Auto Sand & Erosion Management System (A-SEMS)

Abstract

Abstract Sand erosion is the one of top damage mechanism to cause severe loss of primary containment (LOPC) incidents in the Gulf of Thailand (GoT) oil and gas production area where sand production is the known issue. To effectively manage sand erosion in this area while maximizing oil and gas production to meet production target and sale agreement, the development and implementation of automated management system are necessary to handle the unpredictability and rapid deterioration of sand erosion. The automated management system within A-SEMS (Auto Sand & Erosion Management System) has been derived from the historical data analysis, engineering analysis, and operational feasibility, and developed as rule-based Python algorithm to integrate data from various sources related to completion, production, operation, and maintenance activities, then make decision and command action without human intervention to prevent the LOPC incident. After implementing A-SEMS for 11 months, 3 potential LOPC incidents from sand erosion prevented by early detection and responsive action commanded by A-SEMS. Due to effectiveness of A-SEMS to handle sand and erosion concern at topside facilities, benefit gained from inspection cost reduction, workload optimization, incident cost avoidance and unlock production limit from the theoretical maximum allowable sand rate can achieve 9MMUSD per year.