[编者注：这个故事首次出现在 2020 年水力压裂技术手册中。在这里查看完整的补充 。]

从历史上看，石油和天然气行业在变革和现代化方面进展缓慢。这是可以理解的——对安全的承诺是行业的基石。由于工人每天都会面临一系列风险，因此安全已深深植根于行业文化中。但随着油价受到全球大流行的打击，不可否认的是，心态正在发生转变。

运营商不是说“这是我们一直以来的做法”，而是问“我们怎样才能做得更好？”

这种新的前景正在拓宽人们对油田可能性的认识。那些拥抱变革和采用系统而非孤立方法的人将获得前所未有的效率。

避免变革被视为降低风险的一种方式，而不是一种约束。时间过长，

尽管物联网席卷全球，勘探与生产行业仍继续使用依赖人员、笔和纸的手动流程。随着各大石油公司纷纷采用新方法来降低油井开发的成本基础，数字化转型最终在勘探与生产领域扎根。回顾过去，他们中的许多人都想知道为什么花了这么长时间才实现这一飞跃。

整个油田服务市场，尤其是压裂船队，也正在经历类似的转变。这场流行病造成了巨大的转变，导致服务公司专注于建造、测试和部署下一代 3.0 压裂船队，以抓住勘探与生产公司不断发展的目标所创造的机会。

确保长期生存能力

随着泵送时间增加到几乎连续工作，每天定期工作 18 至 22 小时，操作员面临的挑战也增加了。管理两个长期存在的基本指标——效率和非生产时间——通常是成功或最终延长合同的成败因素。在当前和疫情后的环境下，企业必须掌握另外两个要素才能确保其长期生存能力：降低运营成本和减少对环境的影响。

虽然运营效率可以而且确实可以节省成本，但这些效率并未触及重要的成本驱动因素——柴油成本。勘探与生产公司正在推动向电力和天然气发电的转变，以降低成本并推动可持续发展合规性。随着勘探与生产公司通过用天然气替代柴油燃料来节省大量成本，投资新的 3.0 下一代压裂系统的压力泵公司具有独特的优势，能够满足可持续性和成本的要求，从而赢得更多长期多年合同-勘探与生产的减排目标。考虑到这些驱动因素，能够燃烧天然气作为燃料的压力泵公司将是在石油领域长期生存的公司。

对天然气作为燃料的依赖为压力泵提供了额外的机会，使其在现场具有灵活性，同时降低成本。考虑到天然气的马力要求，天然气允许运营商利用电子压裂或涡轮直接驱动。利用天然气的运营商正在实现以前无法实现的效率，例如，通过将泵组从 20 台泵（配备 20 套消耗品）减少到仅 8 台泵，维护成本降低了 60%。拆除柴油发动机和变速箱每年可节省约 150 万美元的车队维护费用，这是当地第二高的维护支出。

除了节省燃料和维护成本之外，天然气还消除了日益成为监管目标的烟尘和噪音污染。无法使用天然气的运营商由于无法遵守环境法规和运营商要求而面临失去合同的风险。就像那些比使用旧的、间歇性设备的公司可以更长的泵送时间一样，那些拥有下一代天然气动力车队的公司将能够满足新的标准并保持竞争力。

即使目前传统泵送设备已达到 20 MMhp 的饱和状态，压力泵送公司也越来越多地优先考虑对天然气设备的投资。目前无法实施完整的 3.0 下一代系统的运营商正在使用双燃料发动机来弥补差距，双燃料发动机在其传统足迹中燃烧 70% 的天然气。这种桥接方法以及完全优化的 3.0 压裂系统，释放了以前由于无法在压裂现场使用天然气而无法实现的变革效率。

向更多地采用这些下一代水力压裂技术的转变表明了该技术的成熟度及其在勘探与生产公司中的可信度。压力泵机不再像今天运行的车队那样将现有组件拼凑在一起，而是倾向于完全优化的系统，例如使用电动 SPM QEM5000 压裂泵，与真正的大马力驱动系统配对。由于燃料成本是当地运营支出中排名前三的成本，因此通过 e-frac 或涡轮机直接驱动运行天然气可以节省高达 85% 或每个车队每年 1600 万美元的成本。

高效电子压裂或涡轮驱动技术正在成为满足勘探与生产降低成本和可持续发展目标的基础，这可能意味着赢得或失去合同的区别。更广泛的新驱动技术正在创建以系统为中心的下一代泵平台。

现在，服务提供商比以往任何时候都更有可能跟上勘探与生产公司的要求，以保持竞争力。随着运营商投资天然气和涡轮机动力车队，他们不仅要增加每天的泵送时间，还要减少燃料和维护支出，同时也承诺从环境角度做出改变。满足最新要求的能力使压力泵公司能够获得长期、多年期的合同。

当今气候的一线希望是，它正在改变旧的思维方式，以不同的方式看待和做事。在压力泵市场中，新技术的变化和接受速度比以往任何时候都更快。采取全系统方法是满足未来需求的唯一途径。它使 3.0 压裂技术成为现实，使勘探与生产公司和运营商能够释放新的节约来源。 

作者简介： Bryan Wagner 是 Weir Oil & Gas 压力泵工程和产品管理总监。

[Editor's note: This story first appeared in the 2020 Hydraulic Fracturing Techbook. View the full supplement here.]

Historically, the oil and gas industry has been slow to embrace change and modernization. It is understandable—commitment to safety is the bedrock of the industry. With workers exposed to a range of risks every day, safety is deeply embed­ded in the industry’s culture. But with oil prices bat­tered by a global pandemic, there is an undeniable mindset shift happening.

Instead of saying, “This is the way we’ve always done it,” operators are asking, “How can we do this better?”

This new outlook is broadening minds to what is possible in the oil field. Those who embrace change and a systematic rather than siloed approach are poised to gain unheard of efficiencies.

Change avoidance has been seen as a way to reduce risk rather than a constraint. For too long,

the E&P industry continued to use manual processes that relied on people, pen and paper—even as the Internet of Things took the world by storm. The digital transformation finally took hold in the E&P space as the majors rushed to use new approaches to attack their cost basis for well development. Looking back, many of them are wondering why they took so long to make the leap.

A similar pivot is underway in the oilfield services market as a whole and, more specifically, frac fleets. The pandemic has created a dramatic shift, caus­ing service companies to focus intently on getting their next-generation 3.0 frac fleets built, tested and placed in the field to seize opportunities created by the evolving goals of the E&P companies.

Ensuring long-term viability

As pumping hours have increased to be nearly con­tinuous duty, regularly clocking in 18 to 22 hours per day, the number of challenges operators face also has increased. Managing two long-held fun­damental indicators—efficiency and nonproductive time—have typically been make-or-break factors for success and, ultimately, extended contracts. In the current and post-pandemic climate, companies must master two more ele­ments to ensure their long-term viability: lower operating costs and reduced environmental impact.

While operating efficiencies can and do produce cost savings, those efficiencies have not touched on a significant cost driver—diesel fuel costs. E&P compa­nies are driving the move to electric and natural gas power to lower their costs and drive sustainability compliance. As E&P companies reap significant sav­ings by replacing diesel fuel with natural gas, pressure pumping companies investing in new 3.0 next-gen frac systems are uniquely positioned to win more long-term multi-year contracts from the ability to satisfy the sustainability and cost-reduction goals of E&Ps. Given these drivers, pressure pumpers that can burn natural gas for fuel will be the companies that survive the oil patch in the long term.

Reliance on natural gas for fuel opens an addi­tional opportunity for pressure pumpers to have flexibility in the field while reducing costs. Natural gas allows operators to utilize e-frac or turbine direct drive given the horsepower requirements for natural gas. Operators utilizing natural gas are achieving efficiencies previously unattainable—such as a 60% maintenance cost reduction by reducing fleets from 20 pumps with 20 sets of expendables to just eight pumps. Removing diesel engines and transmissions saves an estimated $1.5 million per year on fleet maintenance—the second highest maintenance expenditure on location.

Beyond fuel and maintenance cost savings, natural gas eliminates the soot and noise pollution that is increasingly becoming regulatory targets. Operators unable to utilize natural gas are at risk of losing con­tracts due to the inability to comply with environmen­tal regulations and operator requirements. Just like companies that could pump longer hours than those using older, intermittent equipment, those with next-gen, natural gas-powered fleets will be the ones posi­tioned to meet the new criteria and remain competitive.

Even with the current saturation of legacy pump­ing equipment to the tune of 20 MMhp, pressure pumping companies are increasingly prioritizing investments in equipment that runs on natural gas. Operators that are unable to implement complete 3.0 next-gen systems today are bridging the gap with duel-fuel engines that burn 70% natural gas in their legacy footprints. This bridge approach, as well as fully optimized 3.0 frac systems, unlock trans­formative efficiencies that were previously unachievable due to the inability to use natural gas on a fracturing site.

This transition to greater adoption of these next-gen hydraulic fracturing technologies demonstrates the maturity of the technology and the credibility it holds with E&P companies. Rather than piecing together existing components like fleets running today, pressure pumpers are leaning toward fully optimized systems, such as using the electric SPM QEM5000 Frac Pump, paired with true high-horse­power drive systems. Because fuel costs are among the top three opex on location, running on natural gas via e-frac or turbine direct drive can save up to 85% or $16 million per fleet per year.

High-efficiency e-frac or turbine drive technology is becoming fundamental to satisfy E&P goals for cost reduction and sustainability, which can mean the difference between winning or losing contracts. Broader, new drive technologies are creating sys­tem-centric, next-generation pumping platforms.

It is now more possible than ever for service pro­viders to keep pace with E&P companies’ require­ments to remain competitive. As operators invest in natural gas and turbine-powered fleets, they are positioning themselves to not only pump more hours per day but to reduce fuel and maintenance expenditures, while also demonstrating a commit­ment to make a difference from an environmental perspective. The ability to meet the latest require­ments enables pressure pumping companies to secure long-term, multi-year contracts.

The silver lining of today’s climate is that it is transforming old mindsets to see and do things differently. The rate of change and acceptance of new technology is accelerating faster than ever in the pressure pumping market. Taking a systemwide approach is the only way to meet future demands. It is what is making 3.0 frac technologies a reality so E&Ps and operators can unlock a new source of savings. 

About the author: Bryan Wagner is the director of engineering and product management, pressure pumping, with Weir Oil & Gas.