Service company's adaptation of supply chain to cope with volatile oil and gas market

The oil and gas market has great significance across the globe, but the unpredictability in this industry is a huge challenge that affects all the supply chains in this market. These conditions contribute to a competitive and diverse market where service firms struggle to keep productivity in order to lower costs and boost operating performance. This paper gathers data on the oilfield service industry and explore existing literature on service supply chain agility to discover empirically the application of strategies that can be implemented within the sector. The major difficulties and risks faced during an oil crisis were identified through analyses on the performance of the leading global service provider (Schlumberger). Global mobility and supplier related challenges were found to be the main factors that harm the company's capacity to deal with market fluctuations. And the constructive tactics developed to achieve a strategic edge over competition have been used as the foundation of this study. Through executives’ interview, internal documentation research and relevant literature review it was discovered that agility in Schlumberger was attained by establishing supply chain visibility and the development of flexible policies and processes. By leveraging internal capabilities and digital solutions to enhance the procurement activities and overcome the looming risks it´s possible to successfully operate in complex market. A recommendation framework was presented as supply chain managers’ benchmarking scheme. This framework highlighted approaches that can be taken in terms of suppliers, internal capabilities and customers as a way to contribute to greater supply chain agility

Fundamental Valuation of NOV

The purpose of this thesis is to conduct a fundamental valuation of NOV to provide an equity value and share price as of 17 January 2023. To support the fundamental valuation of the company, I have also performed a relative valuation, using the EV/EBITDA and P/S multiples. I conduct a comprehensive examination of macroeconomic, industry-, and company-specific factors that drive value in the oilfield services and equipment industry. These analyses are utilized to make necessary assumptions, forecast NOV’s future performance, and ultimately estimate the company’s equity value and final price target. Acknowledging the accelerating global energy transition and growing public concern about climate change, companies that offer equipment and technologies supportive of cleaner energy sources have experienced considerable demand growth in recent years. Driven by regulatory changes, subsidies, volatile oil and gas prices, and the ongoing shift towards sustainable energy sources, the industry is continuously nudged to adapt and innovate. With its long history as a market leader in the global oilfield services and equipment industry, an extensive product portfolio, and a global customer base comprising several large upstream oil and gas companies, NOV is solidly positioned within the global energy markets. Amid a moderately competitive situation, NOV is poised to continue to grow the upcoming years, particularly as it ventures into the booming renewable energy market. Considering these factors, the fundamental valuation yields an estimated share price of $11,6 for NOV. Supported by a relative valuation using the EV/EBITDA multiple, this analysis suggests a potential downside relative to the current stock price. The final estimated price target of NOV’s stock is adjusted to$12,5, derived from a weighted average of the estimations from both fundamental and relative valuation methods, allocated with a 70/30 weight, respectively. While the estimates are characterized by a high degree of uncertainty, as investigated through a sensitivity analysis, the conclusion suggests a potential overvaluation of NOV. Hence, as of January 17, 2023, I would propose a sell recommendation.nhhma

Study on Ground Engineering and Management of Carbonate Oil Field A under Rolling Development Mode

Carbonate rock has the characteristics of complicated accumulation rules, large-scale development, high yield but unstable production. Therefore, the management and control of surface engineering projects of carbonate rock oil and gas reservoirs faces huge difficulties and challenges. The construction of surface engineering should conform to the principle of integrated underground and ground construction and adapt to the oilfield development model. This paper takes the newly added area A of the carbonated oil field as an example to study the ground engineering under the rolling development mode and aims to provide the constructive ideas for the surface engineering under rolling development mode. The overall regional process design adheres to the design concept of "environmental protection, efficiency, and innovation", strictly follows the design specifications, and combines reservoir engineering and oil production engineering programs, oil and gas physical properties and chemical composition, product programs, ground natural conditions, etc. According to the technical and economic analysis and comparison of area A, this paper has worked out a suitable surface engineering construction, pipeline network layout and oil and gas gathering and transportation plan for area A. Some auxiliary management recommendations are also proposed in this paper, like sand prevention management and HSE management for carbonate reservoirs

An integrated model for asset reliability, risk and production efficiency management in subsea oil and gas operations

PhD ThesisThe global demand for energy has been predicted to rise by 56% between 2010 and 2040 due to industrialization and population growth. This continuous rise in energy demand has consequently prompted oil and gas firms to shift activities from onshore oil fields to tougher terrains such as shallow, deep, ultra-deep and arctic fields. Operations in these domains often require deployment of unconventional subsea assets and technology. Subsea assets when installed offshore are super-bombarded by marine elements and human factors which increase the risk of failure. Whilst many risk standards, asset integrity and reliability analysis models have been suggested by many previous researchers, there is a gap on the capability of predictive reliability models to simultaneously address the impact of corrosion inducing elements such as temperature, pressure, pH corrosion on material wear-out and failure. There is also a gap in the methodology for evaluation of capital expenditure, human factor risk elements and use of historical data to evaluate risk. This thesis aims to contribute original knowledge to help improve production assurance by developing an integrated model which addresses pump-pipe capital expenditure, asset risk and reliability in subsea systems. The key contributions of this research is the development of a practical model which links four sub-models on reliability analysis, asset capital cost, event risk severity analysis and subsea risk management implementation. Firstly, an accelerated reliability analysis model was developed by incorporating a corrosion covariate stress on Weibull model of OREDA data. This was applied on a subsea compression system to predict failure times. A second methodology was developed by enhancing Hubbert oil production forecast model, and using nodal analysis for asset capital cost analysis of a pump-pipe system and optimal selection of best option based on physical parameters such as pipeline diameter, power needs, pressure drop and velocity of fluid. Thirdly, a risk evaluation method based on the mathematical determinant of historical event magnitude, frequency and influencing factors was developed for estimating the severity of risk in a system. Finally, a survey is conducted on subsea engineers and the results along with the previous models were developed into an integrated assurance model for ensuring asset reliability and risk management in subsea operations. A guide is provided for subsea asset management with due consideration to both technical and operational perspectives. The operational requirements of a subsea system can be measured, analysed and improved using the mix of mathematical, computational, stochastic and logical frameworks recommended in this work

Digital technologies in oil and gas production as a tool to ensure optimal energy efficiency and sustainability

Implementation of smart production technologies, digital technologies, and Industry 4.0 technologies in the oil production industry as a type of innovative management are indispensable tools for strengthening strategic, financial, and innovative sustainable development of enterprises operating in highly competitive domestic and foreign markets. Such technologies make it possible to adjust enterprise strategies promptly in real-time. All field digitalization solutions, operation of production units with any voltage and frequency level, heating, etc. are not workable without electric power. Electric motors of drilling rigs, downhole surfaces, and underground equipment use about 70 - 72% of all electricity consumed during oil and gas production. The authors give examples of energy-saving measures and the results of their implementation. Efficiency, energy conservation, and sustainable development are the challenges oil producers face today. The article considers strategic management in reality as a new trend in the sustainable development of oil production enterprises. Varying strategy in real time gives the oil-producing enterprises a general focus, individuality, daily simple actions, readiness to consider new ideas, and not being afraid to decide and take responsibility for them. The authors also analyzed the sustainable development strategies of the leading oil-producing companies in Russia. The article offers performance indicators for the sustainable development of oil and gas-producing companies

Business model innovation in the oil and gas supply industry

Master i Energy Management - Nord universitet, 201

Value of Digitizing Well Interventions and its impact on business and working processes

The oil and gas industry continuously enters a phase with new challenges and new ways of thinking, the rise of a digitalization revolution can be the key answer to creating new opportunities to overcome the industry's challenges. The “new reality’’ of low oil prices, Covid-19 still threatening, and the increased focus on climate and environmental considerations globally, has led to a shift in the mindset of the industry; from an increased-production focus to a cost-efficiency focus while maximizing the productivity, minimizing operating costs and sustain operating flexibility. Accomplishing this new way of working may perhaps require a digital transformation. There has generally been little technology development and digitization in the well intervention sector compared with the drilling sector. Real-time data, onshore support centers, and automation have long been used in the drilling sector. This master thesis introduces an innovative project that is being implemented by ALTUS Intervention. Digital Well Intervention (DWI) is a digital platform that digitizes large parts of today's way of working and how ALTUS Intervention is delivering well intervention services. This master's thesis studies how DWI will affect the work process in ALTUS Intervention. The thesis will provide concrete examples of how DWI improves work processes both internally and externally. The project is still in the planning phase, and thus, concrete proposals are given for the further development of DWI. Furthermore, it is studied how DWI can provide value creation. This is based on several case studies with a similar approach as the DWI platform that has been shown to be a great approach to value creation

Benefits and barriers of organic Rankine cycles for waste heat recovery and deep geothermal

This thesis describes a study to evaluate the energy recovery potential and challenges associated with the application of Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC)s. Application of ORCs for both waste heat streams and deep geothermal sources are considered. A model which calculates the thermodynamic performance of ORCs for any source heat or sink stream and cycle configuration was developed. Simulations for three waste heat case studies showed a potential thermodynamic benefit from using zeotropic working fluids. An experimental rig was built to explore the reported discrepancy in performance between theory and experimental observations for zeotropic mixtures. Experiments were carried out with a near azeotropic working fluid, R410a, and a zeotropic mixture R407c. Results show that the global heat transfer coefficient of the zeotropic mixture was lower than for the azeotrope. The availability of theoretical models to accurately calculate heat transfer for zeotropic mixtures was explored. Appropriate models are available in the literature. However, to incorporate these into the ORC model is a significant bit of work beyond this project. The thermodynamic performance, footprint and cost of an ORC plant are key parameters that will determine the feasibility or otherwise of an ORC plant. These factors are considered together and the interdependence of them is discussed. Three deep geothermal heat sources are considered, within the context of these three factors. The reasons for the feasibility or otherwise of fuelling an ORC with each of these heat sources is discussed. Ultimately, while simulations show there is potential improvement in thermodynamic performance, by using zeotropic working fluid, experimental work shows there may be a penalty to pay in terms of the size of the system. The analysis of the deep geothermal case studies shows that finance and social factors also have a huge influence on whether a project to recover low enthalpy heat will evaluate or not

The implementation of control mechanisms in European multinationals: a comparison of British and German subsidiaries in Venezuela

In organisational theory, there is increased concern over how a particular context affects the operations of firms, especially in multinational organizations. As these firms operate in different contexts, there is growing interest in learning how social institutions from these contexts may influence the operations of these firms. MNC subsidiaries, principally, have attracted the attention of academics because they move in different spaces that are interrelated (e.g. country of origin, industry and country of operations), which may have different institutional settings. The implementation of control mechanisms in MNC subsidiaries represents an organizational area that is significantly influenced by these forces. This thesis develops a theoretical framework to explain the presence of control devices in MNC subsidiaries. The framework encompasses different levels of analysis: country of origin, country of operations, industry and the organization itself. The aim is to explain the presence of control mechanism in MNC subsidiaries by examining features that might affect the implementation of these devices. The framework places particular emphasis on two areas. First, understanding the effect of institutions based in the country of origin on the implementation of control mechanisms in MNCs. And second, appreciating the effect of institutions in the country of operations on the implementation of these devices in subsidiaries

The impact of Chinese cultural values on human resource policies and practices within transnational corporations in China

This thesis focuses on key cross-cultural issues that transnational corporations (TNCs) face when formulating and implementing Human Resource (HR) policies and practices in their Chinese affiliates. The aim of this study is two-fold. The first is to investigate how employees perceive HR policies and practices that have been transferred from parent enterprises of TNCs, and the second is to explore the extent to which Chinese cultural values influence these HR policies and practices. These aims are addressed through an exploratory research design using in-depth qualitative interviews with seventy-six participants across twenty-one Western TNCs and two Chinese state-owned enterprises in China. By presenting the differences between the HR policies and practices with Western TNCs and Chinese companies, the distinctive Chinese cultural values can be interpreted against a more holistic background. This study contributes to international human resource management (IHRM) literature by empirically investigating the perceptions and views of both managerial and non-managerial employees on HR policies and practices within the participating companies. This study explores the contemporary Chinese cultural values and examines how these cultural values exert influence on the HR policies and practices. The findings of this study demonstrate a variation between global HR policies and practices of TNCs and their implementation at the local level. Moreover, the researcher finds that there are three national cultural values with Chinese characteristics which can affect HR policies and practices within TNCs in China; these are: guan-xi, valuing seniority, and the importance of the „human factor‟. It is indicated that Chinese cultural values are far more sophisticated than the ones conceptualised in previous literature, as these three cultural values appear to be interlinked and be embedded within the Chinese culture of collectivism. More importantly, the study shows that these deeply embedded cultural values can not be easily „ironed-out‟ by organisational culture and global HR policies and practices of TNCs. Therefore, it is argued that TNCs need to acknowledge cross-cultural differences and consider these Chinese cultural values when implementing their global HR policies and practices in China. Organisational and managerial commitment to such an approach would require conscious steps to be taken towards adopting a closely monitored HR implementation process and more inclusive HR policies and practices, rather than expecting Chinese employees to accept and adopt the global HR policies and practices which may be against their cultural values and norms