November/December 2019

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DC 75th Anniversary Retrospective
A look back at our archived covers from 2006 to 2019.
2020 Global Drilling Outlook
Peak in shale’s capital efficiency could help to bring investors back By Linda Hsieh, Editor & publisher
Operator spending cuts may lead to 10% fall in 2020 land rig count By Linda Hsieh, Editor & publisher
IHS Markit: Offshore dayrates will be better in 2020, just not as much as drillers hope for or need By Linda Hsieh, Editor & publisher
As operators reshuffle priorities, offshore exploration is losing out By Linda Hsieh, Editor & publisher
Investments needed to meet global oil/gas demand hurt by disconnect between public perception, reality By Linda Hsieh, Editor & publisher
Local deepwater rig supplies tighten in US Gulf, Brazil as dayrates inch up By Leslie Cook, Wood Mackenzie
Optimism rising for jackup outlook as utilization, dayrates both improve By Linda Hsieh, Editor & publisher
National Oilwell Varco 66th Annual Rig Census
2019 NOV census shows robust international land rig utilization but softening in North America onshore Except for harsh-environment semis, global offshore fleet continues to see a very slow recovery, although 69% utilization is the highest it’s been since 2015 By Tony Crawford, Tarjei Myklebust and Aylar Ibrahimoglu, National Oilwell Varco
Well control
Nabors develops MPD Return Flow Pathways procedure to manage non-well control use of rig chokes By Richard Grayson & Adam Keith, Nabors
Downhole Advances
New gauge pad design improves PDC bit tracking in horizontal wells By Reed Spencer, Bradley D. Pierce and Robert E. Grimes, Baker Hughes
High-density survey data allows for capture of live inclination and azimuth, delivers clearer downhole picture By Chris Hartley, Gyrodata
Wells Abandonment
Vessel selection, lessons learned in using a drillship for temporary abandonment of 15 subsea wells By William Liew Sin Yoong, Khalil Mohamed M’bareck, Shahira Emie Lyana Bt Mustaffa and Mohd Hairi Abdul Razak, PETRONAS; Frederic Jacquemin, William Zomerdijk, PACIFIC DRILLING
Completions
150 ksi nickel alloy materials among new innovations for sour service By Linda Hsieh, Editor & Publisher
IADC Connection
From the Chairman: Through IADC, members come together to make our industry better and stronger By Kevin Neveu, 2019 IADC Chairman
Exciting initiatives on the horizon as IADC heads into 80th year By Jason McFarland, IADC President
IADC continues to deliver on wide-ranging issues affecting global drilling industry, from next-gen outreach to advocacy to training By Amy Rose, IADC Director of External Relations
News Cuttings DDR Plus V2.0 released for final industry comment IADC establishes international student chapter in India IADC staff, onshore members meet with congress in DC fly-in Texas A&M student chapter members visit Independence Contract Drilling rig IADC Houston Chapter to host Christmas gala
Wirelines US House passes legislation to impede offshore drilling US house votes to bar development in ANWR EPA Proposes Updates to Air Regulations for Oil and Gas US Coast Guard’s Maritime Security Committee Holds Annual Security Exercise
Departments
Drilling Ahead: On environmental stewardship, industry may need realignment By Linda Hsieh, Editor & Publisher
D&C News Transocean launches hybrid floating drilling unit Tullow, Hess announce discoveries offshore Guyana Talos receives exploration extension offshore Mexico ADES, Vantage win contract for Egypt drilling project Dolphin to drill for Shell on Norway’s Knarr field Valaris announces new contract awards, extensions
D&C Tech Digest Technology increases accessible reserves on Ivar Aasen Optical measurements help to execute mooring inspection Optimization app helps drilling of record well on Alaska’s north slope Intelligent system deployed on Clair Ridge
HSE&T Corner: Hidden costs incurred by forgoing effective well control training for rig crews can substantially outweigh actual cost of training By Steve L. Richert, Wild Well Control
People, Companies and Products Latshaw Drilling announces new VP Contracts, 2 promotions Multi-year service contracts awarded for work in the UAE IMI, Gustomsc ink deal to partner on jackup design ABS, Keppel launch newbuild rigs with smart notations IHS Markit introduces index for global carbon credits Looney to take over after Dudley retires from BP Bishop Lifting acquires Western Sling & Supply Devon names David Harris as executive VP of E&P Meissner joins 3T energy as executive vice president Hyperion acquires AFC Products Schlumberger introduces at-bit steerable system Baker Hughes joint venture launches AI application Telemetry service offers quick, reliable data transmission Mobile mixer allows epoxy resin to be mixed onsite New perforating system uses portless sub system Seadrill launches tool to monitor red zones New connector to target use in 20K interventions
Perspectives: Chris Parker, BP — Industry undergoing important cultural shift to focus on underlying causes of incidents, not on individual blame By Joshua Baethge, contributor