Reactivation of Mature Oilfields: A Multifaceted Production Management

Abstract—The pressure of an increased global energy demand and the increase of oil prices stimulate the reactivation of oil fields that in the past were considered non-profitable. The reactivation of these fields, also known as mature oil fields, carries with it uncertainties regarding production and management. For more than one decade, Brazilian National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Bio-Fuels (ANP) auction mature oil and gas fields that have been returned by Petrobras, the Brazilian oil company, over the years. This business is not attractive for big oil companies because the recent opportunity to explore pre-salt in Brazil. However, it has rules and aspects that difficult the insertion of small and medium enterprises (SME). This work aims to present how to reactivate mature oilfields through multifaceted aspects of production management. The paper focuses on the methodology of creating facets in the oilfield reactivation process. It comprises the all cycle: bidding, production, and deactivation process of the producing area. From the facet definition and bibliometric analyzes it is possible to define profiles for managers and managing aspects for each subarea of production process. We intend with this proposal to help develop new mechanisms facilitating the insertion of SME in the activities of oil exploration and production.

Index Terms—Mature fields, multifaceted management, small and medium companies.

Eduardo Oliveira Teles is with the Program of Industrial Engineer, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. He is also with the Department of Informatics, Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Bahia — Camaçari, Bahia, Brazil (e-mail: eoteles@gmail.com).
Ana Paula Maia Tanajura is with the Program of Industrial Engineer, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. She is also with the Senai Cimatec, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil (e-mail: anapaula_tanajura@hotmail.com).
Francisco Gaudêncio Mendonça Freires and Ednildo Andrade Torres are with the Program of Industrial Engineer, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil (e-mail: gaudenciof@yahoo.com, ednildo@ufba.br).

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Cite: Eduardo Oliveira Teles, Ana Paula Maia Tanajura, Francisco Gaudêncio Mendonça Freires, and Ednildo Andrade Torres, "Reactivation of Mature Oilfields: A Multifaceted Production Management," International Journal of Materials, Mechanics and Manufacturing vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 36-39, 2016.