HPHT keynote presents DeepStar initiative aimed at deepwater technology development

HOUSTON -- World Oil’s annual HPHT Drilling, Completions & Production Conference got underway this morning with keynote speaker Greg Kusinski, of Chevron Energy Technology Company. Kusinski is director of DeepStar, a joint industry initiative focused on the advancement of deepwater technologies. The conference runs today through tomorrow, on the west side of Houston.

The DeepStar consortium provides a forum for members—including oil companies, vendors and regulators—to execute technology development projects, and employ the industry’s financial and technical resources.

According to Kusinski, DeepStar’s mission is to improve profitability and operability for operators, through the development of safe and reliable technologies, as well as the enhancement of existing equipment and practices. Made up of nine technical committees, the collaborative JIP aims to succeed in value creation, cost-effectiveness and innovation.

Kusinski expanded on the global consortium’s systematic approach to the development of technology, including: 1) comprehension of design conditions, such as reservoir and fluid properties; 2) engineering and design; 3) technology selection and qualification; 4) inspection monitoring surveillance and repair; and 5) continued service decommissioning.

Under each phase of the project’s methodology, Kusinski gave attendees detailed examples of ongoing DeepStar projects. The projects discussed consisted of deepwater developments in sub-salt environments; the development of prediction tools; the utilization of micro-fluidic devices to explore asphaltene deposition; analysis of current technology and capabilities for shearing; and the development of advanced modeling methods, among others.