In order to uphold and control the structural integrity of the Ekofisk platforms, a new web information platform is being developed in close cooperation between ConocoPhillips and DNV.
Ekofisk was the first Norwegian oil field to come on stream in 1971. Today, 33 years later, it now produces more than 450,000 barrels each day.
The flow of technical information about the Ekofisk field’s history and current operating conditions is increasing steadily. Maintaining an overview of all the platforms’ current design and physical conditions is one of the biggest factual challenges facing the oil companies as the North Sea’s installations grow older.
The new information platform is called SIMS - Structural Integrity Management System. Its purpose is to enable the structural integrity of all the platforms in the Greater Ekofisk field to be monitored by the efficient management of changes to design premises and control of work processes and data.
Two American companies, Conoco Inc and Phillips Petroleum, merged in August 2002 to form ConocoPhillips, which now operates the Ekofisk field. When oil was first discovered in the Ekofisk Area in 1969, the field’s lifetime was estimated to be 25 years. Revised estimates have now extended the lifetime to 2028, and this requires increased effort to ensure that the Ekofisk field infrastructure ages with pride.
Enough, but not too much
Operating offshore installations is a matter of safety, maintenance and a continuous, strict focus on every aspect of the production process. One of ConocoPhillips’ current challenges at Ekofisk is to make the field safe and profitable for another 30 years, far beyond initial expectations and under different constraints than were expected decades ago. This requires finding the right balance between technical safety, environmental considerations and operability.
To be able to produce as much as possible from the reservoir, ConocoPhillips is combining new installations with some of the existing 30-year-old structures on the field. Old platforms have been shut down and new platforms have been and will be installed in the years to come.
The new web information system will be a useful tool for keeping control of all the information on these platforms’ status and structural integrity.