Page 398 - Hydrocarbon Exploration and Production Second Edition

CHA P T E R 1 6

Managing the Producing Field

Introduction and Commercial Application: During the production phase of the field life,
the operator will apply field management techniques aimed at maximising the profi-
tability of the project and realising the economical recovery of the hydrocarbons,
while meeting all contractual obligations and working within certain constraints.
Physical constraints include the reservoir performance, the well performance and the
capacity and operability of the surface facilities. The company will have to manage
internal factors such as manpower, cashflow and the structure of the organisation.
In addition, the external factors such as agreements with contractors and the NOC or
government, environmental legislation and market forces must be managed through-
out the production lifetime (Figure 16.1).
Some of the approaches and techniques for measuring performance and
managing the constraints of the subsurface and surface facilities, and the internal and
external factors will be discussed in this section.
First we will look at the constraints in the above groupings, but they are most
effectively managed in an integrated approach, since they all act simultaneously on
the profitability of the producing field. This requires careful planning and control by
a centralised, integrated team, which will also be discussed.

organisation manpower
production
surface facilities targets
technical
constraints
market
forces
tubing
available performance
technology contracts

reservoir
performance

completion
performance

safety/environment legislation
Figure 16.1 The constraints on production.

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