Wireline Spring 2018

There are of course other heavy oil offshore fields in the North Sea and worldwide, and this presents an opportunity for others to learn and export our experience. “

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offshore installation manager James Howitt, who has been involved with the asset in various roles over the past 20 years, to Lynsey Thomson, who has just completed a four-year apprenticeship at Chevron and is now a process technician aboard Captain. James observes how the operation today bears little resemblance to how it was when the FPSO first began producing. “It’s good to see that 20 years down the line, we’re still producing, we’re still making good production rates and we’re looking forward as well. For people working on the asset, it’s encouraging that the company is continuing to invest and that the field will be around for a lot longer.”

globally – exporting domestic skills, knowledge and technology.

For Lynsey, the opportunity to work on Captain so early on in her career is a welcome one. She has a hands-on role supporting the bunkering and recirculation of the polymer product and making sure systems are working efficiently to support its deployment. “It’s good to be on an asset where something so innovative is happening, and I’m working with experienced people who are dedicating a lot of their time to help me and others develop.” Exporting EOR Moreover, although Captain EOR is a project anchored in the UK, the model could be applied to other projects

UK supply chain operations have played a significant role in the Stage 1 upgrade work: incumbent contractor Petrofac has performed much of the modifications work to the topsides; Worley Parsons has supported engineering activities; Honeywell has undertaken instrumentation and controls work; and Wood has completed initial subsea work. “Polymer is used elsewhere in onshore fields, but Captain EOR is leading the industry – certainly at this scale – offshore,” notes Steve. “That’s important because there are of course other heavy oil offshore fields in the North Sea and worldwide, and this presents an opportunity for others to learn and export our experience.” To that end, Chevron is part of an EOR Task Group, led by the Oil and Gas Authority, which has developed a starter pack to support other operators looking to introduce polymer EOR (see box-out right). For the team behind the project, all this offers positive evidence of the UK Continental Shelf's competitiveness

Chevron's Energy Technology Company Laboratories in Houston, USA

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