In July 2015, Baker Hughes launched the Integrity eXplorer wireline cement evaluation service to provide more accurate data on the quality of cement jobs. The data enables operators to make critical decisions that impact well integrity...

Riser gas events are not common, but they can occur suddenly and without warning, and they can have serious consequences. That’s why it’s critical to develop an action plan, Robert Ziegler, Global Director of Well Control Technology for Weatherford, said in a presentation...

Promoting the safe and efficient execution of underbalanced operations (UBO) and managed pressure drilling (MPD) continues to be the primary objective of the IADC UBO/MPD Committee. Committee Chairman Per Cato Berg, Leading MPD Advisor for Statoil, provided an update on the committee’s work over the past year...

The US offshore drilling industry is on pins and needles awaiting the release of the final well control rule produced by the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE).

To reduce costs due to NPT related to severe lost circulation and to drill wells with narrow operational windows or reservoir depletion, Petrobras started a project in 2013 to make more deepwater rigs MPD-ready. By the end of 2016, 15 rigs from five different drilling contractors are expected to have completed this conversion...

In June 2015, Petrobras conducted a well capping and containment response exercise in the Santos Basin. The exercise was conducted on an ultra-deepwater and vertical drilling well using a dynamically positioned drillship, said Rubens Ribeiro de Paula Jr, who works in Petrbras’ Well Control...

Later this year, Baker Hughes will launch an enhanced drilling optimization service, which will incorporate the CoPilot 2.5 downhole drilling dynamics sub...

On the Martin Linge field in the Norwegian North Sea, Total had been experiencing multiple challenges, including severe losses, unstable formations and excessive downhole shock and vibrations. To address these challenges, the operator turned to National Oilwell Varco (NOV) and its IntelliServ wired drill pipe, Saskia Schils, Head of Engineering - Exploration Drilling at Total E&P Angola, explained. In this video from 1 March, Ms Schils explains the results that were achieved. Reina Teelken, Senior Technical Advisor at NOV, also shares the company’s plans for taking the technology forward. More information about this project can also be found in IADC/SPE 178863, “The Use of Wired Drillpipe Technology in a Complex Drilling Environment Increased Drilling Efficiency and Reduced Well Times.”

Drilling rigs and theme park rides share similarities that most people may not be aware of, said Mike Withers, Retired VP of Ride Engineering for Walt Disney Imagineering. Both the theme park and drilling industries need equipment with high uptime, that can last for many years and is safe. Mr Withers gave a presentation on Disney’s use of automation in its theme parks at a symposium jointly held by the SPE Drilling Systems Automation Technical Section and the IADC Advanced Rig Technology Committee on 29 February in Fort Worth, Texas. The workshop focused on human and machine interaction in automation. In this video with DC, Mr Withers explains how automation has been used in Disney Parks and the company’s process for designing its rides.

To reduce cycle times in the Bakken, National Oilwell Varco (NOV) and Hess teamed up on a project that deployed NOV’s closed-loop, downhole automation system, Evolve, in 16 wells. This project was the subject of a technical presentation at the 2016 IADC/SPE Drilling Conference in Fort Worth, Texas, on 2 March. In this video with DC, NOV Vice President of Dynamic Drilling Solutions Tony Pink explains the results and lessons learned from this project. Mr Pink also shares NOV’s plans to advance the Evolve system.