RIASSUNTO
Abstract
From 1998 to 2010, after years of decline, Russia's oil production increased by 66% from 6.2 million bbl/day to a post-Soviet record of 10.3 million bbl/day1. Significantly, this period also witnessed the creation of an independent oilfield services (OFS) sector as Russian operators adopted global practice and began to outsource non-core activities.
Following decades of in-house drilling and related operations by State enterprises, the emergence of independent contractors, as well as market-driven operators, have created the conditions to transform well construction performance. Integrated service providers take this a step further by optimizing the process from well design through construction to completion.
This paper outlines how, in less than a decade, Russia's oilfield service sector is transforming field development economics. It focuses on the technologies, processes and motivational issues that drive performance in well construction, based on international practice but adapted to Russia's uniquely challenging environment.
The paper describes operational, financial and HSE-related improvements that independent contractors deliver at each step of the well construction process. It identifies opportunities for further gain through integrated project management, provided supporting processes and infrastructure are in place.
Russia remains a frontier for our industry and for the SPE. This paper offers an understanding of the rapidly-changing roles of professionals and rig crew at engineering centers and well sites across the country, and how these impact well construction performance. It points to trends that operators, contractors and others can expect to encounter as Russia's oilfield transformation continues.
Global Operator-Contractor Models
The continuous drive for business efficiency and shareholder value in recent decades have led global oil and
gas companies to outsource well construction operations and divest related assets to specialized, independent providers of oilfield services. Today for example, major operators accept that owning and operating their own drilling rigs (as many used to do) is not part of their core business and an inefficient use of resources.