The story of North Sea oil is technologically exciting, in some respects as exciting as the Apollo moon landings of nearly half a century ago. But it is also one of the most expensive oil producing regions in the world and is therefore liable to remain at a cost disadvantage. This situation is severely handicapping efforts to attract investment to develop proven and potential oil reserves. In what is likely to become a slimmed-down North Sea industry, the region’s economic viability over the next quarter century is dependent on operating a different business model and using new technologies.

Improving the recovery of hydrocarbons in what, given the present challenging economic environment for the North Sea, might become stranded fields, using lower cost techniques and nimble collaboration is no mean feat. However, the TNW Group is confident that it has the answer to what must become a new way and a new approach to operating in the region.

TNW’s early focus will concentrate its efforts on the urgent need for well stimulation services through the group’s StimLite company. There is a growing concern that a large percentage of the remaining North Sea oil will never be recovered as companies active in the area have scaled down investments due to the weak oil price. Improving the recovery of hydrocarbons from mature fields and new small pools with greater efficiency and lower cost will be TNW’s focus.

Operators across the North Sea have little or no budget available to increase production; therefore, StimLite will perform well intervention and stimulation at no upfront cost and within very short time frames. The company will take the risk on its shoulders but will share some of the reward with participating companies with a solution that immediately assists the operator by lowering the lifting costs per barrel and providing major increases to bottom-line income. TNW will be using the company’s own nontoxic biodegradable cleaning solution and two other nonintervention techniques which, in combination with each other, will significantly increase existing production while monitoring future production.

To provide a complete stimulation service to operators at the lowest cost and highest margins, small-diameter coiled tubing can make interventions in depleted wells both economical and feasible.

Anything TNW can do to increase the life of a platform is good for its North Sea clients and the industry as well as being good news for the U.K. economy and employment market. Essentially, if the remaining hydrocarbons in the region are to be recovered, there needs to be a fundamental shift in the way technology is developed and deployed and the way business is done in the North Sea. As challenging as today’s marketplace is, TNW is pleased to be part of what it believes will be a revolutionary approach to operating in the region.

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