壳牌尼日利亚勘探和生产公司 (SNEPCo) 在几内亚湾完成了远程控制完井作业。

为该作业提供远程操作控制系统 (ROCS) 的Optime Subsea于 2 月 27 日宣布在尼日利亚近海水深 1,060 m 的 Bonga 油田进行作业。Optime Subsea 已在北海和墨西哥湾进行了多次 ROCS 作业。墨西哥表示，这是在非洲水域的首次此类行动。

SNEPCo 于 2023 年从 Optime Subsea 接收了第一台 ROCS，并一直与这家挪威公司合作，将其整合到其运营中。

ROCS 消除了对脐带缆和上部液压控制单元的需求，脐带缆传统上将地面连接到海床以控制海底完井中的油管悬挂器。该系统可以降低成本并减少这些操作所需的甲板空间。

据 Optime Subsea 称，使用 ROCS 的运营商可以从其海上运输清单中削减约 50 吨设备。该公司表示，这还意味着减少作业时间和减少钻台上的 HSE 暴露。

完成海底井时，油管悬挂器放置在井口顶部，作为海底井其余部分的密封。

通常，油管悬挂器通过专用的液压脐带缆进行控制，该脐带缆增加了一个 20 英尺至 30 英尺的控制容器。运行脐带缆时，它也被夹在管道上以提高稳定性。

ROCS 通过远程控制井口控制单元来取代这些操作。

ROCS 在一个篮子中移动，在岸上准备和组装，使其能够在海上从钻井平台上立即运行。Optime Subsea 表示，ROCS 可应用于任何类型的海底油井。

SNEPCo 首席油井工程师 Justus Ngerebara 在一份新闻稿中表示，ROCS 的性能“意味着我们可以更快、以更低的成本执行完井作业，并且与传统系统相比，CO _{2足迹大幅降低”。}

Bonga 78 的运营由 Optime Subsea 在尼日利亚的运营部门领导，并得到该公司挪威总部人员的支持。

今年 1 月，Optime Subsea 宣布将为Equinor位于英国北海的深水 Rosebank 油田提供 ROCS ，预计于 2025 年 6 月投入运营。

Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Co. (SNEPCo) finished a remotely controlled well completion operation in the Gulf of Guinea.

Optime Subsea, which supplied the operation’s remotely operated controls system (ROCS), announced the operation at the Bonga Field in 1,060 m water depth offshore Nigeria on Feb. 27. Optime Subsea has performed multiple ROCS operations in the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico and said this is the first such operation in African waters.

SNEPCo took delivery of the first ROCS from Optime Subsea in 2023 and has been working with the Norwegian company to integrate it into its operations.

The ROCS eliminates the need for both the umbilical, which traditionally connects the surface to the seabed for controlling the tubing hanger in subsea well completions, and the topside hydraulic control unit. This system can cut costs and reduce the amount of deck space required for these operations.

Operators using a ROCS can cut approximately 50 tonnes of equipment from their offshore transportation list, according to Optime Subsea. It also means reduced operating time and less HSE exposure on the drill floor, the company said.

When completing subsea wells, the tubing hanger is placed on top of the wellhead, as a seal towards the rest of the subsea well.

Normally the tubing hanger is controlled through a dedicated hydraulic umbilical, which adds a 20-ft to 30-ft control container. When running the umbilical, it is also clamped to the tubing for increased stability.

ROCS replaces these operations by remotely controlling a controls unit toward the wellhead.

ROCS is mobilized in a single basket, prepared and made up onshore, allowing it to be ready to run immediately when offshore, from a rig. The ROCS can be applied to any type of subsea well, Optime Subsea said.

The performance of the ROCS “means that we can perform well completion operations quicker, at lower cost, and with substantially lower CO₂-footprint compared to conventional systems,” Justus Ngerebara, SNEPCo lead well engineer, said in a release.

The operation on Bonga 78 was led by Optime Subsea’s operation in Nigeria, supported by personnel from the company’s headquarter in Norway.

In January, Optime Subsea announced it would deliver ROCS for Equinor’s deepwater Rosebank Field in the U.K. North Sea, with operations slated for June 2025.