H&P set to expand footprint with KCA Deutag deal

Helmerich & Payne (H&P) announced in late July an agreement to acquire KCA Deutag for $1.9725 billion. The transaction is expected to close this year. The deal increases H&P’s Middle East rig count from 12 rigs to 88 rigs, 71 of which are in Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait.

KCA Deutag has a land drilling presence in the Middle East, operations in South America, Europe and Africa, and offshore management contract operations in the North Sea, Angola, Azerbaijan and Canada. Its Kenera segment comprises manufacturing and engineering.

Chevron announces HQ move, leadership changes

Chevron has announced that the company’s headquarters will move from San Ramon, Calif., to Houston. Chevron Chairman and CEO Mike Wirth and Vice Chairman Mark Nelson will move to Houston before the end of 2024 to co-locate with other senior leaders.

Chevron currently has roughly 7,000 employees in the Houston area and approximately 2,000 employees in San Ramon. The company expects all corporate functions to migrate to Houston over the next five years.

Chevron also announced that Nigel Hearne, Executive Vice President, Oil, Products & Gas, will retire after 35 years. Mark Nelson, Chevron’s Vice Chairman, will take responsibility for Oil, Products & Gas on 1 October. 

Rhonda Morris, Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, will also retire after 31 years. Michelle Green, Vice President, Human Resources, Oil, Products & Gas, will succeed Ms Morris as Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer on 1 January 2025.

Devon nabs Grayson Mill’s Williston Basin business  

Devon Energy has announced its agreement to acquire the Williston Basin business of Grayson Mill Energy in a transaction valued at $5 billion, consisting of $3.25 billion in cash and $1.75 billion in stock. 

The transaction expands the company’s position in the Williston Basin with the addition of 307,000 net acres (70% working interest). It’s also expected to boost Devon’s oil production to an average of 375,000 barrels per day.

ATPI names Angelina Bunting to new post in UAE

ATPI, a travel management agency with energy and marine service lines, has appointed Angelina Bunting as its new Head of Commercial Strategy, based in the UAE. The company offers a CO2 measurement, reduction and compensation service for businesses where travel, an emissions contributor, is unavoidable.

ABL wins work in Indonesia, adds US country manager

Petronas’ Indonesian branch has awarded energy and marine consultancy ABL a contract to provide rig inspection services to its assets operating offshore Indonesia. The contract is valid for one year, with an optional one-year extension.

ABL also recently expanded its asset integrity management (AIM) business in the US with the addition of Luis Gonzalez  as Country Manager for AIM. In this role, Mr Gonzalez will work to introduce advanced technologies like IoT, AI and predictive analytics to clients in the region.

SLB wins EPCI contract for Murlach in UK North Sea 

SLB was awarded an integrated engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contract by BP to its OneSubsea joint venture and Subsea7 for the Murlach development in the UK North Sea. The project will include the first implementation of the SLB OneSubsea standard, configurable vertical monobore tree systems in the UK North Sea, which will be deployed by Subsea7 via vessel to reduce rig days.

Serica looks to power offshore assets with wind 

UK E&P company Serica Energy has signed a memorandum of understanding with SeaTwirl, a floating wind turbine developer, to identify opportunities to decarbonize offshore oil and gas production and other associated offshore electrification opportunities using renewable power and, where applicable, subsea energy storage.

Spirit Energy appoints Nick Harrison as new CFO

Nick Harrison joined Spirit Energy as its Chief Financial Officer. He comes to the company with more than three decades of experience working within the energy sector, having previously held positions with Repsol Sinopec, Talisman Energy and Shell. 

BP to add Crew Hawk across North Sea assets 

Salunda has secured an agreement to provide BP with its Crew Hawk red zone monitoring solution for use across the operator’s North Sea assets. Crew Hawk wirelessly monitors hazardous working environments by tracking individuals and equipment in real time. The regional rollout was confirmed following successful field trials on BP’s Clair Ridge platform.

Geothermal power set to be added to US grid

Sage Geosystems announced it will partner with San Miguel Electric Cooperative to build the world’s first geopressured geothermal system energy storage facility. This will mark the first time geothermal power is added to the grid in the US.

SandRidge to acquire Western Anadarko assets

SandRidge Energy is set to acquire producing assets and leasehold interests in the Cherokee play of the Western Anadarko Basin for $144 million. The acquisition includes 42 producing wells and four drilled but uncompleted wells scheduled to be turned to production in 2024. SandRidge will assume operatorship of the new wells after they are producing. Acquisition assets are located within the Mid-Continent region, where SandRidge currently operates.

Radix, Cognite partner on industrial AI applications utilizing hybrid intelligence

Radix, a global technology solutions company, announced a strategic partnership with Cognite, a Norwegian software-as-a-service company. The partnership aims to accelerate the use of AI to streamline and contextualize data management and asset performance across oil and gas and other industries.

The partnership pairs Cognite’s Industrial DataOps platform, Cognite Data Fusion, with Radix’s expertise in engineering, data, software and operations to allow customers to intelligently analyze and extract critical information from their data. This is expected to drive improvements in operational efficiency, uptime optimization and cost reductions.

By utilizing hybrid intelligence with AI to sort through data, companies can quickly isolate problem areas and work on solutions with more accurate and effective timelines. Hybrid intelligence also helps to accelerate access to data across various independent systems, making it easier to coordinate for quicker analysis and troubleshooting across industrial operations.

Radix has developed a rich set of industrial applications built on top of Cognite Data Fusion. These selected industrial application solutions enhance scalability, usability and overall value for users and businesses. They include an operational view on actionable insights, OEE monitoring and control, preventative insights for monitoring, and improvement workflows for field process improvements and operational efficiency.

Odfjell wins well services contract from HEYCO for Spain’s Viura field

Odfjell Technology, an integrated supplier of well services technology and engineering solutions, has been awarded a contract for onshore activity by HEYCO Energy Group, which manages oil and gas exploration and development projects in the United States and Europe. The contract will focus on the Viura field in Northern Spain, where 85% of the country’s natural gas is produced.

DNV approves Digitising Reality for remote inspection techniques

Digitising Reality announced it received approval from DNV for using remote inspection techniques for closeup survey of structures, in accordance with Class Program DNV-CP-0623. This approval allows Digitising Reality to carry out inspections offshore as per DNV’s classification programs.

The energy sector is rapidly incorporating unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for inspections, emissions monitoring and maintenance due to their ability to enhance safety, efficiency and cost effectiveness, according to Digitising Reality. The company provides drone-based emission and surveillance solutions and 3D asset surveys, which enhance the efficiency of mitigation and safety modeling for both onshore and offshore assets.

Drones can access challenging locations and gather high-quality data faster than traditional methods, eliminating the need for scaffolding, cranes or rope access, and minimizing operational downtime. This technology can be particularly valuable for inspecting assets like offshore rigs.

PRODUCTS

New technical service from Halliburton aims to enhance fracture monitoring

Halliburton introduced Sensori, a technical service that provides subsurface fracture monitoring. The service combines non-intrusive technologies, automated data acquisition and processing, and real-time subsurface answers into a single solution to provide operators with visibility and control over fracture performance. 

It also provides true, real-time data acquisition and processing of near-well and far-field subsurface measurements. Through automation, cloud processing and big data analytics, the Sensori service provides continuous, real-time subsurface feedback for multiple well pads across an entire asset. With the integration of non-intrusive downhole diagnostics, the service allows more frequent, cost-effective acquisition of quality subsurface measurements.