Tangible Value from Smart Fields

Abstract

Abstract Although the implementation of Smart Fields, or Digital Oil Fields is at last gaining momentum, many companies continue to place the measurement of benefits in the ‘Too Difficult’ category. It seems to make sense that the combined capability of a Smart Field should allow more value to be extracted from the field, but measuring value from a large programme of interdependent projects can be difficult. Attempts to allocate benefits to individual projects can be misleading and often results in double-accounting between different stakeholders, and some of the ‘high value’ benefits associated with additional recovery are difficult to quantify and are typically realised many years into the future. This paper addresses some of the tangible benefits that have been identified in ADCOs first Smart Field development, together with the expected benefits in implementing similar capabilities across the other assets. It explains how several different levels of wellhead instrumentation and control were evaluated to determine the level of smartness which generated the highest business value. The results of the assessment have been used to support the roll out of a corporate wide, integrated Smart Fields programme, covering well instrumentation and control, an upgrade to the telecoms infrastructure, analytical / visualisation applications and collaborative work environments.