The 2015 Subsea Tieback Forum & Exhibition kicked off on Tuesday night as a high
number of delegates representing all facets of
the sector gathered at the conference’s opening
reception. The exhibition returns to the host
city of New Orleans after being held in San
Antonio, Texas in 2014.
According to totals provided by Penn Well
conference organizers on Tuesday night, the
number of delegates registered by opening day
was just shy of 3,000. More than 2,970 packed
the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, already upping the record-breaking attendance
number of 2,660-plus from opening night
totals in 2014.
Attendance was bolstered by strong interest
in the subsea market, which has continued to
remain vibrant even in the midst of the general market downturn. Although challenging
market conditions may yet stall some high-cost
or high-risk subsea projects, the sector has
remained somewhat insulated from the worst
effects of falling oil prices.
A recent report from Infield Systems Ltd.
affirms these trends (see full story on page 4
of the Day 1 SSTB Daily). Even with falling oil
prices, Infield’s new Interim Subsea Market
Report to 2019 forecasts growth potential for
the sector over that time frame. If oil prices
recover, the firm predicts that subsea capex
could grow at a compound annual growth rate
of 11.1% until 2019.
Companies occupying the subsea market
might still tussle with some market fall-out,
albeit to a more muted degree. Infield predicts
a dip in subsea pioneer Statoil’s subsea capex
this year and next, levelling off in 2016. However, in 2018, Statoil’s subsea capex is shown
to grow substantially, with a small decline in
2019. ExxonMobil’s subsea capex is forecasted
to stay less prone to such strong fluctuation,
with a noticeable decline in 2015, but a quick
rebound in 2016.
Penn Well conference organizers confirmed
that nearly 500 delegates were present at
the opening session to hear the speakers,
including two presentations from executives
with leading operating companies. A speech
from Don Schlater, chairman of the Society of
Underwater Technology’s Treasurer & Training
Committee, got the conference underway. Subsea Tieback Forum and Exhibition Advisory
Board Chairman Antonio Critsinelis of Chevron
delivered the conference’s opening remarks.
Attendees got a glimpse into the subsea market’s future when Paul Jones, also of Chevron,
delivered the keynote presentation. It was entitled “Subsea 2015: A crystal ball view of our
business, our technologies, and our value.” The
comments were especially timely and of interest to delegates since Chevron and recently
announced that it had expanded its GoM
acreage and operatorship, working with BP
and ConocoPhillips to explore and appraise 24
SSTB
schedule
THURSDAY, MARCH 5
7:00 AM – 8:00 AM
Continental Breakfast,
Level 2,
New Orleans Theater Foyer
7:30 AM – 1:30 PM
Registration Open
Exhibit Hall H
8:00 AM – 9:30 AM
SESSION 4,
Level 2,
New Orleans Theater
9:00 AM – 1:30 PM
Exhibit Hall Open,
Exhibit Hall H
9:30 AM – 10:30 AM
Coffee Break,
Exhibit Hall H
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
SESSION 5,
Level 2,
New Orleans Theater
12:00 PM – 12:45 PM
Delegate Lunch
Exhibit Halls H & I
12:45 PM – 1:15 PM
Networking Dessert
Exhibit Hall H
1:15 PM
Harley Davidson
Motorcycle Giveaway
Exhibit Hall H
1:20 PM – 1:40 PM
Subsea Engineering
Program Updates
Level 2,
New Orleans Theater
1:30 PM – 5:30 PM
Exhibitor Move-Out
Exhibit Hall H
1:40 PM – 3:10 PM
SESSION 6
Level 2,
New Orleans Theater
3:10 PM – 3:25 PM
Recognition Awards,
Closing Remarks,
Gift Card Drawing
Level 2,
World’s largest subsea exhibition
draws record crowds to The Big Easy
Delegates crowd registration at the 2015 Subsea Tieback Forum & Exhibition prior to the evening’s
opening reception. Photo by Barchfield Photography.
Subsea Tieback Forum & Exhibition
Day Two
March 5, 2015
New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center | New Orleans, LA
www.subseatiebackforum.com
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A key point of interest in every Subsea Tieback Forum & Exhibition is the technical presen-
tations from operating company officials. Thursday’s sessions will include presentations on
project learnings and asset integrity. These will include:
• Brian Ferrier, Chevron Energy Technology Company, who will speak on “Big Gas Subsea Systems (The Rule of Thumb Applied to Oil Developments Should Not Be Applied to Big Gas)”
• Eric Chang, Shell, “Enablers For Robust Subsea Tieback Execution - Shell’s Europa A8”
• John Fasser, ExxonMobil, “Standardized ExxonMobil Master Control Station”
• John Lyons, ConocoPhillips, “Bayu Undan Phase 3 Wet Parking Subsea Trees”
• David Moss, Shell Oil, “Safely Delivering Subsea Tiebacks in the Gulf Of Mexico”
jointly-held offshore leases in Keathley Canyon.
Shell’s John Holloway concluded the plenary
session with a scene-setting presentation
entitled, “Unlocking the next frontier of Shell
deepwater opportunities.” With Shell coming
off a strong 2014 in the deepwater sector, Hol-laway’s comments were also of keen interest to
attendees. During last year alone, Shell brought
deepwater projects onstream in the GoM
(Cardamom and Mars B), Nigeria (Bonga North
West), and Malaysia (Gumusut-Kakap), all of
which combine to produce 370,000 boe/d from
its global deepwater production. It is just one
year out from bringing the deepest production
facility in the world online: its wholly-owned
and operated Stones project, which is located
320 km (200 mi) southwest of New Orleans in
2,900 m (9,500 ft) of water.
Officials from three operating companies
spoke at the conference’s first session, “Project
Learnings 1.” Hess Corp.’s Tor Gavem discussed
“Tubular Bells – Managing Change.” Hess
bought an increased ownership stake and as
well as the operatorship for the GoM deepwa-
ter oil and gas field from BP in October 2010.
Bryan Kung of Shell then discussed “Learnings
from Shell Glider – Subsea Landscaping Tech-
niques.” ExxonMobil’s Susan Dent closed the
session with a presentation on HIPPS related to
the GoM Julia project.
Session 2 on flowlines, risers and umbilicals launched immediately following lunch
with a presentation from Talos Energy’s David
Hamilton which focused on “Phoenix Field
Subsea Pigging.” The Phoenix field, located
in the Green Canyon area of the GoM, began
producing in May 2013. Danny Hough, of Deep
Gulf Energy, gave a talk on the Kodiak subsea
development flowline design. Kodiak, tied back
to the Devil’s Tower truss spar, is located in the
Mississippi Canyon area of the GoM.
Session 3, on subsea boosting and process-
ing, closed the first day’s proceedings. Skipper
continued on page 3 ...