CRITICAL ISSUES IN DRILLING & COMPLETIONS
Jomax Drilling Rigs 1 and 3 are pictured on a Murphy pad in Canada. Murphy’s onshore approach has focused on deploying
two rigs on the same pad, along with frac crews employed onsite, to help bring new wells online early. This strategy has been
key in helping Murphy accelerate its well delivery process.
nology and drive innovation . Our orga-
nization has become more responsive to
shifts in the digital landscape by adopting
machine learning, cloud computing and
robotic process automation. By adopting
all of that, we’re driving value for our
shareholders and producing more sustain-
able operational practices.
The industry is focused on more data-
driven decisions and supporting more con-
trolled risk experimentation – which leads
to incremental improvement – versus the
more transformational changes that come
from pure innovation. This commitment to
long-term continuous improvement, with
regular assessments and refinements to
our protocols, will help us evolve regard-
less of the volatility of the pricing markets.
However, without standardization
across the industry, I think we’re going to
be challenged to embrace the digital land-
scape in ways that benefit more than just
our company.
There are several examples where we’ve
faced this type of challenge. In 2019, we
created a software program called the
Global Downtime Report that measures
NPT related to drilling, completions and
20 production operations. It was something
we came up with while we were assessing
existing workflows and tools across our
assets at the time. We saw that there was a
need for a consistent visualization of NPT
to help us identify areas of concern and
improve operational downtime.
We had another project where we creat-
ed a digital app for our Safety Observational
Tool. The tool collects and processes safety
observations in real time from our employ-
ees and contractors, analyzes that data
and converts it into various graphs and
visuals that can help us identify hazards,
predict trends, take corrective action and
reinforce desirable behaviors.
The app is available on everyone’s cell
phones and tablets, so that can really help
us speed up the collection of safety data. If
someone spots a hazard in the field, they
can put that information into the app and
give specific details like the date and time
of the hazard, the equipment being used,
the rig, the vendor, the location.
Then there’s the proposed framework
we have for normalizing tags for com-
pletions data with no standard naming
convention, categorization or tracking
method. We complete our onshore wells
through multistage horizontal hydrau-
lic fracturing. A typical well will have
between 20 to 40 stages, and the data set
we compile for each well is comprised of
one Excel file for each stage. Each stage
has time series data for around 150 tags.
With more than 18,000 stages executed,
that’s more than 2.5 million tags. That’s a
lot of tags.
On top of that, the data quality within
each Excel file is inconsistent. Some tags
are referenced differently from well to
well, and this can cause large variances
in the data set. That makes it impos-
sible to run any meaningful analytics
on our completions data. So, we’ve been
working to drive adoption of a standard-
ized tagging framework with our service
partners. Are there any other innovations you’d
like to see around completions?
I would say that we’ve been innovating
our completions onshore at Murphy. With
respect to unconventionals, the majority of
our CAPEX lies within completions, and
JAN UARY/FEB RUARY 2024 • D R I LLI N G CO N T R ACTO R
CRITICAL ISSUES IN DRILLING & COMPLETIONS
we’ve seen large production gains with
easily executable optimizations.
In 2023, we implemented a real-time
perforation optimization that was spurred
by the high treating pressures we saw
when pumping 90% recycled produced
water in our Tupper Montney asset. This
led to record production levels for us in
Canada. I’m also optimistic about refracs. We’ve
had tremendous success re-entering and
pumping our optimized frac designs on
parent wells as part of our development
program. It’s remarkable that we’re out-
performing initial production rates on
wells that have been producing for over
a decade.
Looking to the future, I think there is
more we can do to leverage data from
existing wells. In the Eagle Ford, we have
nearly 1,000 wells drilled and completed,
totaling more than 1.925 million ft of lat-
erals. In some of that footage, we have
permanent fiber optics installed along the
wellbore – now that’s big data!
You’ve spoken in the past about the
importance of oil and gas evolving in
the ESG space. What steps do you
think the industry needs to take to fur-
ther that evolution?
At Murphy, we’re fortunate to be able
to experiment with various methods that
allow us to learn and adapt quickly in
this space. Building on our successful dis-
placement of diesel with natural gas on
“Petrobras innovations,”
continued from page 17
We are talking about all projects.
Revitalization projects are a great exam-
ple of the energy trilemma: more produc-
tion, less emissions and lower costs.
One highlight is the Marlim field’s
revitalization, featuring the replacement
of nine platforms with two new FPSOs,
which started production in May and
August 2023 and present a combined
150,000 BPD oil production capacity and
a 560,000 BPD liquids-processing capac-
ity. both rigs and frac fleets, we’re now pilot-
ing additives and even hydrogen in our
onshore business. When these pilots are
successful, we can easily translate any
learnings into offshore.
On top of that, we’re continuing to
reduce our water intensity through the
creation of an onshore water management
app that allows transparency of the full
water lifecycle.
As an operator, what do you think of
the investments drillers have made in
emissions reduction technologies like
battery energy storage systems?
There have been strides on that front.
We’re constantly challenging our service
partners to innovate within this space,
and we’ll support that innovation through
a variety of pilot programs and partner-
ships. Regarding battery storage systems,
Murphy is going to begin utilizing those
in our onshore drilling program starting
in 2024. Focusing on Scope 1 emissions,
specifically power management, we feel
there are quick wins that are easy to
implement, and we’re continuing to trial
technologies that will further reduce our
carbon footprint.
The recruitment and retention of
young talent hat been identified as
one of the key factors in helping the
industry sustain its future in the long
term. What can the industry do better
Both new FPSOs feature technologies to
reduce emissions, such as high-efficiency
burners, nitrogen assistance, cogeneration
and low fugitive emissions valves.
Additionally, new well construction
techniques and designs are being applied,
whereby fewer sections are drilled and
less tripping is required, reducing con-
struction time and, thus, contributing to
lower emissions while maintaining safety
and integrity.
Furthermore, the Marlim revitaliza-
tion also includes the decommissioning
of nine platforms following the green
decommissioning model.
to help bring them into the fold and
keep them here?
I can say from Murphy’s perspective,
all of our departments, including drilling
and completions, are invested in work-
force training, rotational development
programs and one-on-one mentorships to
support our business strategy. Our teams
are designed to attract and retain top tal-
ent, both in the office and in the field. We
want to empower employees at all levels
and foster leadership opportunities. Now,
we’re embracing technology to automate
routine tasks, but this will allow our
skilled workforce to focus on more com-
plex activities.
In summer 2023, our D&C and subsur-
face teams collaborated by hiring two
data science interns through the Murphy
Internship Program. One participant was
a PhD student studying medical data sci-
ence. This person had zero energy indus-
try experience coming in, but in just 10
weeks they were able to solve a complex
data challenge associated with fiber in
horizontal onshore wells. I think collabo-
rations like this highlight the potential of
an important new pipeline of workers.
We need to promote diversity across all
backgrounds, including but not limited
to field of study and experience, gender,
race, ethnicity and more. Diversity is key
to helping us innovate and solve complex
problems, so we’re constantly working to
bring talented individuals into our indus-
try and retain them. DC
Under that model, the focus is on gen-
erating value and promoting a circular
economy, safety and respect for people
and the environment, aligned with the
best ESG practices in the global industry.
It also involves the abandonment of 90
wells and 1,200 km of pipelines, bringing
improvements in efficiency and reliabil-
ity. As a result of the reduction in the num-
ber of platforms in operation in both fields
and the implementation of new technolo-
gies, there will be a 55% reduction of green-
house gas emissions per year from station-
ary production units. DC
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