TotalEnergies awards Expro Holdings $30m deal to maintain Ugandan rigs

June 20, 2023 in Companies, Energy, Hydrocarbons by Editor

Work begins in the second half of 2023, with Expro initially supporting drilling activity followed by production optimization, integrity and well work-over support.

TotalEnergies EP, the developers of the Tilenga oilfields in western Uganda, has awarded a $30 million five-year Well Intervention and Integrity contract to Expro Group Holdings. All oil and gas wells require maintenance over time, and well intervention helps repair damaged and underperforming wells.

To date, Uganda’s proven reserves are at 6.5 billion barrels of crude of which about 1.5 billion barrels is recoverable. Plans are to begin commercial production in 2025.

Iain Farley, Expro’s Regional Vice President for Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa said, “We are delighted to further develop our relationship with TotalEnergies through work on this key project, which reinforces Expro’s ability to partner in frontier field developments in support of energy security.

A key component in Expro securing a contract worth over $30 million for slickline services was its ability to provide an innovative environmental solution in support of the client’s carbon reduction objectives, as well as Expro’s commitment to national recruitment in line with a local development plan, working in collaboration with TotalEnergies and the Petroleum Authority of Uganda (PAU). A slickline is a thin cable introduced into a well to deliver and retrieve tools downhole.

Expro’s solution placed significant focus on the location’s sensitivity near a national park. The company is providing environmentally sympathetic lower carbon operations solutions compared to current market alternatives. Expro has also invested in a new operational facility in-country, supported by investment in people and training to help exceed local expectations.

With roots dating to 1938, the Houston-based oil services company has approximately 7,600 employees and provides services and solutions to leading exploration and production companies in both onshore and offshore environments in approximately 60 countries.

Work begins in the second half of 2023, with Expro initially supporting drilling activity followed by production optimization, integrity and well work-over support. Expro has designed four well intervention units to deliver a single operational solution for slickline and braided line in a cased hole environment across the life of the well. The solution is designed to reduce equipment footprint and equivalent CO² emissions, while delivering improved efficiency. The Tilenga project covers six fields, with over 400 wells planned across multiple pads. Drilling will start this year and continue for five years.

Farley said, “Expro’s solution was designed and engineered with the specific needs of this project in mind, taking into account the environmental sensitivities of the location and the need to support the project’s overall environmental and social objectives. It builds on our current operations in East Africa and on many years of successful delivery on key projects in locations such as Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Mozambique and Egypt.”