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CORPORATION MAGAZINE • SUMMER 2010
Noble Drilling Services Inc.13135 South Dairy Ashford, Suite 800
Sugar Land, Texas 77478
First Look:Two Noble Newbuilds Join the Fleet
Personal MotivationWhy I Stay Safewww.noblecorp.com
Noble worldwide
Semisubmersibles Drillships Jackups Submersibles Platforms
Noble delivers pacesetting performance across the spectrum of offshore drilling operations for customers worldwide with its fleet of 62 drilling rigs, which include 42 jackups, 13 semi-submersibles, four drillships and three shallow-water submersibles.
15YEARS Noble Johnnie Hoffman
13YEARS
Noble Ed HoltNoble Max SmithNoble Lewis Dugger
Noble Sam Noble Noble Ed NobleNoble Gene Rosser
11YEARS
Noble Lester PettusNoble John Sandifer
Noble Percy Johns
10YEARS
Noble Tommy CraigheadNoble Carl Norberg
Noble Bill Jennings Noble Ton van Langeveld
9YEARS
Noble George McLeodNoble Roy Butler Noble Lynda Bossler
Noble Amos RunnerNoble Homer Ferrington Noble Julie Robertson
8YEARS
Noble George SauvageauNoble Ronald HoopeNoble Earl FredericksonNoble David Tinsley
Noble Tom Jobe Noble Joe AlfordNoble Lorris Bouzigard
7YEARS
Noble Dick FavorNoble Gene House
Noble Joe Beall
6YEARS Noble Lloyd Noble
5YEARS
Noble Alan HayNoble Charles CopelandNoble Jimmy Puckett Noble Al White
Noble Clyde BoudreauxNoble Don Walker Noble Jim ThompsonNoble Byron Welliver
4YEARS
Noble Therald MartinNoble Charlie Yester
Dhabi II
3YEARS
Noble Gus AndroesNoble Roger Lewis
Noble Danny AdkinsNoble Dave Beard
2YEARS
Noble Jim DayNoble Eddie PaulNoble Roy RhodesNoble Paul Romano
Noble MurvlenkoNoble Roger EasonNoble Leonard JonesHibernia M-71 M-72
1YEAR
Noble Piet van EdeNoble Chuck Syring
Noble Hans DeulNoble Kenneth Delaney
Close Counts
One of the important changes in our approach is that we are focusing increasingly on the reporting and analysis of “accidents” that never happened. For example, if a rig worker nearly trips over a piece of equipment that isn’t properly stored and secured, there may be no measurable consequences. But there was a near miss, and our new process helps ensure we learn from and correct the problem. “Even though nothing was damaged and nobody got hurt, the result could be different next time” says Peter Bridle, Director of HSE & Q. “So we must report and analyze near misses, and share our findings with others who may benefit from them. As we learn from near misses, the fewer incidents of actual consequences we’ll have.”
The Noble LINK is published by and for the employees of Noble Corporation and its subsidiaries
and for our clients and friends.
Editor: John BreedDesign: Scott McFarlane
Comments regarding the Noble LINKshould be directed to:
John Breed, Noble Drilling Services Inc.13135 South Dairy Ashford, Suite 800
Sugar Land, Texas 77478(281) 276-6100
thanks to new “near-miss” analysis
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2 Chairman’s LetterThe Oil Spill
4 On the News DeskClipping Service Stays Busy
6 This Is Not a DrillExercise Becomes All Too Real
8 Driven to DistractionHang Up and Live
12 Rigs on the MoveThe Noble Danny Adkins
14 Global by Nature, Local by Design
Hearing the Voice of the Customer
19 Noble RecognitionRecent Promotions around the World
20 Photo Contest WinnersWhy I Stay Safe
26 Tales from the DeepYou Don't See One of These Every Day
28 Parting ShotsA Man with a Plan
Contents
On the Cover:The newbuild ultra-deepwater semi-
submersible rig Noble Dave Beard has commenced operations in Brazil under a five-year drilling contract with Petro-bras. Featuring advanced offshore drill-ing technology, including a high-pres-sure mud-pump system, an advanced mud system design and a variable deck load capacity of 6,000 tons, the Beard is equipped for drilling wells up to 35,000 feet total depth in water depths up to 10,000 feet.
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LetterChairman’sThe Oil Spill:
What we do know and what we don't
As we go to press with this edition of the LINK, offshore drilling is in the public spotlight as never before — and for all the wrong reasons. By some estimates, more than 50,000 wells have been drilled in the Gulf of Mexico by our industry — the vast majority of which have failed to draw even a passing mention by the press. With safety, care and precision, our industry has steadily grown and today helps meet a huge share of the world’s energy demands. Outside of just a handful of journalists and elected officials, few understood or followed our industry.
The tragic events in the Gulf of Mexico that cost 11 lives and led to an environmental catastrophe have changed all of that, perhaps forever. Offshore drilling is now front and center on the cover of every newspaper and leads every television news broadcast. Armed with this one tragic example, some are using the accident as a political club against expanded drilling offshore.
Politicians, who we believe are justified to decry the environmental damage associated with the accident and to insist that those responsible compensate those harmed by the spill, have gone a step too far — in proposing a moratorium on drilling in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico for six months. In supporting this poorly developed and misguided policy, Washington is pushing a political agenda to the further detriment of the Gulf Coast and the industry.
At this point, we don’t fully understand how this tragedy happened or exactly who is responsible for fostering the processes that led up to this catastrophe. Until we do, it’s impossible to say exactly what public regulators could do, or should do, to identify risk. We have some ideas and suggestions that may help improve deepwater preparedness. Working with others in our industry, these ideas have been submitted to
the Department of Interior as part of a Joint Industry Task Force. These recommendations, along with a serious review of drilling processes and well engineering; would go a long way in alleviating the risks that Washington now mistakenly believes to be industry practice. The fact is, the industry already has an outstanding track record and while these suggestions are not easy or inexpensive, we have never shied away from investing in the safety of our crews, protection of the environment or the reliability of our equipment. We would not do so now given the chance. Said simply, there is no reason to ever under invest in safety — it’s just too important.
Furthermore, calls for the industry to "guarantee" a level of protection that results in zero risks are unrealistic. As long as human beings are involved in drilling, or any activity for that matter, accidents can happen. It is why we not only invest in equipment, but why we invest in people through education and training. It is why at Noble the process and the human side of safety are key elements of a strategy that has yielded year-over-year positive results and best in class performance. It's the people that make the difference. Washington could learn volumes from looking at the processes more than the kit.
For those who listen to our conference calls you have likely heard me lead off each call with a report on our quarterly safety results. More than any other measure, this is the one that tells me most about how we are performing. When our teams improve safety, they are contributing to the improvement of every aspect of operational excellence. By the same logic, I don’t agree that blanket moratoriums will make us safer. Instead, good engineering, training and a disciplined approach to drilling are the keys to excellence in drilling performance and environmental
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David W. WilliamsChairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
protection, not stacking rigs for months at a time. I cannot think of any area of human endeavor where spending time away from a task truly makes performance better.
It is encouraging to note that while political leaders, many of whom are campaigning more than trying to govern, seem willing to see drilling suspended, the public isn’t onboard with this thoughtless agenda. Recent polls indicate that most Americans are not willing to shut down existing drilling operations in the Gulf. This support suggests that, for the most part, while people are outraged at the tragedy in the Gulf, they recognize that the benefits outweigh the risks for a society that relies heavily on hydrocarbons. Likewise, it displays support for the hard working people in this industry who demonstrate safe work practices day after day. Clearly, the public considers drilling as part of a long term strategy instead of being dissected under the microscope that the current 24/ 7 coverage allows.
I hope that we will see true benefits to safety and improvements in technology and training result from the spill. No one wins if this very tragic event only serves as a tool for grinding longstanding anti-drilling policy axes. One of the most reasoned approaches I have seen so far came from Tom Donohue, who heads the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Tom noted recently, “I’m not too much of an advocate of doing the surgery before the diagnosis. Nor am I an advocate of grounding all the aircraft if there’s an aircraft accident, stopping all the trains if there’s a train accident,” Donohue said. “When you over-regulate, you under-job.”
A "ready, fire, aim" approach always misses its mark, and this moratorium is no exception.
A Noble EndeavorFrom its roots as a single-rig land driller in
the early days of the industry, Noble has thrived in a business that has seen more than its share of challenges. Across the years, the Company has grown, adapted and evolved to meet the constantly changing nature of what is clearly one of the world’s most technologically advanced activities. Entering its 90th year, today Noble operates 62 mobile offshore drilling units around the world, with current assignments in the Middle East, India, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Mexico, the Medi-terranean, the North Sea, Brazil and West Africa.
With the people, equipment and knowledge needed to explore and develop wells in virtually every environment offshore, Noble is a leader in the industry. Noble is known for maintaining high standards and setting tough goals, particularly in the area of ensuring the safety and health of our employees — and with good reason. There is nothing more fundamental to our success than the safety of our employees. It is this culture of safety and commitment to operational excellence that will propel Noble into its second century.
th
1 9 2 1 − 2 0 1 1
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In the spirit if n
aming rigs in reco
gnition of those
who have made sign
ificant contribu
tions to the
Company, Noble hon
ored retired cha
irman Jim
Day with the chr
istening of the N
oble Jim Day
in October 2009. The sh
ipyard ceremony was
attended by the
Company’s Board of
Directors,
officers and loc
al dignitaries.
5
Keel laying ceremony for the Noble GlobetrotterAlthough this event marks the traditional beginning of a ship's construction, the Globetrotter has already undergone months of engineering design, material procurement and initial prefabrication work. Featuring extensive automation, an advanced drilling package and a reduced footprint, the Globetrotter is expected to be a strong addition to our fleet.
In the spirit if n
aming rigs in reco
gnition of those
who have made sign
ificant contribu
tions to the
Company, Noble hon
ored retired cha
irman Jim
Day with the chr
istening of the N
oble Jim Day
in October 2009. The sh
ipyard ceremony was
attended by the
Company’s Board of
Directors,
officers and loc
al dignitaries.
6
“If there is any skill crewmembers aboard a rig don’t want to see demonstrated, it’s likely to be watching the trained fire and emergency response teams in action,” says Michael Wingfield, HSE & Quality Manager at Noble’s Port Harcourt-based West Africa division. “In fact, much of the activity aboard our rigs focuses on avoiding the need to respond to anything approaching a ‘crisis.’ That said, training in fire and emergency response is essential and something we definitely support.”
What started out as training, however, quickly became the real thing recently for several crewmembers from the Noble Ed Noble and the Noble Percy Johns who were attending Fire Fighting Training.
“The Training Center also is a part of the Emergency Response Plan for the Port Harcourt International Airport,” says Michael. “At the time of our training, the local authorities had planned to conduct a response drill for the airport, and this would be one of the practical exercises for the course. However, the plane which was going to be used in the training exercise actually had an unsuccessful landing and overshot the runway. This changed the simulation exercise into an actual emergency response.
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“Our men were able to deploy quickly to the accident scene and provide assistance. There was no ignition or fire, and fortunately, no fatalities. However, there were a number of injuries to the passengers of the aircraft.”
Wire service reports later reported that in total more than 10 of the 48 passengers aboard the airplane were injured. The incident, which prompted the closure of the airspace for about two hours, left hundreds of passengers traveling to various destinations stranded for hours.
“Our team’s participation with this unplanned event was exemplary,” says Michael. “At the same time, this event became a defining moment for influenc-ing their personal insights toward safety, showing clearly the exact reason we believe training is essential. Their participation was noted only by the members of the shore base team, but they were also given a ‘hero’s welcome’ when they returned to the rig.”
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says Micheil “Mike” A. May-field, rig manager of the Noble
Danny Adkins. “I was in Singapore at the time, so my brother was the first one on
the scene. My son, Joseph, had been in an accident, rolling over our Ford pickup on a gravel road while driving home from a friend’s
house. The good news was he was OK, but the truck was totaled. Joseph knew the route well, but that moment of inatten-tion could have cost him his life.”
The momentary distraction that took Joseph’s mind off the road was glancing down at his cell phone to see what time it
Driven to
“It was the type of message no parent hopes to receive,”
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was — hoping there was still time to make a stop at a local store to pick up something for his mother. For-tunately, Joseph was wearing a seatbelt and no other cars were involved. As Mike tells it, his son got the message, reinforced by the fact that he had to ride the bus to school for a time. Now he turns his cell phone off when driving of his own accord, Mike adds.
Similar stories are reported almost daily, often with much more tragic outcomes — and not just for those talking and driving. The risks of sharing the road with cell phone users became frightfully real to Mike Hebert, who helps manage the Noble Charlie Yester, a jackup unit working in the Middle East. When he’s not on the rig, Mike enjoys riding his motorcycle, a hobby he has pursued safely for many years.
As an experienced rider, Mike knows motorcycles are sometimes hard to see, even when a driver is focused. In recent years, however, he has seen an increase in both accidents and near misses.
“I was out for a short ride last year when a driver darted out of a parking lot, crossing three lanes of traffic. She missed the back of my motorcycle by less than three feet,” says Mike. “I was lucky to have seen her as she pulled out, and was able to acceler-ate enough that her car narrowly missed me. What stuck with me was the driver had a cell phone pressed to her ear. My bike is pretty big and well lit, so I’m convinced she would have seen me had she not been preoccupied with a phone call.”
While rare, sometimes the cell phone itself can present a risk. Sounding like the stuff of an urban legend, Erick De Guzman, who serves as an STS aboard the Noble David Tinsley, got more than he bargained for when he answered his cell phone while driving last year.
“I was driving home with my wife and child, and had the cell phone plugged into the cigarette lighter to charge. The phone rang. As I pushed the green answer button, the phone shot out sparks and exploded,
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sending pieces of the phone flying. As a result, I lost control of my car and slammed into another vehicle. Good thing nobody was hurt,” Erick reports.
Erick later learned that over the past few years, there have been numerous reports of cell phones exploding or catching fire, causing injury to their users. Cell phone manufacturers blame most inci-dents of exploding cell phones on the use of unau-thorized and/or faulty batteries, but that was not the case with Erick’s phone. “The lesson I learned from the experience,” as Erick tells it, “was not to answer a phone while driving. It will unquestionably make you lose control of the vehicle, or worse.”
Beyond the obvious risk of driving while talking or texting, these activities can cost you money, even if you’re not involved in an accident. The list of coun-tries that ban cell phone use while driving is on the rise. In The Netherlands, for example, there are now laws banning drivers from having a mobile phone in their hands when driving. Drivers there may only use mobile phones when driving only if the phone is equipped for hands-free calling. Violations can result
in fines of up to €2,000 ($2,700 USD) or two weeks in jail. One country, as of the date of this publication, has enacted legislation banning all use of cell phones when driving, including those phones equipped with hands-free devices.
“In the end,” says Peter Bridle, Noble’s Director of HSEQ, “I don’t think fear of being fined will make a big difference in behavior. As with safety issues on the job, we as individuals often decide for ourselves when the risks are unacceptable and act accordingly. Too often this happens when someone we know gets hurt. That said, the frequency of cell phone-related incidents is bringing that fact home more and more every day.”
Peter notes that the statistics show that talking/texting and driving are risky for all drivers, but par-ticularly dangerous for younger, less experienced drivers. He suggests that’s an opportunity for us as adult drivers to lead by example.
Peter suggests that parents follow a list compiled by the American Automotive Association, shown on the following page. “We have to be willing to have some tough conversations about the responsibility that you take on when you get behind the wheel of a vehicle,” says Peter.
“Parents play the leadership role in helping their teens develop responsible driving skills,” says Peter. “Having rules, conditions, restrictions and conse-quences written down in advance establishes driving as a privilege and not something to be taken lightly or for granted. Just as we promote at Noble, the most important thing is for parents to ‘walk the talk’ and practice the behaviors they hope will be modeled by their kids. We’re role models for our children. How we conduct ourselves behind the wheel signals to our teens what’s safe and what isn’t.”
Work Safe ...
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Know and understand your teenNot all teens are ready to drive at the same age.
Teenagers mature, develop emotionally and become responsible at varying rates, which parents need to gauge as they determine when their teen is ready to drive.
Encourage teens to get enough sleepTeens need about nine hours of sleep every night,
but many teens fall short due to the combination of early-morning school start times and homework, sports and after-school jobs. A lack of sleep can nega-tively affect vision, hand-eye coordination, reaction time and judgment.
Keep teen drivers free of teen passengers and off the road at night
Research indicates that a teen driver’s chances of crashing increase with each additional teen passen-ger. Parents need to know who is driving with their teen at all times. Research shows teen crash rates spike at night and that most nighttime crashes occur between 9:00 p.m. and midnight.
Eliminate the distractionsCell phones and text messaging are hazardous
technological distractions for teens that parents should restrict for teen drivers.
Make smart vehicle choice decisions for teensA teen should drive the safest vehicle a family
owns. Things to consider are vehicle type (sedans are generally safer than sports cars, SUVs and pickup trucks); size (larger vehicles fare better in
crashes than smaller vehicles); and safety technology (front and side air bags, anti-lock brakes and stability control systems).
Set a time each week for discussion and reviewParents should designate a time to address con-
cerns, review the teen’s driving performance and chart the progression toward established goals and benchmarks.
Create a parent-teen driving agreementParents should establish rules and consequences
to which they and their teens agree, and that extend beyond state laws. If the teen breaks a family driving rule, consequences should be enforced. Conversely, parents should reward proper driving behavior with additional liberties.
Be a positive and responsible role modelTeenagers learn from their parents’ behavior, and
the parents’ actions behind the wheel influence the driving behavior of teens.
Choose a quality driving schoolDriving is a risky activity for teens and warrants
professional instruction. Schools that feature cut-ting-edge curriculums, high degrees of interaction and professionally trained instructors are suggested.
Practice might not make perfect, but it can make for better teen drivers
As a supplement to formal driver education, super-vised driving sessions with parents provide teens with chances to enhance learning and reinforce proper driving skills.
Work Safe ...Live SafeTen Things Parents Can Do to Keep Their Teen Drivers Safe
on the MoveRigs
Rising almost seven stories above the waves and with almost as much metal hidden below the waterline as above—the Noble Danny Adkins looks like a floating city. That’s a fitting analogy, given the fact she can house up to 208 people at once. In fact, the newbuild ultra-deepwater semisubmersible Adkins is among the largest and technologically sophisticated rigs ever built.
How big is big? The Adkins’ hull spans slightly more than a football field and can drill to 35,000 feet below the rig, or over five miles beneath the ocean floor. Other Noble rigs can drill to that depth, but Adkins water-depth rating of 12,000
feet means it can operate in deepwater prospects worldwide. The rig features advanced offshore drilling technology, including a high-pressure mud-pump system, an advanced mud system design and a variable deckload capacity of 8,000 tons.
The Adkins stays over the drillsite by employ-ing a Dynamic Positioning System (DPS). Using satellite positioning information and a series of underwater beacons, the DPS senses minute rig movements — triggering the eight thrusters that keep the rig precisely positioned over the well-bore — varying as little a few feet in any direction.
The Noble Danny AdkinsReports for Duty
Drilling and station keeping activities utilize a lot of power — more than any other ship functions. The rig answers that challenge with eight Cater-pillar generator sets — pumping out a cumulative 53,000 horsepower (equivalent to 70 Formula One race cars). Some of rig’s power is used to ensure the crew is comfortable during their hitch offshore. In addition to a theater room and fitness room rivaling a new hotel, the Adkins’ galley is warm and inviting — making sure nobody goes hungry. As on most rigs you will find a bottle of
hot sauce at every table and fresh coffee night and day. Increasingly, however, the crew opts for healthy eating choices — ranging from carrot stick snacks on the bridge to a full salad bar in the galley.
By virtually any measure, the Adkins is an important addition to Noble’s fleet. More impor-tantly, the crew is dedicated to extending Noble’s record of safety and operational excellence.
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Global by Nature
Local by Design
15
Global by Nature
Local by Design
As the sun rises on the Indian Ocean, crewmembers on the Noble George McLeod pause briefly to adjust to the glare of the morning light and
then continue drilling. Another day has begun for the Middle East and
India Division. Half a world away, the crew aboard the Noble Paul Wolff is three hours into their night tour off the coast of Brazil. From shipyard operations in Asia to the deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, it's not a stretch to say the sun never sets on Noble.
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Noble stays in close touch with customers through our seven division offices worldwide. In addition to meeting customers’ daily rig needs such as schedul-ing, provisioning, maintenance planning and staff-ing, division offices have the long view of customers’ changing strategies and needs over time.
Brazil DivisionSince entering Brazil in 1991, Noble has forged a
strong relationship with national oil company Petro-bras. Noble's assets in the area include six offshore units capable of drilling in 4,000-10,000 feet of water, comprised of three drillships and three semi-submersibles. The newest of these units is the new-build deepwater semisubmersible Noble Dave Beard, which recently started drilling offshore Brazil on a five-year contract. Brazil operations are managed out of Macae.
Our presence in one of the world’s top deepwater markets keeps Noble at the forefront of drilling tech-nology. We set a series of water depth drilling records in the late 1990s and manage operations successfully in environmentally sensitive areas.
Petrobras chose the Noble Muravlenko to drill exploration wells in the environmentally sensitive Aracaju area. It requires constant vigilance to prevent spills that could harm the many species of whales, dolphins and sea turtles, all monitored by a biologist onboard the drillship.
In its quest to become one of the world’s five largest integrated energy companies, Petrobras is adding sig-nificant oil reserves beyond its prolific Campos Basin with discoveries in the Santos Basin.
Canada DivisionSince 1994, Noble has provided drilling and main-
tenance services for Exxon’s dual-rig operation on the Hibernia Gravity Base Platform. The original plan for developing the Hibernia reservoir called for 82 wells to be drilled using the platform’s 64-well slot capacity. Noble has delivered 58 successful wells to date at Hibernia and continues to conduct drilling activities at the site. The original agreement has been extended to 2013.
Supporting the operation of Hibernia is Noble’s office in St. John’s which consists of a staff of 15 employees, including several team members who have been with the Company 10 or more years. In recent years, interest in eastern Canada’s offshore has increased, and the province is now working on developing its fourth offshore project – Hebron. Noble has played a key role in the development of Newfoundland infrastructure by providing technical knowledge; expertise on industry training, recruit-ment and leadership skills and a demonstrated ability to operate in this harsh environment. Noble is a strong supporter of many charitable organizations and community events in St. John’s and the surround-ing area.
European DivisionHeadquartered in Beverwijk, The Netherlands,
Noble’s European Division manages operations from the frigid waters of the North Sea to the temperate Mediterranean Sea. Noble has nine jackups and two semisubmersibles in the division, a number that has grown since the division was created in the 1970s.
Noble’s strategy has always been about our customers. We align our 62 offshore drilling units with our customers’ exploration and production plans. In recent years, customer needs have driven Noble to strengthen our
deepwater and ultra-deepwater fleet, continuously improve safety performance and strive for operational excellence.
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As North Sea fields have matured over the last 40 years, focus has shifted to development of smaller fields such as satellites and step-outs. Operators are adapting to the challenges this presents, design-ing sophisticated drilling and completion programs calling for multiple reservoir penetrations drilled from a single wellbore.
The European Divi-sion has received multiple safety awards from the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) North Sea Chapter. They include awards for best-performing jackup rig operations (over one million manhours) and best-performing semisub-mersible operations (under one million manhours).
Mexico DivisionFrom our division office in Ciudad del Carmen,
Campeche, Noble manages 12 jackup rigs drilling in Mexico’s Bay of Campeche in waters from 250 to 390 feet deep. The target is the Cantarell field developed by our client, Petróleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), the national oil company (NOC) of Mexico.
Noble has been working with Pemex since 1993, most recently to assist in stabilizing declining pro-duction from Cantarell and increasing national pro-duction capability.
With strong ties to the Ciudad del Carmen com-munity, division employees support local nonprofit organizations that improve educational and health opportunities, especially for area children.
Middle East and India DivisionThe Middle East and India Division serves custom-
ers ranging from Dubai Petroleum in the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) and RasGas in Qatar to Jindal/ONGC offshore India. The division is home to the largest share of Noble’s fleet. The Company is among the largest providers of jackups, with 14 in the Arabian Gulf and five in India. One of Noble’s newest jackups, the Noble Roger Lewis, has been operating for Shell
in the Arabian Gulf since 2007.
The region is a prolific crude oil pro-ducer, but the main industry driver today is natural gas used for electrical genera-tion and industrial
power in Qatar and exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and gas to liquids (GTL) diesel fuel.
Noble established the Middle East and India Divi-sion in 1995 and currently operates from headquar-ters in Doha, Qatar.
U.S. Gulf of Mexico DivisionNoble drilled our first offshore well in the shallow
waters of Galveston Bay in 1935 and is still going strong in the Gulf of Mexico. We have six semisub-mersibles drilling in waters from 4,000 to 12,000 feet and two submersibles. The latest fleet addition is the newbuild Noble Danny Adkins, a 12,000-foot dynami-cally positioned semisubmersible.
Working closely with customers as they move into ever deeper waters has pushed the Gulf of Mexico Division to record results in recent years. We set a new record in 2006 when we moored the Noble Amos Runner in 7,600 feet of water. By 2007, the Noble Clyde Boudreaux was operating in more than 9,000 feet of water. The U.S. Minerals Management Service recognized our safety performance with National SAFE Awards in 2006, 2007 and 2008.
“Customer engagement tells us what we’re doing well and what we need to improve to
win new business.”
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In recent years, Noble upgraded five premium semi-submersibles with enhanced mooring systems that improve mooring performance during hurricanes and other major storms. This investment enhances the Company's ability to minimize interruptions due to hurricanes.
West AfricaNoble set up shop in West Africa 20 years ago,
primarily working the shallow Niger Delta. As explo-ration off West Africa transitioned to deeper waters, Noble followed suit and today operates five jackup rigs offshore Nigeria and Cameroon.
From the Company's base in Lagos, Nigeria, a multinational workforce serves Noble’s customers, including ExxonMobil drilling from the Noble Ed Noble and Noble Percy Johns.
Looking ahead, significant deepwater potential has been found off West Africa. For example, Nigeria has four deepwater oil fields: Bongo, Erha, Agbami and Akpo. The Bongo oil field was first discovered in 2001, leading to increased interest in deepwater prospects in the region as a whole. Noble’s deepwater semisubmersible the Noble Homer Ferrington partici-pated in a number of these projects before recently moving to a location in the Mediterranean.
Geneva, SwitzerlandThe latest addition to Noble's global
footprint came about as a result of the Company’s redomestication to Switzerland in 2009. As part of that decision, Noble’s senior management, including the Company’s officers and its senior tax, budget and treasury staff members, now office in Geneva. While the move to Switzerland is the Company’s most distant corporate move, it’s not the first move of this nature. In fact, the Company was founded in Ardmore, Oklahoma, but eventually moved its headquarters to Tulsa. Later, Noble moved to Houston and then to the nearby suburb of Sugar Land in 2000. The move to Switzerland was a logical progression from those moves and reflects the increasingly inter-national nature of energy exploration – particu-larly offshore.
In selecting Switzerland for its new home, Noble saw the benefit of the country’s central location relative the Company’s global operations and current and potential customers. Likewise, access to the Middle East, Africa and North and South America is readily available from Europe, making it the logical location for maximizing customer contact and development.
“Our divisions are a key component in our proactive pursuit of new business opportunities. Noble’s shore-
based operations and the crews they support are on the front lines with our customers day-in and day-out.
By working safely and driving operational excellence, Noble has a significant advantage in the marketplace.”
Roger Hunt, Senior Vice President - Marketing and Contracts
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New U.S. Office EmployeesOctober 2009 - May 1, 2010
Accounting / Finance / TaxNita Cheung Sr. Business Analyst-SAPAdam Green Sr. Financial Reporting AnalystBrian McAlpine Hyperion Business Analyst
Administration / Human ResourcesKim Bolton Compensation ManagerDebra Simmons Travel Manager
EngineeringSamuel Tuley Project Financial Analyst
Learning & DevelopmentFritz Golding L&D SpecialistKelly Kelso Training CoordinatorMegan Lineberger L&D CoordinatorChristi Phillips L&D Specialist
LegalJerry Baca Assistant General Counsel-OperationsPaul Stanford Paralegal
MarketingAndrew Tietz Vice President - Marketing & Contracts
MaintenanceBill Machmer Superintendent-Electrical Systems
Materials ManagementCynthia Johnston Manager of PurchasingSherry Johnson Senior BuyerKathryne Lieser Packing SupervisorMatt McClellan Materials SpecialistTim Morse Senior BuyerCharisse Music ExpeditorHeath Shelite Quality Control AnalystRyan Strong BuyerTamorha Watson ExpeditorMatt Wittliff Buyer
Risk / ClaimsCallie Ingram Administrative Assistant - RiskLindsey Korman Claims Assistant
RecognitionNoble
BrazilRichard Allton Rig ManagerBrett Blackman Drilling SuperintendentPaul Davidson Rig ManagerBrian Donohoe Rig ManagerWayne Hickey Assistant Rig ManagerWilliam MacDonald Rig Manager
EuropeJoris Steenaert Assistant Rig ManagerTeunis Korevaar Rig ManagerMark van Kruistum Assistant Rig Manager
MexicoTimothy Blood Rig ManagerRyan LaComb Assistant Rig ManagerCharles Walraven Rig Manager
U.S. Gulf of MexicoHerschel Aultman Rig ManagerWilliam Shows Rig Manager
U.S. OfficeKara Freshwater BuyerAudrey Gage Recruitment AssistantJason Matula Purchasing Control AnalystElizabeth Mumford Offshore Staffing CoordinatorElizabeth Smith Personnel RecruiterMegan Steed BuyerClaude Tomlinson Sr. Electric Field Maintenance Specialist
West AfricaDon Richards Drilling Superintendent
Promotions and AdvancementOctober 1, 2009 – May 1, 2010
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Photo Contest Winners“ Why I Stay Safe”
We use them to capture faces, events and places in our lives. They show us what’s going on now and help us connect to the past. They also show others what we value and what is important in our lives. They are photographs, and never have they been easier to take, print, store and, most important, share.
And sharing is exactly what Noble employees from around the world did by entering Noble’s “Why I Stay Safe” photo contest. From hobbies to nature, to friends and families, more than 200 individual photos were received, illustrating the countless
reasons Noble team members from every division find to return home safe and injury free.
Selecting winners from such an offering is never easy. We’d like to thank all of those photographers, their willing subjects and our judges who made the contest possible. While the following photos were judged to most fully combine good photographic technique with the general theme of the contest, everyone who entered is a winner for embracing Noble’s culture of safety and sharing it with others.
Camel Riding Dr. Ateeque Ahmed, Noble Alan HayHaving begun his offshore career in 2001, Dr. Ateeque Ahmed knows he’s often the last person on the rig
crewmembers want to see. Fortunately, as the medic aboard the Noble Alan Hay, he benefits from Noble’s culture of safety and treats far more routine medical complaints than injuries. On a personal level, however, he has his own reasons to stay safe, chiefly spending time with his family, including his cousins, Sara (front), 4, and Sudais, 9. “The photograph was taken in Punchgani near Pune City in India,” says Dr. Ahmed, a 1998 graduate from Pune Univer-sity. “Surrounded by hills and waterfalls, especially in the rainy season, it is a great place to visit, and I always have my camera handy. The reason this picture is important to me is when the kids are happy, I have a real reason to smile. It reminds me that I am working for our kids and our family. That’s why I stay safe.”
Photographic Memories
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“Do What I Do” Frames Father’s Wish for His SonsPerry Janousek, Noble Danny Adkins
It didn’t take Perry very long to run through the mental index of his photo collection and select a favor-ite to enter in the “Why I Stay Safe” photo contest. As he puts it, “I know full well that all of us offshore are away from home a lot longer than our families would like. My boys watch me leave and are sad-dened by the fact that I won’t be home again for several weeks. During my time away, they plan things for us to do when I’m home again. Usually their plans become mine, but as everybody knows, work piles up around the house.
“Among the many things I needed to take care of was some concrete work at our home. This was something my wife had wanted taken care of for quite some time, but my excuse was that I’m always too busy. She con-vinced my sons to plan a sidewalk building weekend for them and Dad. As usual, they couldn’t wait for their dad to get home from work to start this project. The first thing my son Jacob asked me was “What kind of safety gear would I have to wear to work safe?” I was amazed at the impact I had on my twin boys’ way of thinking. Putting on safety glasses and wearing ear plugs while cutting the grass and weed-eating came natural to me, given the safety culture we live by aboard a rig. I figured no one in my family would even notice…but what I came to see is our children notice everything! I live and work safe every day, and to me that’s one of the most important things I can pass along to my sons. I’m thankful they are getting the message.”
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Walking the Walk Melissa English-Barbour, Canada Division
“This picture is important to me because it depicts why I (and my husband) work safe: to ensure that we are able to spend quality time making great memories with our children,” says Melissa English-Barbour. “It’s my job to support the safety culture of the Noble Drilling employees on the Hibernia Platform. Having been in this position for almost four years and having worked in HSEQ for nine years, I learned long ago that the most important thing I can do is to ‘walk the walk’ and not just talk about safety.
“By this I mean safety is something you do, not just talk about doing. I work hard every day to provide our employees with the tools and education they need to work safely. I want every member of our team to go home in the same or better condition that they were in when they went to work. At the same time, I, of course, also must work safely to ensure that I am in a position to spend quality time and make good memories with my family. I am motivated to stay safe for those I love, including my husband, Brad, and our two children, Bradley (5) and Elle (2). In thinking about them, I see us as we were here on a nature walk during our vacation last summer.”
Photo Contest Winners“ Why I Stay Safe”
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Seeing Sea lifeClayton Feliciano, Noble Therald Martin
It may be tempting to believe that after weeks aboard the Noble Therald Martin, Clayton Feliciano would have gotten his fill of looking at the ocean. Not true, he says, noting, “My wife, Isadora, and I love the ocean and really enjoy visit-ing Porto de Galinhas in Per-nambuco, Brazil. Clayton says they go to this location for recreation because the beach is lined with reefs which form ocean pools just steps away
from the shore. For sure, it is one of the greatest places of the world. But more important than the location was the fact this photo is of the person who I want to spend the rest of life and have more moments like this. I can’t imagine how much my life (and hers) would change if I were injured.”
Smells Like HomeA.J. Gooden, Noble Earl Frederickson
While the food aboard the Frederick-son is pretty good, A.J. Gooden says it doesn’t compare with the taste of the treats his grandchildren Jace (3) and Alyssa (18 months) make for him when he is back home. A. J. knows how impor-tant coming home safe is, and with good reason. He been doing so for 16 years and notes that he has worked on six rigs in total all around the world. “Yes, the kids love being outdoors,” he adds, “and we take the time teaching them water safety and to never to go in the water without an adult. As was the case with our children, we also teach them never to get in a boat without their life jackets. Safety is a way of life, not just something you practice at work.”
Photo Contest Winners“ Why I Stay Safe”
Honorable Mention WinnersFrom left to right: John Gallagher, Noble Scott Marks; Andre Graham, Noble Max Smith; Aaron Schembri, Noble Scott Marks; Ed Schreiner, Noble Paul Wolff; Okolo Evaristus, Noble Lloyd Noble; Neale Fernandes, Noble Gene House; Howell McIntyre, Noble Carl Norberg.
Warm FeelingsWilliam H. Everett Jr., Noble Paul Romano
The miles add up during William Everett’s 10-hour journey from snowy east Tennessee to the tip of Louisi-ana’s bayou country, but the thoughts of his children, Dillon, 9, and Emmalee, 7, are as near and fresh as they were the moment he left.
Like many others who participated in the LINK photo contest, William says, “The main reason I stay safe on the job is for my family. From the time I leave home, the only thing on my mind is getting home to my family as safely and soon as possible. When I see this photo, I know exactly why I stay safe.”
Sands of Time Odis Cobb, Noble Earl FredericksonIn his relatively short time with Noble, Odis Cobb has covered a lot of ground. After joining the Company
in mid-2007, he initially worked in China as part of the Noble Dave Beard project. Once that assignment was complete, he was redeployed to Mexico, where he has worked on both the Frederickson and the Noble Gene Rosser. During that time, his daughter, Alexa, has seen her dad leave for offshore dozens of times and return safely just as often.
“She was three and a half in this picture,” says Odis. “We were vacationing in Gulf Shores, Alabama, and from the moment I saw this picture, I knew how important it was for me to return home safe. I know its many years away, but I actually look forward to walking her down the aisle one day and playing with my grandchildren. To have the future I want, I need to stay safe now and always.”
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What was considered science fiction when Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea first went to press in 1870 may have been more accurate than first imagined. Astonishing video captured by the Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) aboard the Noble Clyde Boudreaux while drilling at Shell’s Perdido development adds credence to the author’s descriptions and drawings of the mythical sea creatures mentioned in the book.
Found aboard most deepwater rigs, an ROV can best be described as an under-water robot resembling a small submarine tethered to the surface by an umbilical cord. Telemetry control and video plus other sensor data travel up the umbilical, literally giving the rig manager and opera-tor a close-up view of the subsea equipment operating more than a mile underwater. With an array of mechanical systems, ROVs are capable of both information gathering and adjusting aspects of subsea equipment installed well below the reach of human divers.
In the case of the ROV aboard the Bou-dreaux, operators were working on the drill string for a well in 7,828 feet of water in Alaminos Canyon when the screen revealed a bizarre, gelatinous creature with a mass of tendrils and a horizontal fin undulating near the well’s marker buoys.
When Patrick Desrouleaux, Shell’s survey coordinator - geomatics, reviewed the video, he recalls feeling like he’d seen something otherworldly. “It looked like one of the aliens from the movie Independence Day. The creature did not seem spooked by the ROV or alarmed in any way.” The survey crew estimated the creature’s length from top to tendril tip as between 20 and 30 feet.
Shell asked internationally acclaimed cephalopod (squid) researcher Dr. Michael Vecchione, laboratory director of the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Director of the National Systematics Labo-ratory/NOAA, to confirm the identity of the creature from his office in the Smithso-nian Institution in Washington, D.C.
“What a horrible beast!” he cried. I could not repress a gesture of disgust…. It was an immense cuttlefish, being eight yards long. It swam crossways in the direction of the Nautilus with great speed, watching us with its enormous staring green eyes.
~Jules Vern 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Tales from the deep
To learn more about the Shell Perdido development, visit http://www.shell.us/home/content/usa/aboutshell/projects_locations/perdido/
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According to Vecchione, the squid in the video is most similar to the family Magna-pinnidae, recognizable by its 10 arms, bent at sharp right angles, and the telltale large fin attached to the mantle. “The body [from below the fin to where the tendrils join] is not very large,” he says, “about a foot or less, but the arms [8 + 2 tentacles] get very long, up to 21 feet when extended.”
Vecchione is credited with discovering this family of cephalopod in 2001. The dis-covery is particularly important because the animal was previously unknown. Since that time, squids like this have been sighted at similar depths in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans.
“That such a substantial animal is common in the world’s largest ecosystem, and yet had not previously been captured or observed, is an indication of how little is known about life in the deep ocean,” he says. Dr. Vecchione points out that more people have been to outer space than have visited deep-sea depths of more than 13,000 feet.
“Every time we get a video observa-tion like this one, it adds another piece to the puzzle,” he says. “If we can determine exactly how big it is, that will be important information.” The video from the Bou-dreaux is one of half a dozen video obser-vations that Vecchione has obtained from various sources since he first discovered the species seven years ago.
While the squid sighting is unique, schools of fish circling offshore rigs are such a common occurrence that they soon become routine to seasoned crewmembers. The reasons fish are attracted to offshore rigs and the production facilities that come later are varied, but the benefit these structures create are straightforward.
“When you have an ocean out there that is nothing but a big, flat mud plain, oil pro-duction platforms are vital to affording the kind of diversity we want,” notes former Texas Parks and Wildlife Department of Coastal Fisheries Director Larry McKinney. “They provide a great fishery that we would not otherwise have. Those fish would not be there if the rigs, or in other cases reefs, were not there as well,”
Thanks to Shell for their contribution of photos and text for this article.
Tales from the deep
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A Man with a PlanJust as the 20th century was about to begin, the
headlines from Oklahoma were dominated by a single word, “oil.” In the narrow window between the time the first commercial paying well was drilled in 1896 (near Bartlesville) and when Oklahoma achieved statehood in 1907, the state became the largest oil-producing entity in the world. Discoveries were made in rapid succession in areas that would eventually encompass many of the 26 major oil fields — with all but five of the major finds discovered before the end of World War II.
While many saw the industry growing up around them, only a few realized the long-term necessity for petroleum-based energy in the fast-growing, indus-trialized economy. One of those pioneers was Lloyd Noble, who in 1921 established a drilling company that still bears his name. From humble beginnings that include a single rig financed in part with money guaranteed by his mother, Lloyd launched more than just a business — but rather a business built on the recognition of the importance of the individuals who define, nurture and sustain it. Nearly 90 years later, those ideas live on and remain the driver of a truly remarkable enterprise with employees and opera-tions worldwide.
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Noble delivers pacesetting performance across the spectrum of offshore drilling operations for customers worldwide with its fleet of 62 drilling rigs, which include 42 jackups, 13 semi-submersibles, four drillships and three shallow-water submersibles.
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Close Counts
One of the important changes in our approach is that we are focusing increasingly on the reporting and analysis of “accidents” that never happened. For example, if a rig worker nearly trips over a piece of equipment that isn’t properly stored and secured, there may be no measurable consequences. But there was a near miss, and our new process helps ensure we learn from and correct the problem. “Even though nothing was damaged and nobody got hurt, the result could be different next time” says Peter Bridle, Director of HSE & Q. “So we must report and analyze near misses, and share our findings with others who may benefit from them. As we learn from near misses, the fewer incidents of actual consequences we’ll have.”
The Noble LINK is published by and for the employees of Noble Corporation and its subsidiaries
and for our clients and friends.
Editor: John BreedDesign: Scott McFarlane
Comments regarding the Noble LINKshould be directed to:
John Breed, Noble Drilling Services Inc.13135 South Dairy Ashford, Suite 800
Sugar Land, Texas 77478(281) 276-6100
thanks to new “near-miss” analysis
CORPORATION MAGAZINE • SUMMER 2010
Noble Drilling Services Inc.13135 South Dairy Ashford, Suite 800
Sugar Land, Texas 77478
First Look:Two Noble Newbuilds Join the Fleet
Personal MotivationWhy I Stay Safewww.noblecorp.com
