Leveraging resources should benefit independent producers

World Oil, Dec, 1999 by Leo A. Schrider

Partnerships and alliances are an increasingly important part of how the U.S. petroleum industry operates. While the general public certainly can see this with the recent spate of mergers among major producers, such actions are common with independents. Because collaborations can be an efficient means to leverage limited resources, they are becoming critical for independents, including my company, Belden & Blake, where we are currently leveraging our in-house dollars and expertise on state, federal and GRI-subsidized R&D initiatives.

Like others in the petroleum industry, the Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC) leverages its resources. with various organizations. In the process, we are able to expand our efforts to bring relevant information about practical, field-tested technologies to independent producers, their consultants and vendors/service companies. A few examples illustrate the diversity of these collaborations and the benefits they offer independent producers.

Bottom-line results in case studies. You need look no further than this magazine to find a prime example of collaboration by two entities trying to better address independents' concerns. As a supplement to the September issue, World Oil and PTTC teamed up to publish Petroleum Technology Digest. This new publication is a compilation of nine case studies on upstream technologies proven to be cost-effective. These field-tested results, developed by working closely with producers and the vendor/service community, are a tremendous resource for those seeking technical solutions to their exploration and production problems.

Independents have consistently told PTTC that they want more technology case studies in print, at workshops and conferences and on our Web pages. By collaborating with World Oil and its considerable resources, quality case studies can be disseminated to a much broader audience of independents throughout North America.

Since this was the first in a series of anticipated issues of Petroleum Technology Digest, with the next one scheduled for publication in May 2000, we are now soliciting abstracts for consideration in future issues. Send in a one-page abstract to PTTC by January 7 if you are interested in sharing information about your profitable field application and letting others benefit from your experience.

Hands-on computer training. Future profitability in the E&P sector depends on, among other things, increased efficiency. The use of petroleum E&P software, when combined with other tools and experience, can help producers get better answers, faster. While staying current with rapidly evolving E&P software requires both time and money commitments, there are a slew of targeted, collaborative resources available to help producers.

The Rocky Mountain Software Training Center, on the campus of the Colorado School of Mines (CSM) in Golden, offers regional independent producers the chance to benefit from an extensive agenda of low-cost, hands-on E&P software training on widely known packages (both PC and Unix platforms). It is another example of a collaborative effort--PTTC, CSM, the American Association of Petroleum Geologists and private donors co-founded the Center--the first of its kind established at a university offering four-year degrees.

The Center provides access to nearly 100 software packages, all of which are available for demonstration and hands-on learning, even if a specific training course is not part of the curriculum. Many of these software packages also are also available through one of PTTC's other nine regions.

Most courses offered at the Rocky Mountain Software Training Center go beyond just learning to use specific software packages--they cover the whys and hews of the technologies themselves. Special funding from AAPG allows selected courses to be offered at reduced prices, making them even more attractive to hard-pressed operators and consultants.

If you cannot make it to one of the regional resource centers, or do not know where to start, you may want to order PTTC's Petroleum E&P Software Sampler, a low-cost informational CD-ROM providing applications and pricing comparisons for about 50 software packages.

Basic field operations. In its presentations that address hands-on operational needs, PTTC often holds workshops cooperatively with local petroleum organizations. One example is its relationship with Oklahoma's Commission on Marginally Producing Oil and Gas Wells--commonly referred to as the Marginal Well Commission (MWC).

While it has been serving Oklahoma's independent and marginal well producers since 1992 through a variety of operations-oriented workshops, MWC also offers other informational resources. It has a large library of videos and informational material available for checkout by individuals throughout the U.S. MWC also distributes professionally edited videos of their more popular workshops (advanced plunger lift, due diligence, Oklahoma Corporation Commission forms and well-plugging operations), along with workshop notebooks on nearly 20 topics.