of renewable energy.”

As a catalyst for policy change to support the maximum deployment of wind, wave and tidal energy in the shortest possible time, RenewableUK is keen to demonstrate the strengths and benefits of these technologies to the UK as a whole. As wind power continues to grow in popularity and increase its presence and connectivity to the National Grid, it is hoped that as faith grows in both wave and tidal power as proven technologies, these combined disciplines will provide a significant proportion of the UK’s power using shared infrastructure.

One of challenges in deploying wave and tidal energy at present is connectivity to existing energy infrastructure, which is an issue that RenewableUK is aware of and confident that the renewable industry can overcome. “It can very tricky to build a cable to offshore locations, because operators require justification to the taxpayer or bill payer to ensure that are not building what is known as a ‘stranded asset’ that is not connected to anything. This can be a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation in that operators want to build infrastructure but there is no asset in place, while projects are unable to go ahead because assets do not line up with grid connection,” she concludes. “However by continuing to develop and prove wave and tidal power it will be possible to encourage further investment in connection infrastructure to these technologies.”

RenewableUK For further information please visit: renewableuk.com

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The right

message In the second quarter of 2015, renewables generated more than a quarter of the UK’s electricity, beating coal and nuclear. But the Government’s position on clean energy is still somewhat unclear

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ith recent new statistics from RenewableUK showing the increasingly fundamental role that renewable energy is playing in generating electricity for British homes, offices and factories, some industry players are disappointed with the mixed messages from Government on whether it supports clean energy.

In September the government imposed a new levy on renewable energy companies, cut renewable energy subsidies for onshore wind, and scrapped the requirement on builders to develop zero-carbon homes.

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Juliet Davenport, Chief Executive of the UK renewable energy company Good Energy thinks the recent changes are a bad news for the UK. “With a record-breaking 22 per cent of the UK's electricity coming from renewable sources at the start of 2015, Britain has seen significant strides in the right direction. However, recent changes in policy feel like a backwards step, and there is a need for a clear policy framework for the future to ensure that businesses are able to play a their role in delivering solutions,” she said.

And as Mark Worcester, Director of Turley added, planning permission for new wind energy developments has also been

Renewable Energy

denied: “The UK may have to rely on emergency measures to ensure we don’t lose power this winter, but in mid-September the Government refused permission for over 1.3GW of on- and offshore wind energy development,” he said, adding: “Taken together with proposals to end key subsidy schemes, this has seen the UK drop out of the top ten in the influential Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index (RECA) with 23 projects totalling 2.3GW of potential energy generation publically abandoned.”

This is the first time the UK has dropped out of the top ten since the RECA Index began 12 years ago, and

as RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive Maf Smith explained, it shows that that investor confidence is being hit. “Investors are saying that Government has not set out a clear energy policy and don’t see the UK delivering decarbonisation at lowest cost, based on actions taken so far. The biggest worry for investors is that of an investment hiatus. Industry is ahead of Government in the need to protect the consumer while keeping the lights on and tackling climate change. Onshore wind is already the lowestcost low carbon option and offshore wind is ahead of target in its cost reduction efforts. But without long-term clarity, projects will be delayed, investment will go elsewhere and consumer savings will be lost.”

Thankfully, it isn’t all doom and gloom for onshore wind – in early September, Rossendale and Rochdale Borough Councils resolved to grant planning permission for an expansion of Scout Moor Wind Farm in Lancashire.

The development by Scout Moor Wind Farm Expansion Limited (SML) comprises 16 additional turbines; associated infrastructure and a plan to restore and manage over 900 hectares of badly degraded peat moorland during the operational lifetime of the development. When completed it will be the largest on-shore wind farm in England.

The scheme has been the subject of extensive public consultation since 2011 and will generate renewable energy to meet the annual needs of up to 22,000 homes. SML is a joint venture between Peel Energy and United Utilities.

Turley’s Mark Worcester led the planning application and he noted that the company went to great lengths in providing opportunities for the local community and other stakeholders to influence the proposals and shows what can be achieved through genuine collaboration. Mark also explained why continuing to invest in renewable energy is so critical to the UK: “It is important that we do not lose sight of the continuing need for a mix of sources of energy generation if we are to achieve greater national energy security in the short, medium and long term,” he said.

RenewableUK’s Chief Executive Maria McCaffery agreed, as she added: “As the transition to clean electricity continues apace, we’d welcome clearer signals from Government that it’s backing the installation of vital new projects. So far, we’ve had a series of disappointing announcements from Ministers since May, which unfortunately betray a lack of positive ambition at the heart of Government. If Ministers want to see good renewables statistics continuing into the years ahead, they have to knuckle down, listen to the high level of public support we enjoy, and start making positive announcements on wind, wave and tidal energy.”

For further information please visit: turley.co.uk renewableuk.com goodenergy.co.uk

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Survive and ERP – fuelling growth in the uk’s oil and gas industry. By Gavin Oberholzer

A

report for the industry body, Oil and Gas UK, last year estimated the oil and gas sector is worth about £35bn to the UK economy. The country still produces and meets the bulk of its own oil and gas needs and has sufficient resources for this to continue for the next 40 years.

Despite fluctuations in oil prices, business continues to expand robustly. According to the Office of National Statistics, the second quarter of 2015 saw a 7.8 per cent rise in oil & gas extraction and the largest increase in North Sea output since 1989. Moreover, the industry is widely viewed as a world-leading centre of excellence in engineering, manufacturing and applied technology.

All of that is, however, no reason for oil and gas businesses to rest on their laurels. In fact, the reverse is true. The Below Gavin Oberholzer success of the sector has bred growing levels of competition. is strategic account Operators need to be able to address this, as well as dealing manager at effectively with the complexity of new product and service HSO Enterprise offerings. They must also ensure they have a comprehensive Solutions insight into and control over their operations, to ensure they are delivering optimum value to customers.

Cutting through the complexity Today, oil and gas companies have to deliver more for less. As a result, it is vital that businesses have full insight and control

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over their entire operating infrastructure, this is the only way they will be in a position to manage investments, company assets, and all of their resources with efficiency, and deliver value adding experiences in the supply chain.

Having the right products, equipment and people in place at the right time and in the right sequence is even more critical than it has ever been in order to maximise capital utilisation and reduce operational expenditure in oil and gas markets today. The need to streamline operational processes in order to cut overheads and maximise assets has become more acute. Yet there are also ever-increasing demands for greater regulatory compliance, pressure to reduce delivery times and a requirement for greater flexibility to meet changing fiscal and market conditions.

To overcome this complex mix of challenges requires a flexible, agile and scalable enterprise resource planning (ERP) infrastructure platform. ERP has come a long way from the days of the 1990s when estimates indicate the majority of projects failed. Solutions have evolved and their functionality developed significantly. Over the years, expertise surrounding these solutions has also grown, so there’s a greater understanding of, not only the technology, but also the business challenges that the oil and gas sector needs to engage with.

However, there are currently still too many organisations industry-wide that run separate and independent planning

ERP

far-reaching. The industry’s asset-heavy nature places great emphasis on using ERP software to provide a working knowledge of the health of vital assets to ensure that they continue to deliver value to the business. This in turn allows organisations to understand and manage assets as part of their wider operations.

Moreover, having real-time reporting through ERP across multiple workloads provides advanced insight into business behaviour, crucial to an industry, which is subject to sudden shifts in market conditions. Downtime in the supply of oil and gas can have major ramifications upon the state of the industry, leading to changes in operational landscape, project timescales and budgets.

Facilitating the access of ERP software solutions through mobile devices on the move has further allowed the oil and gas industries to thrive. Added mobility is enabling oil and gas companies to have a clear picture of their operations from remote locations such as on site drilling and off shore oil platforms.

Blending talent and technology

solutions that do not tie into their existing back-end ERP or accounting systems. A group of project managers probably get together, say, once a month to view the overall current position of the installation and/or related maintenance services and identify any programme deviations, but this doesn’t enable a fast response to a margin variation in order to remain competitive.

After all, today we live in a world where reactions need to be quick-fire. But often not only is information kept in departmental silos, it is also held in spreadsheets where a mistyped figure or missed formula can skew an entire message or KPI. Still, many organisations operating and supplying into the oil and gas sector today exist on a spider’s web of data from a collection of different solutions, from the supply chain to production to finance and beyond.

Predictably they are unable to achieve a single homogenous view of all these inter-linking strands of the business.

On the other hand, if cross-organisational information is integrated and updated in real-time, with the help of a highquality ERP solution, giving a 360-degree perspective, reactions can be agile, accurate and proactive and assist organisations to perform better in all areas of the supply chain.

Why ERP is the missing link ERP can bring far-reaching benefits to all business sectors but in oil and gas the advantages it confers are especially

Most ERP solutions today, especially the industry standards, are robust, rich and dynamic. However, in such a complex environment as the oil and gas sector, simply implementing the right solution will typically not be enough to guarantee the success of a project. Often, it will take a consulting and implementation partner with in-depth expertise of the technology, of business, and of the oil and gas supply chain to understand the exact needs of each individual company.

It could be that they need to go beyond the footprint of a standard solution to fill in the gaps and tailor the technology to fit, for example, a complex mix of contracts or assets. This will demand a broad understanding, experience and knowledge.

However, in the safe hands of a reliable partner, ERP can help reduce operational expenditure, maximise capital utilisations and generally ‘shake up’ processes to enable more insight, more control, more transparency and improved agility. In other words, it can provide everything that’s needed to survive, and even thrive in today’s ultracompetitive environment.

HSO ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS Gavin Oberholzer is strategic account manager at HSO Enterprise Solutions. HSO specialises in implementing, integrating, optimising and maintaining enterprise solutions based on Microsoft Dynamics AX, CRM and Office365.

For further information please visit: hso.com

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Redefining anti-corrosive protection with activated zinc AvantGuard® is now available as part of Hempel’s HEMPADUR AvantGuard® activated zinc primer range, which are significantly longer lasting than zinc epoxies without AvantGuard®, but can be applied with the same application techniques.

Zinc coatings have a range of uses, including protecting industrial structures and equipment in tough C4 and C5 environments where saltwater and high humidity rapidly corrode unprotected steel. However, not much has changed within zinc coatings since they were first introduced the 1960s.

In 2006, Hempel’s R&D team made an important discovery: only around one-third of the zinc in a standard zinc epoxy has any anti-corrosive effect.

As Pernille Lind Olsen, Group Protective Product Director at Hempel, explains, this discovery led Hempel to begin the search for a new solution.

“When we realised that roughly two-thirds of the zinc is not utilised in zinc epoxies, we set out to develop a new technology that would increase zinc activation,” she says. “This would increase the coating’s anti-corrosive protection, while also increasing its mechanical strength to improve durability, but we also aimed to make a coating that was easy to apply and as versatile as possible.”

After thousands of hours in the lab, Hempel found the solution – and the new technology, known as AvantGuard®, could have huge benefits for a range of industries, from wind energy and infrastructure to oil & gas. AvantGuard® can be used in all types of applications, but is specially aimed at structures in tough environments that will benefit from long maintenance intervals.

Why most of the zinc in your coating is not having any effect Zinc is less noble than iron and it acts as a sacrificial element in a zinc coating. When exposed to corrosive elements, such as water or oxygen, the zinc corrodes instead of the iron to leave the steel intact. However, this process, known as the galvanic effect, requires electrical contact between the zinc particles.

“Zinc is the single most important protective element in a zinc coating,” says Josep Palasi, Hempel’s R&D Director. “But our research showed that only the zinc in the first 20-30 microns of the coating can provide galvanic protection. As a normal zinc coating is around 60-80 microns, around two-thirds of the zinc is too far away from the point of corrosion to be able become oxidised, and so is not able to protect the steel. We knew that activating more of the zinc could improve the galvanic effect without increasing the zinc content, as this would increase the zinc particles’ ability to release electrons and ensure zinc throughout the film was providing anti-corrosive protection.”

Zinc epoxy with AvantGuard® technology

Zinc epoxy without AvantGuard® technology

ical point. As a result, cracks can form in the coating as the steel expands and contracts. AvantGuard® coatings are different due to a phenomenon that Josep calls ‘self-healing’.

“When we put HEMPADUR AvantGuard® through thermal cycling resistance tests, cracking tests and welding tests, we saw that it outperformed zinc epoxies without AvantGuard® by some distance. We thought it would be good, but not that good. The performance was extraordinary, and we were determined to find out why.”

“When a crack forms, the first penetrating step requires the most energy. After that, it takes very little energy for the crack to widen and affect the integrity of the coating,” Josep explains. “We discovered that the glass spheres can absorb most of the impact from the initial crack and stop it from developing. In addition, we observed that the sub-products formed during the zinc activation process actually occupy the space left by the micro-crack, preventing it from developing into a more serious crack. So we can say that AvantGuard® has a self-healing effect on micro-cracks, which is something that we have never seen before.”

The glass spheres in the coating absorb the impact of the initial crack and stop it from propagating. The picture on the right shows an enlargement of the crack seen on the left.

Cycles of 2 hours at +60ºC and 2 hours at -20ºC during 21 days

Redefining anti-corrosive protection Hempel’s solution was to combine the elements used in traditional zinc epoxies with two new substances – hollow glass spheres and proprietary activators – and named it HEMPADUR AvantGuard®, the first activated zinc primers to take advantage of AvantGuard® technology. In our extensive tests, HEMPADUR AvantGuard® outperformed zinc epoxies without AvantGuard® technology in almost all key performance and application areas.” says Josep.

HEMPADUR AvantGuard® coatings at a glance • • • • • •

Redefining durability through selfhealing properties In a typical zinc protective system, the zinc primer is the weakest mechan-

Advanced corrosion protection due to the high level of activated zinc in the coating Excellent crack resistance in cyclic temperatures and varying humidity Selfhealing of microcracks prevents further propagation of cracks Requires the same application techniques as zinc epoxies Suitable for all applications and especially designed for tough conditions and C4 and C5 environments Three coatings currently available globally: HEMPADUR AvantGuard® 770, HEMPADUR AvantGuard® 750 and HEMPADUR AvantGuard® 550

Data

analytics Pop go the

New approaches are allowing data analytics to transform upstream oil and gas.

By Duncan Irving

W

hen it comes to the comprehensive exploitation of data, the upstream oil and gas industry is a decade behind industries where tight margins in customer- and logistics-driven value chains have led to massive investment in data mining and cross-functional analytics. In the current economic climate, the oil & gas industry is now beginning to organise itself so it can tap into the wealth of insights that lies within its myriad of databases, file stores, archives and operational systems.

So far, achieving the right mix of analytics expertise, database software, hardware and domain knowledge has proved elusive for many companies. Unlike its downstream counterpart, the upstream industry has focused on deterministic models of data analysis that lead to a particular outcome, when it really needs to move towards data-driven and ‘probabilistic’ approaches based on collaboration. These methods show not only what could happen but how likely each outcome is.

A reason for the industry’s sluggishness in analytics lies in the way data flows are often compartmentalised, so that for

instance, geophysicists have one stream, while production data is sent off in another direction. Only recently have conventional workflows been challenged by new business processes and economic drivers.

By storing information in silos, the industry makes it very hard to obtain the massive data sets drawn from all parts of a business that are required for analytics. It is only the use of such data volumes that allows an organisation to harness the analytics-driven power of correlation and comparison.

Collaboration Data volume is one aspect, but if analytics are to support operations, they also need to be approached collaboratively, which allows both long-term study and real-time analysis as data is generated.

Again, within much of the industry, the compartmentalised approach has stood in the way. One department often has to ask another to run analysis, which slows everything down.

Furthermore, it can lead to time-wasting duplication of effort, as one team may already be undertaking the work requested of them by their colleagues.

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However, as this inefficiency has become more apparent, so attitudes have changed. The more forward thinking in the industry understand that the best environment in which to conduct analytics is a ‘data lake’ into which all the data is pooled. Not only does this avoid costly duplication, it also gives reassurance about the quality of the analytics, as everyone is looking at the same core data. The entire undertaking then becomes a joint effort, which has incalculable value in itself.

Data integration A data lake may be where the initiative begins, but its secrets are only brought to the surface through successful data integration. In the oil and gas industry this should include data from supply chain logistics, enterprise resource planning systems as well as production. All this can be put together into one effective platform, provided the integration system can recognise the relationships between all the data types and supply the context.

Then, once the lake has been assembled, the data can be subjected to thorough analysis using tools that have the science ‘baked-in’, such as reservoir flow modelling software, as well as more generic visual analytics tools that have become so valuable in other industries.

A case in point A good example of innovative industry practice using analytics was one project’s close examination of well log data from a large proportion of the UKCS (United Kingdom Continental Shelf) data set. The aim was to reveal more effective drilling methods and eliminate costly and timewasting problems such as stuck pipe and tripping.

The task, completed by consultants, successfully collated hundreds of well logs and then searched them for correlations. The analysis also included the written logs made by drillers, looking for words like ‘stuck’ and noting the time at which they were written, so they could be matched against the data logs.

The deployment of analytics allowed data from thousands of wells to be processed in a single afternoon and uncovered many unexpected relationships, such as those resulting from lithology (when drilling through different types of rock) or lurking in the seismic data.

Without the use of analytics, most of this would not have been obvious, even to someone experienced in the oil and gas field.

Once these relationships between data have been established, they can be used in strategic decision-making.

For example, drillers, who are constantly searching out small improvements in efficiency, can be provided with information on how one well compares with others. Use of the analytical insights allows them to avoid drilling in a certain type of rock, or fed live, enables them to optimise their work.

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Return on investment More operationalised decision-making is now required to ensure that effective well planning and interventions are delivered – both onshore and offshore. Operating companies are making the investment in permanent reservoir monitoring systems and downhole sensors to collect and process the data giving right-time insights into reservoir behaviour.

However, no operating company can yet integrate these science-rich insights, along with technical information around drilling histories and flow behaviour, to provide statistically robust guidance on the quality and reliability of any given intervention plan.

Faced with this challenge, Teradata and a major upstream operator decided to run analytics on full pre-stack seismic data, as well as the post-stack and to integrate it with flow models and production histories to generate just such a multi-domain view. The next logical step would be to process data as soon as it is gathered on a ship to understand in realtime the quality of a re-survey and how data quality may impact on the reliability of the data for the next round of well interventions. This would enable the vessel to reshoot a line of seismic should something wrong be found with the results.

Using analytics, this project has already made it possible to make quick comparisons between the latest seismic data and data from the previous survey. The analytics show up differences in the seismic recording itself, where for example, the results might have been affected by different wave

Data

It is substantial leaps in insight and efficiency such as these that are convincing more operators in the upstream oil and gas industry that they must break down the barriers between departments so they can fully exploit the big data sets they possess

conditions or by the presence of another vessel nearby while the last survey was being shot.

This means that when the company contemplates a highvalue intervention, it is able to avoid the costly mistake of basing its decision on unreliable data about a particular section of the oil field.

And once it understands how all the data is connected, it becomes feasible to run deeper analysis and predict significant factors affecting the field, such as downhole pressure or water saturation levels.

As an operator organises its data more intelligently, so it can deploy analytics to generate insights by comparing patterns and trends – something performed effectively in many other industries. Within the oil industry it is now possible to use data processing that is similar to a mobile phone app which recognises music by comparing it with the recordings in its memory.

It is a question of using time series data, which reveals how something changed, and compares it with patterns stored in a computer’s memory. This technique will reveal whether something similar happened before.

This could, for example, be used to monitor equipment vibration data and look out for trends that led to problems in the past. Collecting all that equipment data from an organisation’s SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems and combining it with enterprise-wide operational and historical data is beyond the capabilities of the SCADA architecture. Exposing these systems to a

business-wide analytical platform for further processing can then point to the root of a problem, and indicate what is likely to happen next by putting together a “likelihood pathway”.

It is substantial leaps in insight and efficiency such as these that are convincing more operators in the upstream oil and gas industry that they must break down the barriers between departments so they can fully exploit the big data sets they possess.

Only then can they obtain the greater insight, faster decision-making and improved ROI that advanced analytics can undoubtedly bring.

In fact, the entire upstream oil and gas industry needs to wake up to the enormous value it can very rapidly unlock by deploying advanced analytics techniques on the mass of data it constantly generates.

TERADATA Duncan Irving is Oil and Gas Practice Lead, Teradata.

Teradata, the big data analytics and marketing applications company, helps companies get more value from data than any other company. Teradata’s leading portfolio of big data analytic solutions, integrated marketing applications, and services can help organisations gain a sustainable competitive advantage with data.

For further information please visit: teradata.com

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effort A combined

While parts of the rig business

Below Heidi Baugstø, Chairman of the Board of North Sea Rigs

are on the defensive, North Sea Rigs (NSR) is making a bold move. The company’s first rig, North Dragon, will have its naming ceremony in November, at the same time as rig number two, Beacon Atlantic, achieves the milestone of deck and hull mating. A third rig, Beacon Pacific, is under construction, while the company, which has Chinese CIMC Capital as its largest shareholder, is working hard with the planning for the next set of three rigs.

The offshore industry still offers great challenges, in spite of the market situation as it is today. North Sea Rigs believes that 500 new wells will be required in relation to petroleum reserves already in place. Roughly the same number of wells are required in order to increase the potential in fields that may be still be developed.

Last, but not least, there is a big requirement for new wells connected to enhanced utilisation of already existing fields.

To NSR, as well as other rig companies, the challenges are the same: An efficient and safe operation adapted to a correct cost level. In this perspective the new rigs arrive just in time, since an optimised design and modern equipment make operations both more efficient and more cost effective.

Important partnership The new rigs are being built at CIMC Yantai Raffles Offshore shipyard in Yantai, China, where the first rig, North Dragon, is being named on Thursday 26 November 2015.

With many years of industrial experience, Managing Director Stephen Adshead of North Sea Rigs knows perfectly well what to look for in order to ensure a successful rig project. One of the keys to success is a strong team of partners

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on the industrial and technological side. This, North Sea Rigs has been able to obtain for this project, where Kongsberg has the responsibility for all equipment related to dynamic positioning, while Siemens is supplier of the electric systems onboard. Engines, thrusters, etc. are supplied

by Rolls-Royce, while National Oilwell Varco handles the rig’s drilling package. These companies also possess extensive experience from working with the Chinese yard, CIMC Raffles. Chairman of the Board of North Sea Rigs, Heidi Baugstø, emphasises the co-operation between the various partners as a vital element for a successful project.

Reduced costs The three rigs are based on the lessons learned over many years and the experience and knowhow gained through this process and represent improvement both as concerns the hull, motion characteristics, and other factors of significance to enhance the operation and up-time of the rigs. Even though it is difficult to name exact figures, North Sea Rigs believes that by adopting modern rigs like these, cost may be cut substantially within certain key areas.

The management of North Sea Rigs naturally focuses on the demanding times faced by the oil and gas industry, but strongly believes that new, up-to-date and effective rigs are required in order to strengthen the economy and make offshore projects more viable, both on the Norwegian shelf and elsewhere.

It’s a fact that there is a large number of old rigs in operation in the Norwegian offshore sector and in other sectors as well. If the sector is to succeed in extending the lifetime of fields, it must become more adept with respect to both efficiency and costs. North Sea Rigs’ management firmly believes that their rigs meet both these requirements.

Long-term perspective Thanks to an active marketing effort, both in Norway and internationally, North Sea Rigs’ management, in spite of the current market situation, takes a positive view when it comes to securing contracts for the new rigs. Besides, Stephen Adshead and Heidi Baugstø underline the long-term perspective of North Sea Rigs’ Chinese owners.

In times like these, the ability and will to take a long-term view is particularly important. It goes without saying that having owners who are in a position to do that, is decisive, the two

PROFILE

managers state, especially when times are tough.

CIMC Group, the largest shareholder of North Sea Rigs, operates activities within a large number of different industries, of which offshore is one. The group has over 60,000 employees located around the world, and is also the largest owner of the shipyard building the rigs.

CIMC Raffles is one of the biggest offshore yards in China, and has since 2001 delivered a range of ships and offshore installations to customers and projects worldwide. The yard specialises in semi submersible rigs, jack up-rigs and special vessels for offshore operations.

The yard amongst others delivered the COSL rigs operating on the Norwegian shelf, before building the new rigs for North Sea Rigs.

The rigs North Dragon, Beacon Atlantic and Beacon Pacific all have a design (GM4-D) which builds on CIMC Raffles’ previous construction projects with rigs adapted to drilling and well operations in a harsh environment. The concept has also

North Sea Rigs

adopted the best elements of the new rigs projects such as Statoil’s CAT D. The new rigs are winterised and designed for operation at up to 1200m water depths, and can drill to depths of 8000 m. The rigs are built in accordance with NORSOK and NPD standards and meet the strictest environmental and zero emission requirements. This means they are ready to start operations on the Norwegian Continental shelf (NCS) as well as other petroleum provinces around the world.

Construction work for North Dragon, the first, was initiated by steel cutting in June 2013.

The project has been carried out in line with plans and schedules, and the rig underwent a successful sea trial early October this year.

At the same time as North Dragon is being named, the mating of the deck and hull of the second rig, Beacon Atlantic, will be acknowledged. Steel cutting for rig number three, Beacon Pacific, was carried out in June 2015. According to plan the rig will be ready for delivery end 2017.

The new rigs are winterised and designed for operation at up to 1200m water depths, and can drill to depths of 8000 m

North Sea Rigs northsearigs.no

Services Builds offshore drilling rigs in China on behalf of owners

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PROFILE

Energy Drilling Pte

waves Breaking

“

Above Sunset on EDrill-1 in the Gulf of Thailand

Oil States Skagit SMATCO Oil States Skagit SMATCO is a trusted provider of offshore equipment and services in some of the world’s most demanding environments. Its Skagit mooring systems, SMATCO anchorhandling equipment, and Nautilus marine cranes can be found on tender, drilling, AHTS, and production vessels as well as fixed platforms.

Oil States Skagit SMATCO’s expertise in designing and manufacturing large, complex machinery is complemented by its manufacturing facilities in the USA, Thailand, and India. Its worldwide support and network of service, parts and manufacturing facilities enable the company to respond to its customers’ needs regardless of where the vessel is located or technical requirements.

Right EDrill-4 Concept Study

Energy Drilling was established in April 2012 to develop, build and operate the next generation of self-erecting tender assist drilling rigs,” begins VP Marketing, Lyle Ewashen. “The company was born out of a notable achievement in which the core management group from Smedvig and Seadrill Tender Rig Divisions refined an asset class and delivered premium services in order to dominate a profitable niche market. Inspired by these past successes and confident of the future potential to replicate the model, Energy Drilling has progressed from a small start-up venture with 15 full time employees in 2012 to an established contractor in 2015, employing 120 personnel both onshore and offshore.”

Pairing compact drilling equipment (DES) with a tender vessel, the concept of a tender rig includes everything needed to carry out drilling and completion operations. As well as heavy lifting cranes to assemble the DES the

vessel includes power generation, drilling fluid circulation and treatment facilities, material handling and storage functions, cementing services, personnel offices and accommodation.

“Operator priorities for in-field production drilling campaigns are to drill multiple wells of similar design at the lowest possible cost,” continues Lyle as he explains the uniqueness of Energy Drilling’s next generation rigs. “Our tender assist rigs are known as ‘Factory Drillers’ in that they have the largest possible carrying capacity for material supplies and personnel and are designed to undertake multiple simultaneous operations (SIMOPS). Our rigs can drill, trip bottom hole assembly or run casing strings on critical path at well centre while offline crews are concurrently carrying a number of other support or associated works. SIMOPS is a proven method of reducing construction costs by up to 20 per cent and is now standard operation procedure for several operators.”

Overcoming the non-productive time (NPT) challenge of rig moving, Energy Drilling places safe and timely mobilisation as a top priority in the development of its rigs, and as such the EDrill rigs are designed and proven to be ‘best in class’ for vessel stability, superior motion characteristics in adverse weather conditions and ease of DES load handling. “This is attributed to the vessel’s increased size and displacement, deeper draft, advanced ballasting system, oversized heavy lift crane, reduction of DES lifts to four and ample deck space for landing these ENERGY,oil&gas

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DPM-DS ● ● ● ● ●

High Torsional Strength Streamlined OD/ID Geometry Improved Hydraulic Efficiency Flush ID Connection Interchangeable with API & DSTJ Equivalent

www.dpmaster.com.sg

Petroleum Equipment International 777 S. Post Oak Lane One Riverway, Suite 1700 Houston, Texas 77056 Office Phone: 281-558-7396

Petroleum Equipment International is a specialized supplier and master distributor providing OEM drilling equipment to international drilling contractors such as Energy Drilling. PEI has been doing business in the South East of Asia since the late 1970’s.

Because of our extensive vendor base we are able to provide a variety of parts including MRO parts. We are also a master stocking distributor for M & M valves and Bestolife Thread Compound.

We take great pride in our work and our main goal with each order is to provide a quality product and excellent customer service at a competetive price.

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PROFILE

DES components,” highlights Lyle.

At present, Energy Drilling’s rig fleet consists of two tender assist barge rigs and one semisubmersible hull tender assist rig. EDrill-1 is on a long-term charter to PTTEP Thailand, currently being used on the Bonkot Asset for drilling and completing new and re-entry wells.

“After a year of operation the rig is already outperforming other tender assist and jack-up units in the Gulf of Thailand by drilling similar development wells in around 12 per cent less time and by mobilising from wellhead platform location to location with as much as one to two days saving,” notes Lyle.

EDrill-2 was recently secured by PTTEP Myanmar, for mobilisation in advance of the Zawtika Phase 1B and 1C campaign. Lyle is keen to highlight the success of EDrill-2 alongside three semi-tender assist rigs, commenting: “In final technical analysis the rig has proven to possess comparable rig move performance in the challenging Andaman Sea at a significantly lower cost.”

EDrill-3 is currently going through its final commissioning at the COSCO Guangdong Shipyard in China and is the largest, most advanced unit of its kind. EDrill-3 design originates from GustoMSC’s deepwater design pedigree and its hull design is actually based on a semi-submersible exploration unit. “Gusto has been excellent in anticipating our specific needs and working with us to reprogramme functions and layout. EDrill-3’s semi-tender hull has demonstrated unmatched performance in numerous computational fluid dynamic modelling analyses, couple analyses and severe environmental survival/mooring analyses,” details Lyle. “Some of the rig’s remarkable characteristics include its ability to operate in the most severe sub-tropical environments, to drill ‘as is’ from any trussed spar or tension leg platform without costly upgrades, to operate in 250 metre water depth with its independent mooring system, or in water depths up to 7000 metres with a pre-laid mooring system, and to safely survive a typhoon event without leaving its drilling location.

“We aim to capitalise on our solid partnership with Gusto and COSCO and have engaged them to begin detailed design and engineering of a lower CAPEX, compact semi-tender design with reduced material, construction and equipment costs that will eventually become EDrill-4. Our objective here is to become the first contractor to offer semitender performance at tender barge day rates.”

Energy Drilling Pte

Left EDrill-1 Rigging Up September 2014 - Mast landed and secured atop Drill Floor PEMAC

Despite challenges in the offshore industry prevalent across the international market, Lyle is keen to express Energy Drilling’s confidence in certain market conditions. Most significantly, he notes that the cost effectiveness of next generation rigs aligns well with the heightened cost sensitivity in the market during these tough economic times. He also comments on the construction advantages of the downturn: “Although access to capital is tighter and shipyard payments terms are more conservative, it’s actually an excellent time to build quality, next generation tender assist rigs. Shipyard and vendor costs are lower than ever and the outlook for production drilling is much better than the exploration drilling segment. During a downturn most operators will reduce expenditure on capital intensive, high risk exploration programmes in favour of maximising returns from existing, producing assets. This translates into increased development drilling in order to maintain production levels and development drilling is the target market for tender rigs.”

With a team of highly experienced and competent people behind it and premium rigs that are consistently proving themselves in the challenging physical and economic conditions facing operators, the future for Energy Drilling looks positive. Making sure EDrill-2 has a successful, safe and trouble free start-up on the Zawtika Project will be the company’s immediate focus. Beyond that implementing and even more cutting edge, world-leading design to EDrill-4 will undoubtedly be a top priority. By doing so, the company is set to achieve more of the rapid growth and success that has defined its short but focused, three-year journey until now.

PEMAC is proud to be an approved vendor for Energy Drilling. For the past few years, it has been entrusted

by Energy Drilling to manufacture oilfield equipment for its projects to API Standards.

Regardless of size of orders, PEMAC has been at Energy Drilling’s service to make sure that all projects are smoothly delivered, despite the urgent timeline.

Quality has never been compromised even though most projects have a very quick turnaround.

With its skilled, experienced and dedicated workforce, PEMAC strives to be the preferred vendor to Energy Drilling.

Petroleum Equipment International Petroleum Equipment International is a specialised supplier and master distributor providing OEM drilling equipment to international drilling contractors such as Energy Drilling.

PEI has been doing business in South East Asia since the late 1970’s. Because of its extensive vendor base it is able to provide a variety of parts including MRO parts. It is also a master stocking distributor for M & M valves and Bestolife Thread Compound. It takes great pride in its work and its main goal with each order is to provide a quality product and excellent customer service at a competitive price.

Energy Drilling Pte Ltd edrill.com

Services Company established to develop, build and operate the next generation of self-erecting tender rigs

ENERGY,oil&gas

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29

Lifting

expectations Located in the

renowned metalworking centre of Bilbao, Spain, Gosan is a leader in the manufacture of custom-made lifting components. Gosan takes its name from the Gomez and Santín families who founded the company during 1971, while a sense of family operation has continued within the business to the present day. Gosan delivers constructive solutions within its engineering department that are adapted to meet the demands of all industry sectors that make use any kind of lifting machinery.

This includes clients within the oil & gas, maritime, ports, heavy industrial, mobile crane and construction industries, as well as the provision of specialist hoisting and lifting equipment for mining industry equipment.

Gosan first began to export products throughout Europe during 1975, before including deliveries to the rest of the world in 1990.

Presently exports account for around 95 per cent of the company’s business with its products in

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demand globally within the most demanding sectors, including the offshore and oil and gas markets. Gosan’s original flagship product is its range of welded and machined type sheaves that are manufactured from steel and finished in quantities numbering over 35,000 units each year. Furthermore it also manufactures smaller numbers of plastic, solid and forged sheaves as required by market demand. Its range of welded machined sheaves includes different constructional designs that adapt perfectly to the demands of the different sectors of the market for hoisting, transport and maintenance machinery in which Gosan is present.

Additionally, with the experience it has gained through over four decades of industry experience, Gosan has developed a comprehensive portfolio of products that meet the needs of clients operating with a range of mechanical lifting applications. “Although the original and flagship products of Gosan are its range of sheaves, over the years and thanks to the acquired experience, we have developed the necessary know-how as well as capacity to manufacture products that naturally complement the sheaves. Gosan’s product portfolio presently includes sheaves,

PROFILE

hook blocks, couplings, wheels for cranes and a category of special offshore products,” reveals Eider Areta, Business Development Manager.

“These consist of products for specific projects which can be produced on demand, including swivels, special blocks and fairleads etc.”

While the company's main production facility is in Spain, Gosan is continually focused on expending it global footprint so that it is better able to address the requirements of it clients. During 2012 for example, it installed an office in Singapore to allow the business to explore opportunities within the Asia Pacific region more intensively as well as to be closer to its clients in the field and is presently looking to further is presence with a production facility in Malaysia. “Following its ‘factory to the market’ philosophy we are working on the opening of a new production unit with the aim of optimising logistics and the service. Throughout its history, Gosan has been very focused on the European and American markets, however recently we have taken the opportunity to expand and opened offices in different parts of Asia. Our products had a very positive reception in the market, so in order to be close to our customers and provide them with a better service by reducing delivery times; we began to study the possibility and finally launched the project for a new production plant in the border between Singapore and Malaysia,” Eider says. “Asia already accounts for over 35 per cent of the group’s turnover and that is why we expect that the new factory will be a significant step in terms of agility in delivery, volume of business with existing customers and ability to start working with potential clients with whom we could not work because delivery times before.”

A vital component in the success of Gosan in developing new products, forging strong relationships with clients and reaching them wherever they are active globally, is its dedication for understanding the needs of its clients and developing solutions accordingly. “In Gosan we are aware of how critical our products are for the good operation and use of lifting systems that comprise them. For this reason we have taken of vital importance the development of our own technology designing our own working machinery, constantly improving our calculating methods and continuously enhancing our processes,” Eider elaborates. “Our research and development team works closely with the company’s suppliers and customers, as well as universities and research centres, for studying

new materials with which we can obtain higher strengths under same conditions and lighter weights to increase the capacity of the lifting system without affecting its hardness and resistance. All of this is undertaken in order to increase the value we bring to our customers by developing a more competitive product with the highest quality, safety and reliability.”

With a strong and growing global presence, as well as an in depth understanding of the mechanical lifting sector, Gosan is well placed to expand its industry presence over the coming years. Core to the success of its planned growth is its ability to remain flexible in a demanding market. “The competitive advantage offered

by Gosan lies in the flexibility of its structure, thanks to this it can easily adapt to the needs of our customers,” Eider concludes. “Our versatility allows the customer in most cases to customise the required product according to their specific needs and also gives us the ability to offer customised products for special projects that require work and unique design study.”

Gosan

The competitive advantage offered

by Gosan lies in the flexibility of its structure, thanks to this it can easily adapt to the needs of our customers Gosan gosan.net

Services Bespoke lifting components

ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com

31

Marte turbine in-line proportioner Since the late eighties Matre has delivered foam proportioning equipment specially designed for use on industrial, marine and offshore installations.

Product development and a strong focus on safety and accuracy has led to our range of products.

The turbine proportioner is of a simple and robust construction, yet very reliable and virtually maintenance free. Foam insertion is initiated immeditately when the water flow starts.

Matre offers a wide range of models and sizes, we strive to deliver and meet our customers challenges with proven equipment and solutions.

Our desire as a complete supplier of foam proportioner, is to be in front with ongoing development and also to ensure that we at all times can deliver reliable, cost effective solutions to the industry. We aim to keep our position as a supplier of high quality foam proportioning equipment.

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PROFILE

Fire Protection Engineering

first Safety

Although relatively young, Fire Protecting Engineering AS (FPE) has developed a strong reputation within the oil and gas industry since its inception in the first quarter of 2000. Today a global supplier of complete projects, including project management, design, engineering, production and assembly, installation and commissioning, training, maintenance and service, FPE has earned an enviable customer base of EPCI companies, Korean yards and major global oil firms.

“Fire Protection Engineering AS was found early in 2000 by a group of people with a long-standing history with designing active firefighting solutions. In 2007, FPE acquired the Norwegian company Sontum Fire & Safety AS to cement Fire Protection Engineering’s position as a full-range supplier to newbuilding’s, maintenance and modification (MMO),” begins Svein Roar Sivertsen, S&M Director at Fire Protection Engineering. “We are also renowned in the industry because we are part of the ALIGN group. ALIGN is a supplier of technical safety and total fire-fighting solutions for the global oil and gas industry. The group’s market leading brands provide expertise in safety automation, pump systems and fire-fighting technology.”

A supplier of technical safety and total fire fighting solutions for the global oil and gas market, ALIGN provides project management, components and expertise at every stage of the technical safety and fire fighting life cycle.

Able to manage greenfield and brownfield projects, ALIGN covers the whole process from study to engineering and procurement to commissioning and documentation to provide a total firefighting solution for its clients. Indeed, the market leading brands under the ALIGN umbrella combine to create a single point of integrated service to each of the group’s core market sectors.

Within the group is Eureka Pumps, a pump systems division that serves the international oil and gas industry through the supply of a wide range of pumps and generator sets; the division also provides upgrades, modifications, equipment testing, installation and commissioning. Working alongside Eureka Pumps is Origo Solutions, ALIGN’s safety automation division that provides products, services and turnkey solutions to electrical, instrumentation, automation, technical safety and telecoms business segments; it is also a leading independent supplier of safety control systems and gas detection solutions.

Complementing these two divisions is, of course, FPE, ALIGN’s fire fighting solutions business segment, which ensures customers receive the highest quality newbuild solutions, in addition to maintenance and modifications that they can rely on.

Benefiting from the diverse capabilities of its parent company, FPE is a market leading supplier of fire fighting systems for the oil and gas industry and is comprised of a crew of highly ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com

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PROFILE

Fire Protection Engineering

competent engineers and designers, some of which have been working in the industry since 1977. “The core competence is our engineering group. The majority of engineers and designers started working in this industry between the years of 1977 and 1991,” confirms Svein.

“Moreover, our crews of assembly fitters and service technicians have extensive experience through years of practice with assembling and servicing all kinds of active firefighting equipment. In fact, several of our service technicians have multidiscipline qualifications.”

By integrating their skills the employees at FPE create a complementary combination that enables the firm to deliver responsible and compentent refurbishment and upgrade work, in addition to full scale field system testing and verification, as Svein notes: “In addition to engineering services like hydraulic calculations and preparations for fire protection Fire Protection Engineering supplies all active firefighting systems like; deluge, sprinkler, active hydrophore, water mist, helideck systems and hose-reels; hydrants, firewater monitors, and loose fire-fighting equipment. We also offers seminars & courses through our FPE Academy.”

The skills of FPE have not gone unnoticed in the industry, with the company gaining bluechip customers in areas such as the Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, Asia, West Canada and Norway. “It is interesting that we are well-known

by Canadian end-users for our development in Canadian waters; this presence is supported by a strong co-operation with our partner K&D Pratt in St Johns, Canada,” says Svein.

Furthermore, FPE was recently awarded the significant ‘Big Elephant’ contract with Statoil for four installations in the North Sea. “Before summer 2015 we were awarded a framework agreement by Statoil for the major Johan Sverdrup field supplying all active fire-fighting equipment like deluge, water mist, hydrant, hose-reels to all four installations. It was very important job for us to secure, and demonstrates our strength as the preferred supplier for the Johan Sverdrup field,” highlights Svein.

At a value of approximately NOK 170 million over two years, the agreement with Statoil includes project management, design, procurement, assembly, testing and delivery of active fire fighting systems to the Johan Sverdrup field development. Proud to have its technical solutions endorsed by Statoil, the contract helps cement FPE’s position as one of leading players

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in the fire protection industry, both on a local and international scale.

To further cement its increasingly strong presence and reputation in the market, FPE made the strategic decision in September 2015 to form a partnership with Clearwater Fire Solutions, a service company for the onshore and offshore oil and gas industry that provides unique and bespoke solutions to issues surrounding deluge fire protection systems. With both companies boasting a proven track record in their respective field, the joint venture will promote innovative thinking, which will result in enhanced products and services for both their customers. Moreover, Clearwater will benefit from being able to offer FPE’s extensive product and service portfolio to the UKCS, while FPE will benefit from a local presence in Aberdeen where it can serve its UK clients.

Alongside mutually beneficial partnerships, FPE will continue growing within the oil and gas market through innovation, as Svein notes: “FPE needs to develop new products for the industry to maintain a good reputation for innovation.

We have several new products in line to be introduced to the market, however, I can not yet mention product names; I can only assure you they will be cost-saving and reliable products.”

Although the oil and gas market is currently a challenging place to be in operation, FPE’s developments with regards to joint ventures and innovations has ensured it will continue to grow, as Svein concludes: “As part of ALIGN, we have the necessary tools for HSE, QA, planning and project monitoring, while our closely integrated brands help reduce the number of costly and complicated interfaces for our clients. Supported by these strengths, our goal is to be the preferred supplier of active fire-fighting systems, while also expanding into new regions.”

IMI Precision Engineering IMI Precision Engineering has been chosen to supply IMI Maxseal ICO4 solenoid valves for a safety critical water deluge system. Designed to operate large process valves in the event of a fire on an offshore helicopter deck; the valve has a latching lever that ensures it stays open even if power is lost during a fire. Supplied in Titanium, it is SIL3 certified for reliability and suitable for the aggressive saline environment offshore.

Fire Protection Engineering AS align.no/en-GB/TheCompanies/Fire-ProtectionEngineering-AS

Services Designs, supplies and manufactures a range of fire fighting equipment

PROFILE

VTT Vasiliko

The key to the

Mediterranean

During November 2014 VTT Vasiliko Ltd. (VTTV) opened a €300m oil storage terminal for business. VTTV operates as a subsidiary of VTTI B.V., which is an independent provider of energy storage worldwide. Located on the south coast of Cyprus between Larnaca and Limasol, the terminal's strategic location makes it the first of its kind in the Eastern Mediterranean region, connecting Europe and the Black Sea with markets in the Middle East and Asia.

The terminal itself is the result of four years of development, with planning beginning during September 2010 and involving preparation, design, tenders, contracts, construction and finally the serving of oil traders and other interested parties. Phase one of the VTTV terminal includes 28 tanks, totalling 544,000m³ capacity for a wide portfolio of products. Phase two of the terminal has recently received environmental approval and is currently undergoing commercial evaluation.

“What is interesting about VTTV is that we are not just fitting in with an existing market.

We are creating a new one - a new energy hub in the Eastern Mediterranean that opens up a range of advantages for traders. This includes reliability in comparison to other Mediterranean locations,

where the operating envelope of oil terminals can be narrowed due to bad weather. For VTTV in Cyprus, this is not an issue,” explains General Manager of VTTV, George Papanastasiou. “We are also excellently located for the East-West trade routes that use the Suez Canal. Our jetty can accommodate Suezmax vessels as large as 160,000 tonnes, as well as small ships of just 5000 tonnes, meaning that we are very versatile.

Additionally we also have the unusual luxury of owning a deep-sea marine jetty. Then add in the fact that we control our own towage and pilotage service and we are ‘the masters of our own destiny.’ Flexibility is a hallmark of our terminal, with VTTV being highly creative about how it markets its storage and services. After a long period of backwardation, contango conditions appear to be returning with the need for longterm storage.”

Further to proving a vital stop to clients looking to utilise the terminal as a hub along the East-West trade routes that utilise the Suez Canal, the terminal’s commercial team is also able to offer short-term capacity to suit specific markets. “For example traders are realising more effective economies of scale by building bulk, breaking bulk and using the VTTV jetty for shipto-ship transfers,” George says. “The Republic of ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com

35

Protecting your world, one tank at a time™

PRODUCTS

SERVICES

OPTIMIZATION

IFR & EFR seal systems Floating roof drain systems Aluminum IFRs Advanced composite IFRs & EFRs Geodesic dome roofs Emissions reduction devices

Tank repair & maintenance Tank inspection & calibration New tank construction Painting, coating & lining Tank engineering

Working capacity optimization Dead stock / heel reduction Emissions reduction Engineered safety In-service cycle optimization

www.hmttank.com

Locations worldwide +1 (281) 681-7000 Headquarters: 24 Waterway Ave, Ste 400, The Woodlands, TX 77380

PROFILE

Cyprus is an important client that has, since May 2015, kept compulsory stocks at VTTV as the result of a successful tender process.”

Its advantageous location allows VTTV to act as a vital link to customers transporting a number of products and cargoes. The terminal ‘sits’ in the middle of product flows between three continents and can accommodate the transition of fuel oil from the Black Sea to the east, the transport of distillates from the Middle East to the West and of gasoline from the West to the Middle East. As this market continues to develop VTTV will continue to expand to meet the changing needs of its clients. “With large refineries being built in the Middle East, the market expects more vessel traffic moving oil products through the Suez Canal bound for the Mediterranean and European markets. With the expansion of the Canal, such cargoes will need to be re-sized at a convenient oil terminal to meet regional requirements,” George elaborates.

“Our holding company, VTTI B.V. is one of the fastest growing oil terminal companies in the world, and this growth involves VTTV. Currently, we are evaluating an expansion with

13 tanks of total capacity 305,000m³ for fuel oil and crude oil and examining accommodating a Floating Supply Regasification Unit (FSRU) at the jetty that will regasify LNG for the needs of the local market.”

Presently the VTTV terminal offers storage capacity of 544,000m³ for gasoline, diesel, gas oil, jet fuel, kerosene, naphtha, MTBE and FAME. This comprehensive capacity to handle and store a broad base of products results in a service offering that will ensure the terminal’s position as a key fuel hub for years to come. “I believe that the need for storage is still strong and it will continue to be for the years to come, as most industries are still very closely linked with oil,” George says. “There are always challenges and opportunities and we are confident that we have the right means and resources to acknowledge, grab them and turn them into our favour.”

Although the terminal’s strategic location and resulting flexibility represent key strengths for the business, George maintains that it is the staff under his leadership that most embody the great potential of the facility. “Our people are our

VTT Vasiliko

Rotork Rotork’s Client Support Programme (CSP) looks after over 400 Rotork IQ3 electric valve actuators and the Pakscan networks that control the media flow throughout the VTT Vasiliko Terminal. The local support of Rotork’s Cyprus office assisted initial cold commissioning and now strengthens the asset management and maintenance functions provided by the ‘tailormade’ CSP. The programme exploits the functionality of intelligent IQ3 technology with remote diagnostics and monitoring of dataloggers, enabling preventative maintenance to be organised with little or no interruption to plant operations. Ongoing technical support further contributes to increased availability, reliability and improved performance. Rotork is a corporate member of the Institute of Asset Management.

ENERGY,oil&gas

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37

+ HMT GEODESIC

HMT GEODESIC DOMES & FLOATING ROOFS SUPPLIED TO VTT, ON TIME, ON SPEC, ON BUDGET As a key supplier for the VTT Vasiliko Oil Storage Terminal, HMT worked with VTT during two construction phases spanning over 23 months. HMT supplied and supervised the installation of 27 geodesic domes and 11 suspended internal floating roofs.

Geodesic domes reduce emissions, prevent water intrusion and reduce the risk of fires in aboveground storage tanks. By eliminating the evaporative effect of wind, heat and sunlight; domes greatly reduce potential emissions from the floating roof, seals and any floating roof appurtenance penetrations.

Additionally, due to the natural protective nature of the dome, the potential for the ingress of rainwater to the stored product is eliminated. Another benefit is the ‘Faraday Cage Effect’ created by the dome, which reduces the risk of fire due to external electrical events such as lightning or static charges. Since the dome creates an enclosed cage, it conducts any currents around the outside of the tank so they don’t pass though the interior of the tank.

The internal floating roofs supplied to the VTT Vasiliko Oil Storage Terminal were suspended from the geodesic domes. Suspended floating roofs mitigate emissions created by adjustable roof legs and create a safe environment for cleaning and inspections during maintenance intervals.

HMT is the global leader in storage tank technology, providing quality products including: external and internal seal systems, floating suction, skimmers and drain systems, geodesic dome roofs, skin and pontoon and full contact floating roofs and emissions reduction devices. Additionally, HMT’s global team of engineers, project managers and field personnel can assist with common challenges including ways to reduce emissions, optimise tank capacity, reduce stranded inventory and engineer a tank system that exceeds safety standards and extends maintenance intervals.

'&

/ Petroleum Equipment International

Oil States Skagit SMATCO

distributor providing OEM drilling

demanding environments. Its Skagit

Oil States Skagit SMATCO trusted Established in 1985, Brasal Marine Services (CY) Ltdis amaintains provider of offshore equipment and Petroleum Equipment its stronghold asInternational a respected Specialist Marine Contractor, Salvor services in some of the world’s most is a specialised and supplier and masterof Marine Engineering provider Services. mooring systems, SMATCO anchor- and equipment to international drilling Our Company’s experience, adherence to regulatory guidlines handling Nautilus for contractors such asto Energy Drilling. guarantees commitment excellence high equipment, standardand provision marineand cranes can be Services found on tender, PEIConsulting, has been doing Contracting, business in South Maintenance its Supply with a drilling, AHTS, and production vessels East Asia since the late 1970’s. Because particular expertise in both on-shore and off-shore.

PLACED

PLACED

as well as fixed platforms. of its extensive vendor base it is able Oil States Skagit SMATCO’s expertise to provide a variety of parts including in designing and manufacturing large, MRO parts. It is also a master stocking complex machinery is complemented distributor for M & M valves and by its manufacturing facilities in Bestolife Thread Compound. It takes the USA, Thailand, and India. Its great pride in its work and its main worldwide support and network of goal with each order is to provide a service, parts and manufacturing quality product and excellent customer facilities enable the company service at a competitive price.

To-date the company’s numerous projects overseas andtolocally respond to its customers’ needs and which include Anchor Handling, Construction, Maintenance regardless of wherehave the vessel is located Inspection of Moorings, Terminals and Pipe Lines successfully or technical requirements.

fulfilled our clients expectations.

As an ISO 9001:2008 & IMCA (International Marine Contractors Association) approved company we pride ourselves in the provision of a quality, competitive and efficient service to all our clients.

OUR SERVICES ARE OFFERED ON THE BASIS OF AN AMENDED BIMCO SUPPLY TIME 2005.

25 VOUKOURESTIOU STREET, NEPTUNE HOUSE, OFFICE 501, 3045 LIMASSOL - CYPRUS T: +357 25 573086 | F: +357 25 573915 P.O BOX 55595, 3781 LIMASSOL, CYPRUS E: brasal@brasalmarine.com |

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www.brasalmarine.com

energy-oil-gas.com

''

'(

RedWave

Merius Ltd.

RedWave is a service provider specialising in supplying staff for both onshore and offshore drilling, production, marine contracting and construction & maintenance activities.

In addition, RedWave provides medical back-up services for activities undertaken on the Dutch and UK Continental Shelf. In 2008, RedWave was approached by Ampelmann to recruit qualified operators for their personnel transfer system. In a close working partnership, RedWave and Ampelmann have successfully identified and placed operator mechanics to control and function the Ampelmann system.

Merius Ltd. is one of the leading engineering & consultancy companies in Finland that utilises 3D as-built measurements. 3D laser scanning produces more accurate and reliable information for engineering & decision making purposes. The method brings direct cost savings for clients throughout entire project.

MOVED TO ISSUE 127

Merius Ltd. provides plant & mechanical design, technical calculations, concept design, investment planning and project management services. Merius Ltd. has operated as a design partner with OSTP Finland Ltd. for a long time in production line development projects.

During the co-operation, several robot cells and production lines for butt weld fitting & pipe production has been developed.

PROFILE

greatest asset. It is only with the determination and dedication of our people that we can meet the requirements of our customers, generate long term value for our shareholders and contribute to the oil industry and the wider public,” he reveals. “It is this expertise combined with terminal’s strategic geographic location and the flexibilities it provides to its customers that demonstrate the great strengths that cannot be ignored of the newest terminal of VTTI.” The terminal will celebrate its first year in operation on 28th November 2015, marking a successful start for VTTV as a vital energy hub within the Mediterranean. Moving forward George is keen to highlight this success before continuing to develop the terminal over the coming years.

“The terminal’s first 12 months in operation is a milestone that we want to remember and we are very proud to mark this success. We will definitely celebrate this achievement with our staff to look back into a year of operation, celebrate our successes, learn from our mistakes and set the targets for the year ahead,” he says.

“We faced many difficulties in reaching where we are now, because of lack of local industry knowledge, bureaucracy and sometimes legislation. We are very proud that hard work, persistence, and a clear vision towards the objective of delivering an oil terminal in the East Mediterranean has paid well. Over the coming years we will work to expand the terminal, diversify our customers’ portfolio and evaluate regional opportunities including LPG and LNG, thus supporting Cyprus’ aspiration to become an energy hub.”

VTT Vasiliko Ltd vtti.com

Services Mediterranean energy hub ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com

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VTT Vasiliko

A refined

design

With more than two decades of experience in the delivery of cutting-edge process technologies, plant engineering and revamp services, EDL Anlagenbau Gesellschaft mbH has built a first-rate reputation in the process industry as a reliable and competent partner for the planning and construction of complete plants and plant units using own and third-party technologies. Furthermore, in recent years the company has demonstrated its expertise in refinery revamps through the execution of over 40 large-scale projects.

EDL was founded during September 1991 and today continues to operate from its headquarters in Leipzig, Germany. In January 2003 EDL became a member of the Austrian Pörner Group, a leading independent engineering contractor for process plants in Central Europe with its headquarters located in Vienna. The Pörner Group currently employs around 500 people, 160 of which are based with EDL in Leipzig.

Across the group, Pörner and EDL offer the full range of engineering services for both new and refurbished process plants for refineries as well as the petrochemical, chemical, gas, power generation, industrial production and pharmaceutical industries. Across these sectors EDL provides classic engineering services and extensive process know-how and special technologies; including BTX-extraction; solvent deasphalting plants (SDA); solvent extraction plants for lube oils and aromatic extracts (DAE / RAE, TDEA / TRAE) production; solvent de-waxing and de-oiling plants; hydrotreating and hydrofinishing plants for production of base oils, waxes, petroleum jelly, white oils and white spirit; lube oil blending and grease plants; depolymerisation and spray micronisation plants; used oil re-refining plants. “Thanks to our comprehensive suite of technical

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competencies we can add value to every phase of a project, from feasibility studies and conceptual design, through to execution and implementation, up to operational support,” highlights EDL’s CEO, Dr. Michael Haid.

Its rich well of experience has allowed EDL to work with many of the oil and gas industries most recognised blue chip companies, including OMV, BP, Shell and Total, as well as some of Europe’s leading refineries such as PCK Raffinerie GmbH in Germany. “We are very active within the petrochemical and chemical industries and in recent years, depending on demand, our business has been split 50-50 between the chemical and refinery sectors,” explains Managing Director, Wolfgang Kursch.

“Our competence and experience in the field of revamps enables us to fulfil special tasks that not as many companies can undertake. However it is an important service that allows the plants to operate with greater effectiveness. There are other significant drivers in this area too, such as environmental and energy saving concerns.”

Traditionally EDL has operated inside its native domestic markets, within Europe’s German speaking regions, however as these areas have become more developed and the demand for new and revamped refinery projects has lessened the company has continued to branch out to clients in new locations. “At the beginning, EDL was mainly active inside regions such as Germany and Austria,” Wolfgang elaborates. And Michael adds: “During the last ten years we have started to develop into the international market, Russia especially and also Western Europe. We are also becoming active in the Middle East by working in Iran and other countries.”

Although the present low price of oil and the uncertainty within the market resulting from the political turmoil within the Ukraine and Middle East have combined to cause a slowdown in refinery projects, EDL is confident that it possesses both the technology and the knowhow to offer its clients efficient, money saving solutions. Within the Pörner concept of “Anlagenbau 4.0” the group offers plants using most advanced systems and equipment that are quickly and efficiently procured and built – for maximum productivity and competitiveness for many decades.

“Many of our clients are waiting for the market situation to change and this is why they have stopped some projects or are only undertaking phases such as project studies, basic engineering and cross calculations while they

PROFILE

wait for the best moment to start the projects in full,” Wolfgang says. “We are a process driven company with more than 30 own process engineers that are developing new technologies for us to deliver. We look for niches and develop technologies in order to address the problems that our clients face. For example, the cost per barrel is a big challenge for refiners.” “With our state-of-the-art proven residue processing technologies we convert refinery residue into valuable high-quality products allowing the refiners a better utilization of the crude oil feed,” Michael explains. “In addition, our partnerships and alliances create a strong technology portfolio with industry leading technology providers such as UOP, Shell, KBR, KBC, Sulzer, and more.”

Throughout the refining industry, stricter environmental regulations and the increasing use of heavy, high-sulphur crude products require refineries to consider efficient solutions to address residual petroleum residues. As a specialist in the field of residue processing technology, EDL together with Pörner and its Biturox® bitumen

EDL Anlagenbau Gesellschaft

technology is able to provide solutions for an ideally 100 per cent residue-free refinery. An SDA plant combined with a Biturox® bitumen plant for example, is capable of processing various heavy residues entirely to become valuable products, such as DAO and Bitumen.

“As the petrochemical and refining markets continue to evolve, EDL will continue to work with its clients to engineer lead-edge solutions leading to greater efficacy and returns. While the markets within Europe and the Middle East continue to develop along differing market trends and requirements, EDL will be on-hand to provide services in both regions,” as Wolfgang highlights. Michael concludes: “Within Europe there is a need to move to more petrochemical products and less fuel because producers in the Middle East are more effective. We are able to provide solutions in all fields and with state-ofthe-art technologies. Within Europe in particular there is a lot of competition, but we can offer tailor made solutions that are always unique for each client.”

Our competence and experience in the field of revamps enables us to fulfil special tasks that not as many companies can undertake

EDL Anlagenbau Gesellschaft mbH edl.poerner.de

Services Plant engineering and process technologies

ENERGY,oil&gas

energy-oil-gas.com

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operation Slick

Established in 1982

to service the petroleum and water sectors, the early activities of Gulf Drilling & Maintenance Company included water well drilling and related operations, primarily slickline services.

However, the company quickly evolved and expanded, introducing coiled tubing services along with pumping and filtering capabilities.

Other services followed and, currently, GDMC is a fully integrated oilfield service operator, with a pronounced emphasis on safety and the environment.

To maintain only the highest levels of service within the organisation, GDMC runs a variety of training and safety programmes, which ensure operations are performed safely and according to the highest international standards. This works in line with a very detailed HSE Management system and the company’s safety policy statement.

This statement reiterates the importance of health, safety and the environment for the welfare and morale of all personnel and also as a contributing factor to corporate growth.

All GDMC personnel have to comply with the following code of conduct: 66 Accept that everyone has a duty and responsibility for safety of their self and others 66 Enhance safety consciousness and knowledge through continuous education, training and monitoring 66 Establish safety regulations and comply therewith to eliminate unsafe activities and procedures 66 Assess every possibility of accidents and take all precautionary measures 66 Create a hazard free and clean work environment 66 Promote interest and enthusiasm in safety efforts through recognition of safety performance 66 Apply the best practicable way to protect the environment from the adverse effects of operations As a result of its dedication, GDMC has won many awards for its safety records and for hours of operation without lost time and accidents.

The various offerings from GDMC that are covered by this HSEQ mantra include slickline

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services, where the organisation operates a large fleet of slickline trucks with a wide variety of tools for standard jobs in 2 3/8" and 3 1/2" tubing.

Logging services (open hole and cased hole, production logging and perforations) also constitute a major part of GDMC’s business and in this area the business’ experienced crews provide customer needed services in open and cased hole and production logging, using reliable and high quality equipment from oilfield reputed tool manufacturers. Field interpretations are also available and more advanced and comprehensive log data evaluation and interpretations are performed in association with reputable data processing partners. GDMC also caters for clients’ perforation needs, be it through electrical line or tubing conveyed.

The next major area of expertise for GDMC is well intervention services, and this covers coiled tubing and pumping and cementing operations.

In fact, the company describes itself as a ‘one stop’ for its customers’ cementing needs.

Production testing services such as GOR, long and short term testing with DST and early production facilities are also available from GDMC, which operates a conventional, fully computerised, separator based, fleet of well test units. Its separators’ enhanced design sets them apart from the other conventional separators, providing superior production rates measurements, a wide range of intervals specific to each application and makes them suitable for a full range of gas/oil ratio, pressure and flow rates measurements.

GDMC Strategic plan 2020 Early in 2015 GDMC started its strategic plan for expansion vertically and horizontally by adding new business lines to the company portfolio by making alliances with some international companies. The new business lines added to GDMC portfolio included drilling, workover, waste management, soil remediation, and material supply.

Following GDMC’s expansion plan, the company established new branches in Saudi Arabia (Al-Khobar), south of Iraq (Basra) and Oman (Muscat).

Following Kuwait Oil Company’s (KOC) strategic plan for production enhancement and challenges solution, GDMC offered many technologies to KOC in co-operation with international companies in order to meet KOC targets.

The technologies supplied included permanent stimulation completion technology, direct drive

PROFILE

Gulf Drilling & Maintenance Company

oil pumping unit (ro-motor pump), water shut off technology, gun powder technology/heavy oil production, powerwave technology/production enhancement and wellbore cleaning, smart water technology and others.

Finally, GDMC can provide a range of asset management services, including wellhead maintenance services, valve maintenance & repairs and corrosion studies. Furthermore, along with service partners, it also offers a corrosion monitoring program to maximise

inhibitor deployment procedures, a leak detection and repair service and production tubing scanning on the fly.

As GDMC moves towards the future, the ISO 9001 registered company will endeavour to continue to maintain excellence in all areas of operation, by using state-of-the-art equipment and complying with international standards, diversifying the scope of its activities through research and development, and always ensuring complete customer satisfaction.

As GDMC moves towards the future, the ISO 9001 registered company will endeavour to continue to maintain excellence in all areas of operation, by using state-ofthe-art equipment and complying with international standards, diversifying the scope of its activities through research and development, and always ensuring complete customer satisfaction

Gulf Drilling & Maintenance Company gdmc-kwt.com

Services Coiled tubing, well stimulation, well testing, slickline, cementing, wellhead maintenance, drilling, workover, waste management, soil remediation and new technologies.

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A standout Founded during

January 2000, Zeta-pdm has 15 years of industry experience as a world leader in separation processes and a key supplier of advanced technology to the oil, gas, water and petrochemical industries. Its successfully completed projects include newbuild and revamp projects, covering onshore and offshore applications, which are delivered with a principle aim to deliver tangible benefits to clients by reducing the times between the initial enquiry, submission of a proposal and the final delivery of the equipment. Presently Zeta-pdm employs 22 members of staff across its offices in Newport, and Aberdeen within the UK, as well as Arnhem in the Netherlands. Furthermore the company maintains an office in Malaysia and close contacts with agents in Abu Dhabi, Qatar, and Korea.

Zeta-pdm is a specialist technology supplier to the oil, gas, water and petrochemical industries.

Services include consultancy, revamp and new build equipment for Production and Test separators, gas scrubbers, gas knock-out drums, slug catchers, produced water degassers, flash drums, flare knock-out drums, and enhanced oil recovery systems. Zeta-pdm delivers practical and credible engineering, process design expertise and solutions, based on the extensive range of ‘state-of-the-art’ internals technology encompassing; inlet devices, such as its ZP-4G® Inlet Cyclones, ZSQ® and its various vane

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types; distribution devices, including ZHB®, ZVB®, ZSB and ZPC fluid control technology, perforated baffles and bespoke configurations; liquid-liquid coalescers and; gas-liquid demisting and coalescing devices comprised of mesh type and vane type coalescers and demisting devices and 4G-FD® Demisting Cyclones. Furthermore, the company offers a comprehensive range of defoaming and sand removal equipment.

Key to the success of Zeta-pdm is the long-standing relationships that the company maintains with its suppliers and fabricators that enable the company to ensure that the product solutions it provides achieve a uniform and high level of quality in terms of both design and manufacture. “One of Zeta-pdm’s key points of focus is the relationship that is built between the client and operations team. We pride ourselves on offering well thought out and delivered solutions to our clients. Getting contracts delivered on time and on budget requires a great deal of understanding, experience and attention to detail. We work closely with our clients to make sure that we not only meet all their requirements but that we also offer advice and assistance to smooth the whole process.

The excellent feedback we get from our clients proves we are getting this mix just about right.

We have long-term and close-knit relationships with the fabricators that we use specifically for our products,” explains Operations Director,

PROFILE

Nigal Peach. “We have a complete range of products that will cater for anything required for the separation process within the pressure vessels themselves. Process design is carried out for each vessel which will identify the required products, these products will then be engineered specifically for the target vessel – we don’t have an off-the-shelf product.”

Currently the majority of the company’s business is derived from the North Sea sector; however Zeta-pdm is also active within Asia and the Middle East. In recent months the company has enjoyed a significant increase in demand for its range of services and the supply of its specialist equipment to an everexpanding portfolio of clients across the globe; currently Zeta-pdm is involved with several contracts totalling upwards of £2 million.

Furthermore Zeta-pdm has also seen increased orders relating to its consultancy services, including Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). “We

forming and harnessing relationships with our various international partners.”

Throughout the closing months of 2015, Zeta-pdm will seek to continue to build on its current success while further exploring new opportunities both domestically and abroad.

“We have an exemplary record in terms of the operation of our equipment and its longevity, which is important to our clients. Everything is designed and fabricated within the UK, so the standard we produce is remarkably high even in a very demanding industry,” concludes Director Norman Arnold. “Over the coming years we naturally intend to maintain our strong market presence in our traditional markets, however we will also look to expand into new markets such as North and South America. The US in particular represents a different market to what we are used to, as buyers there tend to prefer to buy an off-the-shelf solution rather than the high-tech approach that we provide, however we certainly see this as an exciting opportunity.”

Zeta-pdm

Zeta-pdm Ltd zeta-pdm.com

Services Separation process technology

are extremely pleased to have enjoyed a strong period of growth in the current difficult climate.

However, we continue to invest and strengthen our operations across the globe through supplying support and front-end engineering, together with bespoke equipment solutions and equipment, to a prestigious client list,” comments Managing Director, Stephen Turner.

“In recent years, we have worked hard to become established as one of the leading providers of tailored solutions and separation internals and it’s clear that we are now reaping the rewards of our efforts. We understand, however, that it is essential we continue to capitalise on the many opportunities opening up for us and focus on ENERGY,oil&gas

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Willis: Experts in offshore wind risks Willis is at the forefront of offshore wind risks.

Willis is a leading energy insurance broker with broad experience in offshore projects.

We offer tailored solutions based on our clients’ unique needs encompassing all stages, including: – Pre-works – Design and contracting – Marine transits – Construction and delay in start-up – Testing and handover – Operational cover, consequential loss and all associated liabilities

Our team is committed to innovation and creative solutions to help our clients successfully manage their unique risks. Our experienced engineering resource and unique risk analysis tools can be used to complement decision-making and risk marketing. We are there to help at every stage in the treatment, allocation and transfer of risk for developers, contractors and manufacturers. www.willis.com

Willis Limited, Registered number: 181116 England and Wales.

Registered address: 51 Lime Street, London, EC3M 7DQ. A Lloyd’s Broker. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

FP1953 14770/10/15

14770_ADVERT_Experts in Offshore Wind.indd 2

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PROFILE

C-Power

A sustainable

Backed by a strong

Willis Group Willis Group is a leading global risk advisor, insurance and reinsurance broker with more than 18,000 employees in 400 offices across the globe. Its experts rank among the world’s leading authorities on analytics, modelling and mitigation strategies at the intersection of global commerce and extreme events.

Willis, in conjunction with Averbo Risk Solutions, was lead risk advisor and insurance placement broker for C-Power during the development and deployment of phases 2 and 3 of the Thornton Bank Wind Farm.

“This ground breaking project presented a unique and diverse set of complex risk challenges across a number of areas, including the construction of the wind farm, compliance with the stringent requirements of the Belgian government and ensuring that the correct cover was in place so that finance for phases 2 and 3 could be unlocked,” said Michael Buckle, MD, Willis GB. Using its unrivalled expertise in offshore wind farm risks Willis, in partnership with Averbo and C-Power, created a dynamic and innovative risk programme that addressed all of the unique challenges posed by such a complex and ground breaking project.

consortium of both Belgian and international shareholders, C-Power NV was founded to develop and operate the first offshore wind farm within the Thornton Bank concession area in the North Sea. The company’s Belgian shareholders are comprosed of DEMA, S.R.I.W Environment, Socofe and Z-Kracht, with Nuhma NV acting as a reference shareholder. Additionally C-Power is further supported by RWE, EDF and Marguerite.

This combination of industrial, financial and public shareholders represents a key strength in the development of the Thornton Bank wind farm. Indeed the shareholders provide deep industrial know-how in the energy sector in general and in the offshore wind sector in particular, a strong creditworthiness and wellestablished knowledge of the Belgian market.

The Thornton Bank wind farm is located around 30 km from the Belgian coastline at a water depth ranging from between 12 m and 27.5 m, encompassing a total area of 19.84 km2.

The facility’s total capacity is 325.2 MW allowing for an annual power generation of 1050 GWh. As the first offshore wind project to be developed in the Belgian North Sea, the Belgian authorities required C-Power to start the Thornton Bank project with a pilot phase in order to prove the viability and innovate the concept. This pilot phase would become the first of three construction phases leading to the completion of the project.

Construction of Phase 1 of the Thornton Bank wind farm began on May 13th 2007, with the construction of the wind turbines and connection of the turbines to the power grid commencing in 2008. Phase 1 of the project consists of six 5M Senvion turbines in a single row. The turbines themselves are built on gravity-based foundations

and are connected together by 33 kV cables. They are then linked to the onshore high voltage station via a 150 kV export cable. The final turbine in the first-phase deployment went into operation on May 10th 2009.

Following the successful implementation of the trial phase of the Thornton Bank wind farm, approval was granted for the development of phases 2 and 3 with construction commencing on November 25th 2010 and finishing during July 2013. Phase 2 and 3 consists of 48 6M Senvion turbines, with 24 turbines being deployed in each sub area. Furthermore in installation includes an offshore power station (OTS) as well as a second 150 kV export cable.

The wind turbines in phases 2 and 3 are built on jacket foundations and are connected together and to the OTS via 33 kV cables. The turbines were provided by Senvion, which is also the company responsible for the operation and maintenance of the wind turbines during the first ten years of exploitation with the possible extension of a further ten years. The installation of the turbines was undertaken by the THV Seawind consortium (Deme & Fabricom), which was also in charge of balancing plants works including onshore works, construction and installation of foundations and the installation of cables. All of the cables used as well as the offshore transformer platform (OTS) were designed and supplied by ABB.

By September 2013 Thornton Bank reached its full capacity, allowing it to provide energy to 600,000 inhabitants each year. Commenting on the project CEO Jaak Rutten said: “It is a project to be really proud of, carried out with tremendous enthusiasm and skill, at times achieving innovative solutions, accomplished by ENERGY,oil&gas

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PROFILE

C-Power

breaking new ground and staying the course. It is a feather in the cap of our workers and partners, who pulled off a difficult feat without incident to speak of, on time and within budget.”

Key to the development of the Thornton Bank wind farm is the part it will play in enabling the reduction of CO2 emissions. Through the continued operation of the site, C-Power makes a very valuable contribution to both the European and Belgian environmental objectives concerning renewable energy and the reduction of the CO2 emission. C-Power contributes seven per cent of the renewable energy capacity needed for Belgium to meet its 2020 objective. Compared to the environmental impact of traditional energy sources, the environmental impact of wind power is very positive. Wind power consumes no fuel and emits no air pollution, neither does it generate any toxic waste nor does it constitute a major safety risk. Furthermore the energy consumed in the manufacture and transport of the materials used in the construction of wind facilities is equal to the new energy produced by the plant within only a few months. Through an expected yearly production of 1TWh, C-Power

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will avoid the release of 415,000 tonnes of CO2, which represents the annual CO2 absorption of a forested area of 65,000 and one third of the forest region within the Flemish region. “With our 325,2 MW offshore wind farm, we contribute to delivering a cleaner and safer environment to our children and grandchildren,” Jaak says.

C-Power NV c-power.be

Services Offshore wind farm development and management

PROFILE

Port of Den Helder

growth Collaboration for sustainable

The Port of Den Helder

has provided operational and maintenance services to the offshore industry in the Southern North Sea for nearly 30 years thanks to its unique geographical position in the north of Holland.

Predominantly serving the Dutch sector of the North Sea fields, the port is responsible for handling a number of services from supplies to replacement crew to 135 production platforms and drilling rigs everyday. Since 2013, under a dedicated and focused management team the port has undergone a process of development to cope with challenging demands and to integrate itself as a strategic player in the local economy.

“We recognised a demand in the market for economic development,” begins Piet-Hein Kolf, CEO of the port. “Before 2013 the harbour was smaller. After 2013 we had more focus on development so we started designing and implementing a business plan that would attract companies to situate here and allowed us to establish strong partnerships with other

operators in the area.” By setting out a strategic plan for the port, the company began its journey to expand the economic activities of the port and deliver a better service to its clients. Part of this has been delivered through the opening up and expansion of land for development.

“So far we have opened up the southern part of the harbour and are starting development on the northern side,” continues Piet-Hein.

“Ultimately, we want to complete the supply chain within the harbour so that operators can have the best choice to maintain and operate their platforms in the North Sea.” This has so far been realised through the development and expansion of the business areas Kooypunt and inland habour Kooyhaven, which lay to the south of the seaport. By investing in the location the port aims to offer over 25 hectares of space to supply the challenging demand from businesses that want to locate there and make the most of the area’s unique accessibility to the offshore industry and collaborative economy. Of note, Piet-Hein reports that Total, Damen Shipyards and IMARES have all established in and around the port to take advantage of these opportunities.

Building strong partnerships with other entities in and around the port has also been critical to the port’s recent economic expansion.

“One of the first things I focused on was establishing a relationship with the Royal Dutch Navy, who have their fleet based here,” explains Piet-Hein. “We formed an agreement to use their part of the harbour and land to increase the capacity and facilitate more ships and businesses.” In this important co-operation between the two parties, the civilian-military ENERGY,oil&gas

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DHSS DHSS, an offshore resource supply and logistics service provider with three A1 facilities in Den Helder, are deeply involved in onshore support to the oil & gas market as well as offshore wind industry.

The company’s activities include vessel & rig agency services, 3PL warehouse management and helicopter charter & crew changes.

DHSS was built on the belief that we challenge the norm through our five DHSS value propositions: Our People, Our Service Execution, Our Local Network Globally, Our Compliance & Quality Programs and Our Account Management.

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relationship shares not only land and quay space but also unique knowledge and expertise to make the port an even more important strategic hub for the offshore industry.

Similarly, relationships have been forged between the port and the nearby air and heliports. “Before I came, the port and Den Helder Airport worked very separately, but now we have developed a shared, collaborative plan as we both move forward,” highlights PietHein. Not only is the heliport of Port of Den Helder the largest of its kind serving the offshore industry in northwestern Europe, but the airport has significant links that make the area an attractive commercial hotspot. Both the Port of Den Helder and Den Helder Airport mainly service the same business and clients, and as a result of their close collaboration, both clients of the air and sea ports profit and the result is a better and more accurate service package, offering both efficiency and time saving.

As with the port, the airport is undergoing a continuous plan to develop the area and as such is currently establishing a scheduled service between Den Helder and Aberdeen to cement a strategically important link between the two offshore capitals.

By committing to this expansion and development the port of Den Helder and the

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surrounding area is insulating itself from the significant challenges currently present in the offshore industry. “We are feeling the effects of the reduced oil price,” comments Piet-Hein.

“However, on the flipside we have seen new demand for maintenance to rigs that are coming back in, which provides a lot of work to the harbour. As such we had a record year last year and the first half of this year has been very good as well, although I do think this will drop off a bit from now on as oil companies have backed off of their investments for a while.”

Despite the potential threats faced by the oil and gas market, Den Helder’s decision to open up new space and opportunities for new businesses is likely to attract players from the renewables sector and Piet-Hein notes that the emergence of offshore wind farms in the North Sea will be very positive for the existing infrastructure already established in the area.

“We are very good at innovation,” he continues.

“Finding out what the clients want and need and developing new concepts to facilitate new maintenance and support demands.”

As for the future, Piet-Hein will be leaving the company at the end of 2015, but is confident that the port will continue its journey towards becoming a world-class economic hub for the offshore industry. “Our plan so far has been

PROFILE

to establish strategic partnerships within the harbour and the surrounding area, and the next step will be to extend this further by working with national harbours like Ijmuiden, Amsterdam and Groningen; and international harbours like we already do with Esbjerg, in Aberdeen and Stavanger, for instance,” he concludes. “This way we can learn from and support each other in facilitating the needs of our shared clients.

Collaboration makes development possible, and the plan for the next ten years and beyond will be to continue this growth and aid economic development wherever possible.”

The future acting CEO of Port of Den Helder, Whitney Veen, will continue the current strategy: “Now that cost-savings and the preservation of volume are the main concerns of the market, it is essential for Port of Den Helder to work together with all of our partners to maintain (financial) stability. Collaboration and creativity are necessary for continued success.”

Whitney is the CFO of Port of Den Helder and has years of experience both in-house and

Port of Den Helder

in the offshore sector. She will be leading Port of Den Helder until a suitable successor is found.

In the meantime, Veen explains: “It is important for the Port of Den Helder to remain active. It is a crucial time in the market, when Port of Den Helder needs to both facilitate and work together with its various partners. The volatile and dynamic offshore market requires an integrated approach, so that continuity, retention of market volume and implementation of low-cost and low-carbon markets are achieved. My goal is to do this in a way that provides the new Director with a solid base for further strategic actions.”

Port of Den Helder portofdenhelder.eu

Services Netherlands port specialising in offshore support

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TRULY GLOBAL SHIP-DELIVERY UNDER OWN POWER REDWISE MARITIME SERVICES B.V. The Netherlands

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PROFILE

Svitzer

market

Guiding the

With roots dating back

as far as 1833, Svitzer A/S has well over a century of experience of operation within the marine and offshore environment. The business was originally established as a services and salvage company in response to the significant losses occurring on the trade routes to and from Denmark. Today Svitzer has evolved into a leading provider of towage and associated services with clients and offices across the globe. The company as it is recognised today was purchased by the Maersk Group during 1979 and today forms part of its parent company’s APM Shipping Services division along with Maersk Tankers, Maersk Supply Service and Damco.

Following its acquisition by the Maersk Group, Svitzer began a determined path of growth and internationalisation beginning with the purchase of the Swedish towage company,

Röda Bolaget during 1999. Several other acquisitions followed, including the significant addition of Adstream in 2007, which helped to transform Svitzer into a truly global enterprise.

During this period as well as in recent years, Svitzer has continued to enjoy impressive levels of growth by providing services to clients within a number of industry sectors. Further to the provision of towage operations Svitzer is also able to offer its clients a comprehensive portfolio of support services including piloting, line handling and pollution control operations.

“Svitzer is today primarily engaged as a towage company, providing towage services to the wider shipping industry. We also provide a lot of services to the oil and gas market and this is actually where we have seen the most growth during the past eight years,” explains Group Chief Commercial Officer, Kasper Nilaus.

“During this time we have won more than ENERGY,oil&gas

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Robert Allan Robert Allan Ltd is a world-leading designer of customised tugboats and commercial working craft of all types, serving a global client base. Working with an experienced, knowledgeable partner like Svitzer demands services of the highest standards, so it is a pleasure to count Svitzer as a valued client for almost two decades. Specific projects developed for Svitzer include a number of significant escort and harbour tug designs ranging from ice-breaking terminal tugs in Sakhalin, Russia to high-performance RAstar Series escort tugs for their operations at Milford Haven. More recently that work involves new tug designs incorporating the latest technologies for increased fuel-efficiency and low emissions.

50 per cent of the tenders for towage services to large LNG export terminals. Therefore we have seen quite a lot of growth globally in the LNG export terminal market and have been fortunate enough to pick up long-term contracts with many of the oil majors.”

During January 2014 it was announced that Svitzer Australia had signed at 20-year contact with the Chevron-operated Wheatstone LNG terminal project in remote North Western Australia. Commenting on the significance of winning the prestigious project, CEO Robert Uggla said: “Winning the Wheatstone project is a tremendous achievement of a great global team pulling in the same direction across offices and functions.”

Preparations for the Wheatstone project are ongoing with operations due to commence during 2016, while a further project for Chevron for its Gorgon LNG terminal commenced in July 2015. Located on Barrow Island in West

Australia, the Gorgon project represents a 20-year contract between Svitzer and a joint venture of the Australian subsidiaries of Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, Osaka Gas, Tokyo Gas and Chubu Electric Power. “These kinds of project are won through an international tender process which can take years to pass through as there are various stages of approval and quite intense competition for such contract.”

Kasper adds. “The next step after winning these tenders is to begin the construction of the vessels that are needed. We have built four tugboats specifically for the Gorgon contract that are tailor made to work in this environment. What is interesting about this contract apart from its size is that operations will take place inside of a nature reserve, so in order to win the contract it was necessary to design tugboats that are very environmentally friendly. We have batteries on board the vessels as well as various types of insulation board so that the tugs do not produce the same level of noise as other tugs. The ECOtugs also don’t emit as much light as other vessels as this was a requirement due to the Class A nature reserve in which they operate.”

In addition to winning several high-profile and prestigious projects in recent years, Svitzer is keen to continue its growth in markets like

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Svitzer

We have been at the forefront of developing environmentally friendly tugboats, which are currently in operation within Australia and Scandinavia and will be operating four more in Australia at the end of 2016

South America and Asia, as Kasper concludes: “Like many companies we want to grow and are currently focusing on expanding within Brazil and in Asia. We recently established a separate Asia division to the business to support growth in countries such as China, Malaysia and Indonesia specifically. Over the next 12 months we will be very focused on developing our growth in those regions and over the longer term we want to keep growing and continue to transform the towing industry. For example

we have been at the forefront of developing environmentally friendly tugboats, which are currently in operation within Australia and Scandinavia and will be operating four more in Australia at the end of 2016. We are also taking part in a joint development project with Damen Shipyard for the development of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) tugs. All in all we are at the forefront of safe, reliable and innovative solutions in order to meet the current and future need of our customers.�

Svitzer A/S svitzer.com

Services Towage and associated services

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International in 2007. This acquisition allowed the organisation to become truly worldwide bringing together operations in Europe, West Africa, CIS region, Americas, and the Middle East.

With more than three decades of global industry experience, the company is now structured as a group of business units, each with its own specialisations. Through these units, the Group can provide tailored services to address the needs of its clients worldwide in the most effective and competitive manner.

Innovative and cost effective services

A world of

experience The Onstream Group has supplied specialised services for the oil and gas industry since 1978. Since its birth, the Onstream Group has always worked with the world’s largest and most well known clients and is very proud to be able to boast a high profile client portfolio and a highly successful dedicated and experienced global team.

The Onstream Group acquired ASC

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Being a medium sized company with a team of 500 motivated specialists, the Onstream Group constantly re-thinks its services, adapting to client needs and changing industry trends, staying competitive globally and gaining market share.

The company always looks for new services to extend its portfolio and to add value to its clients. Its major focus points are innovation, quality, and cost effectiveness. In 2015 the company signed an agreement to distribute Oxifree anti-corrosion services in multiple company locations. The partner supplies a universal anti-corrosion coating system, which has proven to be a cost effective, environmentally friendly, and sustainable solution for its clients.

Major growing segments of the company include: 66 Fabric maintenance works, including innovative maintenance solutions such as Oxifree 66 Access works 66 Equipment rental services 66 Manpower recruitment and sourcing services The Onstream Group aims to be a preferred supplier of technical services for oil and gas companies throughout the global locations of the company.

Think global, act local The Group constantly rethinks its local strategies and approach to its clients, trying to stay

PROFILE

even closer to its customers. The Onstream Group tries to be a part of the client’s team, understanding current needs, and proactively proposing tailored solutions.

Flagship activities of the Onstream Group include: 66 Operations in Africa constitute 60 per cent of the business (Gabon and Nigeria) 66 Northern Europe (Dutch Continental Shelf) The company is very keen to build, maximise and recognise local manpower capabilities and do its part to employ, train and educate indigenous people to achieve the skills and knowledge needed to contribute to their own economies. In order to do this, it regularly calls upon specialists from around the world to share their expertise, help support and mentor the local workforce whenever possible.

THE ONSTREAM GROUP

“Drawing upon the vast diversity of the talents and resources we have at our fingertips gives us a collective strength,” states Onstream Group CEO Remi Maari: “The Onstream Group has been in operation for over 30 years and has always worked on the principles that we are here to serve our clients and deliver on our promise of consistent, high quality client service worldwide. Here at Onstream we understand that it is our reliability, coupled with excellent international communications, which creates the conditions for your success at work. We monitor our in-house personnel and administration continuously, and we adhere strictly to international quality standards as ISO. Our customers believe in us and value our professionalism and this is where our core strength is derived from.

Professionalism is at the heart of our culture.

We pride ourselves in maintaining longterm relationships with all major oil and gas operators and contractors.”

The Onstream Group onstreamgroup.com

Services Maintenance services, equipment rental and logistics support, manpower and sourcing services

Quality and HSE are the highest priorities Through the Onstream Group’s in-house Quality Control and Safety system, as well as the HSE standards, the company constantly monitors the quality of services provided to clients. The company is measured to the highest industry standards, and often saluted due to the performance.

It strives to guarantee and improve the safety, health and well being of all its employees. Every member of staff holds the necessary qualifications and safety certificates required for their roles, and it is this attention to detail that clients value so highly, especially in robust and challenging working environments such as oil and gas.

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An accommodating Since it was previously

featured

by Energy, Oil and Gas magazine during May 2014, Baltic Chemical Terminal (AS BCT) has continued to demonstrate its effectiveness as a state-of-the-art terminal complex for the storage and transhipment of ammonia and liquid mineral fertilisers. Located at the Estonian port of Sillamäe, the terminal went into operation during 2008 and is designed to handle over one million tonnes of ammonia and one million tonnes of urea-ammonia nitrate solution (UAN).

The complex draws great competitive strength from its strategic location for Russian ammonia producers, along with its high-technology equipment and its ability to operate year-round while servicing vessels of up to 65,000 tonnes.

The provision of high-quality services and top-level safety procedures further contributes

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to the terminal’s successful operation. Its geographical location, Free Zone Status and a possibility to release goods into free circulation in the EU member states allow AS BCT to offer its customers the best co-operation terms.

Therefore despite the shifting fortunes of the global economy, the market for AS BCT remains relatively stable, allowing it to sell into global regions including North America, Northern Europe, Africa, Latin America and Australia.

When the business was previously featured, Chairman of the Board, Aleksandr Volohhonski commented on the on-going development of the site. This included the addition of a new type of UAN tank as well a the upgrading of the terminal’s control and measurement systems to bring older tanks in line with more modern data technology. Within the last 12 months AS BCT has continued to evolve and announced several developments that will further strengthen the terminal’s position as a leading hub for the storage and transhipment of liquid chemical fertiliser products. For example, it has recently announced the development of a €1.5 million jetty for the transfer of ammonia, which will allow two vessels to load and offload simultaneously, increasing safety as well as the amount of product flowing through the terminal

PROFILE

and turnaround. The new jetty is expected to be completed early 2016. “The new jetty will ease the transfer procedure and make sure that there are not blockages in terms of the shipments, vessels arriving and in terms of offloading,” Aleksandr says. “We will be working two jetties at the same time and they will be exactly the same size and have the same facilities.”

Presently AS BCT maintains facilities comprised of four 20,000 tonne UAN storage tanks; two 30,000 tonne liquid ammonia tanks; a UAN railway unloading area with an unload speed of 600t/hour; an ammonia railway unloading area with an unload speed of up to 130t/hour; MCC building with substation; administration and utility building; ammonia compressor room; two pump rooms for ammonia and UAN; a fire fighting complex consisting of a pump room and two fire water tanks at 600m3 each; a diesel generator room for ammonia; pipelines till quay for UAN and ammonia; two marine loading arms with a loading rate of up to 1200t/hour; and deep-sea berths of up to 13 metres.

AS BCT is operated as part of the Russianowned Acron group of companies, which also owns the Dry Bulk Terminal (AS DBT), located at the Muuga port in Estonia. AS DBT went operation during 1997 for the transhipping of mineral fertilisers and today represents one of the most technically advanced port facilities in Eastern and Northern Europe. AS DBT handles a significant percentage of the Acron Group’s exported mineral fertilisers, while the terminal’s 288-metre long and 14.5 metres deep berth allows it to service vessels with a capacity of over 70,000 tonnes. In an important milestone for both terminals, it was recently announced that AS BCT and AS DBT are to be amalgamated under a single management structure, which will allow greater collaboration and synergy between the sites.

Throughout all of its operations, AS BCT has enjoyed global growth in all of the products it handles. For example during 2015 the company has experienced a five per cent increase in its liquid business and a ten per cent increase in its dry goods business. “Demand from the industry has been very high and in terms of UAN we are looking at increasing our capacity.

However, the industry does of course depend on famers replacing machinery from dry fertilisers or liquid fertilisers. We cover a region that stretches from Australia to Latin America and there is some question of how to transport it, as

Baltic Chemical Terminal

many terminals are not equipped for the intake of fertiliser cargo. One solution we are looking at is how to transfer into normal containers or tank containers, although this does work out to be more expensive,” Aleksandr observes. Over the coming years AS BCT will continue to seek to expand its capacity, while maintaining high levels of service and flexibility. With its new jetty set to increase the traffic of panama class and smaller vessels using the terminal, AS BCT will continue to gain a reputation as an important chemical and storage hub.

Baltic Chemical Terminal bct.ee

Services Storage, stevedoring and transhipment services of liquid chemicals

ENERGY,oil&gas

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59

Flow of

innovation Flowplant Group Limited

has been designing and manufacturing high-pressure pumps and pumping systems since 1971. The business is based in Salisbury in Wiltshire, with a further subsidiary in Atlanta Georgia, USA and employs around 50 members of staff across the company. Flowplant was originally founded as Harben Systems and started operations as a manufacturer of high-pressure radical piston diaphragm pumps and these pumps remain a core product of the business today.

Over time Flowplant continued to expand through organic growth and acquisitions, to provide the broad base of pressure pumps and pumping systems that it offers today.

“With the acquisition of Aqua Hydraulics, the company was encouraged, by its customers, to design and manufacture complete pumping systems and pressure testing units. In recent years, again led by its customers, Flowplant has become increasingly involved in the provision of units with sophisticated data reporting whose complex control systems are managed by PLC’s with a HMI interface,” explains Managing Director, Mark Bastable. “Today Flowplant provides the oil and gas industry

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with high-pressure pumps (capable of subsea operation and handling of aggressive media), HPU’s, flushing units and pressure testing units. Flushing and hydrostatic testing units are used in a number of on-shore and off-shore applications such as PLSVs. In addition the company supplies a range of units which are aimed at oil-spill response and decommissioning work. Flowplant operates a service division with technicians trained in the service and repair of pumps and equipment.”

In addition to its work within the oil and gas market, Flowplant regularly assists clients and customers in the marine and chemical industries, as well as in the maintenance of on-shore facilities with equipment for surface preparation, process control, water hydraulics and cleaning. This presence within a broad base of industry sectors has enabled the company to work with several globally recognised market players in several sectors globally. “Flowplant has a long list of blue chip customers; our main clients within oil and gas are the oil services companies such as Subsea 7, IHC, Halliburton, Oceaneering, IKM and Sapura, as well as Aker Solutions and Rolls Royce but there are a number of others within the SME category of customers who are doing exciting and innovative work,” Mark reveals. “Fifty to 60 per cent of our output is exported, and most of that

PROFILE

production is exported outside Europe. Projects and destinations range from our work on PLSVs in Brazil, to a fuel transfer system in the Falkland Islands, surface cleaning equipment to Nigeria, and flushing units in Malaysia.”

Core to the success of the business it its ability to provide tailored solutions that address the niche requirements of its clients within their respective market areas. This allows Flowplant to develop close and long-lasting relationships with clients that are based on both trust and collaboration. “Many of our clients come to us with specific issues that require bespoke solutions. We have a very well resourced engineering and technical department, as well as links to the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) and Bath University, allowing us to provide a high level of technical input to the clients’ design solution. A number of these relationships are governed by non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and we are very comfortable in operating these partnership arrangements with our clients,” Mark says.

Although the uncertainty created by the depressed price of oil has created challenging trading conditions, Flowplant is keenly aware of the present market environment and optimistic that it will be able to capitalise on future opportunities owing to its comprehensive industry experience. “There is no doubt that the sudden fall in oil price last year hastened the move within the sector, towards greater cost control and to a reassessment of the viability of many capital projects. The levels of general activity have fallen and there has been some consolidation within the supply chain. Our customers have been forced to reassess their business models and focus on core activities,” Mark elaborates. “The challenge for our business is to prove to customers that we can add value with innovative, cost effective solutions and to manage their projects efficiently and effectively, thus easing the burden on the smaller core teams that remain within client organisations.

Flowplant Group

Opportunities exist for Flowplant to assist clients in specifying and designing equipment within the field of our core expertise.”

As the company continues through the final months of 2015 and beyond it will continue to focus on increasing its footprint within the oil and gas industry. Flowplant recently enjoyed a successful presence at Offshore Europe 2015 and will actively seek to exhibit again in 2017.

“Over the next 12 months we will be focused on increasing our presence in the Energy sector and promoting our products to the widest possible audience within the sector. Product development will be largely customer led (as it always is) and we will be pleased to discuss potential projects and products with both existing and potential customers,” Mark concludes. “The strategic vision for the business is to increase critical mass through organic growth, particularly in oil and gas; becoming a go-to provider of fluid handling solutions based on innovation outstanding quality and customer focus.”

Core to the success of the business it its ability to provide tailored solutions that address the niche requirements of its clients within their respective market areas

Flowplant Group flowplant.com

Services High-pressure pumps and pumping systems

ENERGY,oil&gas

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61

Top

grades Operating as a joint venture between Merius Ltd. Merius Ltd. is one of the leading engineering & consultancy companies in Finland that utilises 3D as-built measurements. 3D laser scanning produces more accurate and reliable information for engineering & decision making purposes. The method brings direct cost savings for clients throughout entire project.

Merius Ltd. provides plant & mechanical design, technical calculations, concept design, investment planning and project management services. Merius Ltd. has operated as a design partner with OSTP Finland Ltd. for a long time in production line development projects.

During the co-operation, several robot cells and production lines for butt weld fitting & pipe production has been developed.

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Tubinoxia and Outokumpu EMEA Oy, OSTP is a specialist welded stainless steel tubular products manufacturer that offers one of the broadest ranges of solutions including, process pipes and tubes, butt weld fittings and process equipment, for pressure corrosion applications.

OSTP has a long history and tradition in the production of welded stainless steel products stretching back well more than 50 years and spanning several acquisitions and mergers. The company as it is recognised today came into being during 2011 when current shareholder and CEO of OSTP, Andrea Gatti acquired 36 per cent of the business, before taking the option to take a controlling interest of 51 per cent of OSTP in January 2013. Commenting of the running of the business today, Andrea says: “Our business decisions are based on fundamental principles which we will not compromise. That is to have a sustainable growth and take full environmental responsibility, doing so always with the highest ethical standards at all times.”

Presently OSTP consists of four production sites, the largest of which is located in Jakobstad, Finland. Two of the production sites are located in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden. OSTP Sweden focuses on butt welded fittings and ÖMV focuses on Process Equipment Fabricated & Engineered Products.

During 2014 the company had a production capacity of circa 65,000 tonnes of process pipes (PP) and 10,000 tonnes of butt weld fittings (BWF), while its 630 employees helped the company generate a total turnover of €183 million. Traditionally OSTP has been highly active within Europe, with the majority of its plants and customers located within the

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region, however the company also presently maintains a manufacturing presence within Saudi Arabia. Set up in partnership with the Al Hejailan Group, Outokumpu Armetal Stainless Steel Pipe Co Limited (OASP) and which represents a multi-million euro investment into the first stainless tubular manufacturing facility in the Middle East. The state-of-the-art stainless steel process plant is located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and has an annual output capacity of approximately 10,000 tonnes.

Drawing on decades of experience, the dedicated staff at OSTP are on hand to assist clients with matters such as grade selection advice and technical support. The company has a comprehensive portfolio of products that enables it to operate in a diverse spectrum of industry segments including: O & G - P & P – Petro Chem – W & WWT – Desalination – Energy – Building & Construction – Mining and Transportation. Across all of the industries in which it is present, OSTP is keenly aware of the need for the highest levels of quality and customer service. Furthermore, within the oil and gas market the company is an experienced global player that inspires confidence through its understanding that oil and gas infrastructure is designed and built to last and serve for decades under the most severe operational conditions.

“Within the oil and gas sector one of the biggest challenges is quality. In terms of application the products we supply include pipelines, which are put in demanding environments where they need to stay and be reliable for a long time whilst operating at high pressures and wide temperature ranges. So quality is a very important concern and OSTP is recognised as a quality producer within the market,” elaborates Managing Director, Thomas Pettersson. “Additionally within the oil and gas sector there are several kinds of customer approvals that need to be in place in order to be able to operate in the market. We work together with the client to ensure that these are in place and they also help us to deliver products according to the customer special requirements.

“Our laboratory in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden, is a clear indication of our commitment to developing our expertise in special grades and complicated project demands. With hyper-modern equipment, our laboratory technicians perform tests such as tensile testing, corrosion tests according to ASTM G48, ISO 3651-2 and ASTM A262 ‘E’, microexamination to ASTM A923, ferrite-austenite ratio to ASTM E562, hardness, bending tests and Charpy impact testing.”

PROFILE

Further to its activity within the global oil and gas and energy markets, OSTP is also presently highly active within the chemical sector, particularly within Germany. Like the oil and gas sector, this is a further application in which quality is paramount and an area in which OSTP is able to excel. Historically the company began operations by supplying clients within the pulp and paper industries and today the company is again experiencing a boom in the Nordic countries within these sectors. Throughout all of its active market sectors, OSTP utilises one of the widest ranges of stainless steel grades within the industry.

This means that as well as standard grade stainless steels, it also offers high performance austenitic, ferritic, duplex, and super duplex grades. Each grade encompasses a different spread of properties through the varying levels of chromium, nickel, and molybdenum, and additional elements such as titanium and niobium.

Although the depressed oil price has naturally impacted the availability and frequency of projects within the oil and gas sector, the flexibility and presence of OSTP within a

broad base of industry sectors has shielded the company from the impact of this relative period of slowdown. Over the coming years OSTP will seek to maintain its diverse market presence while further developing its product base inline with industry demand. “It is clear that over the next three to five years that flexibility will definitely be an important factor as well as further focus on quality. Previously it was less important how the pipes looked, as it was most important that they did their required job, there were no weld defects holes and they could hold the required pressure and so on. I think the trend today however is increasing concerned with the visual quality of the pipework,” Thomas concludes. “Service level is another area in which the trend is toward shorter supply times and fast track production lead times, while the use of special grades is another trend coming into the market. Increasingly there are applications with requirements for specific grades including standard grades as well as all kinds of exotic grades and that is an area where we are very attentive and need to be alert.”

OSTP Group

OSTP Group ostp.biz

Services Specialist welded stainless steel tubular products

ENERGY,oil&gas

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63

Source of

excellence Founded in the

North East of England during 1972, Newarc Limited is a UK based designer and manufacturer of inverter-based welding power sources for manual metal arc (MMA), metal inert gas (MIG) and tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding. The company has traditionally supported the UK’s oil and gas and energy industries with innovative and high integrity welding products and solutions, as well as the petrochemical, process equipment, metal fabrication, shipbuilding, construction, aerospace and railway sectors. Indeed during more than four decades in operation, Newarc has earned a comprehensive base of industry experience and a market-leading reputation in the provision of welding services.

“Over the years the business has encountered various changes in the welding industry and has seen several recessions come and go but has weathered the storms with a constantly evolving portfolio of innovative products offered to multiple industry sectors,” elaborates General Manager, David Kerr. “As its portfolio grew and Newarc established a reputation within the welding profession, so did the presence of the business.

Newarc established an office in Aberdeen during the 1980’s and continued to develop a national identity with major contracts in the ship-building, offshore oil and gas and power

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generation sectors. By the early 1990’s the business was exporting British made welding inverters to the Middle East, Far East and Caspian region for a wide range of users and industries. Over the past decade the business has continued to grow steadily and strengthen its position in existing regions. Today with some new and exciting developments within our research and development department, as well as with the introduction of some new personnel to the management team the business is targeting growth in both new and existing regions.”

Newarc supplies a variety of MIG, TIG and MMA equipment from 150A to 1,000A to clients operating within the oil and gas sector, which are complemented by a range of products that support site work. “The Viper2500s 250A inline TIG unit is an exceptional example of the company’s unrivalled innovation,” David expands. “The unique selling point of the device is that it operates from any DC power source without the need for control cables. The product is recognised globally as a leading product in its class, and is highly sought after within the industry. The multi-process package is another favourite within the oil and gas sector, with the small light-weight add-on T300 TIG unit and WFU12-4c feeder accessing small confined spaces or working at heights is made easy.”

All of the inverter-based welding power sources provided by Newarc are manufactured at the company’s headquarters in Newcastle upon Tyne. Its present process setup provides Newarc the capacity to produce up to 5000 units per year, however the company is keen to expand its capacity to match its ambitions for future growth. “As we implement our developing growth strategy we will review parallel expansion plans to meet growing demand. We have several advanced delivery models already defined that enable us to expand the entire operation at both our existing Newcastle and Aberdeen facilities,” David says.

“Research and development is one of the most important processes within our business and underpins our overall growth strategy. We have an extremely strong team of engineers with a wealth of experience in the industry, however, we recognise the need to strengthen the team in order to realise our strategic goals. We believe we have found the perfect answer here by agreeing to a strategic partnership with Heriot Watt University to perform a three-year collaborative research and development project.”

The collaborative research project between

PROFILE

Heriot Watt University and Newarc will focus on several technical innovations that have already been identified in a joint study toward the development of the next generation of Newarc welding machines.

The partnership has received backing from Innovate UK under its Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) programme, which also triggers significant grant funding to support the employment of a high calibre Phd or Masters level Engineering graduate to undertake the project.

Further to its on-going research and development activities, Newarc differentiates itself through the adherence to the highest possible standard, in terms of both quality and service. “We pride ourselves on providing genuinely British made products and staying true to the value of what this means. We have built a reputation synonymous with these values, providing not only quality and reliability with our products but also in our after sales service.

When the product is sold we don’t simply give ourselves a pat on the back and walk away, for us the relationship has only just started & we

have an obligation to our customers and also the future of Newarc to ensure the customer is satisfied throughout the entire lifecycle of their asset purchase.”

In the wake of the market uncertainty caused by the depressed oil price, the next 12 months will be critical for Newarc as it seeks to develop the long-term growth of the business. “We are fortunate to have established an extremely strong brand in our field, however, we recognise that there are some very simple tools and mechanisms that we can apply and harness to vastly improve the brand visibility both in new and existing regions,” David concludes. “From a technical perspective, a particular area of importance is developing the now established partnership with Heriot Watt University.

Personally I am very familiar with the Innovate UK KTP programme which is at the heart of this relationship and have witnessed first-hand just how powerful this can be for all parties involved, so this offers an extremely exciting journey for the business.”

Newarc

Newarc Ltd newarc.co.uk

Services Inverter-based welding power sources

ENERGY,oil&gas

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65

Tank

commanders Wessington Cryogenics is

enviably positioned as global preferred supplier of cryogenic pressure vessels to some of the world’s blue chip oil and gas majors, industrial gas suppliers, scientific users and leading research laboratories.

The company was established in 1984 and its primary line of business was to supply stainless steel cryogenic pressure vessels to industrial, scientific, laboratory and cryo-biological market sectors, mainly in the UK and Western Europe.

Having exported from day one, Wessington spread the net over the years and was soon successfully exporting products to all corners of the globe, with an existing broad range of cryogenic pressure vessels, which had applications in every imaginable sector.

Around 20 years ago there was a significant step change with the move to build larger industrial tanks including 10ft and 20ft ISO tanks for offshore use to the well service companies.

Wessington’s offshore and industrial gas portfolio now boasts the world’s leading 2000 gallon tank for the Wellservice industry, the ISO PACK 2000.

However, this is only part of a family of tanks, which include 3000, & 4000 gallon tanks in a range of pressures from three to 24 bar. Other

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similar tanks include the smaller Wellmite series, in 500 & 1000 gallon capacities, again all with DNV 2.7-1 approved frames. Standard 20 ft and 40ft tanks for air gases, CO2 and LNG are also available. The company remains active in the original markets too, and the standard portfolio has grown since the early days to incorporate small open dewars, standard pressure vessels, bulk tanks and a range of liquid helium dewars from 30 to 20,000 ltr capacity. Custom/bespoke designs have always been a speciality of Wessington’s, from one off projects to production products designed to fit a client’s particular needs.

In collaboration with these industrial and scientific partners, Wessington has invested intensively in Research and Development and is rolling out plans to broaden the supply offer to meet industry demand for a suite of acid and chemical tanks for offshore use. In the 31 years since its inception, Wessington has earned a deserved reputation for engineering excellence in terms of design to manufacture capability, product quality, technical functionality and ergonomic consideration. The spirit of the company is not to just replicate but to innovate and this is evident in both the regular refresh of standard products as well as the range of challenging bespoke projects that are regularly commissioned by clients from all over the world. The company has seen its products find their way to the South Pole, up Mount Everest, down some of the deepest mines housing world-leading research laboratories and even

PROFILE

to NASA. So when it came to considering the latest product development, Wessington was determined to design a range of acid and chemical tanks that would be perceived as truly the best in class.

Building upon the success of the 10ft Acid Pack 2000, which was released to market in 2013, Wessington is now proud to launch the Acid Pack 4000 to meet industry demand for a larger capacity tank, suitable for transportation offshore.

Paul Rowe, Managing Director of Wessington Cryogenics Limited explains: “We listened to customer feedback and put safety at the heart of this particular product development, to consider the ergonomic improvements that could be made, considering the hazardous chemicals being used in hostile offshore environments. As well as an outstanding design and high quality build, we believe we are the first company to incorporate a four-inch remote valve, which allows the operator to empty the tank remotely. This has been very well received in the industry and we are very optimistic about future sales.”

Another addition to the range which will be launched imminently is the 4000 litres chemical tank, which builds upon the design of the existing 1000 gallon tank, creating greater storage capacity but is designed, for efficiency, to a smaller footprint for offshore.

With the current economic uncertainty and the downturn in oil and gas, the company fully recognises the importance of this agility and diversity. Coupled with an ongoing programme of investment in skills and apprenticeships, Wessington has committed to introducing new models to the portfolio, and also new/additional technology to the business for productivity and design specific improvements. These provide a solid platform for future growth.

Recognising the engineering excellence of this rapidly growing family firm, Wessington was delighted to be invited by UKTI to take part in a prestigious trade mission to South East Asia at the end of July and have an opportunity to showcase manufacturing and celebrate the Best of British.

It was a fantastic endorsement for Wessington that the Prime Minister, David Cameron, personally endorsed the calibre of Wessington Cryogenics Limited and applauded its efforts and ambition to continue to take the business from strength to strength.

Wessington Cryogenics

Prime Minister, David Cameron, said: “British companies like Wessington Cryogenics are flying the flag and unlocking the economic potential of the fast growing economies of South East Asia.

I’m delighted that they have joined me on my first trade mission of this government and I hope that we can work together to create jobs and growth for the UK.”

Wessington Cryogenics wessingtoncryogenics.com

Services Cryogenic vessels and storage tanks

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67

direction The right

Beginning operation in 2001, Project data Location Klaipėda, Lithuania Builder AB Klaipedos nafta Application Gas, FOC Pipeline length Gas: 2,310 + 610m + 572m, FOC: 2,310 + 610m + 572m Pipeline diameter Gas: 28", FOC: 8" Geology Moraine loam - very solid with pebbles and cobbles Machinery HK400M (pulling force 400 t), HK500PT (pulling force 500 t) Client PPS Pipeline Systems GmbH

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Polish drilling company Albrehta Sp. z o.o. operates as a specialist in the provision of horizontal direction drilling (HDD), piping engineering, design and supervision services.

As a market leader the company has been at the forefront of the development of the trenchless drilling industry in Poland and during the course of its history, Albrehta has further expanded to deliver complex projects throughout Eastern Europe.

Within the interdisciplinary field of largescale controlled horizontal directional drilling the conventional practices that are present in traditional drilling do not apply, therefore Albrehta strives to employ a team with the explicit availability and skills set to successfully operate within a technically demanding and specialised industry. Core to the company’s operating strategy is its corporate philosophy of co-operation between members of its team as well as with its clients to ensure that the needs of the project are fully addressed at every level. Therefore Albrehta typically approaches operations with small teams of dedicated staff that embody the company’s commitment to responsible and highly efficient operation.

The efficiency of Albrehta’s work principles was recently impressively proven while executing six horizontal directional drillings in Klaipeda, Lithuania’s largest port, where the Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal was recently brought into operation. Working in extremely difficult geological conditions and with tight deadlines, a Polish company used its up-todate drilling rigs, skilled and professional team, and innovative approach to problem solving to successfully install three gas pipelines. The pipes reached depths of 56 metres, with a diameter of up to 1.2 metres and a total length of 6984 metres, whereby the longest drilling reached

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2310m – being the longest drilling of such diameter in Europe so far.

With Klaipeda LNG terminal being in operation, Lithuania’s energy supply became more autonomous as it started importing LNG. For this, a tanker, named ‘Independence’ with a regasification, plant was permanently moored at the port. Freighters can dock there and feed in LNG, and the plant converts it to its gaseous state. In order to feed the gas into the supply network the terminal had to be connected to the mainland through pipelines. Albrehta used a Herrenknecht HK400M HDD Rig and an HK500PT PipeThruster to successfully install the necessary pipeline and fibre optic cable infrastructure.

A total of six horizontal directional drillings had to be completed in order to connect the terminal to the existing supply network on the mainland – three of them to transport the gas (28”) and three for installing fibre optic control cables (8”). Four drillings were carried out from an island in the seaport, located between the LNG terminal and the pipeline system on the mainland and two drillings were carried out under the river in the mainland (572 metres).

The choice of the drilling site meant the drilling and insertion lengths could be shortened – one borehole each to the terminal for gas and cable (610 metres) and one each to the mainland (2310m). Access to the island was only possible via ferry, the drilling rig and equipment had to therefore be reduced to a smaller size for transport. The rig chosen for this job can be disassembled into three space-saving modules and transported in standardised compact containers.

Furthermore, the rig can handle pulling forces of up to 400 tonnes, which was required due to the length and diameters of the boreholes.

Because of its great economic importance to Lithuania, the project was under enormous time pressure from the very beginning so project delays had to be avoided at all costs. Even in the event of greater forces occurring during pipeline installation, no delays were permitted. At the customer’s request Herrenknecht supplied the HDD Rig with additional drive power to increase the tripping speed during operation. This saved the drilling team valuable time.

During the advance the geology with its alternately hard moraine loam and pebbles/ cobbles zones, presented man and material with challenges. Torques of up to 120 kNm had to be applied to excavate the borehole. In order to handle this, the rig was equipped with an installed power of nearly 1000 kW to ensure the necessary

PROFILE

power reserve. The challenging geology also increased material and tooling wear. Operation of the drilling equipment had to be around the clock so seven days a week was assured.

Such a commitment paid off. In just 34 hours final installation of 2310m was completed with an entry angle of 10.5 degrees. In future, Lithuania can source LNG from the global market, thereby expanding its national energy mix.

The technique of employing HDD as a solution for negating rivers and other obstacles during pipe laying operations has a history that dates back around 40 years. The use of this pioneering technology focuses on improving the predictability operations as well as shortening the relative work periods of projects. By employing the proper planning, based on the correct operational knowledge, Albrehta is able to offer a cost-effective alternative to traditional pipe laying methods.

HDD operations begin with the drilling of a pilot hole, which acts as a sample of the on-site drilling conditions to predict the theoretical run of the project’s trajectory. Depending on ground conditions, various cutting methods are employed.

The drilling axis can be controlled continuously or periodically as required, using a probe located at the head of the drilling system. This is supported by radiometric surface or subsurface cable, or cable-free telemetric navigation systems. The adjustment of the drilling direction is achieved by angle rotation of the pipe and cutting segment, which deviates the drill from the axis in the line of expected direction.

The diameter of the resulting pilot hole in the first stage rarely satisfies the requirements of the target diameter to allow for the pushing of the pipe. To increase the diameter of the hole, a single or multiple enlargement process, called reaming, is carried out in the next stage of drilling. Therefore a tool-change is required and a larger cutting tool known as the back reamer is connected to the drill string. The diameter of the hole is enlarged by the reamer by siding and turning beneath the surface in consecutive cycles.

The final stage in the horizontal directional drilling process is the placing of the product pipe. During this stage the reamer, rotary connector and end of the product pipe are connected to the drill string in the hole. As in previous stages, a pipe is placed in the hole that is filled with sludge. Sludge production is integrated throughout the entire process of drilling and instillation. The sludge is produced during the cutting process and is a mixture of cuttings and a drilling fluid supplied under

pressure to the hole, known as a bentonite.

The sludge has properties subject to control by the selection of a number of features and the quantity of bentonite. Thanks to the use of bentonite, it is possible to achieve the excavation of soil; manage the transition of excavated material to the surface; reduce frictional resistance; cool tools; and seal borehole walls, resulting in greater stability.

Through its pioneering and market-leading understanding of the HDD process, Albrehta is able to ensure a smooth and highly efficient solution in pipeline laying in challenging conditions. To address the issues associated with technically demanding operations, the company carries out dedicated risk assessment and in-depth project analysis to ensure that all of the projects requirements are anticipated and implemented to the highest standard. With its in depth industry understanding, Albrehta is on hand to deliver premier pipe laying solutions to clients old and new throughout the remainder of 2015 and beyond.

Albrehta

As a market leader the company has been at the forefront of the development of the trenchless drilling industry in Poland and during the course of its history

Albrehta Sp. z o.o. albrehta.eu

Services Horizontal direction drilling, piping design and supervision

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69

High

demand Located in the

Over what is nearly two decades, Top Oilfield has achieved an impeccable record of oilfield equipment refurbishment, and prides itself on consistently producing work of the highest quality in a timely and cost effective manner

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Hamriyah Free Zone, Sharjah, for the past 20 years Top Oilfield Industries has been a consistent and reliable service centre for drilling contractors operating in the Middle East. Created by oil industry professionals, the company has expert knowledge of the environment, problems and demands within which drilling contractors operate. Top Oilfield has consistently offered a wide range of services and skills designed to ensure that clients could always be assured of a complete and excellent level of service.

As a result of its unyielding commitment to high quality production, Top Oilfield has grown to become a leader in the field of land rig refurbishment, oilfield drilling equipment manufacture, repair, overhaul and modification.

Alongside this it also supplies mechanical, electrical and engineering field technicians throughout the Middle East and beyond, who

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undertake vital repair and maintenance projects in support of its clients.

Over what is nearly two decades, Top Oilfield has achieved an impeccable record of oilfield equipment refurbishment, and prides itself on consistently producing work of the highest quality in a timely and cost effective manner. As Ian Midgley, managing director/ CEO, commented in EOG in January 2015, the company’s commitment is that every piece of equipment that leaves its workshops has been overhauled to the highest industry standards, tested and will perform to its design specifications. He explained: “We offer a ‘onestop-shop’ concept, whereby drilling equipment, engines, electrical work and steel fabrication work are all undertaken in-house, by our own personnel. This means that we retain full control over all aspects of the projects we are commissioned to do. In addition, the savings we make (by not sub-contracting work) are passed on to our customers, making us the most competitive service provider in the region.”

In the last interview Ian also highlighted some new contracts. “We have been commissioned to build four fast moving rigs for completion in 2016, which are designed for desert operations, and because our field engineers and maintenance personnel are available throughout the Middle East, our clients are assured of full after sales support,” Ian noted. “We are dedicated and on course to complete these four new build land

PROFILE

rigs, and our focus is on ensuring that they are manufactured to the highest standards available anywhere in the world and provide highly reliable and high performance service for our customers for many, many years.”

Alongside the new rig project, Top Oilfield is also currently refurbishing two land rigs, with the first due for completion in October 2015 and the second in December 2015.

Alongside the work undertaken on new contracts, 2015 has also been a period of growth and settling in for the relatively new Top Oilfield Rentals Division that was set up only a year ago.

Top Oilfield Rentals provides highly reliable, high performance equipment drilling equipment, engines/generators and service equipment on a rental or lease purchase basis. These products are available throughout the Middle East and include BOP control units, independently driven mud pumps, engine/generator sets and batch mixers, cementing units and so forth.

This Division provides an opportunity for Top Oilfield to demonstrate the high reliability and performance of the equipment it manufactures.

And for customers who wish to restrict their ‘CAPEX’ purchases and use operating revenues to undertake their activities, renting equipment provides them with an economical means to do so. Equipment available for rental includes a 7 station accumulator, a skid mounted 15k pumping unit and a twin 75BBL batch mixer.

The Rentals division illustrates Top Oilfield’s ability to think ahead and foresee what offerings will help its clients move forward. Thanks to

Top Oilfield Industries

this and its growing reputation for quality and service, the company’s reputation has spread and it has started to receive interest and orders for its products and services in new areas such as the North Sea, Far East and newly emerging oil producers in North Africa. Looking ahead and building on this new business, Top Oilfield aims to become the manufacturer of choice for land rig operators both in the Middle East and globally. By ensuring that its drilling rigs are manufactured to highest available standards, are built on time and are priced in accordance with Top Oilfield’s ‘fair pricing policy’, the company is confident that they will be in high demand.

Top Oilfield Industries Limited www.topoilfield.com

Services Drilling equipment repair/refurbishment

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partner A reliable

A family-run firm that has undertaken shipping, construction and offshore work since 1954, Peter Madsen Rederi A/S became a limited company one decade since its inception in 1964 and has since developed into a wellconsolidated organisation with a strong fleet of vessels. Capable of carrying out demanding and challenging projects for a diverse range of clients across the whole of Northern Europe, the company firmly believes in delivering quality through employee competence and advanced IT equipment that enables hydrographic surveyors and project engineers in its head office to have remote computer access to all of the company’s vessels. In line with market trends and progressions in customer demand, Peter Madsen Rederi A/S has also developed Hydrodan Engineering AS, a business segment that focuses on hydrographical surveying and data processing, in addition to operations with multibeam equipment that has been installed on many of the company’s vessels.

Complementing this expertise and high standard of work is the company’s stringent control over the quality of finished work. Fully aware of the importance in completing projects on time and within budget, Peter Madsen Rederi A/S is a strong partner to clients thanks to its large and well-equipped fleet that is able to carry out a wide range of offshore projects, its tight economic controls, its highly experienced staff and its state-of-the-art technology.

Discussing the services provided by the

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company is CEO of Peter Madsen Rederi A/S, Vibeke Liv Madsen: “Peter Madsen Rederi A/S is a strong organisation of 70 professionals and a well-equipped fleet that conducts technical operations and carries out equipment-intensive work for large and small customers in Northern Europe, either as principal or subcontractor of the project. We have always invested our profits in the latest technology, which has ensured our place among market leaders when it comes to precision and efficiency in the tasks we undertake. These include: seabed preparatory work for the offshore wind and oil and gas industry, hydrographic surveying and subsea video, capital and maintenance dredging; pipe and cable laying, pier construction, clearing of the seabed before installation of foundation and cables and erosion protection for foundations with stones and sandbags. We can also provide ballasting of gravity-based foundations, J-tube installations and dredging and covering of cable trenches work.”

Known for never compromising on quality, Peter Madsen Rederi A/S has earned a strong reputation that has resulted in its customers returning time and time again. Examples of the company’s work within the energy sector include delivering erosion protection with 40,000 sandbags around 80 wind turbine foundations at Amrumbank Wind Farm in the North Sea. The bags were filled with 60,000 tonnes of dredged sand that were laid over a period of six months before being shipped to the Amrumbank site

PROFILE

where four Peter Madsen Rederi A/S vessels placed two layers of bags around each of the 80 turbine sites. This work will prevent scour forming, which would destabilise the foundation. The company also worked on clearing boulders from the cable route, as well as restoring the stone reef on the gas pipe connection and seabed mapping for the Nord Stream AG gas pipe connection in the Baltic Sea. Alongside its uncompromising commitment to quality, Peter Madsen Rederi A/S also maintains a leading reputation thanks to its impressive fleet of six vessels. Equipped with different technology, the company’s vessels are either classified by internationally approved authorities or the Danish Maritime Authority, which thus satisfies all national and ISM international demands and regulations with regards to safety and equipment. “Peter Madsen Rederi A/S own and operate a fleet of construction vessels and dredgers with hydraulic backhoe excavators or wirecranes that cover a wide area of work at sea. Each vessel is specially designed for a range of tasks and the breadth of the fleet means that tasks can be matched with the optimal vessels to provide the right equipment and performance capabilities,” explains Vibeke Liv. “We also combine the latest GPS technology with our integrated excavation and monitoring system, PDS2000, which ensures full control of the work. For example, through the PDS system’s underwater video cameras and multi-beam sonar systems, it is possible to continuously document the work many metres below sea level. Moreover, through careful documentation and constant follow-up, we can monitor the work in progress and make corrections along the way, which ensures transparency throughout the project and that the final outcome for the client is as desired,” she adds.

Having taken over as CEO of Peter Madsen Rederi A/S in April 2015 following the stepping down of her brother, John Madsen, Vibeke Liv will be using her experience as Head of Projects, a role she held since 2008 at the company, to lead Peter Madsen Rederi A/S forward and maintain its reputation as a flexible, agile and cost-effective choice for clients. In line with these plans, Vibeke Liv has established a management team consisting of Toni Larsen as Technical Manager, Per A Oestergaard as Project Manager and Bjarne Johannessen as Sales Manager as a way to prioritise team spirit and consensus in

Peter Madsen Rederi

important decision making.

Moving forward with a new CEO at its helm, the future looks positive for Peter Madsen Rederi A/S as it plans to expand into new geographical areas of opportunity. “We will also be consolidating our work in the offshore wind and energy sector, where scour protection projects, boulder clearance work and other preparatory seabed work has positively contributed to the order book of the company. We are also constantly monitoring the market situation in order to keep our fleet up-to-date with the requirements of customers,” concludes Vibeke Liv.

Moving forward with a new CEO at its helm, the future looks positive for Peter Madsen Rederi A/S as it plans to expand into new geographical areas of opportunity

Peter Madsen Rederi A/S peter-madsen.com

Services Marine construction work and support

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73

Diverse

generation

Bord na Móna was first established in

Below Brendan Connolly, Business Development Manager for Power Generation

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the 1940s with the primary remit of exploiting the natural Irish peatland areas for energy to support the country’s electricity and domestic heating markets. Over the years, the business has undergone a process of diversification and today is very much driven by a need to reduce the reliance on the traditional peat industries and focus on more long term sustainable solutions. “The traditional peat businesses are facing dwindling revenues and we expect to cease operations relating to peat energy solutions by 2030, so there is a finite timetable for this,” explains Business Development Manager for Power Generation, Brendan Connolly.

“The diversification is also being driven by environmental issues and we are focusing closely on developing more sustainable solutions across all our divisions and markets.”

Whilst being involved in the power generation sector for close to 80 years now, in 2006 Bord na Móna made the move upstream by acquiring Edenderry Power Plant. “This triggered a new era of growth and development as the company’s portfolio of power-generating assets began to fill

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up,” highlights Brendan. “In line with our overall ambitions the portfolio’s key focus has been on moving towards more sustainable, renewable power generation. As such, the Edenderry plant, which was traditionally 100 per cent peat fired, is now co-fired with 30 per cent biomass and we look to increase this to 40 per cent over the coming years.”

One significant area where these ambitions will be achieved is in wind power, of which the company has so far installed approximately 130 megawatts and has a pipeline of significant projects looking ahead for the next five to ten years. In 1992, the company commissioned Ireland’s first commercial wind farm in Bellacorick, Co. Mayo with 21 turbines, and since then the Bruckana 14-turbine farm and 1200 hectare, 28-turbine Mountlucas farm have been added. “Currently we are actively pursuing a couple of project opportunities, which we will be announcing within the next few months and are also undergoing consultation with the local community in Co. Offaly with respect to a new wind farm development which we hope will go into the planning process in the middle of next

PROFILE

year,” outlines Brendan. “This will be in region of 60-70 megawatts, and over the next two to three years, we hope to reach this stage with three or four others of the same scale.”

Elsewhere in Bord na Móna’s strategy to diversify, it is considering a number of projects in the energy from waste and solar programmes.

“Given the trajectory of the solar sector in terms of cost reductions we strongly believe there is a lot of potential for this to be rolled out,” says Brendan. “We will also be able to work closely with our waste management partners who are involved in all processes from waste collection, through end processing to resource management, so energy from waste will be another route towards renewable energy. That, as a wider group, we are involved in a number of different business areas is a major strength for us. It means that we can call upon the knowledge and resources of those partners and puts us in a good position to leverage opportunities between them.”

Having been established in the midlands of Ireland for many decades, Bord na Móna has forged long lasting and trust-based relationships with its local communities, and maintaining these is a key value for the organisation as it manages this period of diversification. “The nature of our landholdings means we have large areas of relatively remote land, which are amongst the most suitable sites possible for the development of large energy infrastructure projects,” explains Brendan. “However it is a different challenge gaining social acceptance for these projects and this is why it is important that we engage and co-operate with the local communities and work to address their concerns. It is crucial we keep the public’s trust

Bord na Móna

to continue to develop our pipeline of projects, and promoting these relationships will be key to our continued success, which will ultimately benefit the country as a whole.”

With this process ongoing, the future for the organisation is very much orientated to continue growth to achieve its ambitions. Brendan points out that the overarching goal at present is to become the leading renewable electricity supplier in the Irish market by the early 2030s and is confident that if the company can deliver its potential pipeline of projects it will be well placed to do this. “This doesn’t dismiss the significant challenges involved in getting there, however,” he concludes. “More broadly, the company’s strategy is very much focused on delivering solutions to the key energy policy challenges of decarbonising the energy sector, improving security of supply and increasing diversity in the energy mix. To achieve this, continued growth, maximising the renewable potential and generating a more diverse portfolio will all be key aspects of the transformation of our company over the coming years.”

Bord na Móna has forged long lasting and trust-based relationships with its local communities, and maintaining these is a key value for the organisation as it manages this period of diversification Bord na Móna bordnamona.ie

Services Irish state-owned group of businesses dedicated to resource recovery, fuel, horticulture, feedstock, power generation, and land and property

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Solutions

provider With more than 200 years experience

the Fincantieri Group has also successfully operated in the oil and gas offshore world market for the last 30 years, having delivered more than 300 units.

The offshore division specialises in state-ofthe-art offshore solutions from drillships and semi-submersible drilling rigs to pipe-laying and construction vessels, as well as production platforms and innovative gas carriers. However, as Giuseppe Coronella explains, the company has had to refocus its offering to the market in light of challenging oil price pressures aiming to target the cutting edge market branch: “We are starting to take a more holistic approach to integrate all competences required to provide the market innovative solutions.”

As such, Fincantieri looks to deploy its skills as the most diversified ship builder in the world to design and present to market a number of highly innovative turn-key solutions designed to drive cost and production efficiencies throughout the industry. To do this the company is supported

by Polo Offshore, a Fincantieri-founded cluster of 11 associated companies within the segment, designed to encourage collaboration and streamline the supply chain. “During our time in the offshore industry we have noticed that there are a lot of developing technologies in the market and very often you need to integrate and correlate these technologies into

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systems, said integration is at the base of our way to innovate,” highlights Giuseppe. “So over the last few years we have launched a number of patented solutions and are now presenting these in production-viable products that provide a number of solutions.”

Amongst others these patented innovations include: retractable thrusters – unique underwater mountable thrusters, which do not use a typical canister allowing for maintenance operations to be carried out in a dry environment without the need to dry dock. Secondly, a riser handling system, which uses simple reliable technology to make the rise joints handling process fully automated, thus improving the speed and safety of operations. And thirdly a new drill floor arrangement designed for the drillship Proxima which paves the way for a new fruition standard of a drillship’s most critical operational area.

The first concept to be developed and announced two years ago was the Overdrill vessel, which by designing the ship around the integrated drilling systems is the first drillship capable of reaching 50,000 feet of total drilling depth in a maximum of 12,000 feet deep water, 10,000 feet deeper than is presently possible.

“This configuration lowers the ship’s centre of gravity, increases its stability and reduces its size,” notes Giuseppe. “It integrates new solutions and innovation for the automation

PROFILE

improvement outside the derrick, simplifying maintenance and increasing safety. To introduce this to the market we didn’t want to take a big jump with a standard product, so we are actively granting customers the freedom to customise the ship through its evolution. This is particularly important when considering the growing trend to drill much deeper.”

Continuing this trend for system-vessel integration is the Proxima ship developed in 2014, which incorporates an innovative drilling system into a highly efficient and reliable drillship. Showcasing two cylindrical shaped telescopic towers and the largest open drillfloor on the market, the Proxima’s configuration significantly increases the speed of the drilling process, improves operational ergonomics, resulting in higher efficiency and improved safety. Reduced power demands have been achieved through an innovative hull design and the lifting winch’s re-generation system. The ship is available in both conventional and dual fuel (LNG) power configurations.

In September 2015, Fincantieri Offshore visited Offshore Europe in Aberdeen to present two new products to the market: its visionary CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) vessel, which offers a solution to transferring natural gas without the need to liquefy it first. Consisting of 5000 vertical pipes, the innovative design provides a safe and monitored process of transporting 32,000 cubic metres of compressed gas, thus reducing operational costs for the operator. The second product is the Sea Flower, which utilises a unique marine concrete design to produce a floating, semisubmersible platform supporting wind turbine.

Using a six-line mooring system, which can anchor the unit in waters up to 200 metres deep, the offering presents a cost effective solution for installing wind farms in harsh, deep-sea conditions.

“The offshore market has been volatile recently and in order to continue operating successfully the industry needs to ride the longterm wave and combine resources in order to develop good solutions for the future,” says Giuseppe. “With the instability currently present, companies across the industry are looking at how they can restructure. However, being spread across all markets we are in a unique position to use our strength in order to provide the solutions for the industry’s future success.”

However, Giuseppe understand that despite Fincantieri’s size it also needs to make changes as

Fincantieri Offshore

it moves forward to collaborate with the market better and secure future success. Over the coming years the company will be focusing on interacting more with its clients to better understand their needs and to find solutions; continuing its programme of innovation and integration; and extending its portfolio into offering additional vessel components and equipment.

Fincantieri Offshore fincantierioffshore.it

Services Offshore division of world leading ship building Fincantieri Group

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A natural Operating as a subsidiary of ENGIE (formerly GDF SUEZ), Storengy develops and operates underground natural gas storage sites within France, Germany and the United Kingdom. Storengy is regarded as a leading player in its field and operates one of the world’s largest networks of facilities. With nearly 60 years experience and a total storage capacity of 12.2 billion cubic metres, Storengy designs, develops and operates different types of storage facilities recognising the geological opportunities and market needs. It provides its customers with innovative products through its experience in offering sales & marketing services on various markets and their relevant regulatory environments.

Storengy UK represents the interests of Storengy within the UK and since 2007 the company has been working on its inaugural Stublach Gas Storage Project (SGSP) in rural Cheshire. Once fully completed, the scheme will be one of the main storage facilities in the country and will enhance the security of supply to the UK market. Once the site has been fully developed it will encompass a total of 20 caverns, the first two of which became operational in 2014, with the remaining cavities expected to be fully developed by 2020. To date five salt caverns are currently operational, with a further five due to come on stream early in 2016.

Storengy UK presently operates 100 million cubic metres of natural gas in the caverns and by

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2020, it is expected that the total storage capacity will reach 400 million cubic metres. Due to its impressively high injection and withdrawal rates, the site can offer flexible services along with fast cycling products, allowing users to churn their gas many times during the year.

The commencement of commercial operation of the first two caverns at the Stublach Gas Storage site took place in September 2014. As one of the most flexible facilities within the UK, the Stublach site will increasingly offer an efficient way to mitigate gas supply risks and respond to market needs. Commenting on the start of commercial operations at Stublach, Charlotte Roule, Managing Director, Storengy UK, said: “This is a major step for the Storengy teams, whose continuous commitment was key and for which I would like to pay tribute to. Thanks to their professionalism and determination, we are now able to provide new services to the UK market. Despite the current challenging market conditions for storage, Storengy has continued its investment in this strategic project. With the start of its commercial operations, the Stublach gas storage site offers greater security of supply to the UK and will help to respond to the increasing flexibility requirement in the UK energy market.�

The Stublach site was officially inaugurated a little under 12 months ago, during November 2014 and has since continued to enjoy successful operation. Lord Deighton KBE, then Treasury

PROFILE

Minister, and Jean Claude Depail, Executive Vice President in charge of the Infrastructures Business Line of ENGIE, opened the facility in a highly publicised ceremony during which they commented on the importance of the development to both Storengy as well as the UK. “Energy security is central to the government’s long term economic plan, and we are focusing on investing in infrastructure to achieve this.

Sites like Storengy at Stublach play a crucial role in our energy security strategy, allowing gas suppliers and others the flexibility to store gas safely in preparation for when demand is high, or when other supplies are restricted. I am delighted to open the site today,” Lord Deighton said.

“This site has been constructed to the highest safety and hygiene standards, with no public investment required. It demonstrates a real vote of confidence in the UK economy by GDF SUEZ (now ENGIE), another example of companies confirming that the UK has created the right environment for investment.”

Jean Claude Depail, Executive Vice President

of ENGIE in charge of the Infrastructures, added: “Stublach is the first investment in the UK for our gas storage business, following many years of operation in France and Germany. I am delighted that the project has just achieved a major milestone and the first salt caverns are now full of gas and already contributing to the security of supply of natural gas across the UK.” Over the coming months Storengy UK will continue to develop the Stublach site towards full its targeted capacity of 20 caverns. While commenting on the professionalism of the team behind the facility and the importance of the site Charlotte said: “I am immensely proud of the team that has constructed this remarkable facility, safely and with maximum attention given to the local environment and communities. Salt caverns are a safe and natural way to store gas and we have also been able to continue the tradition of extracting salt from this area to create the caverns. This has been used in the local chemical industry helping to support industry in Cheshire.”

Storengy UK

Sites like Storengy at Stublach play a crucial role in our energy security strategy, allowing gas suppliers and others the flexibility to store gas safely in preparation for when demand is high, or when other supplies are restricted

Storengy UK Ltd storengy.com

Services Natural gas storage

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future Prepared for the

Proud to remain

a family business since its foundation by the late Peter Bruce in 1968, PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd today is managed by Peter Bruce Jnr., who began working in the business as an apprentice sign writer in 1985. Continuing the family’s legacy are Peter’s two sons, who, alongside their father, are registered NACE and Institute of Corrosion Coatings and Fire Proofing Inspectors; skills that will ultimately enhance the quality of service on offer to both local customers and those further afield. Focused on the painting and maintenance of vessels since its inception, the company has also maintained its founder’s commitment to innovation; this strategic decision has proven fruitful for PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd, which today remains a leader in the marine protective coatings industry.

Alongside its focus on innovation and delivering high quality solutions, the company is also keen to deliver its superior services to customers in target markets such as the oil and gas industry, industrial and commercial sector. It has also been awarded contracts throughout Scotland and England by supermarket chains, hospitals and factories within the commercial coatings industry. Elaborating on the company’s development is Peter Bruce, Managing Director at PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd: “In the early days it was generally a matter of scrubbing, chipping and painting off fishing trawlers in North East Scotland; however, with the downturn of the fishing industry 20 years ago we

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began to diversify our services and expanded into oil and gas and industrial related work.

This led to us buying land where our main office is and developing a blast/cleaning and painting facility that is large enough to handle anything transportable by road. From here we provide a full range of service preparations, such as blast/cleaning, surface preparation and UHP waterblasting working to approved customer specifications.

“We also have a wide range of coatings for specialist application, these can be TSA, thermal sprayed aluminum, or TSZ, thermal sprayed zinc; both of which is popular and often used in the oil and gas and maritime industries. On top of this, depending on the coating specifications, we will work with a full range of anti corrosive primers, epoxy and glass fleck base coats and top coats for both onshore and offshore industries.”

One of the company’s main customers at its yard is GE Oil and Gas, a supplier of valves, winches and other equipment. PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd carries out all works to specification including surface preparation and protective coatings before installed onto onshore and offshore installations across the globe.

From its base in Fraserburgh, the company over the years has invested in upgrading its in-house blast cleaning and painting facility, which has enhanced its ability in offering high quality in-house blast cleaning, through the use of abrasive grits, and painting services in a controlled environment.

These enhancements to facilities have resulted in increased demand for the company’s services.

Notable projects include the blast cleaning and protective coating application of 42” pipework and spools, both at its premises prior to installation and at the St Fergus Gas Site during construction where work was carried out by experienced and trained personnel who worked closely with qualified coating inspectors in line with National Grid specification.

Alongside the aforementioned key investments, PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd has invested £1.5 million in an 850 kW wind turbine system which now ensures that PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd’s carbon footprint is carbon negative, as Peter highlights: “The wind turbine is now fully operational and all the power generated is to be fed back into the National Grid, however, it is only recently that we got it up and going in our own substation, which in turn will provide us with

PROFILE

more than enough power to run our facilities.

This is a great investment for our future as we can now move away from diesel burning generators and compressors and progress into electric, which will reduce our carbon footprint drastically.”

Not a company to rest on its laurels, PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd has recently taken the strategic decision to branch out and has set up preparation and coating services in Bahrain, Denmark and Ireland, as Peter notes: “These services enable us to cater for some of our long-term customers who may not be able to come to us. This way we can provide surface preparation, cleaning and painting services when they are in Denmark or Ireland for engine overhauls, refits etc.; it is a development in our services that so far has been working quite well. Bahrain is a market we entered with a JV partner a number of years ago at ASRY (Arab Ship Repair Yard) which we continue to develop and provide blast cleaning and coating services with our JV partner.”

PBP Services (Scotland)

Looking ahead, PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd is focused on further developing its international markets. Over the last few years the company has grown its resin seamless flooring and safety deck resin system, following its appointment as an official installation partner for Degafloor Ltd. All resins are supplied

by Evonik Industries AG, one of the largest chemical companies in Germany and offer huge commercial benefits as they are fully cured in under two hours ready to use again. “Our men have undergone extensive training on the technical side of using these systems; it is something we have been working on for two to three years and it is growing in demand all of the time. It really is a special product which can cure in under two hours at -25°C and offers Lloyd’s German shipping classification for anti slip resistance and is proving very popular on marine installations as well as onshore projects. Resins come with Health and Safety Certification as well as Food and Drinks Industry Certification.”

PBP Services (Scotland) Ltd pbpservices.co.uk

Services Surface preparation and coating application specialists

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innovation Managing

Since the company

was incorporated in Ridderkerk, Netherlands during 2001, Innovative Input BV has operated as a leading provider of cranes, lifting beams, winches and special constructions for offshore, onshore and civil engineering applications.

The company was established by its current managing director, Piet Kalkman who founded the business on the back of his many years experience within the field of marine engineering. At the heart of the day-to-day running of Innovative Input is Piet’s dedication to an operational philosophy, comprising the three key disciplines of knowledge, creativity and experience. This allows the company to accurately judge what is technically possible and what is not, while thinking as an inventor that is focused on achieving the goals of its clients and of the business itself.

Innovative Input began operation as a design office, comprised of a team of highly skilled designers and draftsmen. With the success of this initial venture it was decided to diversify the business through the delivery of its own products. As such Innovative Input began to co-operate with trusted producers of offshore equipment and has since expanded its focus to include concept studies, basic designs, calculations, detailed designs, drawing plans,

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as well as the complete delivery of cranes, winches, lifting gear and special equipment.

Furthermore all of the company’s products are delivered with all required certificates relating to industry inspection institutions, including Det Norske Veritas/Germanischer Lloyd’s, Lloyd’s Register, Bureau Veritas, American Bureau of Shipping and the China Classification Society.

This ensures the reputation of Innovative Input as a trusted partner in the provision of bespoke equipment and solutions.

A key strength of Innovative Input is its dedication to offering the right construction for every application. Regardless of if the client requires an offshore crane, tensioner, lifting beam or winch, the company is able to design the most effective solution. Additionally, the company is further specialised in the provision of heavy, non-standard equipment for offshore, onshore and civil engineering applications.

Indeed Innovative Input has been engaged in the design and manufacture of heavy machinery for over a decade with a keen eye for quality and reliability. The process of transitioning a mechanical engineering product from design through to manufacture requires high levels of technical knowledge, experience and creativity.

The development team of Innovative Input strives to produce original and simple designs

PROFILE

that maximise the feasibility, functionality and longevity of the final product. The interdisciplinary approach of the company’s design process enables Innovate Input to arrive at a realistic proposal quickly and work with clients quickly to provide the ideal solution.

Core to the company’s development process from design through to manufacture is its dedicated system of quality control. This dedication to delivering the highest standards in both design and manufacture is the reason that Innovative Input builds all of the machines it delivers according to a fixed procedure.

Innovative Input specialists maintain regular contact with clients throughout the entire process of the development of the final product and apply a product data management (PDM) procedure to every assignment. PDM represents an important application for monitoring quality and gives a clear overview of the technical decisions that have been implemented and the progress of the construction process. Further to maintaining close contact with clients throughout the development of machinery, PDM

Innovative Input

tensioner as well as a cutter platform with a long drum winch. This platform is accessible and movable to different heights as required and remains in a horizontal position at all heights.

Furthermore the company has also completed a single-hinged type cutter platform for a client that was designed to replace an existing structure. The advantage of the design that was delivered by Innovative Input was that it increased the available working area by around 45 per cent, greatly increasing accessibility.

Although the majority of its business is generated within Europe, Innovative Input has delivered successful projects globally including clients operating within China and the USA. Throughout all of its undertakings the company is dedicating to behaving as a socially responsible entrepreneur with full awareness of the applicable standards of environmental awareness. This coupled with its market leading and innovative portfolio of design solutions will ensure that Innovative Input remains the company of choice for clients old and new for years to come.

Throughout all of its undertakings the company is dedicating to behaving as a socially responsible entrepreneur with full awareness of the applicable standards of environmental awareness

Innovative Input innovativeinput.nl

Services Cranes, lifting beams, winches and special constructions

allows Innovative Input to collect registered data in a final project book, which can be presented to the customer following a final evaluation after project completion.

By implementing a highly focused design process and dedicated quality control procedures, Innovative Input is able to supply products that fall into the four main categories of cranes, lifting gear, winches and special equipment. One of the company’s most popular products is its lifting beam for heavy loads, which was originally introduced as a bespoke product but has since proven to be so popular that it has become part of its standard equipment portfolio. During its history Innovative Input has also developed several special and auxiliary constructions in mechanical engineering that address some of the more challenging problems of its clients. These include the construction of an upper side step arm, a 500 tonne pipe ENERGY,oil&gas

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Offshore

Founded as recently as February 2015, mh2 may be considered a new entrant to the market, but one that is supported by the experience of both its CEO Markus Hummel and the rest of the management team. “Before we founded mh2 I myself was the head of the offshore services department in a company called WeserWind, which fabricated tripod and jacket structures as well as topsides for the offshore industry,” Markus began, when giving more details on how mh2 came into being. “WeserWind went bankrupt in January 2015, but the offshore services department was working well and profitable, so we took the staff and equipment from that, and created mh2 from it.”

He added: “Of course there were some challenges, as we had to be in operation in six weeks after we decided to found the company, when we were awarded our first contract!

However it went well and we were happy that we could book this contract. We started with six people and we are already up to 14 employees now.”

Using the experience they gained at WeserWind, the mh2 team specifically focuses

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on offshore installation, maintenance and inspection projects in the German sector. “Our main focus is on regular inspections and testing for offshore steel structures, and we also do a lot of repair work and modifications of platforms and foundation structures,” said Markus. “Our team is definitely one of our main strengths, as we have been working together for at least five

years or longer, which gives us a pretty strong knowledge base.

“The team includes highly trained blue collar specialists - all of them have specialised training in steelworks and welding. Most of the staff are also able to undertake non-destructive testing or are able to inspect and check equipment, and I would describe everyone as highly trained. As some of our work is undertaken at height, most of our personnel are also trained to use rope access

PROFILE

equipment, or other fall protection systems.”

As Markus mentioned, mh2’s core market is Germany, based on the company’s history and also where its clients are located. “From our point of view the German market is pretty good especially for the O&M phase. We now have approximately 2.8 GW installed when it comes to offshore wind energy so there are a lot of wind turbines and substations that need to be operated and maintained, which is our core market and therefore gives us pretty good standing.

“There will also be new projects in Germany in the few next years. We had a dip over the last four years due to political insecurity - we didn’t have a clear statement that investment into wind farms would be a good idea. But now I think we again have the political framework to build new offshore wind farms and I guess that we will see approximately two to three new offshore wind farms approaching in Germany.

“In addition the Dutch and the Belgian markets do look pretty good for us as well, and we are putting some focus on Benelux as not only are there are some interesting projects coming up in Holland, but also there are a lot of contractors based in Holland and Belgium that could be of interest because they deliver to the German market. I think there will be a couple of new wind farms in the Dutch market, and while I am not sure how the schedule will fall, I expect a couple of tenders out in the beginning of Q1 next year.”

As the company approaches its first anniversary, it can already look at the order book for 2016 and see contracts for repair and modification works on German substations, as well as some regular inspection campaigns. “We already have that work organised for the next 12

months, and looking longer term, over the next couple of years we plan to be the partner for mechanical works for wind farm owners or the suppliers for steel structures during the warranty period,” added Markus.

It is clear that Markus has an impressive vision for mh2 going forward and he is keen for customers to understand exactly what the young and ambitious company can bring to a project: “We are flexible as we are small, so we can react very quickly to situations and I think this is one our major strengths,” he said, before concluding: “We don’t just rent out personnel - we are a company that carries out an entire project, from start to finish. We can do the planning and the engineering, and we bring along our own highly trained personnel, our own tools and equipment and we also do the documentation of the project.

I really want to be seen as a totally project oriented company, and one that is highly capable and reliable, so that clients know they can rely on our skills and services.”

mh 2

Our main focus is on regular inspections and testing for offshore steel structures, and we also do a lot of repair work and modifications of platforms and foundation structures

mh2 mhquadrat.de

Services Structural steelwork and welding technology provider

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The best

protection With a history dating back over more than four decades, Surface Engineers (Manchester) Ltd, was founded at its current site in Dukinfield on the outskirts of Manchester, where it quickly established itself as a leading specialist in thermally sprayed coatings. The business was originally incorporated as a service provider to heavy industry, offering solutions including thermally sprayed coatings in applications such as anticorrosion and the reclamation of worn parts in steel mills. This process involved large rolls, measuring up to 48” in diameter that would be turned down in large capacity lathes. The resultant substrate would be built up with materials such as copper, chrome nickel, tin and stainless steel using gas or arc sprayed wires and powders, which provided a cost-effective and a rapid alternative to scrapping recoverable assets.

Over the years the needs of the market began to change and evolve and as such, Surface Engineers has diversified and adapted its

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portfolio to incorporate a broad base of industry sectors. “With the demise of the steel mills and heavy industry in the UK, Surface Engineers turned its expertise primarily to the application of anti-corrosive coatings for the nuclear and oil and gas sectors and now offers an extensive portfolio of various coating applications,” explains, Director Gary McKeown. “Surface Engineers has seen many improvements over recent years and has just undergone a new and exciting expansion programme. This has been made possible by Peter and Andrew Wild joining the company as new shareholders bringing with them industry and business experience which will ensure the further success of the business.”

The company’s large facility and site, located east of Manchester has recently undergone a huge expansion programme that has more than doubled its already impressive capacity. This has enabled Surface Engineers to be involved in much larger contracts with 65,000sq ft of floorspace and total area including quality

PROFILE

storage land of 120,000sq ft with handling capacity of up to 32 tonnes. Its continued development in its facilities and several years of industry experience has allowed Surface Engineers to develop a reputation as a leading supplier to the technically demanding oil and gas market, as well as in several other applications. “Surface Engineers is widely known for surface preparation and application of high-end coating systems that not only serve the oil and gas industry but many other sectors that require long term protection from environmental or chemical attack of their valuable assets,” Gary elaborates. “With our very experienced and technically knowledgeable team we are able to conform to many stringent specifications providing not only a quality coating solution but backed up by concise and accurate record keeping which satisfies the ISO 9001 requirements and the main inspection authorities visiting our works to ensure compliance such as Lloyds Register. We have a strong inspection team led by Quality Manager, Nick Allen who will be completing his NACE level III qualification in November adding a second NACE level III expert to the team of six inspection staff.”

This level of expertise has helped Surface Engineers to tender, win and complete many high-profile projects destined for sites and oilfields around the world for end users such as BP, Total, Technip, Petrobras and Exxon Mobil to name a few. Furthermore the company has further developed its presence to become a serious presence within the nuclear sector and it is presently engaged in de-commissioning activities at Sellafield. “An example of a current high profile contract we currently working on is for the end user BP,” Gary reveals. “This involves coating a subsea pipeline for the Shah Deniz Project in Azerbaijan with a high grade epoxy phenolic system with very stringent application parameters. This project is being carried out at our new high capacity facility on our site in Dukinfield. The six-metre lengths of thick walled pipe are treated in an environmentally controlled atmosphere whilst the coating is being applied, in addition a temperature of 20˚C is maintained for a week after the coating is applied to ensure ‘full cure’ before further insulation is applied. Once BP had visited our new facility they were keen to approve us for this project and have been happy with our performance within the supply chain.”

While the impact of the low oil price continues to be felt, many companies are scaling back

Surface Engineers

their operations in an attempt to navigate the resulting turbulent trading conditions. Surface Engineers on the other hand has taken a longer view and readily embraced the opportunity to invest in to the business in anticipation of a future market recovery. “There were a few raised eyebrows when the decision was made to expand the business as at this point the oil price had started to go into free-fall and there was and still is a general feel of uncertainty in the market. Our viewpoint however is from a different perspective, in that while the market is not as buoyant as it was a couple of years ago, it is accepted that oil and gas is a cyclical sector and the over the medium to long term the situation will improve,” Gary says. “We are taking this opportunity to strengthen the business not only with new facilities but also management and staff training. We have recently become an ICATS registered company and are expanding our ICATS trained workforce to improve our staff’s understanding of the process and technically challenging environment they work in. Along with making sure our applicators are NORSOK compliant we believe we are better placed in the market when the turnaround comes.”

Indeed as Surface Engineers enters into the final months of 2015, it will concentrate the investment that has been made by its directors in recent months, while preparing new product solutions for new sectors. “The considerable investment into the company by Peter and Andrew Wild has greatly improved what we are able to offer in terms of capacity. As well as

Surface Engineers is widely known for surface preparation and application of high-end coating systems that not only serve the oil and gas industry but many other sectors that require long term protection from environmental or chemical attack of their valuable assets

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Surface Engineers

Hodge Clemco Leading the way in surface preparation since 1959, Hodge Clemco Ltd has consistently been the leader in the manufacture and supply of abrasive blasting equipment and surface treatment equipment. Its products & services include portable abrasive blast cleaning equipment, hand blast cabinets, soda blast equipment, blast rooms, a full range of JBlast and recyclable abrasives, abrasive recovery equipment, dust extraction & collection equipment, PPE, servicing & training.

large structures we have installed an efficient facility for coating small items such as valves, actuators, strainers etc. thus enabling us to handle large batch work projects in a separate facility to the main works. This area has been of great interest to old and new customers alike as this was previously an area of business that we found difficult to compete in,” Gary concludes.

“We see the next 12 months in the oil sector remaining challenging although we have not really felt the downturn as some might expect

maybe because the company is not totally reliant on the oil sector and we have cast our net a little further into other areas such as infrastructure.

It is difficult to predict what the next five years will bring although Surface Engineers is doing everything it can to maintain and improve its profile in the sector whilst focusing on customer satisfaction levels. We shall also be looking into the development of new systems to enable us to offer a wider range of coating systems to an ever growing range of industries.”

Surface Engineers Ltd surface-engineers.com

Services Specialised surface treatment

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future Delivering a green

Initially established in 2006 following a demerger from WRG, Infinis Energy plc has grown through a number of acquisitions to become one of the leading renewable energy suppliers in the UK. As the third largest supplier of renewables in the UK, the company provides the market with seven per cent of its renewable power from 137 sites around the country. With

121 landfill gas (LFG) plants and 16 onshore wind farms, this equates to a capacity of 585MW, enough to meet the needs of one million electricity users.

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In 2015, the company announced its financial results with revenues hitting £236 million. Eric Machiels, CEO of Infinis, commented on the positive outlook of the wind industry in the UK saying: “There are eight gigawatts of onshore wind capacity operational today and in the UK we’ll add another four to five to reach 12 to 13 gigawatts by 2020. So clearly there is a tremendous growth opportunity.” As such, the company currently has an additional four wind farms in development, with two already under construction. With such a considerable share of the UK market set to grow even more, Infinis Energy is well on its way to helping the country achieve its EU targets of reaching 30 per cent renewable energy usage by 2020. As of the end of FY15 it stood at 19 per cent.

The first of the new wind farms under construction is Galawhistle in Ayrshire. Planning approval was granted for the site in August 2012 and in June 2015, the company secured funding from Barclays and Santander for the £83 million project. Due to become operational in November 2016, the 22-turbine site will have an installed

PROFILE

capacity of 66MW and is expected to generate electricity for the next 25 years. Speaking about the project, Eric expressed his delight at achieving the funding: “This is a key milestone as we continue to deliver on our growth aspirations as, together with A’Chruach, we now have 109MW of onshore wind assets under construction in Scotland. At a time when the UK government is keen to secure renewable capacity to meets its international obligations at the lowest cost to consumers, Infinis is pleased to contribute to the UK’s power decarbonisation efforts with the most cost effective renewable technology.”

The A’Chruach wind farm will be situated close to Loch Fyne in Scotland. Getting the go ahead in May 2013 and securing funding in November 2014, the same month that construction started, the 21-tubine station will have a capacity of 43MW. With full operational capacity scheduled for spring 2016, the farm is estimated to generate enough power for over 25,000 homes and will contribute around £150,000 per year into a local community fund set up to benefit communities surrounding the site.

In addition to this, in June 2015 the company also announced the successful acquisition of another 18.5MW consented onshore wind farm project from Peel Group. Sited in Northumberland, the project neighbours the eight-megawatt consented Sisters Wind Farm, which is also being developed by Infinis. With both projects entering the construction phase in July 2015, the company expects to have them operational by June 2016.

With 137 currently operational sites in Infinis’ portfolio and more due to be added on a continual basis, it is important that the company is able to effectively manage a large and growing asset base. To ensure this the company is underpinned by a some key principles, these are: to maintain a relentless focus on operational excellence; to develop high level in-house commercial expertise; to nurture a winning company culture in the organisation; and to achieve a strong development and acquisition track record.

At present around 93 per cent of the energy sold by Infinis is sold under the Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (RO) regime. LFG represents a core component in this area and as such, the amount of energy sold by the company under RO has increased form 84 per cent in June 2014 to its current level. In terms of adhering to operational excellence in its LFG activities

Infinis ensures it runs continual monitoring and balancing process in order to maximise extraction from around 15,226 gas wells across the country, whilst making sure it meets optimal compliance with environmental regulations.

With the largest fleet of LFG engines in the world with 323 gensets, the company maintains and services all equipment in house to make sure they can constantly run at an effective capacity. For example during September 2011, Infinis upgraded its 24/7 centralised monitoring system that allows the company to continually collect data on its operations to make necessary adjustments, plan maintenance and balance LFG fields across the landfill sites from which it extracts gas. As of 2015 Infinis continues to manage a long-term exclusive right to extract LFG from around 60 landfill sites operated by FCC. Of these 60 sites, Infinis extracts LFG on a royalty-free basis from 45 sites, while on the other 15 sites it pays a small royalty that is passed on to the landlord. Furthermore Infinis also has an exclusive right to extract LFG from an additional 61 sites, 13 of which are operated by the FCC while other landfill operators and owners manage the remaining 48 sites. This portfolio of some 121 sites is further expanded by seven outsourced sites meaning that as such, by the end of June 2015 the company had an installed power generation capacity of around 311 NW of electricity at its sites and another 12 MW of power generated via outsourced sites within its portfolio.

For its wind operations, which are dependent on nature, the operational focus for Infinis is to make sure the units are continually maintained to guarantee full effectiveness when demanded.

To oversee the company’s whole operations it has invested into a world class 24/7 logistics centre in Northampton to constantly monitor the environmental compliance and GW-hour output performance of all generating plants.

By securing commercial expertise within its business, Infinis is able to insulate itself from the fluctuating and unpredictable conditions within the wholesale power markets. With excellent plant reliability and an experienced team of people behind it, the company is able to contract and lock in prices on a short-to-medium term merchant basis, as opposed to more traditional longer-term agreements. This ensures the company is able to react positively to changes in market prices and remain competitive.

Also enabling Infinis to compete and take

Infinis Energy

With the largest fleet of LFG engines in the world with 323 gensets, the company maintains and services all equipment in house to make sure they can constantly run at an effective capacity

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UK Landfill ad_Layout 1 15/10/2015 12:16 Page 1

Generate power from your landfill, not emissions GE’s landfill gas engines, not only produce a valuable renewable source for power generation they also reduce harmful emissions. In addition they are specifically designed to run at full load with high efficiency and maximum availability and the high quality engine parts resist the impurities that usually appear in this type of fuel.

At Clarke Energy we have successfully installed and commissioned over 550 MW of landfill gas generation equipment globally, which places us as one of the leading players in the field. + + + +

A high value fuel for gas engines Production of renewable power Disposal of problem emissions Smooth operation despite fluctuations in gas compositions and pressure

For more information on the benefits of the utilisation of landfill gas power go to clarke-energy.com or contact our sales dept on +44 (0)151 546 4446 or uk@clarke-energy.com

Clarke Energy, Power House, Senator Point, South Boundary Road, Knowsley Industrial Park, Liverpool, L33 7RR

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Infinis Energy

The evident growth from the past few years for Infinis is remarkable and is set to continue into the future as it aims to help the government meet the UK’s targets of renewable energy

full advantage of the growth opportunities in the renewables sector is the strongly cultivated company culture. Encouraging open communication and advocating a positive sense of ownership and accountability, the company’s autonomy allows it to run smoothly and react quickly to changes in the market. A ‘can-do, go the extra mile’ attitude permeates itself throughout the company across the country and ensures that every individual site is working together in the most effective way. Proven experience and robust financial strength are also helping to increase Infinis’ reputation across the UK as it looks to build, acquire and manage more landfill gas and wind farm sites in the coming years.

As a significant player in the UK renewable energy sector it is no surprise that Infinis has a strong environmental responsibility programme in place. As such the company is one of the few carbon positive companies in the UK. Over the last year the Infinis’ LFG operations prevented releases into the atmosphere equivalent to nine million tonnes of CO2 and 310,000 tonnes for its wind operations. Taking into account its own small energy usage, the company estimates that its net climate impact was positive by over nine million tonnes of CO2 in FY15. The trend for its carbon intensity has been falling due to capacity expansion and improved operational efficiency and the company commits to reducing these figures by a further 25 per cent over the next five years.

In an exemplary effort to continually reduce its own impact on the environment, Infinis has a vigorous recycling programme and has put in

place a strategy to reduce the levels of lubricating oil it uses in its operations. Illustrating this, over the years since 2011 the company has reduced its oil usage from 3.2 million litres to 2.8 million litres. In addition a number of initiatives have been undertaken to reduce carbon emissions, including providing company cars in the lowest tax bands, onsite campaigns to promote general savings, which have lead to a 10 per cent reduction since 2009, reduced travel demands with an increase in video conferencing and recycling and shredding facilities in all offices and sites. Demonstrating the superior green abilities deployed at Infinis is its regular appearance in the Sunday Times’ annual Best Green Companies list. Since the list’s inception in 2008, the company has been recognised consistently as an environmental leader, regularly placing in the top five in recent years.

The evident growth from the past few years for Infinis is remarkable and is set to continue into the future as it aims to help the government meet the UK’s targets of renewable energy. With a long-term pipeline for onshore wind projects in place, the company is well positioned to continue delivering to these targets and to its stakeholders.

However, it is not just the company’s growth targets and ability to operate on such a large scale that ensures its continued success, as Ian Marchant, Chairman of Infinis concludes in his FY2015 report statement: “I believe that this track record of delivering in a challenging environment demonstrates both the resilience of the business model and the commitment of the whole team, two features that will serve shareholders well in the years ahead.”

Infinis Energy plc infinis.com

Services Leading generator of renewable power in the UK

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Ground breaking

development Since its establishment in 1904 by the grandfather of current CEO Gerard Mampaey, Mampaey Offshore Industries has become the leading supplier of innovative mooring, berthing and towing solutions.

Originally based on Quick Release Hooks for mooring applications, Mampaey has developed its product portfolio by extending it with a range of products that further improves the safety of mooring and berthing process. With in-thehouse engineering and software development, Mampaey assures to fulfill client requirements for all of its products. Integrated systems like iMoor are developed to make the total of Mampaey mooring products more attractive than the sum of its parts, which makes iMoor a unique product that Mampaey is able to

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offer. The Innovative DNA of which Mampaey Offshore Industries consists, has led to the selection of Netherlands’ most innovative small and medium sized enterprise of 2007.

The mooring, berthing and towing solutions developed by Mampaey Offshore Industries are the result of 110 years of experience, driven by innovation and continuous design improvements. While its engineers are leading in their work field, it relies upon its customers for constant feedback on how to further improve their working situations. The combination of actively working together with clients and partners and monitoring of market developments has led to Mampaey being the industry leader in its field.

Mampaey Offshore Industries wants to remain

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the worldwide preferred supplier of towing, berthing and mooring products. With constant innovation of the product portfolio, Mampaey strives to design, engineer, produce and install the best available systems that meet customer demands and expectations. With the high quality in engineering and used materials, all Mampaey products ensure a solid investment due to the total cost of ownership and offered services.

Previously featured in EO&G's sister magazine Shipping & Marine in June 2015, Mampaey has continued its efforts of innovating its products. A recent development is the automated magnetic mooring system called DockLock. DockLock is an innovative system which, instead of conventional mooring lines, uses semi-permanent magnetic pads for docking.

It is designed for ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore mooring connections. The first DockLock system has been installed a bunker ship owned by the VT-Group, called the Valburg. Mooring lines on the Valburg were no longer required.

DockLock makes bunker operations not only safer but also much more efficient, as connecting and dis-connecting the ship only takes a few seconds. During operations the DockLock system is continuously monitored and while being connected it is able to control the ships’ motions. It allows free heave, pitch and roll movements and is able to control sway and yaw.

It is a completely automated system designed with redundant and failsafe components. In terms of motions and forces during operations, DockLock has been designed to withstand the worst-case scenarios. This includes severe environmental conditions e.g.: currents, winds, ocean swells and passing vessel motions.

DockLock can be integrated in the control sequence of the bunker process. In case of a

Mampaey Offshore Industries

critical situation, DockLock will immediately generate an emergency shutdown signal (ESD) to initiate the ships’ shutdown control sequence.

The DockLock system collects data of the complete mooring process. This information will be used to enhance the bunker and mooring process making it safer and more efficient, leading to faster turnaround time and return on investment. It’s a true game changer for ship-toship and ship-to-shore mooring.

Furthermore Mampaey has developed a new product called ‘intelligent Multi Safety Link’ (ship-to-shore link). The intelligent Multi Safety Link (iMSL) is a safety communication system applicable for the LNG and LPG market. The primary function of iMSL is to communicate the safety status between ship-to-ship and shipto-shore, its secondary function is to facilitate voice communication and data transmissions.

Usage is mandatory for LNG/LPG cargo transfer operations between ship-to-shore and ship-toship. Steven Groenewold, Product Manager at Mampaey, states: “The intelligent Multi Safety Link is not only designed for the global LNG/ LPG distribution market but is also applicable for the emerging LNG bulk breakdown market e.g.: LNG bunker stations and LNG bunker ships.” It can also be integrated with the DockLock system. iMSL is an innovative solution with new design elements and new functionality compared with existing ship-toshore safety link products currently available in the market. iMSL is a multi-link solution bridging the gap between the global bulk LNG distribution network and the downstream market. It is ready to meet and challenge future customer demands. Mampaey is very excited to introduce iMSL in the market at the end of 2015.

All Mampaey products are tested according to

The DockLock system collects data of the complete mooring process. This information will be used to enhance the bunker and mooring process making it safer and more efficient, leading to faster turnaround time and return on investment. It’s a true game changer for ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore mooring

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PROFILE

Mampaey Offshore Industries

specified design conditions under supervision of classification authorities. Mampaey products always undergo Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) and Site Acceptance Testing (SAT) where required. These tests are part of its design philosophy and verification process to assure product quality. Elaborating on the testing process, Gerard states: “Testing is not only to ensure ourselves that our products meet the highest standards of the marine industry, but it also ensures our customers the quality of Mampaey products.”

With innovations and new products, the time comes to unveil all of the developments that has been unseen until now and that will

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certainly enrich the market. Steven notes: “New developments need a platform to be heard and seen, so in order to see and talk with our customers, Mampaey Offshore Industries will be attending both the Gastech Singapore exhibition and the Europort exhibition in Rotterdam this fall. The Gastech Singapore will be the first opportunity this year to see the iMSL system which will be presented on stand B20.

“Our stand will facilitate a live demo and consultation with our specialists. Instead of just communicating about our new product, we want the audience to experience the added business value of iMSL. We think it’s vital for a new product to be test driven by its future consumers, that’s why we keep communication transparent and open. With iMSL being introduced in a rapidly changing market, we have to select the right opportunities on the right platforms. The Europort exhibition in Rotterdam offers a strong audience and a great platform, which gives Mampaey the opportunity to present and demonstrate iMSL on booth 7404.”

Mampaey Offshore Industries B.V. mampaey.com

Services • Leading supplier of mooring, berthing and towing systems • Launched innovative new product, DockLock in 2014 • Launching of the intelligent Multi Safety Link (Ship-to-Shore link) end of 2015

Schofield Publishing Ltd 10 Cringleford Business Centre Intwood Road Cringleford Norwich NR4 6AU T: +44 (0) 1603 274130 F: +44 (0) 1603 274131 Editor Libbie Hammond libbie@schofieldpublishing.co.uk Sales Director Joe Woolsgrove jwoolsgrove@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

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