Energy professionals sat down for an hour-long panel discussion on yesterday as they sought to strike a balance between driving productivity without sacrificing the structural integrity of equipment.
The discussion, which was the main feature of the T&T Energy Conference’s afternoon session at the Hyatt Regency, Port-of-Spain, included senior officials from Heritage Petroleum, bpTT and Atlantic LNG as they combined their respective experiences, to tackle issues relating to efficiencies in the modern energy industry.
During his presentation, Heritage Petroleum CEO Erik Keskula said navigating operational challenges was critical to success, noting the different industries and segments of society that were dependent on the energy industry.
He reminded officials present that they had a responsibility to ensure T&T’s future prosperity through meaningful collaboration.
Keskula noted that while the maintenance and upgrade of energy infrastructure was an important part of daily operations, the inclusion of technology in identifying possible system deficiencies was critical in saving time and money.
He said while Heritage Petroleum has been challenged with maintaining aged assets, a robust asset integrity management programme which includes various technologies has helped in meeting operational demands.
“Over the past five years, Heritage has developed and implemented this asset integrity programme including corrosion studies, among many other things, to make sure we understand the root causes that are damaging the equipment and pipelines and enabling us to tailor our inspection programmes more precisely.
“We also conduct engineering and fit-for-service assessments like many of us do, to make sure we have an accurate assessment by using our failure data to identify transit strategies so we know which areas to target proactively and rectify that vulnerable equipment before another occurrence.
“We now have an interconnected network that allows us to get real time information from our wells without the traditional ‘hard-wired’ and extensive requirements so technology will play a pivotal role in supporting our accelerated agenda through Artificial Intelligence for analysing geological data sets, interpreting seismic imaging, optimising drilling processes and enhancing asset integrity.”
Keskula said that skills training for staff was also critical in maintaining efficiencies in the energy industry while remaining abreast of the latest technological developments to remain competitive.
Also speaking on the panel was chief operating officer of Atlantic LNG, Jean Andre Celestain, who agreed that the continuous monitoring and maintenance of equipment can save companies from long-term expenses through repairs.
Referring to challenges with the coatings for pipes and pipe systems, Celestain said ensuring that such infrastructure remained fresh and “evergreen” could prevent major plant shutdowns, but noted that proactive monitoring was critical in recognising shortfalls before they could escalate to severe problems.
“Recognising that fabric integrity is going to need space and resources, it will need money, it will need a shutdown, what type of people you need.
“So if you’re just sort of what we call chasing the football and responding, I don’t think you will be as effective, but if you take a step back and understand what’s needed it then needs to have find itself in the activity plan as it competes for other priorities and the longer you have that planning taking place ahead of the activity gives you a better chance of success from doing it safely, doing it most cost-effectively and of course doing it with quality.”