World-class rig ‘Krechet’ spudded its first well in Odoptu field in Sakhalin 1 Project recently. Mr. P K Rao, Director (Operations), ONGC Videsh congratulated the team for successful commissioning of yet another world class rig in the project, which is capable of drilling world record ERD wells. He acknowledged that the dedicated rig for the field will not only improve the management of the reserves from an operational perspective but also help control costs and execution strategy for future phases.
Odoptu Stage 2 is a phased expansion of the existing Sakhalin Odoptu development, in shallow reservoir zones. The new land rig was commissioned in early 2017 and christened as ‘Krechet”- meaning Gyrfalcon, the largest of the falcon species. The rig has capability to drill longer horizontal sections and has superior mobility due to smaller modules, which can be easily dismantled, transported and assembled at site. This feature is useful as the drilling in stage 2 development of Odoptu is planned from two sites (NWS & SWS) around 9 Km apart.
The drilling company, which designed and built all the 3 powerful rigs of the project (Yastreb, Orlan and Berkut), was awarded the contract for designing the rig. The rig was fabricated in the Keppel AmFEL yard Brownsville, Texas. The overall construction and final load out completed in May 2016. The modules of the rig travelled around 46,000 nautical miles on five barges and reached the temporary offloading facility, specifically built to receive the modules of stage 2 development of the field, around 13 Km from the Odoptu North site in around 3m water depth. All the modules were navigated in Piltun bay via fleet of 6 shallow draft tugs with WinFrog navigation system to make precise transits across sandbar at the mouth of Piltun bay and Piltun bay channel. The rig modules were transported to the well site assembled and commissioned in Jan 2017. The rig spud first well on 28th Feb 2017 after completing conductor driving for first 4 wells. The rig is scheduled to drill 4 development wells including 2 producers. The first oil from the stage 2 development of the field is expected in 3Q 2017 and the field is expected to reach its peak production of 65 KBOPD in 2018.
The Krechet’s key design components include a fully enclosed drilling rig, automated pipe barn, and double-wall, 2-inch insulation. The enclosed rig and pipe barn allow the rig crew to perform drilling operations in temperatures of around 21 C (70 F) year around. The rig’s top drive has load capacity of 1250 tons, 3,000-hp draw works and torque at continuous operation of 142kNMat 130 rpm. To handle the extremely long wells, the Krechet also features four 7,500-psi mud pumps, 6020 bbl liquid-mud storage capacity and six generators. The ERD wells are batch drilled for efficiency. This drilling method requires moving the rig from well to well over a 100-meter (328-foot) track without being rigged down. Consequently, the rig is designed so that the rig and support equipment and facilities, including the utility modules, mud pits and pipe barn, could be moved hydraulically from one wellhead to the next.
Odoptu Stage 2 includes drilling 32 wells at the North and South Wellsite. The North Wellsite and South Wellsite wells will be drilled using extended reach drilling technology (ERD) with measured depths of up to 13300 meters and total vertical depth (TVD) of approximately 2000 meters. All oil production well completions will be fitted with downhole side pocket mandrels complete with casing pressure operated gas lift valves. The wells to be equipped with stand-alone screens for sand control. Annular isolation for various zones will be achieved through the use of swell packers. For commingled production from zones having various permeabilities, inflow control devices (ICDs) as well as surface-controlled downhole valves will be used to ensure optimum recovery of reserves along the length of the wellbore within the field.
ONGC Videsh celebrated the National Safety Week from March 4th to 10th with great enthusiasm on the theme ‘Leadership in safety and health enhances business sustainability’ on the backdrop of getting QHSE re-certification for revised standards ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015 and OHSAS 18001:2007.
On March 4th, Mr. Narendra K. Verma, MD & CEO through his message to employees asked their individual commitment to take care of their own safety, that of their colleagues, workers and contractors.
Mr. P.K Rao, Director (Operations) and Mr. Sudhir Sharma, Director (Exploration) administered the Health & Safety pledge in Hindi and English respectively to the large gathering of employees on 6th March.
ONGC Videsh employees taking the pledge
Apart from Awareness mails, safety alerts and regular competitions to arouse HSE awareness, many other activities were also taken up, which included QHSE internal audit, safety talk, safety video, talk by doctor on ‘Live well’ and presentation on contract with International SOS on Security & medical emergency at global level’.
While speaking on the occasion Mr. P.K Rao stressed on the importance of HSE in oil & gas sector in all areas. He appreciated documentation, housekeeping and time management at Russia, which needs to be emulated. He appreciated various activities taken up during National Safety Week and asked for disseminating learnings from various accidents world over. He emphasized on adopting the best practices and reducing environmental impacts, saying HSE also encompasses Security & Sustainability.
Mr. Sudhir Sharma emphasized that safety starts from home and touched upon the importance of HSE in overseas countries citing his experiences at Colombia. He asked to adopt best safety practices and to show commitment towards safety, by using safety belts while seating in the back seats of cars.
Mr. P.K. Rao, D(O) addressing the gathering GM, International SOS making presentation
ONGC Group Sustainability report for FY 2015-16 was released by Director (Operations) and Director (Exploration). They also unveiled the memorabilia, which is a first aid kit containing 21 items.
Directors releasing the Sustainability Reportand unveiling memorabilia
Employees and families of ONGC Videsh including those posted overseas participated with enthusiasm in poster, cartoon, slogan and quiz competition. On the spot quiz competition evoked great response and everyone enjoyed it. Prizes were distributed to the winners and their entries were also screened.
National Safety Week concluded with vote of thanks and with the resolve to achieve excellence in HSE.
HR, ONGC Videsh, organized a talk on 9 th Feb 2017 on ‘Intricacies of International Human Resource Management’ by Dr. Lavanya Bennuru, an HR specialist.
This talk was organized under the able guidance of GM(HR)-Head Corporate Support Services and in co-ordination with GGM(HR)-Chief RTIs. Dr Bennuru spoke about the numerous challenges faced by the corporate operating in global arena. She enlightened the house about the role of the Strategic management of Human Resource Policies and procedures which would pave the organizations towards prosperity. The success of any organization depends on the HR team, in specific the Videsh team as the HR is to deal with a lot of subtleties such as:
1. Domestic HR Vs International HR functions
2. Understanding Legal implications of the host country
3. Multiculturalism
4. Language implications and culture
5. Recruitment policies w.r.t. expatriates and in-patriates
6. Language & culture based training
7. Ethical insights and their importance
8. Compensation issues
9. Taxation issues such as double taxation
10. Interpersonal Relations
11. Ensuring security of his job and life and his comfort at the host country
12. Repatriation
Dr Bennuru stressed on the fact that the international team of HR shoulders the responsibility of their employees who vest their confidence and trust which when dealt with carefully can drive the organizations to leap forward and conquer heights of prosperity.
The talk was well attended and appreciated by HR and Regional Presidents of ONGC Videsh.
Mr. N K Verma, Managing Director ONGC Videsh and Mr. Musabeh Al Kabi, CEO Mubadala Petroleum, Abu Dhabi signed a MOU on 6 th February, 2017 for future collaboration between two companies in upstream oil and gas exploration, development and production projects in third countries. The current MOU is an extension of earlier MOU signed between the two companies on 29 th September, 2014. Considering the similar objectives of the two companies mandated by their respective governments and recent resolve of the two governments for increased collaboration, the two companies decided to extend the MOU for a period of another two years till September, 2018. Broad geographical areas for cooperation have also been identified during the meeting.
On February 2, 2017, the Colombian Institute of Technical Standards (ICONTEC) certified Mansarovar Energy for its inventory of greenhouse gases.
The official event to certify and recognize Mansarovar effort towards Carbon Footprint Management was presided by Dr. Harvinderjit Singh – CEO of Mansarovar Energy, accompanied by Mr. Carlos Benavides – Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Business, Mr. Leonel Vargas – Vice President of Operations, Directors and Managers of the Organization. ICONTEC was represented by Leonardo Fuquén – Commercial Director, Julio Giraldo – Head of Climate Change, Claudia Vega – Account Executive and Jacobo Carrizales – Auditor of Sustainable Development.
For Mansarovar Energy, document on carbon footprint quantification was made by HSE Management team. This procedure quantifies the emissions in each of the facilities and based on the results obtained, prepare strategies of reduction through policies of energy efficiency, renewable energies and reforestation.
Mr. Leonardo Fuquén, Commercial Director of ICONTEC, acknowledged the work of Mansarovar, “We are proud of you; as a multinational oil-producing company, that works with a great sense of commitment for the protection of the environment and takes steps to contribute not only to the sustainability of the organization but also to the society through a responsible performance of the daily duties,” he said.
The Certification of Greenhouse Gas Inventories is the first step in the accountability of Mansarovar Energy that quantifies the emissions of GHG contributing to global warming and allows to establish a precise roadmap to reduce gradually the emissions and look for some compensation alternatives.
Dr. Harvindjerjit Singh agrees that “the ISO 14064 certification of ICONTEC gave a clear message of Mansarovar Energy’s commitment towards the promotion and protection of the environment and sustainable development. This recognition generates credibility and trust in the Company and above all demonstrates our firm commitment of working towards a healthy environment as per best practices in the industry.”
The ICONTEC certified quantification of the emissions allows the company to develop measures to deal with the new fiscal frameworks related to carbon emissions.
Mr. Narendra K. Verma, MD along with the HSE team received the Integrated Management System (ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015 and OHSAS 18001:2007 certificate on 7th February, 2017 from Mr. Anand Pal Singh, Regional Manager (North), International Certification Services on behalf of ONGC Videsh.
In the audit report, M/s ICS appreciated Top Management Commitment, Well established management system, effective monitoring and Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) System as per ISO 31000:2009.
Though there is a three-year transition period till September 2018 to move to the 2015 version, ONGC Videsh led the way in aligning its QHSE Management System in line with new standards. In December 2016, M/s International Certification Services Pvt. Ltd. carried out recertification audit from 22nd to 24thas per new standards and no non-conformity or observation was raised.
New standards of ISO 9001 (Quality) and ISO 14001 (Environment) were released in 2015, with some major changes w.r.t. earlier version of 2008 and 2004 respectively. Some salient changes in these two standards w.r.t. earlier versions are:
• Uses simplified language and a common structure (High-Level Structure) and terms, particularly helpful to organizations using multiple management systems
• Focus on risk-based thinking, requires to address organizational risks and opportunities in a structured manner
• Puts greater emphasis on leadership engagement
• Addresses supply chain management more effectively
• The organisation is required to identify needs and expectations of interested parties w.r.t. QMS and any external and internal issues that may impact their EMS´s to deliver its intended outcomes.
• Life cycle thinking about products and services and to carry out a formallife cycle assessment
ONGC Videsh Vankorneft’s US$1 billion dual-tranche bond deal has been awarded the “Best Corporate Bond” deal from India at The Asset Triple A Country Awards 2016. This was the first dual-tranche issuance out of India in 2016 and executed swiftly to access a favourable market issuance window.
The award on behalf of OVVL was received by Mr Vivekanand, Director (Finance), ONGC Videsh at a ceremony held at Hong Kong on January 11 2017(Wednesday). The ceremony was attended in large number by senior managements and representatives of corporates, banks and financial institutions.
About the Issue
ONGC Videsh VankorneftPte Ltd (OVVL) is ONGC Videsh’s indirect wholly-owned subsidiary in Singapore and holds 26% shares in JSC Vankorneft.On 19 July 2016, OVVL priced US$ 1 billion Notes comprising of US$ 400 million Senior Unsecured 5.5 years Notes due 2022 and US$ 600 million Senior Unsecured 10 years Notes due 2026 in the international capital markets (the “Notes”). The Notes are guaranteed by ONGC. The Notes have been assigned a rating of Baa2 (Moody’s) and BBB- (S&P).
The transaction was the First Dual tranche issuance from India in 2016. The 5.5-yr and 10-yr Notes were over-subscribed by 2.2 and 2.3 times respectively, across 185 accounts which participated in the landmark issuance.
ONGC and ONGC Videsh Limited conducted a series of investor meetings in key financial centres of Asia (Hong Kong & Singapore) and Europe (London) beginning 14th July 2016. The deal roadshows were successful with over 80 investor meetings across 3 days. 185 investors participated in the landmark issuance.
The 5.5-year Notes were priced at T+ 175 bps, bearing a fixed coupon of 2.875% per annum, equivalent to a price of 100.00 and a yield of 2.875% and the 10-year Notes were priced at T+220 bps, bearing a fixed coupon of 3.750% per annum, equivalent to a price of 99.81 and a yield of 3.773%. OVVL used the Notes proceeds to refinance a part of the bridge loan availed for the acquisition of a 15% equity sharesin JSC Vankorneft, Russia.
The Notes saw a large geographic spread with interested investors from Asia, Europe and Offshore USA accounts. The investors’ base was Fund Managers, Banks, Private Banks and Sovereign Wealth Funds / Insurance companies.
Citigroup and Standard Chartered Bank acted as Joint Global Coordinators.Also Citigroup, Standard Chartered Bank, DBS Bank Ltd, Mizuho Securities, MUFG and SMBC Nikko acted as Joint Bookrunners and Joint Lead Managers for this issuance.
About Triple A Awards
The Asset Triple A Awards are Asia’s preeminent recognition for those that have excelled in their respective industry. With close to 20 years of experience conducing awards programs The Asset Triple A’s has gone from strength to strength distinguishing best in class organizations. AAA awards programs are built upon a stringent methodology that is combined with a rigorous approach in selecting the best institutions operating within Asia. The awards are adjudicated by The Asset’s Board of Editors who collectively have several decades’ worth of evaluating industry awards in Asia.
About ONGC Videsh
ONGC Videsh is a wholly owned subsidiary of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), the National Oil Company of India and is India’s largest international oil and gas E&P Company. At present, ONGC Videsh has 37 projects in 17 countries including Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Kazakhstan, Mozambique, Myanmar, Russia, South Sudan, Sudan, Venezuela, Vietnam and New Zealand. ONGC Videsh is currently producing about 229,200 barrels of oil and oil equivalent gas per day. For more information visit: www.ongcvidesh.com
About ONGC
ONGC’s market capitalization as on 11 January 2017 was INR 2,535 billion (US$ 37.2 billion). During the financial year ended 31st March, 2016, ONGC Group had produced 57.38 MMT of oil and oil equivalent gas (MMTOE) (approx. 1.2 MMboe per day); the Consolidated Gross Turnover was INR 1,429 billion (US$ 21.83 billion) during FY’16. For more information visit: www.ongcindia.com