[en] The article discusses global ambitions concerning the Norwegian petroleum industry. With the advent of the NORSOK (Forum for development and operation) cost reduction programme and a specific focus on key sectors of the market, the Norwegian oil industry is beginning to market its considerable technological achievements internationally. Obviously, the good fortune of having tested this technology in a very demanding domestic arena means that Norwegian offshore support companies, having succeeded at home, are perfectly poised to export their expertise to the international sector. Drawing on the traditional strengths of the country's maritime heritage, with mobile rig and specialized vessel business featuring strongly, other key technologies have been developed. 5 figs., 1 tab

[en] The article relates to the decommissioning of offshore installations in the North Sea area. The political debate has still some way to run, but the next few months will be crucial in deciding whether or not the United Kingdom and Norway stand with or against the rest of Europe regarding solutions for the abandonment of offshore oil and gas installations. 2 figs

[en] The ISO/TC 67 Technical Committee is devoted to the standardization of oil equipment at world level. Its activities cover both upstream and downstream (as well as the production of natural gas) and the equipment and services associated with them. TC67, which includes 20 member countries, holds a plenary meeting once a year; in between seven sub-committees prepare draft standards for the members of the TC to study and vote upon. Out of 120 subjects programmed for standards covering oil equipment, around fifteen should be completed in the year 2000. In 2000 about sixty experts from 18 countries will attend the TC67's plenary meeting which will be held in France from 20. to 22. September under the chairmanship of Mrs Cheryl Stark. This event will be sponsored by TotalFina Elf. The General Meeting will take place on 20. and 21. September in the Afnor Tower at La Defense and then the IFP will host the meeting of the management committee on 22. September at Rueil. In fact, it is Afnor which represents France on TC67 but for working out standards it has delegated its powers to the Oil Standardisation Office (BNPe). The GEP (Paraoil and Paragas Companies Group) also contributes its expertise, in consultation with other organisations in the trade. The ISO/TC67 Committee and its management group met in September 1999 in Oslo. The attendance of 60 delegates representing 15 countries attests to the interest shown in this sectorial committee, reorganization of which, decided on in 1998, has accelerated the production of drafts: 12 ISO standards were published in 1999 and 30 are planned for the year 2000. The target is to finalize all the drafts by the end of 2003. (author)

[en] Tesco Corporation, a Calgary-based oil field equipment supply company, was recently awarded the 1997 Canada Export Award. The award was for top performance in selling, leasing and maintaining (all in one package) a top drive unit. The unit rotates drills up from rig floors to the top of the pipe strings that drive the drill bits into the earth. There are currently some 130 Tesco machines in action despite heavy competition from industry giant Varco and others. Tesco is also developing new product lines for the rapidly developing 'underbalanced drilling' market, and is testing a new concept for simultaneous drilling and casing of wells. If this concept works out as expected, Tesco will have the market all to itself, at least until competitors catch up

[en] This directory provides an alphabetical listing of manufacturers and suppliers of equipment and services to the oil and gas industry. The listing includes the names of approximately 350 Canadian companies, their address, phone number, names of key personnel, description of business, in some cases email and web site addresses and domestic and international service locations

[en] The article deals with the oil companies' growing confidence in the use of subsea production technology. The oil companies' increasing reputation for reliability has made this sector the fastest growing segment of the North European offshore oil and gas development market. Themes discussed are cost reduction, subsea well intervention and maintenance, artificial lift of deep water wells, diverless connections, horizontal trees, and standardization of subsea equipment. 4 figs

[en] The highly innovative environment in the field service sector of the oil and natural gas industry and the intense competition generated by it are discussed. Despite the fact that Canada produces only 3.5 per cent of the world's oil and 7.0 per cent of its natural gas, Canada is a world leader in the development of field service systems and equipment. On a return on investment basis the field service sector outperformed the exploration and production sector, and while many of them are small compared to the giants like Haliburton and Schlumberger, small field service companies frequently outperform the giants, if only because below 100 million dollars in revenues, investors expect a 25 to 30 per cent return on equity. Constant cost cutting and an eye on the bottom line, combined with products and services of high quality, and the intense rivalry and competition keeps the industry constantly on its toes to do more with less, to come up with innovative business practices and to stay on the cutting edge of new technology. Progress by several of the field service companies, large and small, are reviewed by way of illustration

[en] Poor commodity prices forced many of the oil field service companies to cut budgets, cut staff and to undertake unusual measures to stay afloat and ride out the current low price regime. The new measures include increased efficiency, technology and international connections. Some examples of the latter are discussed in this article. For example, Calgary-based Merak Projects Ltd. teamed up with Microsoft Corp's energy services arm to score strong performance with lightning-fast information technology for head offices in the production community. Alberta-based Tesco Corporation entered a joint operating agreement with the French multinational service and supply giant Schlumberger to field a high-technology drilling package including gear and and expertise for coiled tubing systems, and capabilities to handle 'underbalanced' wells. Serval Integrated Energy Services raised nearly US $ 7 million for expansion by an equipment lease-back arrangement with an undisclosed financial institution in the United States. These and other similar moves attest to the ingenuity of Canadian entrepreneurs and while there will be several casualties, there is confidence that companies that are big enough and innovative enough, will survive the current price crisis

[en] Cost reduction by implementing NORSOK standards and cooperation between subsea suppliers to the Norwegian continental shelf, are discussed in this article. The aim of NORSOK, which is based on US standards, is to achieve standardization of technical requirements for drilling and production facilities, to identify and develop common requirements for equipment and installations, based on functional specifications, interfaces and limited variety for equipment and design, and to take into consideration existing industry standards and use these where possible. The offspring of cooperation is notable cost reductions. Subsea costs at Saga's Vigdis field have been reduced by 50% in two years. More subsea projects could come up soon. Norsk Hydro has short-listed a semi PDQ (Processing, Drilling and living Quarters), a ship or Gullfaks tie-in as runner-up concepts for the Viksund project. 1 fig

[en] The place of field service equipment stores in the western Canadian oilpatch is described, emphasizing the influence of global economic cycles triggered by the erratic nature of oil and gas commodity prices, that control the fortunes of this sector of the oil industry. The trials and tribulations of C. E. Franklin Ltd and NWP Industries are cited as examples of how oilfield service stores attempt to cope with the ebb and flow of oil prices which dictate the fortunes of the oil industry, which in turn determines the demand for what the field service companies have to offer. Changes in product cycles are also exercising a significant influence on the state of the sector. Computer hardware and software services provided by service companies have been the most recent causes of increased sales and job creation; the next step eagerly anticipated is e-commerce. There is a great deal of confidence among oilfield service service companies that e-commerce will change the way business is done in virtually every industry in the world and companies like Franklin and NWP are gearing up to leveraging their infrastructure (i. e. their staff) via Internet technology. Taking care of the anticipated 17,000 to 18,000 new wells that will be drilled in western Canada is the most immediate challenge; in the short-term, coming out of lean times, lack of cash flow will make it extremely difficult to take care of the increased activity