Exxon Mobil Deepwater Solutions

As explorers, we know that the economic success of any deepwater project depends on the quality of our tools and our ability to use them well. Each step along the way — from finding oil and gas and bringing it to market, to managing the life of the field — shows on the bottom line.


				What changes with water depth? Like spacecraft, the equipment we use offshore must operate flawlessly for decades in hostile environments where much of the work is done by remote control. Our success in exploring and developing deepwater oil and gas prospects comes from our ability to deal with the sea’s many challenges, including: Pressure. A mile deep, water squeezes everything at more than one ton per square inch. Pressure is a major factor in our designs for pipelines and subsea equipment. Temperature. Below 600 meters — anywhere in the world — the ocean is a steady 4 degrees Celsius (39 degrees Fahrenheit). On some deepwater gas wells, these low temperatures can cause water vapor and natural gas to form ice-like crystals, blocking the flow through pipelines. Marine life. Colonies of worms and mussels often thrive around naturally occurring oil and gas seeps. Over thousands of years, their remains have formed rock-hard deposits that must be avoided to prevent damage to equipment on the ocean floor. The seabed. In some places, the ocean floor is very soft, and any unsupported equipment will sink out of reach. Elsewhere, underwater hills and valleys pose the threat of sediment and rock slides that can damage subsea wells. Currents and waves. Currents can complicate the installation and operation of offshore equipment. Storms can generate waves taller than a seven-story building and wave crests moving at 20 knots.

Exploration
Three-dimensional imaging, a powerful tool for finding oil and gas, uses seismic data and the world's fastest computers to create images of deepwater basins. ExxonMobil pioneered many of the techniques for gathering seismic data and wrote the industry's most sophisticated software to process and interpret it. Proprietary 3-D imaging is one reason that in recent years, more than half our exploration wells find oil.

Drilling
With great precision, drillers now aim their bits at targets that are miles from the platform. Known as extended reach drilling, this technology helps recover oil and gas from a wide area using a minimum of offshore platforms. Related technology allowed ExxonMobil to drill horizontal wells at record water depths in the Hoover-Diana field.

Development
Deepwater wells are significant capital investments, so the number of wells drilled and how widely they are spaced often means the difference between a field's economic success and failure. Much of ExxonMobil's research targets new ways to make wells produce more oil and gas at lower costs.

Reservoir management
ExxonMobil is known for getting the most value from its oil and gas reserves. One reason is our ability to create complex numerical models that simulate the performance of specific reservoirs. This is a key technology for making sound reservoir management decisions. Through research, ExxonMobil has developed most of its own reservoir engineering tools – a strong competitive advantage that gives us and our partners the ability to quickly evaluate reservoir data with the confidence to support large projects.

Natural gas marketing
ExxonMobil leads the industry in gas marketing technology and is the leading gas producer among the major oil companies. Gas-to-liquids, liquefied natural gas (LNG), high-strength steel, and power generation technologies are also boosting ExxonMobil's gas production and helping our business partners turn remote gas into profits.

1 Seismic ship
Readings from sound waves bounced off rocks below the ocean floor create 3-D images of subsurface formations.

2 Drill ship
These self-propelled vessels are often used to drill exploratory wells in deep, remote waters.

3 Drilling and production platform
Deep-draft caisson vessels and tension-leg platforms allow both drilling and production in deep water.

4 Floating production and storage vessel
Collects oil from subsea wells, processes and stores it for loading aboard tankers.