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TX 75083-3836, U.S.A., fax 01-972-952-9435. AbstractThe development of Baker Hughes onshore operations centre, BEACON was described in the paper SPE78336. A critical component of the concept is the movement of certain services, including mud-logging, from the rig site to shore. Traditional mud-logging systems were designed assuming that the operators could intervene when required, for example to repair or calibrate the sensors. By moving people onshore, this assumption is no longer valid. Further, changes must be made to the work processes, including people competencies and training, to match the new working practices. Experience on BP's Valhall DP operations demonstrated that greater reliability would be required in all aspects of the mud logging service to achieve the reliability goals.In January 2002, Baker Hughes INTEQ and BP were awarded a grant under the Norwegian Demo2000 program to develop a rig and operator independent ultra-reliable mud logging service capable of remote operation and control from the centre, located in Stavanger. The funding has enabled the issues related to the intimate mixture of people, process and technology to be addressed.To help address the competency issues, a state-of-the-art mud logging training facility has been created. A new generation of high reliability sensors including an innovative gas trap and hydrogen generation device have been produced. Technicians will be able to maintain and calibrate these from the onshore centre. At the same time, new work processes have been developed to improve business efficiency and HSE. These are small, but critical steps to help shape drilling automation in the future.The paper contains a description of the system's analysis, including a comparison with the NORSOK standards, which serve as a benchmark. The additional requirements imposed by the need for remote control are also presented.

During a successful coring operation some 720 meter of continuous core hasbeen taken with full recovery. The main purpose of the core is to obtainmaterial for rock mechanical testing. To minimize coring-induced damage, asystematic and detailed planning is made for all stages of the coringoperation. New models are developed to avoid core damage due to core bendingduring retrieval through a curved wellbore and to determine the maximumtripping velocity for core retrieval without harmful over-pressurization.Preliminary laboratory test results indicate a high core quality. Introduction For an accurate description of reservoir properties, the analysis of datafrom rock cores is essential. During the coring operation, many rock parameterschange due to the release of stress, temperature and pore fluid pressure.Vibration and friction can also have a detrimental effect on core. Besidesthese thermo-mechanical changes, the core is also exposed to non-native fluids.Due to the coring not only petrophysical parameters, such as porosity, permeability and fluid saturation can change, but also rock mechanicalparameters, such as strength and elasticity. In this study we report our experience with some 720 m of continuous corewith full recovery, taken from the well 33/9-A-37b of the Statfjord reservoir, at a depth range of 2400 to 3100 m. Statfjord is a large oil reservoir (with aSTOOIP of more than one Billion m3) of Jurassic age and lies mainlyin the Norwegian sector of the northern North Sea. Production started in 1979and to date more than 500 Million m3 of oil have been produced. Atthe late-life development stage of the field, a deep depressurization isplanned to produce solution gas. The main purpose of the coring is to obtain material for rock mechanicaltesting, for studies on reservoir compaction, wellbore stability and predictionof sand production for the planned depressurization of the field. The core iscut through the top seal of the reservoir (Viking group), the Brent reservoir, the Dunlin group, the Statfjord reservoir into the Hegre formation. A largerange of rock types was cored, from highly permeable sandstone to very tightclay-rich shale. Since the results from rock-mechanical laboratory test areextremely sensitive to core damage, there is a large focus on the minimizationof potential damage that can occur during the entire coring operation. If coring produces a permanent change in the rock parameters that cannot bereversed by restoring the rock to original (in-situ) conditions, it iscalled core damage. Core damage can occur during all four stages of the coringoperation:Drill-out,Retrieval,Handling on the rig,Handling during transport and storage. Since core damage is an accumulative process that can occur during allstages, we have optimized the operational procedures to minimize the risk forcore damage. In this paper we will go through the planning and operationalaspects of all four stages for the coring of well 33/9-A-37b. Our attention isfocused on the rock mechanical quality of the core, both for sandstone and forshale. The quality of the core is checked using CT-scan images and from resultsof laboratory testing of core plugs. Core drill-out To ensure an optimal core drill-out of well 33/9-A-37b, several drillingoptimizations were planned prior to the coring operation. During the core drillout, a significant stress reduction takes place: the original in-situstresses are released down to the hydrostatic mud pressure [1]. For traditionalcoring, these stress changes are unavoidable. What can be done is to choose abit shape to minimize the induced tensile stresses. Furthermore, we have lookedinto ways to optimize rotation rates and weight on bit. Finally someoperational aspects important to minimize core damage are discussed.

For more than a decade, Baker Hughes has developed a number of IO applications and WellLink technologies building its BEACON (Baker Expert Advisory Centre Operation Network) platform for the digital oilfield. The scope of BEACON is remote access of real-time rig data, drilling data and wireline data, production and pump monitoring, and static file management. These technologies have enabled the company’s collaboration centers around the world primarily to monitor, support, and optimize operations without having to be physically present at rig site. This development has been a foundation for a successful roll-out of remote collaboration and re-manning of operations, where Baker Hughes has reduced the number of personnel needed at rig site by 25-50%. Monitoring and remote supervision of real-time information 24/7 to optimize overall performance and paperwork (logging, petrophysical analyses) are now all done by people in the office using information communications technology to connect to the rig site. Larger-scale re-manning can also be done with services such as reservoir navigation, drilling optimization, pump management, liner hanger down hole technical support, et cetera. On the Norwegian shelf, where re-manning has been done at higher levels than in many other regions, nearly 50% of Baker Hughes’ staff who would traditionally have been offshore can be re-manned during operational peaks – this means they are either in an office onshore, or their responsibilities have been changed. Baker Hughes’ cross-training of personnel facilitates this flexibility, allowing for efficient and HSE-compliant re-manning.

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