Damen Shiprepair Oranjewerf (DSO) has become the latest Damen ship repair yard to receive ISO 9001:2008 certification. Strategically located in the port of Amsterdam, DSO undertakes the full range of maintenance, repair and conversion projects on all classes of vessel. The award of the ISO certification demonstrates that the yard fulfils the requirements of the defined management system standards to consistently provide a high quality service that meets all customer, statutory and regulatory requirements through a process of continuous improvement. This specifically refers to the repair, maintenance, inspection and drydocking of inland vessels, sea-going vessels and other steel constructions.

In 2015 the management of the yard commissioned an external auditor to review and document the yard’s processes over a number of months and make recommendations regarding any that needed to be brought up to standard. Improvements were made where necessary and, after a second, internal, audit to ensure that everything was in compliance, the ISO inspectors were invited to the yard.

“A proven quality management system according to ISO standards, with evidence by means of certification, is important for many of our customers,” said DSO’s commercial manager Jeen van der Werf. “Operators in the offshore sector and elsewhere value the confidence they get from knowing that independent inspections have validated the quality and operational standards of their industry partners.

“And we are not stopping there,” he continues. “Our next goal is certification for ISO 14001:2015, which will demonstrate our commitment to international environmental standards across all our activities. We see it as our duty to meet and exceed our customers’ expectations when it comes to quality and responsibility.”

Coenraad Tool, Quality Manager at Damen Shiprepair & Conversion added: “The success of Damen Shiprepair Oranjewerf in achieving ISO certification is another milestone in our process of increasing customer satisfaction across the group through enhanced customer focus. This includes establishing a set of harmonised and documented procedures and routines that exceed the ISO standard requirements, as a basis for the update of yard Quality Management Systems. With the release of ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015, we are now reviewing and updating the current implemented Quality Management Systems ahead of September 2018.”

DNV GL has been awarded a contract by COSCO Shipping Company Limited (COSCO SHIPPING) of China for the installation engineering services for the BorWin gamma high voltage direct current (HVDC) converter platform.

The Dutch-German transmission system operator TenneT is developing the offshore AC/DC converter platform BorWin gamma as part of the grid connection project BorWin3. The project will provide an essential renewable offshore resource to meet increasing energy demands in Germany, as part of the German Energiewende (Energy Transition) program.

Artist's impression of the BorWin gamma HVDC platform © Petrofac

A consortium of Siemens and Petrofac has been contracted by TenneT to design, build and install BorWin gamma. COSCO SHIPPING was awarded the transportation and installation contract by Petrofac and has chosen DNV GL's Noble Denton marine services as partner to fulfill the dynamic positioning (DP) float-over job.

Pioneering technology

DNV GL’s Noble Denton marine services pioneered and developed DP float-over, a heavy module installation method using a dynamic positioning vessel, together with COSCO.

"DNV GL has jointly completed 10 installations successfully around the world with COSCO,” explains Andy Wang, project director of DNV GL - Oil & Gas Greater China. “Our experts have a solid track record in DP float-over that won the confidence of Petrofac and Siemens," he continues.

“Our investment in innovative solutions and leading technology for heavy offshore module transportation and installation has given us a long-standing reputation that led us to win this contract. We sincerely look forward to working with COSCO and the consortium partners on this important project,” says Arthur Stoddart, regional manager of DNV GL - Oil & Gas Region Greater China, Korea & Japan.

BorWin gamma: facts and figures

This project will create a few new entries to DNV GL's record book. Weighing in at a massive 18,000 metric tons, BorWin gamma will be one of the heaviest HVDC platform ever installed; moreover, it will be the first DP float-over operation in the North Sea and Europe.

The installation is expected to commence in the summer of 2018. Once completed, it will transmit approximately 900 MW of wind power, which is roughly equal to the annual electricity consumption of 1 million German households.

Scheduled to go online in 2019, the BorWin gamma platform will be installed nearly 130km off the German coast in the North Sea, at a water depth of approximately 40m. The 900 MW DC transmission will be through 320 kV cable of 160 km length.

Sky-Futures, a leading provider of drone inspection services for the oil and gas industry, has raised £2.5m from award-winning venture capital fund, MMC Ventures.

The Series A investment – the largest ever into drone technology in Europe – comes after a year of significant expansion for the business, growing by 700% in FY2014. This investment will enable Sky-Futures to continue its rapid growth and continue building out its integrated technology inspection platform.

Image Courtesy: Sky-Futures

Founded in 2009, Sky-Futures is the world leader in oil and gas drone inspections, working with more than 30 of the biggest oil and gas companies in the world including Apache, BG Group, BP, ConocoPhillips, Shell and Statoil. The drones collect high definition video, stills and thermal imagery data, which is analysed in a proprietary data platform and delivered to the client as a technical report written by highly qualified, in-house global industry experts. Sky- Futures now delivers drone inspection services in the North Sea, the Middle East, South East Asia and North Africa, and has recently opened an office in Houston, Texas to serve clients in the Gulf of Mexico, having been one of the first companies to receive FAA regulatory approval to operate in the US.

This investment follows two significant seed rounds, which included prominent angel investors Nick Robertson (CEO of ASOS) and Jon Kamaluddin (former International Director of ASOS).

James Harrison, co-founder and CEO of Sky-Futures, said: “We have experienced a fantastic level of growth in the past year, expanding our global reach and further establishing ourselves as the world leaders in oil and gas drone inspection. We recently received the permit to use our drones in United States National Air Space, an incredibly significant development, allowing us to further expand our international operations footprint.”

“Today’s funding announcement marks the next stage for Sky-Futures, and we are looking forward to working with the MMC Ventures team as we further develop our technology- driven commercial drone services.”

Simon Menashy, Investment Director at MMC Ventures, said: “Drone technology is an exciting area of innovation, but it’s only now that we are seeing leading commercial operators emerge. Sky-Futures’ use of drone technology in the oil and gas market is world-leading and changes the game for platform operators in terms of cost, safety and depth of data analysis. We’re excited to work with an exceptional trio of founders in James, Chris and Nick, and look forward to helping the team to take the business to the next level of global scale.”

Subsea 7 S.A. (Oslo Børs: SUBC, ADR: SUBCY) has announced the details of the major(1) contract award that was first announced on 20 May 2016 .

The contract was awarded by Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Limited (BOWL)(2), for the engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) of the Beatrice wind farm turbine foundations and array cables, offshore Scotland, UK.

Located in the Outer Moray Firth, the Beatrice wind turbines will generate 588 Megawatts of power once the wind farm becomes fully operational in 2019.

Subsea 7, in alliance with Seaway Heavy Lifting(3), will project manage, design, engineer, fabricate and install EPCI jacket foundations and array cables for 84 wind turbines, and perform the transportation and installation of the offshore transmission modules.

Project management and engineering has already started at Seaway Heavy Lifting's offices in Glasgow, Scotland, and Zoetermeer, the Netherlands, and at Subsea 7's office in Aberdeen, Scotland.

Offshore installation activities will be executed in 2017 and 2018 using Seaway Heavy Lifting's heavy-lift vessels, Stanislav Yudin and Oleg Strashnov. Both these vessels provide significant lift and installation capabilities ideally suited for the challenges of installing wind farm foundations.

Jean Cahuzac, Subsea 7 Chief Executive Officer, said: "This offshore wind farm project is our largest North Sea award to date. Subsea 7 and Seaway Heavy Lifting have a strong reputation in their respective areas of expertise. This contract recognises both companies' capability to execute contracts safely, on time and within cost targets and is another major step forward in establishing Seaway Heavy Lifting as a leading EPCI contractor in the offshore renewables market."

(1) Subsea 7 defines a major contract as being over USD 750 million and this contract is over USD 1.0 billion in value.

(2) Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Limited (BOWL) is a joint venture partnership between SSE (40%), Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (35%) and SDIC Power (25%).

(3) Subsea 7 is a 50% shareholder in Seaway Heavy Lifting.

Dynamic Industries Saudi Arabia Ltd. (DISA) announces that on April 3, 2016 Saleh Al-Jewair joined their team as the DISA Operations Manager.

Saleh has over 40 years of experience in the Oil & Gas Industry working in Saudi Arabia for the private and semi-private sectors. His experience includes Vice President of Management Services, Accounting, Training & Career Development, and Contracting. Saleh’s additional experience includes General Management, Business Ethics and Compliance, Director of Human Resources Administration, the installation, testing and commissioning of the Enterprise Resource Planning, (ERP).

During the last 10 years, Saleh worked as a consultant providing Management services for various oil & gas construction companies. Saleh has also worked as a member of merger steering committees for two merger initiatives of construction companies in the Saudi Arabian market place. Saleh also provided training Services to Sabic, Royal Commission, Nesma Group, Shoaiby Group, Riyadh Bank and the Dubai HR Authority UAE.

Saleh’s main focus at DISA will be the recruitment and training of our national work force for EPCI project execution, helping to develop the different disciplines of construction services DISA will offer the Upstream and Downstream market sectors and administrating governmental regulatory requirements.

Saleh is fluent in Arabic and English and has a Bachelor of Science, Accounting from California State University, Fresno.

API has called on the federal government to align its offshore leasing program to reflect America’s new role as a global energy superpower and focus on the opportunities this creates for the country. API Executive Vice President Louis Finkel addressed flaws in the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program during a press briefing ahead of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing.

“The United States needs forward-looking energy policy,” said Finkel. “The U.S. has become the number one producer of oil and natural gas in the world thanks to development that has taken place mostly on private and state lands. At the same time, thanks to industry efforts, methane emissions are down significantly as well as carbon and other air emissions, all while energy production has been going up.”

Today, 87 percent of federal offshore areas remain off limits to oil and natural gas production. The Department of the Interior removed the Atlantic portion of the leasing program during the draft portion of the program development earlier this year, leaving only offshore Alaska as the area with the most potential for new oil and natural gas resources. However, the plan is not yet finalized, and leasing areas have not been confirmed.

“Leaving out offshore Alaska would put the U.S. at a serious global competitive disadvantage, considering that Russia, Iran, Norway and other countries are moving rapidly to develop oil and gas resources,” said Finkel. “We must continue to think ahead, explore and develop new areas to protect U.S. energy security for generations to come.

“American consumers, American businesses and future generations need energy programs from the Interior Department to align with today’s energy realities.”

Arctic offshore energy development could add 27 billion barrels of oil and 132 trillion cubic feet of natural gas to America’s proven energy portfolio and create more than 54,000 jobs across the country, according to recent studies. It’s estimated that the Beaufort and Chukchi seas have more technically recoverable oil and natural gas than the Atlantic and Pacific coasts combined.

API thanked Congress for focusing on the important issues surrounding energy and the Department of Interior’s 5-year plan.

API is the only national trade association representing all facets of the oil and natural gas industry, which supports 9.8 million U.S. jobs and 8 percent of the U.S. economy. API’s more than 650 members include large integrated companies, as well as exploration and production, refining, marketing, pipeline, and marine businesses, and service and supply firms. They provide most of the nation’s energy and are backed by a growing grassroots movement of more than 30 million Americans.

The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy has awarded five licenses to Statoil in the 23rd licensing round, four as operator and one as partner.

“The Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) is the core of Statoil’s business, and we are very pleased with the award in the 23rd licensing round, which will strengthen our exploration portfolio. Gradually opening up new areas is crucial for us to maintain profitable and high-level production up to and beyond 2030,” says Arne Sigve Nylund, Statoil’s executive vice president for Development & Production Norway.

The award covers five commitment wells – one in the vicinity of Statoil’s existing position, and four in the southeastern part of the Barents Sea, providing access to interesting acreage in a new area on the NCS.

“We will now be able to explore a very interesting area in the Barents Sea. There is always uncertainty related to probability of discovery in new areas. But if we make a discovery, it may involve considerable resources. Exploring in such areas and making substantial discoveries are vital if the NCS is to maintain its production,” says Jez Averty, Statoil’s senior vice president for exploration on the NCS.

“We have built on our 40 year-long history in North Norway, and our long experience from Barents Sea exploration. A large Statoil team has worked for 24 months to improve this application, and I am very proud of the effort made by everyone across Statoil that has led to this award,” says Averty.

“Based on in-house work and seismic data acquisition in 2013 and 2014 Statoil is well prepared for exploration drilling. Through the Barents Sea Exploration Collaboration (BaSEC) the industry has laid the groundwork for conducting safe and cost-effective drilling. We expect to drill the first well already in 2017, and will cooperate with our partners to reach this goal,” says Averty.

“We regard this award as a great opportunity, and strongly believe that if we find sufficient resources we will be able to develop them profitably,” concludes Averty.

In the 23rd licensing round Statoil has been awarded new exploration licenses in the following areas:

• 30 % share and operator for exploration license PL859 (blocks 7335/1,2,3; 7336/1; 7434/7,8,9; 7435/9,10,11,12; 7436/10)

• 40 % share and operator for exploration license PL857 (blocks 7132/1,2,3,6; 7133/1,4; 7232/10)

• 35 % share and operator for exploration license PL855 (blocks 7324/5,6; 7325/4,5)

• 40 % share and operator for exploration license PL854 (blocks 7322/3; 7323/1)

• 20 % share for exploration license PL858 (blocks 7234/3, 6; 7235/1,2,3,4,5)

Statoil has, on behalf of the Aasta Hansteen license, decided to cancel the contract with Seadrill for the West Hercules drilling rig.

On contract with Statoil since 31 January 2013, the rig has carried out an exploration campaign offshore Newfoundland in Canada for the past 18 months.

West Hercules drilling rig (Photo: Ole Jørgen Bratland/Statoil)

According to the original plan the Aasta Hansteen license was to take over the rig in the second quarter of 2016 for a drilling campaign to be started around 1 July 2016.

In the autumn of 2015 it was decided to postpone the Aasta Hansteen field start-up one year until the last half of 2018, and consequently the field drilling program will also be postponed. One of the reasons is that it is not preferable to complete the wells too early before production start-up.

The contract for West Hercules was originally to expire on 31 January 2017.

Technip (Euronext: TEC) and FMC Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: FTI) have announced that the companies will combine to create a global leader that will drive change by redefining the production and transformation of oil and gas. The combined company, which will be called TechnipFMC, would have an equity value of $13 billion based on pre-announcement share prices.

Photo credit: FMC

The companies have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and expect to execute a definitive business combination agreement to combine the companies in an all-stock merger transaction. Under the terms of the MOU, Technip shareholders will receive two shares of the new company for each share of Technip, and FMC Technologies shareholders will receive one share of the new company for each share of FMC Technologies. Each company's shareholders will own close to 50 percent of the combined company.

The transaction brings together two market leaders and their talented employees, building on the proven success of their existing alliance and joint venture, Forsys Subsea, uniting innovative technologies, common cultures and values, enabling rapid integration. The combined company will offer a new generation of comprehensive solutions in Subsea, Surface and Onshore/Offshore to reduce the cost of producing and transforming hydrocarbons. TechnipFMC's flexible commercial model will provide both integrated and discrete solutions to customers across the value chain. With more than 49,000 employees operating in over 45 countries, TechnipFMC generated 2015 combined revenue of approximately $20 billion and combined 2015 EBITDA of approximately $2.4 billion. As of March 31, 2016, the two companies together had consolidated backlog of approximately $20 billion.

John Gremp, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of FMC Technologies, said, "This is a compelling combination that will create significant additional value for clients and all shareholders, by expanding the success that FMC Technologies and Technip have achieved through our alliance and joint venture, to capitalize on new opportunities and drive accelerated growth." Thierry Pilenko, Technip Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who will serve as Executive Chairman of TechnipFMC, stated, "Technip and FMC Technologies both have long track records of innovation and commitment to helping their clients meet the challenges of the oil and gas industry. A year ago, we were at the forefront of recognizing the importance of a broader view of our clients' challenges and seized the opportunity that working together in our alliance could bring. Today we want to take this strategy further and across the full footprint of the two companies. We have complementary skills, technologies and capabilities which our customers can access on an integrated basis or separately as they prefer. Together, TechnipFMC can add more value across Subsea, Surface and Onshore/Offshore, enabling us to accelerate our growth. I am confident that we can quickly demonstrate the power of TechnipFMC to our clients, our people and our shareholders."

Doug Pferdehirt, President and Chief Operating Officer of FMC Technologies, who will serve as the CEO of TechnipFMC, added, "Our alliance has shown that as customers evaluate solutions, they are involving us in the process earlier and to a greater degree than ever before. The more they seek our recommendations and new products, the more we differentiate ourselves from the competition. This transaction will allow us to deliver even greater benefits to our customers through a broadened portfolio that provides a unique set of integrated technologies and competencies that are underpinned by a history of developing rich partnerships and creating customer success. We look forward to rapidly bringing together the outstanding employees and cultures of both companies, as well as the complementary capabilities of our organizations, to position the combined company at the forefront of a new generation of solutions for the oil and gas industry."

Fugro has provided a spectrum of services to BP Trinidad and Tobago LLC (bpTT) to allow safe drilling and completion of five subsea wells in an area of strong currents. The services include wellhead motion (fatigue) monitoring, metocean measurements and positioning services.

The positioning activities were carried out onboard the drilling vessel as well as on the three supporting anchor handling tugs (one tug had subsea acoustic ROV positioning). Fugro provided bpTT with dimensional control survey services, DGNSS verification, gyrocompass calibration and offset measurements, navigation at the well locations, and final positioning of the drilling vessel within the required tolerance of 3 metres. This position accuracy was required because the five wells were being drilled in a cluster (with separation ranging between 16 and 30 metres) and because of the need to accommodate subsea Xmas trees. Survey support was provided for anchor handling and ROV operations as well as for subsea asset positioning.

Fugro deployed its WARIS to monitor bpTT’s subsea equipment integrity in an area of strong currents. Credit: Fugro

To enable the monitoring of subsea equipment integrity during operations, Fugro supplied its Wellhead and Riser Instrumentation Service (WARIS) which included monitoring at two subsea locations: on the BOP stack and on the riser, immediately above the lower flex joint. Data were relayed to the vessel by hydroacoustic modems and then transferred to secure onshore storage, before being processed and made available to staff both offshore and onshore. The motion measurements gave bpTT real-time tracking of wellhead fatigue as well as determination of foundation stiffness and the BOP stack resonant frequency. Midway through the programme the recorded real-time data were utilised to update theoretical fatigue transforms and improve the fatigue life of wellhead components.

Strong currents at the well location needed to be understood for operational planning, as well as further analysis of subsea equipment motions. Fugro installed an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler on the seabed for metocean measurements. Current measurements were relayed to the vessel in real time using the same hydroacoustic equipment as with the WARIS.

bpTT Drilling Engineer, Anil Saisbhan said, “The additional non-traditional services from Fugro with the WARIS and real-time ADCP measurements have enabled us to realise more fatigue life of wellhead components than was theoretically suggested, as well as to mitigate against operational risk with high currents which occur sporadically in the area.”

Fugro Trinidad Country Manager, Neil Bissoon, commented, “This project demonstrates another of the major advantages that Fugro can bring to operators. We delivered a cost-effective solution to bpTT’s drilling project by sharing synergistic support functions across three major services.”

Rowan Companies plc (NYSE: RDC) announced on May 23, an agreement with its customer, Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas LLC (FMOG), and FMOG's parent company, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (Freeport), in connection with a drilling contract for the drillship Rowan Relentless, which was scheduled to terminate in June 2017.

The agreement provides that the drilling contract will be terminated immediately, and Freeport will pay Rowan $215 million in cash to settle outstanding receivables and early termination of the contract. Rowan may also receive additional contingent payments from Freeport of $10 million and $20 million, respectively, depending on the average price of oil over a 12-month period. In addition, Rowan expects to reduce its costs for the Rowan Relentless by efficient warm stacking of the rig.

Rowan Relentless. Photo courtesy: Rowan

Freeport recently announced a restructuring of its oil and gas business, which is operated through FMOG. As disclosed in Freeport's public filings, FMOG has substantial debt and has been negatively impacted by the sustained downturn in oil prices.

Tom Burke, President & CEO of Rowan, commented: "I am satisfied with this resolution given FMOG did not have any ongoing work for the Rowan Relentless. This accelerated payment provides additional liquidity to further strengthen our balance sheet and affords Rowan added flexibility as we review opportunities in this down market. The Rowan Relentless, our fourth high-specification ultra-deepwater drillship, had outstanding operational performance on this contract, delivering safe, reliable and efficient operations."

Rowan is a global provider of contract drilling services with a fleet of 31 mobile offshore drilling units, comprised of 27 jack-up rigs and four ultra-deepwater drillships. The Company's fleet operates worldwide, including the United States Gulf of Mexico, the United Kingdom and Norwegian sectors of the North Sea, the Middle East, and Central & South America. The Company's Class A Ordinary Shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "RDC

Oilennium™ Ltd., a Petrofac company that provides eLearning training services to the oil and gas industry, has completed the Well Control Awareness Course (Level 1), which was developed for the International Well Control Forum (IWCF).

The eLearning course, which consists of seven modules, was launched and offered free-of-charge on 7 March 2016 by the IWCF. Within just 28 days, 2667 from 1000 companies in 100 countries had registered, and 745 had passed it.

Today, that number has risen to 5285 registrants from 2409 companies in 114 countries. And 1702 have earned a certificate of completion by successfully answering questions about the life cycle of a well, what triggers a well control incident and how incidents can be prevented.

Record number of registrations

Samantha O’Hara, General Manager for Oilennium, stated, “For Oilennium, the Well Control Awareness Course represents several significant milestones. It is the first course that we have created with self-enrolment capability and the first to be offered for free to everyone. When coupled with the high quality of the course, it’s no surprise that it has generated such a high number of registrations in so little time.”

Word of the course has spread quickly. Already, Texas A&M University, where approximately 59,000 students study, has made completion of the Level 1 eLearning suite a mandatory requirement for its first year undergraduate engineering students and for all of its engineering students who study at its branch in Qatar.

Shortlisted for GetEnergy 2016 Award

The course was also shortlisted by GetEnergy 2016 for the “Learning at the Core” award category. To view the video that was developed for this year’s awards, which offers a quick overview of the Well Control Awareness Course, simply visit https://vimeopro.com/oilennium/iwcf-video.

The IWCF, which sets international training standards for well control, commissioned Oilennium to create a user-friendly course to raise awareness of well control amongst those working in the global oil and gas industry, as well as those who are considering a career in the sector.

David Price, CEO of IWCF said: “We are delighted with the uptake of the new Level-1 Well Control Awareness Course since it launched in March. When working with Oilennium to develop this course it was important to us, particularly in the current climate within the industry, to give something back to the industry. By making this training readily available we believe that it will help to increase understanding of how well control events can occur and their consequences and prevention.

“The training is open to everyone. It is specifically aimed at those in the industry with a secondary involvement in well operations, but students considering a career in oil and gas or anyone else with an interest in the industry will also find it insightful. Ultimately, we want to see an increase in well competency which will improve offshore safety.”

The online offering is the latest initiative in IWCF’s ongoing campaign to increase understanding of what triggers a well control incident, the impact and how such incidents can be prevented. It is based on specific recommendations made by the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (AOGP) in the wake of the Macondo tragedy. The recommendations state that an introductory Level 1 Awareness Training should be introduced. IWCF is the first organization to achieve this.

Utilizing colorful 3D animation technology, voice-overs and striking visual images, the fully interactive course opens with an explanation as to how reservoirs are formed, which leads to an overview of the well life cycle, from drilling and well interventions to plugging and abandonment. It also sheds light on potential hazards, methods of prevention and how kicks and blowouts are addressed by drawing upon actual, real life incidents. In addition to the technical information, the modules highlight the importance of human factors, such as behaviors and decision-making. Upon completion of the course, the user will have an awareness of the well life cycle and basic well control.

Easy to administer & track course activity

For the IWCF, it is very easy to administer because participants enroll themselves. By accessing the course’s customized dashboard reporter, IWCF managers can track all activity associated with the course. At a glance they can view who has registered, their individual progress and completion of the course. It identifies the company and geographic location, as well.

About International Well Control Forum

Founded in 1992 by oil and gas operators, the IWCF is an independent, not for profit organization with elected representatives and a global network of branches, representing the entire industry. Headquartered in Montrose, UK, IWCF administers well control training, assessment and certification programs. IWCF is committed to creating a step-change in well control knowledge and recently invested in new facilities in Montrose to enhance training for assessors and instructors, including the use of simulators to replicate real-life scenarios. IWCF has certified over 160,000 people on almost every continent through 210 accredited training centers.

About Oilennium Ltd.

Oilennium Ltd. is part of oilfield services company Petrofac. Oilennium was founded in 2000 to provide bespoke blended learning solutions for companies operating in the international energy sector. Learning programmes are available about the oil and gas industry, risk management, Leadership and Management, drilling, QHSSE, process safety and equipment operations, among a host of others.

To date, approximately 75,000 people around the world have access to Oilennium’s eLearning programs. Oilennium provides a broad range of learning programs to numerous corporate customers, including Chevron, Enbridge Pipelines, ConocoPhillips, ADCO, Perenco, Halliburton, Baker Hughes, ECITB, Hydratight, Noble Drilling, Pacific Drilling, Marathon Oil, Seajacks, Transocean, and Weatherford. Oilennium operates from its global headquarters in Loddon in Norfolk, England, and its regional offices in Houston Texas, the United Arab Emirates and Aberdeen, Scotland.

Under a program organized by the Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA), Doris Inc., the Offshore Technology Research Center (OTRC) at Texas A&M University and Sevan Marine have carried out further research and model scale testing of Sevan Marine’s cylindrical hull for application in GOM ultra deep water. The model tests at OTRC confirm the favorable motion characteristics of the Sevan Marine design enabling the application of with Steel Catenary Risers (SCR) and permanent mooring in even the harshest hurricane conditions. Several major oil companies attended the Industry Day held on Wednesday, May 11, 2016 further highlighting the keen interest which exists in the market for Sevan Marine’s cylindrical design.

Photo credit: Sevan Marine

Further research and testing is planned in order to bring Sevan Marine’s patented SCR concept to its full potential. Sevan Marine is confident that this can be a game changing technology for deep water offshore applications particularly in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico’s outer continental shelf in years to come.

Sevan Marine would like to give its special thanks to Doris Inc., the OTRC and RPSEA for their great support.

Funding for the projects is provided through the “Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other Petroleum Resources Research and Development Program” authorized by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This program—funded from lease bonuses and royalties paid by industry to produce oil and gas on federal lands—is designed to assess and mitigate risk enhancing the environmental sustainability of oil and gas exploration and production activities.

RPSEA is under contract with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory to administer three areas of research. RPSEA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit consortium with more than 180 members, including 24 of the nation's premier research universities, five national laboratories, other major research institutions, large and small energy producers and energy consumers. The mission of RPSEA, headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, is to provide a stewardship role in ensuring the focused research, development and deployment of safe and environmentally responsible technology that can effectively deliver hydrocarbons from domestic resources to the citizens of the United States.

Olympic Shipping has entered into a frame agreement with Canyon Offshore, Inc. for the joint marketing and subsequent operation of the subsea construction vessel Olympic Athene and Canyon’s ROV systems, which will see the companies work together to secure utilization for the vessel and Canyon Offshore’s systems and services with third party clients.

Olympic Athene. Photo credit: Olympic Shipping

The framework agreement will operate initially for six months, with the potential to be evergreen thereafter. The Olympic Athene has commenced its first job with a third party client in the U.S. Gulf under this agreement.

Stig Remøy, CEO of Olympic Shipping, stated “I am happy to see that we, together with Canyon Offshore, are able to set up a structure that offers our clients high quality vessel and ROV services.”

Ian Edmonstone, President Canyon Offshore, said “we are also pleased to continue our long term relationship with Olympic Shipping and look forward to providing quality subsea project solutions to our Americas client base.

Work is due to start shortly on the first of a new class of Damen utility vessel UV2410. This multi-role platform is the result of extensive consultation with customers active in the aquaculture industry in the UK and Norway. For these customers it was important that the rule length of the new vessel be no more than 24-meters and, for UK customers in particular, that it fits within the 200 Gross Tonage limit. Feedback indicated that within that length maximum possible protected deck space and good seakeeping were top priorities, along with ample accommodation.

Image credit: Damen

The Utility Vessel 2410 delivers all these requirements and more besides. “With the wide beam of 9.5 meters and minimal superstructure this vessel provides 120 m² of unobstructed deck space, yet still has comfortable accommodation for up to six crew. The design is optimized for a wide range of roles including maintenance support, oil recovery, diving support, buoy handling, safety stand-by, ROV support, surveying and much more” said Lodewijk van Os, Product Director Workboats.

“It is also ideal for aquaculture, with easy access to the waterline amidships via steps and a three-metre opening in the bulwark, and the capability of mounting dedicated equipment including up to two cranes. In fact, the deck is pretty much ready for anything; A-frames, winches, davits for rescue boats, task-specific containers and many other types of equipment can be quickly added and removed as the vessel receives new assignments.”

The Utility Vessel 2410 shares many of the renowned attributes of other vessels from Damen’s extensive workboat ranges. As well as for aquaculture companies, Damen envisages that the 2410 will be very attractive to port authorities, governmental organizations, marine contractors and anyone involved in varied, water-based maintenance operations.

From small trawlers to large container ships, producing clean, fresh water while underway is an essential shipboard operation. Thousands of professional mariners have placed their trust in FCI Watermakers for their desalinization needs. The company's ultra-reliable Neptune and Poseidon lines offer simple and cost-effective use, and require little maintenance.

The innovative Neptune is one of the most adaptable commercial watermakers available. It's offered in both a framed and modular configuration for ease of installation—no need to torch a hole to fit it in—and has a small footprint. It'll make from 1,275 to 9,500 gallons per day (GPD) and is built to run non-stop, 24/7, with a low power draw.

With the ability to make up to 40,000 GPD, the high-output, state-of-the-art Poseidon is built with unrivaled quality. It's available in a compact frame and easily installed as a refit or in a new build. Like the Neptune, it's highly tolerant of changing water salinity and turbidity.

Both are simple to operate using FCI Watermakers' industry-leading V4 Controller. The 7" touchscreen panel is intuitive to set up a scheduled process or maintenance event. It has type approval certifications from ABS, GL, Lloyd's Register EMEA, Det Norske Veritas and the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping.

Because the Neptune and Poseidon use only commercial grade, belt-driven pump and motor assemblies, maintenance is minimal. And when it's time to replace disposables, they're all low-cost, non-proprietary parts—an important consideration for vessels destined for foreign ports.