When you put a group of subsea control technologists together in a small room to discuss the future of controls, one would expect a lively discussion about fiber optics, data flow, all-electric systems and the like.

What came out during a recent technology day in Aberdeen, Scotland, hosted by Aker Solutions were not so much desires but concerns. Has reliability gone into reverse? Are systems too complex? Would standardization have a negative effect on innovation? Will local content requirements in some countries further delay the implementation of new technology? Have operators really taken on board the need to reduce costs?

The purpose of the day was mainly to hear from the recently revamped and now more subsea- and deepwater-focused Aker Solutions (following its split into two separate entities, the other being Akastor, an oilfield services investment business that will develop the former group’s other units) on what it is doing, mostly related to control systems.

Next-generation SEM

The company took the opportunity to announce the launch of its sixth-generation subsea electronics module (SEM), dubbed Vectus 6.0.

Aker Solutions’ vice president of control systems, Davy Benison, called it “a step change in technology” that has come after more than 30 years of subsea controls development. This is not just new electronics in a new canister but something quite different, combining new architecture with new hardware and software.

The redesigned SEM incorporates three modules—the electronics module designed with no wiring (i.e. all plug-in circuit boards), an auxiliary electronics module for control of chokes and valves and a 24-v DC power supply module with a wide range of output power—200-v to 900-v AC and 280-v to 1,200-v DC.

In terms of quality, a key target is to eventually have zero failures and rework during final assembly as well as full traceability of all components and a database of all test results. Aker also is looking to improve reliability and manufacturability (with a standard repeatable build process and fully automated test operations).

Future-proof

The SEM is also meant to be future-proof, meaning based on a platform that can meet and incorporate new technology needs. The presentation included an image of Statoil’s subsea factory concept as such a future example, something that Aker has been working on with the Norwegian operator for some years now.

However, future-proofing is not as big a problem today as obsolescence.

Aker Solutions’ U.K. managing director, Matt Corbin, said at the technology day that he was pleased that a recent Statoil presentation had added the challenge of “older” to the standard

“deeper, colder, longer” mantra.

Operator viewpoints

Also at the technology day were presentations given by technologists from Total and Shell.

Bruce Gardner, who left Aker Solutions six years ago to join Shell U.K., highlighted Shell’s focus in keeping its current inventory of controls system (and wells) running at the lowest cost. Its acronym of the moment is AIPSM (Asset Integrity Process Safety Management).

The key technology for Shell with its aging systems is a backward-compatible low-power SEM that has been jointly developed with Aker Solutions.

Gregor Deans from Total, meanwhile, presented a wider technology menu including beyond 2025. Total’s menu is as extensive as that of a Parisian brasserie, with the ongoing focus on deeper waters and long-distance tiebacks with a few items not yet in use. These include subsea chemical storage and injection to reduce the size of umbilicals and permanently located AUVs for subsea inspection and maintenance—the latter being something still under consideration for inclusion on the operator’s large Kaombo development offshore Angola.

All-electric future

Total has of course been the champion of all-electric subsea systems—it has the only two electric trees in the water—and it continues to see this as a technology with a future. It will install its third Cameron/OneSubsea electric tree in early 2016, but this time the system will include an item previously missing on the past applications—an electric downhole safety valve, which is now qualified.

Also nearing fruition are solutions including compact separation, more subsea seawater treatment and injection (SPRINGS – Subsea PRocess and INjection Gear for Seawater) currently on a pilot in the Congo offshore West Africa, high- and low-pressure gas-liquid separation, high-power boosting, and long-distance dry compression.

New systems from subsea alliance

On another matter, the Aker Solutions-Baker Hughes Subsea Production Alliance formed earlier this year was said to be getting ready to launch two new systems—PowerJump, a horizontal seabed electric submersible pump (ESP); and PowerHub, a retrofit ESP installed by coiled tubing and hung off the top of the tubing hanger. Also in the cards is the completion of the qualification at the beginning of next year of Aker Solutions’ MultiBooster multiphase pump.

Aker Solutions also revealed at its technology day that its Quad 204 project for BP west of the Shetland Islands in the U.K. sector is its largest ongoing controls program, with a modular control system capable of handling 100 wells and 60 new subsea control modules, including 14 for new wells.

Seabed compression

Offshore Norway, meanwhile, it is continuing to make good progress with the Åsgard Field’s subsea compression system for operator Statoil. The manifold station, compression template and topsides module have all been installed, with delivery of the Train 1 modules due in December this year. The delivery of Train 2 and Train 3 is due by April 2015, it added, after which commissioning activity will take place with the aim of achieving first gas before the end of the year.

Åsgard is a flagship project for Statoil as it seeks to continue with its EOR initiatives to boost production levels from Norway’s existing fields. In this case it is the producing but steadily declining (in terms of the reservoir pressure) Mikkel and Midgard fields that flow to the Åsgard B floating production platform about 40 km to 50 km (25 miles to 31 miles) away.

From Aker’s perspective, it sees the subsea factory solution as the next step to achieve after the Åsgard compression project work is complete.

Subsea Business Drivers:

● Deeper waters, aging fields, complex reservoirs, harsh fluids

● Need for increased oil recovery from existing and future fields

● Longer subsea step-outs (also driven by harsh environments)

● Need for reducing field development cost (capex and opex)

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