Keynote speakers at the 2016 Technology Showcase in Aberdeen will highlight the need for the oil and gas industry to be more receptive to deploying new technologies to help make the North Sea more competitive and delay decommissioning.

The conference and exhibition at AEEC on Wednesday 9th March organised by the Industry Technology Facilitator (ITF) in partnership with Oil & Gas UK will feature a number of industry leaders speaking about the role of technology in improving efficiency to reduce costs.

Colette Cohen, Senior Vice-President for the UK and the Netherlands at Centrica, said: “For the North Sea, fit-for-purpose technology is needed throughout the life cycle of an asset – from exploration and development through to decommissioning. Reducing costs and improving efficiency can also delay decommissioning while reducing decommissioning costs can impact the overall economic viability of a portfolio.

“Our own Hackathon and similar events promoted by the Technology Leadership Board last year led to some exciting results which will unlock economically challenged assets. To make this sustainable for the supply chain, we need more companies willing to adopt new approaches and deploy new technology. We also need to collaborate and share our experiences if we, as an industry, are to maximise the North Sea’s potential in the face of low commodity prices.”

Angela Seeney, Director of Technology and Projects at the Oil & Gas Authority (OGA) will speak about their role in stimulating innovation. She said: “The OGA has a pivotal role to play in ensuring that existing technologies are deployed to their full effect, relevant new technologies are developed and that the collection, analysis and sharing of data is used to maximise economic recovery.

“Initial technology priorities are focused on existing marginal undeveloped discoveries, reducing well costs, asset integrity and decommissioning. We are working closely with government and industry to promote the sector’s value and to anchor exportable technology and expertise in UK. This includes working on the Aberdeen City Region Deal, the Oil and Gas Technology Centre and aligned technology funding to further enhance Aberdeen’s position as a globally recognised technology hub.”

Paul White, Director of Subsea Technology at GE Oil & Gas and Industry Chair of the Technology Leadership Board will reveal the progress being made on its priority challenges of small pools, innovations in well construction and advances in inspection methods to manage the integrity of ageing facilities

Other organisations set to present include: Shell, Total, Lockheed Martin and ConocoPhillips along with dozens of technology innovators.

Dr Patrick O’Brien, CEO of ITF added: “In a US$30/bbl climate, operators want to see less long term research projects and more help to get technology that is nearly ready over the line. There is however a view from the innovator community that the industry needs to be braver at deploying new technologies and taking more of a chance on field tests. The Technology Showcase will bring both of these audiences together to collaborate on the real life challenges and directly promote potential solutions to make the North Sea basin more viable.”

Oonagh Werngren, Oil & Gas UK’s operations director, said: “This event is the ideal opportunity for operators and major contractors to clearly articulate to the innovation developers where new technology is needed to develop projects and services. In turn, the innovator community can present their ideas on how the sector can become more competitive through carrying out activities more cost-efficiently.”

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