Innovation & collaboration in Brazil - experiences from Heriot Watt
Gordon Winton
Institute of Petroleum Engineering
Heriot-Watt University
Today’s talk
• Heriot-Watt and the Institute of Petroleum Engineering
• Our research model – traditional and industrially focused
• The oil and gas innovation centre (OGIC)
• Activity in Brazil and with Brazil
Heriot-Watt
• Heriot-Watt is a multi campus university
– Riccarton in Edinburgh
– Stromness in Orkney
– Galashiels in the Scottish Borders
• Campus in Dubai
• Campus in Malaysia
Significant oil and gasresearch and teaching
activity in each of theseschools and institutes
Our schools and institutes
Institute of Petroleum Engineering
Built Environment
Engineering & Physical Sciences
Life Sciences
Mathematical & Computer Sciences
Edinburgh Business School
Management & Languages
Textiles & Design
Educational innovation
Undergraduate courses in UK and overseas
Post graduate taught courses in UK and Overseas
Industrially integrated educational programmes in UK and Overseas
Innovative programmes offered across multiple schools and campuses
IPE current research themes• Petroleum geoscience (reservoir description, analogues, seismic
interpretation, geomechanics and rock physics)
• Unconventional hydrocarbons (shale gas, CBM)
• International Centre for Carbonate Reservoirs
• 4D time-lapse seismic imaging
• Uncertainty Quantification
• Multi-scale modelling and flow simulation
• Enhanced Oil Recovery and CO2 solutions
• Hydrates, Flow Assurance & Phase Equilibria (PVT)
• Production technology
• Production chemistry: Scale & Flow Assurance (“FAST”)
• Carbon capture and storage
• Marine renewables
Research models
• Our research models – traditional with industrial focus
– Leading the NERC Centre for Doctoral Training
– Co-locating with British Geological Survey in Edinburgh
– EPSRC funded research in oil and gas related subjects e.g. uncertainty quantification, Gas Hydrates
Joint industry programs
• Majority of research at IPE is done in JIPs
– Common industrial objectives – “Why?” and “How?”
– Develop understanding and share with sponsors
– Innovate
– Move on to next challenge
• Range of project sizes
– 5 to 23 sponsors
• Source of IP and technology
Summary IPE Strategy
• Sustain world class research
• Development and diversification
• Increase output and quality
• Develop international outreach
• Grow postgraduate research
• Develop research environment
• Promote knowledge exchange/impact
• Increase awareness of IPE activities
Industry need
• The key industry challenge is reducing costs, improving productivity, and adapting technologies in the UKCS and overseas
• The oil and gas industry has long technology adoption times and wants to accelerate the rate of innovation and ease its introduction into service
• The oil and gas industry needs to foster innovation in the supply chain to meet its current challenges.
Heriot-Watt’s role in OGIC• HWU is the lead administrative HEI for the
Energy Technology Partnership
• OGIC has a team based in Aberdeen to match the predominant Scottish supply chain footfall
• OGIC team are autonomous with operational governance that is designed to ensure that OGIC partners are treated similarly
• OGIC fits into the landscape of innovation in Scotland
Team and deliverables
• Aberdeen based
• 8-10 staff
• Industry and University involvement on Board and with project selection
• Close alignment with ITF, Interface, TSB, RCUK and other organisations
Team
• Enable c. £26 million additional innovation spend (leveraged)
• Progress c. 100 projects between 2014-2018
• Support and create c. 500 jobs between 2014-2018
Deliverables
OGIC PurposeCreate transformational change in the way the oil and gas industry work with HEIs
Create innovative solutions to solve industry problems and create economic benefits
OGIC links 30+ operators and 2300+ service companies to universities with academic staff and researchers
Act as a key delivery mechanism for the UKCS Technology Strategy
Accelerated innovation
Fair brokerageFunding for
collaborative and inclusive projects
Better combination of experience and
expertise
Complementarity with ITF, Interface
and other ICs
OGIC Priority areas
OGICSubsea
Seismic and Reservoir
Char.
Asset integrity/ life
extension
Decomm
Enhanced Oil Recovery. Production
Optimisation
Production technology
Shale gas exploitation.
Health, Safety,
Environment
Progress to date
• £12.3m funding received in Q1 2014
• Agreements in place with 12 Scottish universities
• Organisation staffed and offices open for business (www.ogic.co.uk)
• First projects underway
• Brazil is the largest country in Latin America and fifth largest in the world.
• Its population of 202 million makes Brazil the world’s sixth-most populous nation.
• With a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2013 of US$2.3 trillion, Brazil is the world’s seventh-largest economy, spurred by a 2.5% annual growth during 2013
• Doing business in Brazil requires intimate knowledge of the local environment, including both the direct as well as the indirect costs of doing business in Brazil (referred to as “CustoBrasil”)
• Such costs are often related to distribution, government procedures, employee benefits, environmental laws, and a complex tax structure. Logistics pose a particular challenge, given the lack of sufficient infrastructure to keep up with nearly a decade of economic expansion
IPE links with BrazilResearch Theme Links with Brazil
Petroleum geoscience (reservoir description, analogues, seismic interpretation, geomechanics and rock physics)
Unconventional hydrocarbons (shale gas, CBM)
International Centre for Carbonate Reservoirs
4D time-lapse seismic imaging
Uncertainty Quantification
Multi-scale modelling and flow simulation
Enhanced Oil Recovery and CO2 solutions
Hydrates, Flow Assurance & Phase Equilibria (PVT)
Production technology
Production chemistry: Scale & Flow Assurance (“FAST”)
Carbon capture and storage
Marine renewables
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Innovation
Innovators need to develop each innovation type
Develop creative confidence
Encourage innovation package development
Develop entrepreneurship
Give ambitious people and companies the tools required to succeed
Objectives
• Develop long term partnership
• Identify key partners for our activities
• Help to develop people who have technical skills coupled with creative confidence
• Help Brazil to develop new skill and expertise by engaging with industrial research organisations
Focus
• Our focus has been on the development links in areas of strength
– Research, Teaching, Knowledge exchange
• We have seen a real appetite to engage in areas where we can show real benefit to Brazil
• Our innovation has been the formation of new research configurations, offerings and customer engagement
HWU actions – so far
• BG Group Professor of Carbonate Geoengineering – long term secondment to Brazil
• Multi work package programmes with Petrobras
• Engineers without borders progamme
• Development of ties with Brazilian Universities
Future work
• Enhancing links
• Joint development of Brazil-centric intellectual property
• Linking industrially focused research with innovation organisations such as the Industry Technology Facilitator and OGIC
• Ensure that innovation from other sectors is embedded in the oil and gas sector
Future work
• Is there a requirement for an oil and gas specific innovation centre in Brazil?
• What shape would this take?
– Technological
– Development of Brazilian exports
– Systems innovation
– Focus areas
Closing thoughts
• Success in Brazil’s business culture relies heavily upon the development of strong personal relationships, the keystone of productive business partnerships
• Saab Wins $4.5 Billion Brazil Order as Spat Hurts Boeing
– The work to win this contract started around 2000 and came to fruition in December 2013
– Persistence and trust matter in Brazil