Emerson provides maintenance and support to BP in North Sea

Emerson has been awarded a five-year contract with BP to provide predictive maintenance and operational support services to ensure safe, optimised production from its Clair Ridge platform and Glen Lyon floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel in the North Sea.

As main automation contractor for the Clair Ridge project, which achieved first oil at the end of 2018, Emerson was responsible for implementing its integrated control and safety systems, and measurement and control devices to ensure safe, efficient operation of the two bridge-linked platforms. BP used Emerson’s Project Certainty methodology and consulting to define project goals that would eliminate costs, reduce complexity and risk, and accommodate late-stage changes.

Emerson’s cloud engineering services enabled global project personnel to remotely collaborate on design, development and testing in a common virtualised environment. This allowed project changes and testing to be managed efficiently and remotely, reducing travel, time, costs and project risk.

Emerson-trained BP operators using its new, high-fidelity dynamic simulation model were able to experience real-world scenarios before the system went live. This prepared them to effectively handle abnormal situations and resolve any operational issues that might have delayed reaching first oil.

“This is another example of our collaboration with BP and commitment to combining proven technologies and the best expertise to help ensure safe, optimised production for many years to come,” said Lal Karsanbhai, Executive President of Emerson’s Automation Solutions business.

Emerson’s ongoing operational support, remote monitoring and predictive maintenance for Clair Ridge and Glen Lyon rely on Emerson’s Plantweb digital ecosystem technologies, software and services which equip plant personnel with relevant, real-time production data and analytics. This includes its DeltaV integrated control and safety systems, AMS asset management software, and measurement and control devices, all helping BP locally control operations while remotely monitoring production and asset health from an onshore location.

Clair Ridge is a multibillion-pound investment developed by BP and its co-venture partners ConocoPhillips, Chevron and Shell. Construction of the platforms was completed in 2016, with first oil announced on 23 November 2018. Clair Ridge is designed for 40 years of production. The development is targeting 640 million barrels of oil reserves, with peak production expected to be around 120,000 barrels of oil per day.