Ecopetrol Builds on Cano Sur Success

- Ecopetrol Builds on Cano Sur Success

Monday, September 12, 2011
Ecopetrol S.A.

Ecopetrol on Monday announced the initial test results of the CSE-8 ST1 exploratory well in the Puerto Gaitan jurisdiction, a municipality in the Meta Province, in areas belonging to the eastern block of the Exploration and Exploitation Cano Sur contract.

Production test to date show a stable average production of 532 barrels per day of API 13.8 grade oil, with water cut around 18.5%.

The exploratory well was designed with a deviated wellbore that allowed contact with a thicker net oil pay and a better location within the deposit. Drilling operations began on August 11, 2011 and reached an average depth of 4,594 feet in 7 days.

This new exploratory success brings to four the number of oil findings in Cano Sur Block during 2011, including Mito-1, Fauno-1 and Pinocho-1. This constitutes an important milestone in the exploration of this block, taking into account its importance for Ecopetrol's heavy crude oil growth strategy.

Results of initial tests show that this well has the highest productivity among the recently drilled wells in this region. Test were undertaken using an artificial lift system with an electric submersible pump.

This contract was signed in June 2005 with the National Hydrocarbon Agency (ANH, Agencia Nacional de Hidrocarburos). Ecopetrol is the sole operator and holder of 100% interests.

"Ecopetrol has identified a huge potential for heavy crude oil commercial production in the Llanos Basin. We are very pleased with this new discovery" said Ecopetrol's CEO Javier Gutierrez Pemberthy.

In the coming months, Ecopetrol will continue to evaluate production conditions and the performance of the deposit found, maintaining simultaneous exploratory efforts in the area of the Cano Sur Block in order to make a prompt commercial viability statement.

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Subsea 7 Designs, Builds Commercial AIV

Subsea 7 Designs, Builds Commercial AIV

Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Subsea 7

Subsea 7, a global leader in seabed-to-surface engineering, construction and services, on Tuesday announced that it has completed the design and build of the first commercial AIV, a technology which has the potential to revolutionize Life-of-Field projects.

Subsea 7 has an ambitious plan to develop a series of Autonomous Inspection Vehicles (AIV), initially capable of general visual inspection, through to fully capable work-class sized intervention vehicles. A combined project team comprising hardware developers and operational personnel from Subsea 7 and Seebyte, a Scottish based software developer for the autonomous robotics market, has been working together to deliver the first vehicle.

The design and build of the vehicle is complete and successful progress through in-water trialling and commissioning phase is underway. Following completion of extensive in-water testing and capability development, the first commercial AIV is expected to be available in late 2011.

Through the development process, many technical challenges have been overcome, the shape of the vehicle has changed from the original design concept due to the significant work done using the latest Computational Fluid Dynamics Modelling to optimize the vehicle's shape with regard to stability and maneuverability, while conserving the onboard power resources.

The vehicle is fully autonomous and can operate for a 24-hour period on a single charge of its lithium-ion batteries, which are housed in pressure vessels within the hull. These batteries have been specifically designed for the vehicle and provide a more cost-effective solution to pressure tolerant batteries, with a lower capital cost and much improved cycle lives. /p>

The sensor package has been developed to cover the requirements of general visual inspection; it comprises the latest sonar technology coupled with high quality video cameras and low power LED lighting.

A significant software integration and development project has been running in parallel with the hardware development and this too has used the most advanced techniques to manage, debug and control the development.

Neil Milne, Subsea 7's Vice President - Life-of-Field Services, commented: "We are delighted with the success of the commercialization program to date for what represents a significant technological advance in the area of subsea remote inspection and intervention. With the arrival of the AIV, subsea structures such as manifolds, wellheads and risers will be able to be inspected by this tetherless technology, significantly increasing flexibility and efficiencies throughout the life-of-field cycle. Following completion of extensive trials and further development over the coming months, we look forward to bringing the first commercial AIV into operations towards the end of 2011."