Technology is and always has been key to tapping the oil and gas reserves under the North Sea.
Patrick O’Brien knows only too well the importance of investing in the engineering and scientific know-how required to extend the lifespan of the UK offshore industry.
He is also well aware of the need for collaboration, which was a mantra of the organisation he leads long before Sir Ian Wood highlighted shortcomings in this area in his review.
Sir Ian said a lack of co-operation and “overzealous” legal and commercial behaviour among operators had increased costs, caused delays and led to poorer hydrocarbon recovery.
Technology and collaboration are at the heart of everything ITF, the Aberdeen-based oil and gas industry technology facilitator, does. Mr O’Brien is its chief executive.
His background in academia – he is an expert in flexible pipeline technology and subsea riser mechanics – and industry links made him an ideal candidate for the role he has held since April 2013.
The 55-year-old’s enthusiasm for finding new ways to get every last drop of oil out of the North Sea before producers finally take their leave is reassuring, given the sector’s current woes.
He said: “While there are major challenges just now and people are cutting budgets, there is also an appetite for innovation.
“It is really important that we are all working on the right things. We do a lot of work to survey our members but we also have to take a lot of leadership as well sometimes.”
Mr O’Brien is confident about oil and gas operators – the bigger ones anyway – taking a long-term view in the current climate.
“I have had feedback from some of our members which suggests they are not going to knee-jerk react,” he said, adding: “ITF was set up at a time of low oil prices. In tough times you will have challenges, but the big thing for me is all the breakthrough projects we are looking at.
“The vision I have for ITF is for it to have a strong local cell in Aberdeen connected into an international agenda, and there is real potential to cross-pollinate.”
ITF’s membership comprises more than 30 international oil and gas operating and service companies, which have all signed up to the idea of shared funding for research and development projects to tackle technology challenges.
Amid the raging debate about North Sea taxation and investment, technological advances remain critical to reaching oil and gas reserves that were once too difficult to exploit.
ITF, which was launched in 1999 and is run on a not-for-profit basis – has facilitated the launch of more than 200 projects from early-stage concepts through to field trials and commercialisation.
Operating across continents, it works with its members, technology developers and government bodies to tackle specific regional issues as well as defining areas of need from a global perspective and identifying opportunities for the sharing of knowledge and expertise.
It counts among its members North Sea operators BP, Shell, BG Group, Canadian Natural Resources, ConocoPhillips, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Maersk, Nexen, Premier Oil and Total. Energy service firms on the roster include GE Oil and Gas, Expro, Lloyds Register Energy, Petrofac, Siemens, Technip and Weatherford.
There is a sizeable international contingent, featuring Malaysia’s Petronas, Germany’s Wintershall, Qatar Petroleum and Australian firms Woodside and Worley Parsons.
Current projects being worked on include one known as Fullwave Game Changer (FWG).
Based on technology developed at London’s Imperial College, Mr O’Brien said FWG was bringing “a whole new level of sophistication” to the industry.
He added: “It might significantly contribute to our ability to image reservoirs. We’ve just launched a further phase, with the help of a £2million investment from members.”
ITF’s boss is enthusiastic about potential future developments, predicting the oil and gas industry will increasingly rely on drone and other robot technology. Some of the sector’s most exciting developments will be in the spotlight at an ITF/Oil and Gas UK event at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre next Wednesday.
Mr O’Brien will chair a plenary session focused on knowledge transfer between different industries.
ITF has nearly 25 projects on the go – about £16million of investment.
The chartered engineer was born in Galway, Ireland, and had a passion for learning that took him away from his farming background. He studied civil engineering at what is now the National University Ireland (NUI) Galway, and went on to join a spin-off company, MCS. Aberdeen-based energy service giant Wood Group snapped up the Galway-headquartered subsea engineering consultancy in 2008. By then, MCS had 214 staff in seven offices across the world, including 50 in Aberdeen.
It became part of Wood Group Kenny.
Mr O’Brien arrived in Aberdeen in 1994, with MCS, and was group director of strategic business and marketing at Wood Group Kenny when the ITF CEO job became vacant.
He is still involved in academia, regularly lecturing at Aberdeen University as an honorary professor of engineering. He served on the board of industry body Subsea UK until recently.
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