LORD Corporation has announced that its subsea wellbore sensors have demonstrated Subsea Instrumentation Interface Standardization (SIIS) compliance.

LORD Corporation’s Stellar Technology subsea wellbore pressure/temperature transducers passed the initial interface testing at a recent interoperability event, demonstrating compliance with the new SIIS requirements. Subsea control module (SCM) manufacturers that participated in the event were Aker Solutions, FMC, GE, OneSubsea and Proserv. Having passed each interoperability test, LORD Corporation’s wellbore sensing technology was validated to successfully interface with these SCM manufacturers.

SIIS, a joint industry project designed to achieve improvements in subsea reliability, is the new subsea instrumentation interface standard. It will soon be required by all SCM as well as oil and gas exploration and production companies. The aim is to standardize the interface between subsea sensors and the subsea control system. SIIS members consist of control systems suppliers, sensor suppliers and operators who work together defining the standards for subsea instrumentation interfaces.

According to Andy Winzenz, Commercial Director, Sensing, LORD Corporation, the company continues to expand and unify its sensing offerings and this is a major milestone.

“Demonstrating this compliance status validates our wellbore sensor communication interface with the major subsea control system manufacturers,” said Winzenz.

Subsea processes and technology present a space-saving solution for offshore facilities around the world and can help reduce the complexity of operations. For example, by utilizing subsea separation, the amount of production transferred from the seafloor to the surface of the water can be reduced. It also helps cut down on moving unwanted components to the facility on the water’s surface, just to direct them back to the seafloor for re-injection.

Typical subsea processes include subsea water removal and re-injection or disposal, single- or multi-phase boosting of well fluids, sand and solid separation, gas/liquid separation and boosting, as well as gas treatment and compression. In addition to the work flow benefits of subsea operations, sensors and transmitters can also help increase field recovery. They also make it easier to gain access to challenging oil fields, reducing additional spending for topside equipment.

More information about the SIIS certification can be found here and additional details on LORD Corporation’s subsea pressure transducers can be found here.

On Friday, April 29, 2016, a CHC helicopter on assignment for Statoil crashed outside Turøy in Fjell municipality outside Bergen, Norway. 13 people, 2 pilots and 11 passengers onboard, died in the accident.

Map image courtesy: Statoil

On Saturday April 30, Statoil’s president and CEO, Eldar Sætre, and executive vice president Development & Production Norway, Arne Sigve Nylund, visited the center for next of kin in Bergen.

Statoil will continue to support those who need it most, those who are directly affected, families, colleagues onshore and on the platforms. Statoil will also assist next of kin who are not present at the centre, and colleagues on Gullfaks B. Personnel with experience from following up people in crisis are available for those who need it.

"Today, we are one family. We will stand together as one united industry, and do everything in our power to take care of the affected families," Sætre said.

The Accident Investigation Board in Norway will investigate the accident, and Statoil will contribute to this job. Statoil will also start its own investigation in cooperation with the employee representatives and the safety delegates. This investigation will be coordinated with the work of the Accident Investigation Board.

"Finding an answer to why the helicopter crashed is very important, both to the next of kin and to all who have the Norwegian continental shelf as their work place. The safety of everyone working for Statoil is the most important thing for us,” Sætre says.

The 11 passengers are employed in the following companies: Halliburton, Aker Solutions, Schlumberger, Welltec, Karsten Moholt and Statoil. The two pilots are employed by CHC. One of the 13 is a Statoil employee.

Ulstein introduces the LX109 design, a high capacity, highly efficient cable lay vessel with compact dimensions. The completely new, patent pending, ULSTEIN Cable Arch system in combination with open top vessel design results in an unprecedented total of 12,500 t of power cable that can be laid as one single piece.

Image credit: Ulstein

A unique feature is the ULSTEIN Cable Arch connecting the forward and aft turntables, allowing to load and lay one continuous cable of up to 12,500 ton. This capacity was made possible by positioning the turntables into the hull instead of their conventional location on deck, improving vessel’s stability. A feature also applied by Ulstein on a rock installation vessel currently under construction. This approach resulted in a slim vessel that can transport and lay cable much more efficient than conventional vessel designs with larger beams.

Locating the a-symmetrical bridge aft, with the cable passing underneath, provides clear and unobstructed views on the cable lay work deck and cable stingers aft and the turntables forward. Furthermore the vessel features a large hangar with ROV moonpool and workboat storage. In combination with the well-known X-BOW® and X-STERNTM hull features, this results in a very cost efficient, safe and comfortable platform with superior operational uptime and transit speed compared to more traditional cable lay units.

“With this design we like to bring the cable lay market to the next level,” says Edwin van Leeuwen, Product Management Leader at Ulstein Design & Solutions. “Using the ship and equipment knowledge available in the Ulstein Group, resulted in a revolutionary, truly integrated design, based on existing technologies. By focusing on a dedicated vessel for cable lay projects, we have been able to dramatically improve on project economy, seakeeping behavior and fuel economy.”

Radoil announces that their MUX and Hotline Reels were used on Maersk Venturer ultra-deepwater drillship offshore Uruguay in water depths of 3,400 meters (11,156 ft). The previous record for world’s deepest well by water depth was held by Transocean’s drillship Dhirubhai Deepwater KG1, off the coast of India in water depths of 3,174 m (10,411 ft), also utilizing Radoil reels. MUX and Hotline Reels are installed on the rig near the rig’s moon-pool. MUX Reels store and deploy electric and fiber optic cables and Hotline Reels store and deploy hydraulic hoses. The electric/fiber optic cables and hydraulic hoses communicate and operate the Blowout Preventer (BOP) System positioned on the ocean floor during deepwater drilling.

Maersk Venturer: Photo credit: Maersk Drilling

Radoil’s Umbilical reels (BOP Control, IWOCS, Chemical Injection, Workover) offer at least six (6) patented and patent pending features that Lower Operating Costs and Improve Safety. In addition, Radoil’s patented Depth Compensated Accumulators use the pressure of the ocean’s water column to boost the hydraulic pressure, thereby allowing fewer number of accumulator bottles mounted in the BOP and subsea systems requiring local hydraulic pressure. In some cases, the number of accumulator bottles can be reduced by over 90%.

Radoil is an ISO 9001:2008 certified engineering, design and manufacturing company located on the NW side of Houston, TX. Radoil provides a variety of products that are used in deepwater drilling activities around the world and we are currently expanding our product lines into the completion and production processes.

Global-leading energy services company Proserv has been awarded a multi-million dollar contract from Apache Corporation for work on the UK Continental Shelf.

Proserv will supply a subsea control system and associated topside and subsea interface equipment for use on the new Callater wells located south of the Beryl Alpha platform.

The latest award comes after Proserv successfully completed work for Apache on the Bacchus and Aviat extension wells for the provision of subsea control modules and services in the Forties field.

Proserv engineer at work. Photo credit: Proserv

The design, manufacture and supply of the workscope will be carried out by Proserv’s team of subsea experts in Great Yarmouth, UK.

David Lamont, CEO of Proserv, said: “This is a significant win for the company that highlights the strength of our technical and engineering expertise as well as our market-leading status in the subsea controls and communications field.

“It also reinforces that there are still major opportunities in a low oil price marketplace to provide truly smarter solutions that challenge convention and reduce operating costs, extend field-life and maximize ultimate recovery. This is where Proserv uniquely delivers”.

Formerly known as Prospect K, the Apache Callater wells are situated 335 kilometers northeast of Aberdeen. Proserv will deliver four subsea control modules with standard interfaces to provide compatible support for earlier generations of subsea controls equipment and enable future link-ups with other existing field assets in the surrounding area. This will provide Apache with a truly flexible solution to seamlessly extend field life in the future without affecting the existing subsea control systems.

This latest deal builds on a successful period for Proserv, the company revealed in April that is had secured a multi-million dollar contract with Statoil for the provision of production control equipment in Norway.

Proserv is set to supply five wellhead hydraulic power units (HPUs) for Statoil’s Gullfaks oil and gas field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. Design, manufacture and supply will be carried out by Proserv’s specialist engineering and project teams in Stavanger, Norway.

Aker Solutions and ABB agreed to build on their combined strengths in subsea, power and automation technologies to develop solutions that will improve oil and gas production for the global energy industry.

The cooperation will integrate Aker Solutions' pioneering subsea capabilities and ABB's subsea power and automation system expertise to bring customers more effective, reliable and flexible oil and gas production solutions. It will enhance how production equipment on the seafloor is powered and controlled by applications on shore or platforms, lowering costs and enabling economically viable production at fields far offshore from existing infrastructure.

"This partnership builds on a relationship with ABB that already has a proven track record of developing groundbreaking subsea technology," said Alan Brunnen, head of Aker Solutions' subsea business. "Together we will now further hone our focus on developing technologies for greater and more sustainable hydrocarbon recovery and help customers reduce costs by making existing subsea solutions more effective."

"Power and automation are crucial to improving the effectiveness of compression, boosting and other solutions for increasing oil and gas recovery from subsea fields," said Peter Terwiesch, president of ABB's process automation division. "This collaboration is part of our Next Level Strategy to engage in value-adding partnerships and will bring together the expertise and technology needed to help better serve customers and strengthen our subsea power and automation solutions."

The cooperation is an outcome of several years of joint work that includes landmark developments such as the 2015 delivery of the world's first subsea compression system for the Statoil-operated Åsgard field offshore Norway. Initial focus areas will include developing better subsea compression systems at lower costs and in less time.

The collaboration will target opportunities globally, building on the companies' presence in major oil and gas markets to meet customer needs worldwide. It will be headquartered in Oslo, Norway.

Intertek, has launched a new remotely operated vehicle (ROV) potable water tank inspection service that offers clients the option of using ROV’s to inspect their large-capacity water tanks. Potable water tank inspection must be carried out periodically to mitigate health risks to those working on offshore platforms or in other facilities that require their use. Vitally, inspections should detect any evidence of contamination, biofilm deposits, corrosion formation and the growth of Legionella.

Preparing ROV for water tank inspection. Photo credit: Intertek

Typically, potable water tanks are taken out of service to be emptied and inspected directly by personnel, a process which can be hazardous and time consuming, sometimes taking up to three days. Intertek’s new service allows clients to instead send in a mini ROV, which removes the need to drain and refill the tank, mitigates risks to personnel and can ensure that tanks are back in service after 12 hours. When evidence of corrosion or bacteria is detected, Intertek can make treatment recommendations, including operational advice, cleaning, patch recoating or complete tank refurbishment.

Julie Hart, Water Hygiene Technical Manager for Intertek Production and Integrity Assurance, said: “Regular water tank hygiene inspection is extremely important as the tanks can become a breeding ground for Legionella and other bacteria which cause water quality degradation. Our ROV’s deliver close visual inspection which allows for fast, accurate pricing of remedial work. This new equipment and methodology, along with our decades of experience in microbiology, really allows us to provide forerunning services to clients who take these procedures very seriously and prioritize the health and wellbeing of their personnel.

As well as tank inspection and potable water management services, Intertek Production and Integrity Assurance provides clients with a range of related solutions, including legionella management, water system disinfection, microbiological surveys, molecular analysis, media test kits and oilfield microbiology training.

More than 140km of pipeline manufactured at Tata Steel’s recently enhanced double submerged arc welded (DSAW) mill has achieved an industry first by becoming the deepest to be laid in the Mexican section of the Gulf of Mexico.

The company was awarded a contract to supply 457mm OD x 28.6mm WT API 5L PSL2 X65MO line pipe from its large diameter 42” DSAW mill in Hartlepool, UK, for the development.

The project marked the first time that a pipeline had been laid at water depths greater than 3,000ft in the Mexican section of the Gulf.

Photo credit: Tata Steel

Tata Steel was selected for the project due to its extensive experience in the manufacture of small diameter and thick wall deepwater line pipe.

The mill has been the focus of significant recent investment to enhance technology and processes and increase power efficiency. More than 125 improvements were completed in 2015 to strengthen its overall operational and performance capability.

The improvements include significant upgrades to welding equipment using the latest closed loop digital weld control technology to deliver greater weld stability, reduced repair rates, and total traceability of the process. Tata Steel has also invested in a laser profiling system to provide a 3,600 point profile to monitor pipe straightness and provide a full dimensional survey of the pipe end. This data can be used to ensure minimum ‘hi/low’ in girth welding for high fatigue and other applications.

Energy efficient inverters have replaced more than 50 traditional transformers/rectifiers on production lines to enable quick and repeatable set ups at industry-leading levels while cutting the mill’s electricity demand by nearly a third, allowing Tata Steel to produce more pipe with less energy.

The mill’s ‘O’ press control has been upgraded to optimise the forming process, ensuring uniform pressing along the full length of pipes to achieve optimum pipe shape. This has benefits for deepwater operations, as both the shape and balancing of the ‘forming ratio’ of the pipe are critical for deepwater collapse resistance.

Richard Broughton, Commercial Manager, Energy and Power, Tata Steel, said: “Our investment in the DSAW mill and our continuous improvement discipline enables us to offer extremely high integrity solutions to our clients for the most challenging of offshore and onshore projects.

“The overall benefit of the investments can be seen in the welding quality performance achieved during the project in the Gulf of Mexico. Where small diameter and thick wall pipe is typically more challenging, on this project a combined repair rate of 0.25% was achieved. This was delivered not only due to the investment in welding technology, but also through a programme of continuous improvements in the welding area which has seen similar developments across many sizes of pipe.

“The manufacture also demonstrated a more sustainable approach to production, with reduced energy utilisation through the deployment of digital welding control. Our new inverter based power sources have significantly improved welding machine availability and have resulted in an increase in power efficiency from 60% to 95%.”

MacGregor, part of Cargotec, continues to add to its market-leading Pusnes product range and its latest introduction is a Pusnes RamWindlass. The new windlass is based on a chain-jack design and employs similar technology used in MacGregor's successful range of Pusnes RamWinches.

MacGregor's new Pusnes RamWindlass meets market demand for ever more compact deck machinery arrangements

"The Pusnes RamWinch is well known in the industry for its compact size and low weight. It can be found on most of the spar platforms in the Gulf of Mexico and also on several other types of floating production units," says Torbjörn Rokstad, Director, MacGregor Pusnes Mooring Systems. "However, over recent years, market demand has seen the need for an even more compact, chain-jack type design, resulting in the development of our new RamWindlass."

Current RamWinch designs have a main cylinder that extends below the winch foundation plates to exert the stroke or 'jacking' movement and each stroke moves the chain two links at a time. The Pusnes RamWindlass features some significant advances over current RamWinch designs. For example, it locks the chain on every chain link, instead of every second link. Locking one link at a time translates into a shorter stroke for the ram, which therefore requires less space. Also jacking occurs on the cable lifter, not on the chain.

"Space is at a premium on floating production units and with the new RamWindlass operators will benefit from an even more compact design, which requires less height clearance in the mooring arrangement," continues Mr Rokstad.

The Pusnes RamWindlass has an all-in-one foundation requiring no deck penetration and its simple design leads to low maintenance requirements and high levels of reliability.

"Our extensive knowledge and experience of operating Pusnes RamWinches has been an essential part of the design process for the new RamWindlass," adds Mr. Rokstad. "All in all there is great market potential for it."

McDermott International (NYSE:MDR) has successfully completed the installation scope associated with the Otis development in the Gulf of Mexico on behalf of LLOG Exploration Offshore. McDermott’s Lay Vessel North Ocean 105 (LV 105) completed the deepwater subsea tieback from the Otis well in Mississippi Canyon 79 to the Delta House Floating Production System in water depths ranging from 3,861 feet to 4,420 feet.

North Ocean 105 - Fast-transit, dynamically positioned vessel with an advanced Reel-lay system capable of rigid and flexible pipelay in up to 10,000 feet of water. Photo courtesy: McDermott

The scope of work consisted of project management, engineering, and installation of 70,000 feet of insulated rigid flowline and insulated steel catenary riser as well as a control umbilical, PLEM jumper and associated flying leads. The flowline and riser were fabricated at McDermott’s new spoolbase and marine facility in Gulfport, Mississippi. All engineering and project management functions were completed in McDermott’s Americas, Europe and Africa headquarters in Houston.

“This marks an important milestone for the McDermott organization as the first project executed in its Gulfport Spoolbase and the first installation of a steel catenary riser by the LV 105,” said Scott Munro, McDermott Vice President for Americas, Europe and Africa. “The execution of the Otis project has positioned McDermott for success on our other 2016 reel lay projects, including Anadarko Caesar Tonga Phase II. This project demonstrates our commitment to adding value to the subsea tieback market and is the foundation for McDermott to establish itself as the reel lay contractor of choice for our customers in the Gulf of Mexico.”

BMT Fluid Mechanics (BMT), a subsidiary of BMT Group Ltd, a leading international design, engineering and risk management consultancy, has recently completed a comprehensive Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) study for an oil major operating offshore Nigeria.

FPSO Gas Dispersion. Image credit: BMT

BMT’s scope of work included an assessment of the current loading to which the FPSO hull is subjected to, which has enabled the oil major to ensure its mooring systems are fit for purpose.

Johnathan Green, Manager for BMT Fluid Mechanics’ Numerical Modelling Group explains: “CFD is becoming more commonplace in the oil and gas sector with many customers recognizing it to be an effective tool for solving challenges the industry faces in a less conservative and more efficient manner. In this project, we were able to use CFD to more accurately analyze the hydrodynamic forces caused by current and waves and asses the subsequent effect these forces have on the bilge keels of the vessel which are designed to stop the vessel from rolling.”

Image credit: BMT

Through the creation of a 3D CAD model and representation of the FPSO below the water line, the team of specialists at BMT were able to run a comprehensive experimental and numerical study of the manoeuvring characteristics. This looked at different parameters of current conditions to help build up a picture of how the forces and motions impact the vessel and how it performs.

Johnathan Green continues: “BMT’s extensive experience with shallow water hydrodynamics, manoeuvring simulation, hydrodynamic model testing and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) allowed us to deliver against the customer requirements. The benefit of using CFD in this study is that the customer can use the less conservative loads estimated to help design the mooring systems.

CFD has a number of applications within the oil and gas market. BMT regularly uses CFD for consequence modelling (e.g. hydrocarbon fire & explosion and gas dispersion), flow assurance, and helicopter operations. Whilst the aim of all of our work is to ensure that risks to personnel, asset, and environment are reduced to as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP) and although there may be a focus in today’s current economic climate on reducing capital expenditure, BMT strongly believes that optimising design early on in a project can considerably reduce costs by avoiding conservatism.”

Protea is well known for delivering high quality handling equipment including cranes, winches and launch and recovery systems for the offshore and onshore energy industries.

In addition to cargo handling equipment, Protea has also developed an extensive track record in the supply of personnel lifts for operations in hazardous areas.

Photo credit: Protea

“Both onshore and offshore, the safety of personnel when accessing equipment at height is key. We have applied our knowledge of the design, build and supply of safety critical handling equipment to develop a range of personnel lifts that can be tailored for specific applications.” highlighted Protea’s Global Sales Manager, Graham Manning.

Most recently Protea delivered a scissor lift for use on an offshore semi-submersible drilling rig. An electrically powered unit with an integral Hydraulic system to operate the lift and drive system, it can safely lift 2 personnel and their equipment to a height of 13m.

The system has a total lift capacity of 300kg and fully complies with all appropriate offshore design codes and regulations including DNV-OS-E101 Drilling Plant, LA 2.22 Standard for Certification – Lifting Appliances and EN 280:2013 Mobile Elevating Platforms.

In addition, Protea has also developed a range of rig elevators for land and offshore drilling applications. Available with lift capacities up to 200kg, these proven elevators allow the safe transport of workers from ground level up to the rig floor.

“Lifting people as opposed to cargo presents a number of unique challenges. However, with our experienced design team, we have developed a successful range of high quality personnel lift products that tailored to the specific needs of our clients - once again demonstrating our capability to deliver standard products, bespoke design and unique solutions’ commented Tomasz Paskiewicz, Protea CEO.

Saipem and its consortium partners Bos Shelf and Star Gulf have been awarded call-off 007 under the Shah Deniz Stage 2 Master Agreement by BP, on behalf of the Shah Deniz partnership. The total value of the contract is approximately $1.5 billion (Saipem share approximately $1.3 billion), with a duration of five years plus a possible extension for a further five.

Shah Deniz gas field in the Caspian Sea. Photo credit: BP

The Shah Deniz field is located 90 kilometers offshore Azerbaijan, in water depths from 75 meters to 550 meters. The scope of work of the call-off refers to the transport and installation of subsea production systems and subsea structures, laying of fiber optic cables and production umbilicals, laying of 90 kilometers of pipelines, the activation, crewing and operations management of the new-build Subsea Construction Vessel (SCV) Khankendi, the SCV diving support, remotely operated vehicle (ROV) support and marine base management post 2017.

Saipem has been involved in the Shah Deniz Stage 2 project since 2014.

Commenting on the award, Stefano Cao, Saipem CEO, said: “We are delighted to have secured this major award, which enables us to continue and consolidate our 20-year relationship with BP and Socar in Azerbaijan and to put our world-class people and technologies at their disposal for the timely and efficient delivery of Shah Deniz Stage 2. This award also further strengthens Saipem’s key role in the construction of the Southern Gas Corridor where the company has a total of four contracts, in the upstream segment and in gas transportation infrastructure both onshore and offshore.”

International oilfield services company, Expro, has successfully completed a plug and abandonment (P&A) project in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) for Apache.

Expro recently expanded its business capabilities to offer fully integrated well abandonment services including; late-life reservoir management, permanent reservoir abandonment and post abandonment monitoring.

Photo credit: Expro

The Apache work comprised the pre-abandonment and plugging of wells in the ultra deepwater Atwater Valley and Mississippi Canyon areas.

Commencing in March 2016, Expro utilised its well intervention services to provide the first phase of abandonment of the wells. This involved plugging, cutting and perforating using slickline and electric-line cased hole applications to gain access to the wells and allow circulation.

“Expro is uniquely placed to understand the challenges that come with the re-entry and abandonment of an aging well population. We were delighted to demonstrate this on the project with Apache, and continue our global relationship with them.”

Expro has worked with Apache for over 10 years, primarily in the North Sea, supplying subsea, well testing, intervention and sampling services, and well integrity software.

“This contract builds on the long-standing relationship between Expro and Apache, and I’m delighted that we’re providing successful plug and abandonment expertise in the GoM.”

P&A is just one of the four new capabilities developed by Expro in response to current market conditions and being launched at the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston from 2-5 May 2016.

The Damen Shipyards Group’s Fast Crew Supplier (FCS) 2610 is proving to be every bit as effective in the oil and gas sector as it is in the offshore wind industry. The application of the renowned design in this arena is a response to a move in offshore O&G towards the high-intensity use of flexible, multi-purpose vessels wherever possible so as to minimize costs. As a twin-hulled vessel, the FCS 2610 combines high speed and stability with substantial deck space for equipment and components. And, with Damen’s philosophy of building in series, the FCS 2610 is available on stock for extra fast delivery.

Damen’s FCS 2610 at sea. Image credit: Damen

Over 40 vessels of this model have been built to date, the majority for the support of wind farm operations, making it a well-proven support vessel in the challenging waters of the North Sea as well as other locations. With its Twin Axe hull design, it provides a stable platform with plenty of deck space, ideal for duties such as crew and cargo supply.

Feedback and initial orders from companies in the offshore oil and gas sector have demonstrated the FCS 2610 has a role to play in their search for the most economical ways to undertake maintenance and service work. Near the top of their lists are fast, flexible vessels capable of operating in a wide range of weather conditions and carrying quantities of both men and equipment. The FCS 2610 fits these criteria well as a high quality, multi-purpose workhorse. Damen FCS 2610 hulls are in stock ready for outfitting to meet the specific needs of individual customers. Options include a multi-purpose deck crane, flexible accommodation capacity, davits for FRC, the fitting of containers for specific roles and safety standby adaptions. Other customizations are readily available on request.

The Twin Axe hull design is a stable and fuel efficient platform for accessing offshore platforms, and, as such, is a valuable member of Damen’s marine access portfolio. This portfolio anticipates the need for cost reduction and logistics improvement, alongside increased safety, in the current oil and gas climate Furthermore, the advancement of minimal facility platforms also drives the need for efficient and safe marine access solutions in place of traditional offshore crew transfer solutions.

Leading procurement services specialist, Craig International, has launched a ‘win-win’ platform to help oil and gas companies off-load surplus stock worth billions of dollars and buy products and equipment they need at competitive prices.

Craig Collaboration connects companies looking to sell stock with those looking to buy. Oil and gas companies around the world have billions of pounds of surplus stock, much of it sitting in costly storage and Craig Collaboration will allow them to realize value from this.

A radical shift in procurement in the industry, Craig Collaboration represents a major investment by Craig International in an immediate, collaborative solution towards increasing efficiency. It is already gathering momentum with several major exploration and production companies expected to start using it following today’s launch.

Steve McHardy and Jill MacDonald, joint managing directors of Craig International, which has launched the pioneering Craig Collaboration platform.

Steve McHardy, joint managing director of Craig International, said: “With the oil price set to be lower for longer, the industry requires immediate action towards achieving enhanced efficiency and cost control. We have developed a platform which the whole industry can use to buy and sell stock. Using our bespoke electronic tools, our network of buyers and our global experience, Craig Collaboration will, at no cost to industry, ensure that their products are offered to buyers looking to purchase them.

“Our research found that two exploration and production companies had, between them, almost half a billion dollars’ worth of surplus stock. Multiply that by the number of companies operating in the Gulf of Mexico and that’s a considerable amount of products and equipment lying around not making any money and incurring warehousing costs.

Craig Collaboration is accessed through a portal and powered by Craig International’s bespoke SmartBuyer software. For example, if operator A, who is looking for a pump which operator B has in surplus stock, then Smartbuyer would search the inventory on Craig Collaboration, find the pump and offer it at a reduced cost to operator A.

Craig Collaboration will also provide an analysis of the interest expressed on their surplus equipment, allowing clients to make an informed decision on disposal or not.

Craig International has this year secured $60 million in new contracts as a result of the efficiencies delivered by their ecommerce initiatives. A bespoke web-based tool, SmartBuyer makes the procurement process much simpler, more accurate, less time-consuming and much less expensive.

With an increasing marketshare in the Gulf of Mexico, Craig International is in a unique position to observe trends and offer solutions to dramatically reducing costs when it comes to buying oilfield products and services.

Mr. McHardy added: “We already have the buyers looking to purchase the products and equipment that companies have in surplus stock and we have the electronic tools to ensure confidential and efficient transactions between buyers and sellers.

“We are buying the same products over and over again and, with our 16 years’ experience, we are well-placed to exploit this knowledge and buying power to the benefit of the wider industry."