Digital Oilfield Implementation Challenges Management in Offshore Environment

Abstract Digital Oilfield (DOF) is an Intelligent Energy concept that assures continuous optimisation of an asset or group of assets through integration of standard tools, domain experts, defined business processes and appropriate facility or space. Digital oilfield solutions include real-time production optimization and extend to improvements in team integration and asset risk reduction. The objective of this paper is to highlight challenges of digital oil field implementation and provide appropriate mitigations. Following over two decades of implementation of digital oilfield by several operators globally, digital oilfield concept has undergone series of transformation in implementation strategy and sustainability drive. The fundamental principle and objectives of digital oilfield remains the same that is optimisation of an asset in the short term and to extend the life cycle value of an asset in the long term. However, the difference amonst the operators are the name each operator refers to this concept. Shared business perspective from experiences in several implementations will assist in driving the message of how to effectively manage digital oilfield programme. Documented evidences has demonstrated that short term solutions from digital oilfield implementations are delivered, but the challenges has been value erosion overtime due to lack of effort or commitment to ensure solid embedment of the process and sustainability of the solutions. The said outcome involves evaluation of the business impact of the DOF implementation in addressing challenges of digital oilfield implementation. The observed challenges includes but not limited to the following: Poor alignment of the project implementation objectives with the business need of the asset Lack of involvement of the asset at the inception of the project and ensure seamless ownership and sponsorship process. No clear succession plan for the process champions which equally hamper value sustenance Lack of defined training and retraining of personnel remains a big exposure in digital oilfield benefits realisation. To manage these gaps, a novel sustainability framework is proposed that is developed and built to ensure the digital field solution addresses the asset-specific business need with the right sustainability model. The result from this paper could be applied in similar project elsewhere.