Wintershall monitors North Sea platforms by radio
Natural gas production by satellite / New system makes commercial recovery possible

“With this radio monitoring system we are taking a leading role in the progressive automation in the offshore sector”, Dr. Ties Tiessen, Member of the Board of Executive Directors of Wintershall responsible for Production, explained. Six platforms, L8-P4, A6-A, K13-A, P6-A, F16-A and Hoorn as well as their satellite platforms will be monitored centrally from the RCO center using microwave radio relay technology. This means it is no longer necessary to staff the control rooms on the platforms at night time. Out of the 39 members of staff working in the new RCO center overall, twelve work in the so-called Central Control Room (CCR) – the nerve center of the facility. The control room is permanently staffed by two employees using a shift system. 

“There are still many small and medium-sized natural gas fields in the North Sea which can be developed”, Dr. Tiessen explained. “Radio monitoring makes it possible to produce with greater economic efficiency, which, of course, also allows us to develop smaller reserves commercially”. In addition, by switching to remote controlled operations, Wintershall can make substantial savings in materials procurement, maintenance, production planning, staff planning and logistics. 

Wintershall has been active in the Dutch sector of the North Sea since 1965 via its subsidiary Wintershall Noordzee B.V. Today it is one of the largest natural gas producers in the Netherlands with an annual production of about 2 billion cubic meters. It is the operator of 26 offshore platforms overall, 25 of which are in the Dutch sector of the North Sea. The remaining platform is situated in the adjacent German territorial waters. 

Wintershall, based in Kassel, Germany, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BASF Aktiengesellschaft in Ludwigshafen. The company has been active in the explo­ration and production of crude oil and natural gas for over 75 years. Wintershall focuses on selected core regions, where the company has built up a high level of regional and technological expertise. These are Europe, North Africa, South America, as well as Russia and the Caspian Sea region. Today, the company is Germany’s largest crude oil and natural gas producer.

www.wintershall.com