News Cuttings

IADC Technology Meet held in Vizag on India’s east coast

For the first time, the IADC South Central Asia Chapter has held its Technology Meet outside of Mumbai — this time in Vizag (Visakhapatnam) on India’s east coast in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

Recent oil/gas discoveries by ONGC, RIL, GSPC and Cairn Energy have indicated the vast hydrocarbon potential of the area.

The 18th Technology Meet: Vision East Coast was inaugurated by U.N. Bose, ONGC director-T&FS and SCA Chapter chairman. Addressing the attendees, Mr Bose said that the present E&P era is facing problems such as depletion, aging fields and shortage of manpower. However, India’s east coast offers a ray of hope with its prospective oil and gas finds, he noted.

Mr Bose continued on to urge IADC to facilitate discussions so the east coast’s potential can be fully tapped. He also stressed the need for exploring alternative energy sources, urging drilling and production engineers to look at exploitation of coal gasification, gas hydrates, etc.

Infrastructure Corporation of Andhra Pradesh made a presentation on the government’s initiatives in infrastructure development along the coastal belt. Experts from various E&P companies then made presentations on the merits of drilling on India’s east coast and on the challenges and opportunities awaiting them.

The North Sea Offshore Authorities Forum (NSOAF) has provided the first formal recognition of the IADC European Competency Training Programme, an initiative to harmonize training standards across Europe.

By approving a new strategy at the its 2007 annual meeting, NSOAF agreed to work toward “full mutual recognition of safety training certificates between the offshore regime and international regime for mobile offshore units, within recognized frameworks.”

The IADC competency training programme has been recognized as such a framework that lays “the foundation for efficient movement of personnel working on mobile units.”

In order to allow workers in the North Sea offshore sector to travel freely across borders, NSOAF will work toward convergent safety training using:

• A common functional map of what safety training must cover.

• A common set of learning outcomes.

• Convergent quality assurance arrangements underpinned by independent verification.

Other positions adopted in NSOAF’s new strategy include:

• Focus on similarities of safety training’s function elements and learning outcomes.

• Confidence that different training approaches can give similar competence.

• Approved training institutions providing safety training within recognized frameworks, such as IADC’s, will be recognized.

• Arrangements for cooperation in the process of revising national safety training standards will be developed, focusing on existing forums such as NSOAF.

• Regular attendance by stakeholders at NSOAF meetings.

Drilling Contractor was recently recognized by the Business Marketing Association – Houston Chapter. The July/August 2007 issue of DC received the top honor, a Lantern Award, for best magazine for external audiences. DC also won an Award of Excellence for best magazine cover with its January/February 2007 edition. The winners were announced at the BMA Lantern Awards dinner on 18 October 2007 in Houston.

This achievement comes after DC’s circulation reached an all-time high this year, exceeding 32,700 readers with the July/August 2007 issue.

“2007 has been an exemplary year for DC. We look forward to providing more cutting-edge news on drilling technology, market trends and more in 2008,” said Mike Killalea, IADC vice president and publisher/editor of Drilling Contractor.

The IADC UBO & MPD Committee has made several achievements in 2006-2007, according to committee chairman Joe Kinder of Secure Drilling. They include:

• Drafted, presented and achieved release for API Spec 7NRV, a manufacturing spec for non-return valves, in a joint effort with API.

• Worked through internal ballot resolution for a comprehensive recommended practice (RP) on underbalanced operations. This will be presented to the API Executive Committee on Drilling and Production Operations by the end of
2007.

• Worked with the Minerals Management Service (MMS), Offshore Operators Committee (OOC) and industry representatives to assist with a draft Notice to Leaseholders (NTL) on managed pressure drilling. The NTL includes excerpts and philosophy from the API RP draft.

• Issued MPD additions to the UBO glossary.

• Working with the API task group on well intervention, normalized testing times to ensure continuity between standards.

• Cooperation was continued with the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors to achieve consistent guidelines and practices to help promote efficient and safe MPD/UBO operations within the industry.

• Revised MPD/UBO HSE guidelines.

All IADC members are encouraged to participate in the UBO & MPD Committee.

The SPE/IADC Managed Pressure Drilling & Underbalanced Operations Conference & Exhibition will be held 28-29 January 2008 in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

As implementation of the IADC Offshore Competency Training Programme enters the final stages, IADC has reached agreement with the Falck Nutec training facility in Esbjerg, Denmark, to run a fully certified Basic Introduction to Offshore Safety (BIOS) course there on 11-13 December 2007. This follows the successful execution of the trial BIOS course at the same facility in March 2007. The course, which will include the Helicopter Underwater Escape Training (HUET), will have a maximum of eight participants drawn from Maersk Contractors, Noble Drilling and Seadrill, plus observers.