Sneak peak: LADS almost finished, BP inspection next

Petroleum News Alaska Staff

The LADS 1H — Phoenix Alaska Technology LLC’s light automated drilling system — is “undergoing final commissioning” at Heartland Rig International’s fabrication plant in Brady, Texas, and will soon face inspection by BP’s international audit team for new drilling rigs, Erik Opstad, vice president and general manager of Phoenix Alaska, told PNA July 2. In August, the team will give the LADS an acceptance test that is expected to take several weeks. If the rig passes, it will leave HRI for the 70-80 day trip to Alaska.

BP sources told PNA that the LADS was on the drilling schedule for Milne Point in mid-December but a January arrival date was more realistic. BP spokesman Ronnie Chappell said his company remains committed to the LADS project, despite several setbacks associated with development and construction of the drilling system.

If the LADS performs on the North Slope as its designers intend it to, it “represents a 20 to 30 percent reduction in the cost of drilling new North Slope wells,” Chappell said.