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BP continues to develop the Prudhoe Bay oilfield Since becoming single operator of the field, BP has focused on both improving efficiency and growing the field Alan Bailey PNA Contributing Writer
The past year has brought dramatic change to the Prudhoe Bay oilfield. On July 1, 2000, the oilfield came under the single operatorship of BP. “It’s probably one of the most significant events in the life of Prudhoe Bay,” Bill Johnson, Greater Prudhoe Bay field manager, told PNA.
After about 20 years of dual operatorship by BP and ARCO, the new operating arrangements have triggered a flurry of activities, ranging from implementing a field-wide equipment maintenance system to the increased development of satellite fields.
Johnson summarized the current situation in the Prudhoe Bay field as a two-pronged advance. On the one hand, the single operatorship is providing opportunities for greater efficiency. On the other hand the field is growing by the addition of equipment and facilities. “So we’re having to carry on several different conversations in a couple of different contexts to try to bring all this together,” he said.
With the realignment of field ownership that also occurred last year, the owners have started working more closely together than in the past. As single operator, BP can also keep the other owners informed about what is going on. “From my experience there’s been a marked increase in the level of interaction (with the other owners) … since July 1,” Johnson said. Ex-ARCO staff joined the team When BP took over as single operator of Prudhoe, the company made immediate changes in the senior management of the field. “On July 1 we made some very specific changes, mostly in the field management team,” Johnson said. BP brought a mixture of BP and ex-ARCO staff into the new team.
In addition, the company dealt with some immediate personnel issues. For example, some people had to leave the field as a consequence of the single operatorship arrangements. At the same time field development and renewal resulted in some new jobs.
However, the company emphasized to its staff that all changes would need to be thoroughly considered and communicated. “We had a concern that in folks’ enthusiasm to move forward, we might have folks running off in all different directions,” Johnson said.
In fact, on the North Slope relatively few personnel changes were needed. “There wasn’t a lot of shuffling of people, because we needed people with the expertise staying where they knew how to operate and maintain (the facilities),” Johnson said. BP rationalized the contracts BP did have to rationalize the contracts for field services: BP and ARCO had established different service contracts on the east and west sides of the field. BP, as single operator, designed a new field-wide contracting strategy, which it communicated to the contracting community.
The resulting contract changes have progressed fairly well; the contractors have really supported the strategy, Johnson said: “I think most all of the contractors are still there, but they’re just serving a different role in some cases.”
As well as different contracts, the two sides of the field used different processes and procedures. Although BP needs to consolidate these processes in order to improve efficiency, changing the ways in which people work poses a major challenge: people have grown up and evolved with the systems that they have in place. “It’s not that either one (way of doing things) was right or wrong, you’re just trying to do something different,” Johnson said. “Because we are a single operator we actually have an opportunity to do things even better.” Maintenance is a top priority A field-wide strategy for maintaining equipment sits at the top of the priority list for process improvement. Both the east and the west sides of the field have employed a number of different approaches to maintenance planning and preparedness. “What we’re trying to institute is a program that brings all together into a much more analytical, data-driven maintenance … system,” Johnson said.
BP also wants to compile all of the maintenance data into a computer database. The maintenance staff will then be able to use the database to gain insights into the causes of equipment failures. Rather than just fixing equipment, people will better understand how to prolong equipment life.
The new maintenance strategy will focus more attention on the smaller items of oilfield equipment. In the past, maintenance programs have addressed the big ticket items like turbines. “We’re going to try to use this new (maintenance) system to put at least some of the same principles in place for the smaller equipment,” Johnson said.
As well as reducing costs, BP expects its new maintenance strategy to increase the up time of the production facilities. That will lead to increased oil production. Johnson said that the field facilities currently run with up times of 95 to 97 percent. But, in a field the size of Prudhoe Bay, even a small increase in up time results in a significant increase in production volumes. Field growth is also a priority BP has been jacking up its efforts to extend the Prudhoe Bay oilfield. “We’re increasing the number of rigs working on the Slope, we have a drilling and well work program that is elevated over where we were a couple of years ago,” Johnson said.
Satellite fields such as Borealis, Aurora and Midnight Sun form the main focus of these development efforts. “Through alignment … we’ve really seen a breakthrough in our ability to get some of these (satellite fields) moving, and see the rigs running and getting production into the facilities,” Johnson said. BP expects to increase production from the satellite fields from about 4,000 barrels per day at the end of 2000 to 40,000 barrels per day at the end of 2001.
The satellite fields provide a particularly convenient way to boost North Slope production, because they can be hooked into existing Prudhoe Bay production facilities. The satellites don’t require new facilities and they maximize the use of the existing oilfield infrastructure.
As well as satellite developments around the perimeter of the field, Prudhoe maintains a continuing program of in-field development. This development, using techniques such as coiled tubing drilling, aims to access and extract as much oil as possible from the underground reservoirs. Field optimization — making sure that the right fluids go to the right spots — also helps maximize field production.
So far, the potential sale of North Slope gas hasn’t had much impact on the Prudhoe Bay oilfield. “From a field perspective, what we’re interested in is having at least some understanding of the different options that are being worked up and the timing,” Johnson said. An understanding of what may happen will help people make better decisions about field management and development. BP seeks more efficiencies And BP is still working out the full ramifications of being single operator. “Probably one of the biggest things that we’re working on is to understand all the benefits we can derive from being single operator,” Johnson said.
In fact, the company is devoting much energy into working with its staff on ideas for development and change. “People on both sides (of the field) are pretty much cut out of the same mold — they’re very intelligent folks, very dedicated, they want to do a good job, they’ve got some great ideas,” Johnson said. “Our job is to make sure that we can tap into all those good ideas.”
It will be interesting to see how those ideas take shape in Prudhoe in the coming months, as the field continues to evolve.
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