The Challenges of Deep-Water

The challenges posed by deep-water operations mirror many of those seen in other “high tech” domains of drilling and completion. Increasingly, operations are characterised by narrow margins where the slightest slip brings with it severe penalties. While the basic equipment in use is well proven, being the result of continuous evolution and improvement over the last 30 years, it is the different subsurface phenomena that provide the major challenges. These range from extreme environmental conditions, through shallow water flows to conditions of zero effective stress in the formations.