News archive

RESMAN continues to win work with Statoil

RESMAN was recently awarded three work orders to deliver wireless reservoir surveillance systems to Statoil. RESMAN and Statoil signed a frame agreement in 2010, and RESMAN has since then delivered several tracer systems for cost-effective inflow monitoring. This time RESMAN will deliver its wireless reservoir surveillance system to Hyme, Norne and Svale in the Norwegian Sea. RESMAN are excited to be a selected technology partner for these wells.

Commercial Manager at RESMAN, Guro Solem says: “We are proud to be a selected technology partner for Statoil. For us these three jobs definitely represent a confirmation of the trust Statoil have in RESMAN’s solution. RESMAN delivers tracer systems for wireless reservoir surveillance, which will improve the operators’ ability to determine which part of the well is contributing and to take action to improve well productivity.  Our steadily growing work with Statoil and a growing list of customers worldwide confirms the great interest the industry has in this technology.”

RESMAN has since its inception in 2005 delivered approximately 600 wireless well surveillance systems to more than 80 wells to almost all major oil companies on four continents.  The company has its headquarters, production facilities and science laboratories in Trondheim, Norway, and sales offices in Rio de Janeiro and Houston.  In 2011 the company was awarded Hart’s Meritorious Engineering Award for Production Technology during the OTC in Houston and was awarded «Gullkronen» 2011 as «New venture of the year». Gullkronen is awarded to companies, teams and persons who have shown remarkable achievements on the NCS during 2010.

RESMAN will provide wireless reservoir surveillance systems to Det Norske

RESMAN will deliver wireless reservoir surveillance systems to Det Norske. This is the first time RESMAN has been awarded a contract by Det Norske to deliver RESMAN’s groundbreaking system for risk-free inflow monitoring. This will be Det Norske’s first operating asset on the Norwegian Continental Shelf and RESMAN are excited to be a selected technology partner for these wells.

RESMAN was recently awarded a contract to deliver wireless reservoir surveillance systems to Det Norske.  This is the first time RESMAN has been awarded a contract by Det Norske to deliver RESMAN’s groundbreaking system for risk-free inflow monitoring.  This will be Det Norske’s first operating asset on the Norwegian Continental Shelf and RESMAN are excited to be a selected technology partner for these wells.

Commercial Manager at RESMAN, Guro Solem says: “We are proud that Det Norske has awarded us this job, which for us represents a confirmation of the trust oil operators have in RESMAN’s solution. We also look forward to working with another Trondheim based company.  RESMAN delivers tracer systems for wireless reservoir surveillance, which will improve the operators’ ability to determine which part of the well is contributing and to take action to improve well productivity.  Our steadily growing list of customers and projects confirms the great interest the industry has in this technology.

RESMAN has since its inception in 2005 delivered approximately 600 wireless well surveillance systems to more than 80 wells to almost all major oil companies on four continents.  The company has its headquarters, production facilities and science laboratories in Trondheim, Norway, and sales offices in Rio de Janeiro and Houston.  In 2011 the company was awarded Hart’s Meritorious Engineering Award for Production Technology during the OTC in Houston and was awarded «Gullkronen» 2011 as «New venture of the year». Gullkronen is awarded to companies, teams and persons who have shown remarkable achievements on the NCS during 2010.

Phil Longorio Joins Board of Directors

RESMAN is pleased to announce Phil Longorio has joined the board of directors. Mr. Longorio is a thirty-three-year veteran of the oil and gas service industry, and has held various executive management positions with both major and smaller oil service companies.

Mr Longorio is currently Senior Vice President of Tetra Technologies and serves as non-executive chairman of the board of directors for GEODynamics, Inc., a private company involved in the manufacture and sale of shaped charge perforating systems for downhole well applications. Mr Longorio is an active member of the SPE and SPWLA.

Previously Mr Longorio has served in the following positions: 

• President and chief executive officer of WellDynamics, a leading provider of intelligent well technologies.
• Director and non-executive chairman for SensorTran, a private company that provides products and services related to remote downhole well monitoring.
• Vice president of Sperry-Sun Drilling Services
• Executive management roles with Halliburton leading the well testing, wireline logging and perforating businesses.

Mr. Longorio began his oilfield career in 1977 at Gearhart Industries and is a United States Air Force veteran.

Mr Longorio's broad executive experiences with managing emerging technology endeavors will be a valuable addition to RESMAN's board.

Eni Norge and RESMAN sign R&D agreement

TRONDHEIM/STAVANGER, NORWAY – July 28, 2011 – Eni Norge and RESMAN AS have entered a three year R&D agreement to fund development of new capabilities of inflow tracers.

  Eni Norge is a subsidary of the Italian Eni S.p.A. where tracer applications have been applied successfully in two operating assets to date. The two parties have previously cooperated on a Demo2000 project developing green tracers for arctic areas from 2008 to 2010.

RESMAN is delighted to have Eni Norge/Eni S.p.A., and their vast experience in complex field management, as an active partner in expanding and enhancing the capabilities of wireless reservoir monitoring. 

RESMAN Wins Hart’s MEA for Production Technology

HOUSTON, TEXAS - May 2, 2011 – At the 2011 Offshore Technology Conference, RESMAN was presented the Hart's E&P Meritorious Engineering Award (MEA) for Production Technology. Hart’s MEA is a prestigious competition, now in its 40th year.

A distinguished panel of independent judges chose Resman’s Tracer technology as the winner in the Production Technology category based on:

• Innovation in concept
• Suitability as a practical solution to a real oilfield problem
•  Potential for improving efficiency or safety
• Potential for improving profitability

This award recognizes RESMAN is a leader in delivering valuable reservoir surveillance information in a practical, safe and cost effective manner.

Presentation of Hart’s MEA Award to RESMAN
Left to right; Mark Thomas, Hart’s E&P International Editor; Torger Skillingstad, CEO RESMAN; Jeff Bode, Area Sales Manager Africa/Middle East 

New venture of the year

RESMAN has been awarded «Gullkronen» 2011 as «New venture of the year». Gullkronen is awarded to companies, teams and persons who have shown remarkable achievements on the NCS during 2010.

The jury's reasoning for awarding the prize to RESMAN was: The winner is a great example that unique technology from R&D labs can be successfully commercialized. Continued product development in close co-operation with operators and financial backing from active investors have been key elements of their impressive growth. Today their products are used by a growing number of international operators as a unique, cost effective and competitive solution to challenges that represent a huge global demand.

Since its first commercial sales in 2007, RESMAN has now installed its technology in approximately 60 wells worldwide and have companies like Statoil, Shell, BP, ENI, ConocoPhillips, Chevron, BHP Billiton, Marathon, Hess, Talisman, Pioneer, Husky, Dong, Xcite and RWE on its list of customers. The company passed $10 million in revenues in 2010 and is intent on keeping its rate of growth.

Said CEO Torger Skillingstad: I was very proud to represent all of us at the award ceremony. This award is something we are very proud of, it’s the innovation and hard work that all of us have done that has led to this industry recognition.

Said RESMAN board member and investor Bjarne Lie of Verdane Capital: The Resman organization has consistently impressed us since we first invested in the company in 2006. Very few of our portfolio companies have been able to make the transition from exciting but unproven technology to global niche leadership in such an accelerated manner. Our prior ‘Res’ investments, Reslab and Reslink, delivered great value to their customers and investors, and we are highly confident that Resman is on a similar track.

For more about Gullkronen, see www.rystadenergy.com

First contract with BP Norge

TRONDHEIM, NORWAY (May 4, 2010) – RESMAN equipped production well in the Valhall field with its new tracer-based wireless technology to monitor oil and water inflow. RESMAN has proven its technology in pilots in the North Sea and filled several orders to international oil company’s world wide.

 
“The Valhall field has a history of well collapses and influx failures. The new technology with permanent chemical tracers gives us indication of zones are contributing without using well interventions. The tracer response data are currently used for evaluation of completion solution and planning of next intervention on the well, says Kirsten Lootz, Sr. Petroleum Eng in BP Norge.
   “We are proud of becoming a supplier to BP, one of the oil majors of the world, and we look forward to bringing value to their Valhall field.  RESMAN is becoming a household name in the industry and we are growing our organization and capabilities to meet the steadily increasing demand for wireless well inflow monitoring.” ends RESMAN VP Sales Oddvar Solemsli.

ISO recertification and new certification

RESMAN has per January 29th 2010 been recertified according to the ISO 9001:2008 standard for quality systems and the ISO 14001:2004 standard for environmental management systems. In addition, RESMAN has been certified according to the OHSAS 18001:2007 standard for occupational health and safety management systems.

RESMAN opens office in Houston

Resman today opened its second sales office outside Norway in Houston, USA, less than six months after having opened its first foreign subsidiary in Rio de Janeiro.

"Houston is the world's petroleum capital and any growing technology company in the sector needs to have a close relationship to the Texan metropolis," says Resman's CEO Pål B. Vorkinn.  After having travelled back and forth between Trondheim and Houston for almost three years, the Resman team decided it was time to get a permanent address.  Says VP Oddvar Solemsli, "We have so many customers and potential customers in Houston that it really is full time work just to go see them all."

The office is located in the Norwegian business center run by Innovation Norway and Intsok in Houston, where several other Norwegian companies have their US operations.

RESMAN opens office in Brazil

Resman today opened its first foreign subsidiary in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The company, Resman do Brasil Ltda, will market wireless reservoir and well performance products based on tracer technology and services from the Trondheim based technology company Resman AS and IFE, the Kjeller based research company.

In spite of the financial crisis and moderate oil prices, Brazil continues to invest in its growing petroleum sector and the country is set to increase its production from today’s two million barrels per day to four-five million barrels per day within 2017.  Says CEO Oddvar Solemsli of Resman AS: “Brazil has taken a long term view of the petroleum sector and has decided to invest now to take advantage of a higher production capacity when the demand for oil inevitably rises again.  The main market player, Petrobras, is an innovative company that focuses on leading edge technology to produce oil in an environmentally friendly and efficient way.  Brazil is therefore a natural first step in Resman’s strategy to grow internationally.”

Resman’s products monitor inflow to oil wells while IFE’s technology monitors flow in the reservoir, both by use of chemical tracers.  Says managing director Kjell Bendiksen of IFE: “IFE and Resman have complementary technologies and will cooperate to supply the Brazilian market with state-of-the-art reservoir and well monitoring tracer services”.
 
Resman do Brasil Ltda is located in the Norwegian business center run by Innovation Norway and Intsok in Rio de Janeiro, where several other Norwegian companies have their Brazilian operations.  Says Resman do Brasil’s local manager Roberto Birkeland: “Doing business in Brazil means that you need to be in Brazil.  It is a very big market that cannot be remotely operated from other countries and Resman and IFE have done the right thing in showing their concrete interest in the Brazilian market by being here.”


CEO Oddvar Solemsli, Assistant Sales Manager Guro Solem and Local Manager Roberto Birkeland during office opening in Rio de Janeiro

PREFERRED SUPPLIER TO DONG ENERGY THROUGH 2011

RESMAN and DONG Energy have concluded a Frame Agreement for the supply of wireless tracer marking systems. The first delivery under the agreement will be DONG Energy’s upcoming wells at the Nini East field. RESMAN will deliver tracer-based monitoring technology to monitor oil and water inflow along long horizontal wells.

This is the first order filled by RESMAN where the company will be the preferred supplier of monitoring systems during a multiple well program. RESMAN has successfully installed its groundbreaking, wireless well monitoring technology in more than 15 wells worldwide.

Vagn Holstein, Senior Production Engineer with Dong Energy, said: “The tracer project is expected to be economically attractive, both due to reduced costs (fewer PLT’s required) and due to increased oil production. Additionally, lower water cut is expected to give reduced consumption of energy for separation of oil, gas and water, for cleaning of the produced water and for re-injection of water to the reservoir.”  
 
According to RESMAN founder Fridtjof Nyhavn: “We are proud of becoming a preferred supplier of monitoring systems to DONG Energy during their development of multiple wells through the next couple of years. This we see as an acknowledgement of our technology and it is also the fruit of technical achievements and good cooperation with DONG Energy during earlier tracer installations.”

ISO 9001 AND ISO 14001 CERTIFICATION

RESMAN has today received certification that the company satisfies the requirements of the ISO 9001:2000 standard for quality systems and the ISO 14001:2004 standard for environmental management systems.

Says Oddvar Solemsli, CEO of RESMAN: "The petroleum industry sets very stringent requirements for quality and we are pleased to be able to demonstrate the quality of our management system through this certification. We have always believed in keeping high standard in the performance of our work and we are committed to improve the environment within the context of the industry."

RESMAN has collaborated with Trondheim based PTL to develop its quality system and the certification was performed by TI – Teknologisk Institutt in Oslo.

RESMAN PROVES ITS TECHNOLOGY IN TYRIHANS WELL

One horizontal well at the Tyrihans oil field offshore Norway was equipped with RESMAN’s tracers to monitor contribution of oil production along the wellbore. Results from the initial test production from the well to the drilling rig clearly show that oil production occurs from the toe (outer part) of the well.

This is the first time RESMAN’s wireless well inflow monitoring technology based on tracers is used to characterize initial oil production along a well bore. Fridtjov Ravn Munkvold of StatoilHydro Tyrihans project said: “In this case it was important for us to know that toe section of the well contributed to the overall oil production in order to confirm that the chosen well design is efficient.  The results that RESMAN technology provided gave us this certainty and we can go on drilling subsequent wells with this knowledge.”

RESMAN’s tracers can also be used to characterize the oil production from the well when it starts production towards the platform in the first half of 2009.  The low detection limit of the proprietary tracers makes it possible to monitor inflow of oil and water over a long period, in this case designed to mean approximately six months.  However, recent technology development has made it possible to design wireless monitoring systems throughout the life of the well. The tracer technology has been developed by RESMAN and Sintef in collaboration with StatoilHydro research center in Trondheim.

RESMAN CEO Oddvar Solemsli says: “It is extremely satisfying to see that systems developed and proven to function in the lab also give valuable data and information in real wells.  I believe this is a further step on the way to seeing wireless well inflow monitoring based on tracers in the majority of oil and gas wells.”

RESMAN FILLS FIRST ORDER FOR MARATHON

RESMAN will equip Marathon Petroleum Company (Norway’s) upcoming wells in the Volund field with tracer-based monitoring technology to monitor oil and water inflow. This is the first order filled by RESMAN to Marathon. Resman has recently successfully installed its groundbreaking, wireless well monitoring technology in six wells in the North Sea. Marathon Petroleum Company (Norway) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE: MRO).

RESMAN CEO Oddvar Solemsli said, “Use of the Resman tracer system in the Volund project’s production wells will allow MPC(N) long term monitoring of the production from this unique reservoir. Additionally the project benefits from being able to eliminate well testing activities from a semi submersible drilling rig while still being able to gain important early data relating to the well cleanup and performance.”
 
RESMAN has developed a completely new range of tracers with ultra low detection limits that enable the company to monitor inflow of oil and water over a long period of time, potentially throughout the life of the well.  This will make it possible for the field operator to build up a continuous production profile without intervention.
 
According to RESMAN CEO Oddvar Solemsli, “We are proud of becoming a supplier to Marathon and we look forward to bring well inflow monitoring to a new level with the Volund project.”

ENI Norge and RESMAN develop “green” tracers in DEMO2000 project

TRONDHEIM/STAVANGER, NORWAY – Eni Norge AS and RESMAN are partners in a DEMO2000 sponsored project to develop environmentally friendly tracers for oil production monitoring. The technology can be used to reduce environmental impact in sensitive areas like the Barents Sea and in the Arctic.

Protecting the environment is a first priority for Eni when exploiting hydrocarbon reserves in sensitive areas. This technology can help in optimizing production and reducing the amount of produced water without adding harmful substances to the environment.

According to RESMAN CEO Oddvar Solemsli, “Tracer technology is playing an ever more important role in production monitoring in the oil sector, which means that the quantity of tracer material installed in wells is increasing.  It is therefore imperative for us to make sure that our tracers are environmentally friendly and this project will be a milestone in that development.”

The objective of the DEMO2000 project is to develop a new class of green tracers based on biological molecules with extremely low detection limits and negligible environmental impact.  The project includes development of design criteria for tracer molecules, analysis of tracer behavior in different well fluids and chemical stability in Arctic conditions.  The developed systems will be tested in a field trial in Alaska.

RESMAN fills order for field deployment in Australia

RESMAN today received an order from an international operator in Australia (name withheld due to client’s policy) to equip an oil field offshore NW Australia with its groundbreaking technology for production monitoring.

RESMANs technology will be used to monitor test production of the two first oil producing wells and water breakthrough in the three fields that constitute the Pyrenees development.

RESMANs technology is based on intelligent materials and non-radioactive tracers placed along the wellbore in oil wells, and enables the operator to evaluate production start-up and when and where unwanted water is entering the well.  Says CEO Oddvar Solemsli of RESMAN: “Inspired by the fantastic support we have received from StatoilHydro to get trials and pilots, we have been looking to deploy the technology to a whole field development.  This client has proved to be a first mover and we are delighted to work with them to bring value to their field development.  RESMAN is building industry – affordable, wireless and permanent well monitoring of all wells will become the reality that asset managers have dreamed of for a long time.”

Resman fills first order for Oseberg

StatoilHydro signed an order with RESMAN to equip its upcoming well in the Oseberg field with tracer-based monitoring technology to detect when and where water enters the production flow. This is the fourth field on the North Sea to be equipped with RESMAN’s permanent wireless well monitoring technology.

StatoilHydro’s Production Engineer in the Oseberg Main Field, Anastasios Siamos said: “We are looking for a way to monitor water breakthrough in our wells. The RESMAN technology has a great potential and we want to try it in our two upcoming Oseberg Main wells”.

According to RESMAN CEO Oddvar Solemsli, “We have invested heavily to bring our technology from the lab to a mature service and the increasing number of installations shows us that we are on our way.  We are currently negotiating several contracts in many oil provinces and we look forward to continued and accelerated growth.”
    
 

Resman awarded Achilles qualification

RESMAN has been qualified in the Achilles Joint Qualification System for suppliers to the Oil Industry in Norway and Denmark.

The Achilles Group supplies management information; delivering a portfolio of strategic sourcing, tender management, decision support and collaboration technologies in an integrated solution that builds collaborative communities for buyers and suppliers, reduces purchasing costs, promotes corporate responsibility and shortens the procurement cycle across many sectors of the economy. 

Field proof of technology

TRONDHEIM, NORWAY - StatoilHydro agreed to use RESMAN's tracer system in a well in its Skinfaks field. Formation water was detected by the multiphase meter and was later verified by the RESMAN tracer system, providing the first proof of the technology through a field test.

"We decided to try out the tracer-based permanent monitoring in a well with sufficient instrumentation to verify the technology.  When we observed water breakthrough, we shut in the different DIACS zones and concluded from the muiltiphase meter that the water was coming from the toe," said Eirik Aspenes, Process Engineer of StatoilHydro. "RESMAN's tracer system verified that the water was coming from the toe section,  which indicates that  the technology works."

"We are not surprised although delighted that what we see in the lab also works in the field.  With what we are currently seeing in the lab, production monitoring is going to change dramatically to the better in the next few months," said CEO Oddvar Solemsli of RESMAN.

Resman fill first order for clean up monitoring with Tyrihans

RESMAN’s technology can prove a cost effective way of monitoring the clean-up of the long, horizontal Tyrihans wells and it is expected that the results obtained can be used for optimizing future wells on the field. Production from Tyrihans is scheduled to commence in 2009 and is expected to reach an initial plateau of around 70 000 barrels of oil equivalent in 2011 from the subsea development tied back to the nearby Kristin field. The current drilling schedule includes up to 11 wells.

RESMAN’s previous projects have been focused on detection of unwanted water breakthrough in production wells and include so far three wells on the Norwegian Continental Shelf while a fourth well will be installed in the Danish sector in January 2008. The Tyrihans project represents a big leap for RESMAN, which plans to offer its technology for clean-up and water breakthrough monitoring to any type of completion within the next three years.

According to RESMAN CEO Oddvar Solemsli, “This project confirms our belief that oil companies see a cost effective alternative in our monitoring technology also for optimizing well design and we are currently negotiating similar contracts with international customers. We strongly believe that RESMAN will become part of most field development plans for both this service and for water breakthrough monitoring within the next three years.”

RESMAN fills first order for Danish DONG Energy

Siri Subsurface Manager Preben Jensen, of DONG Energy, said, “We were looking for a cost effective way to monitor water breakthrough in our wells, and RESMAN has proved to be an innovative company offering a technology that has great potential.” DONG has operated the Siri field since 2002 and continues its efforts to increase the life and value of the field facilities by using leading-edge technologies.

RESMAN’s previous installations have been in wire wrap sand screens, but this installation will make use of premanufactured premium screens - a big leap for RESMAN, which plans to offer its technology to any type of completion within the next three years.

According to RESMAN CEO Oddvar Solemsli, “We have now demonstrated not only our ability to develop tracers, but also the ability to adapt to the operational reality of our customers. We can now integrate our tracers with any sand screen on the market. Our next step will be to develop techniques for other completion scenarios.”
    
 

Appointment of Board of Directors

During RESMAN’s annual shareholders’ meeting 25 June 2007, a new Board of Directors was appointed. The BoD includes professionals with extensive industry background and proven track record in building industrial companies. During the same meeting the company’s shareholders agreed to fund the first phase of an aggressive technology development programme.

Bjørn Anders Fossum (58), Chairman, holds an MSc in cybernetics from the University of Trondheim and a degree in economics from the NorwegianSchool of Management. He was co-founder of Seatex, a leading supplier of maritime instrumentation equipment. Seatex was listed at Oslo Stock Exchange in 1993 and continued its expansion through mergers and acquisitions to become one of the major players within its sector.  Bjørn is currently Chairman of the Board of Directors in Kongsberg Seatex and is an active board member in several technology companies.

Rolf Utseth (63) holds a PhD and an MSc in petroleum engineering from the University of Texas in Austin and an MSc in mechanical engineering from the University in Trondheim. He was associate professor in petroleum engineering at the University of Trondheim and Director at Sintef’s  Institute of Petroleum Technology Research. Since 1985, Rolf has held various leadership positions within both research and operations in Statoil, currently he is Vice President, Subsea IOR at Statoil’s Research Centre in Trondheim.

Dag Thomassen (61) holds an MSc in nuclear reactor physics from the University of Oslo. Since 1972 he has held various technical and managerial positions at the Institute for Energy Technology where he currently is Director of the petroleum sector.

 Arnstein Nordbotten (44) holds an MSc from NTNU-Norwegian University of Science and Technology and has business education from the NorwegianSchool of Management. He was assistant vice president in SND’s debt division and investment manager at SND Invest and is currently partner at Verdane Capital Advisors where he specialises in the ICT sector and has helped build companies such as Reslink, Colibria and Elprint.

Ingunn Svegården (28) holds an MSc in engineering from the University of Trondheim's Faculty of Chemistry and Biology and is currently Investment Manager with Statoil Innovation, the Norwegian oil major's venture investment company. During her university studies Ingunn focused on innovation and turning technology development into commercial opportunities and spent three months with a start-up company in Silicon Valley. After joining Statoil in 2003, she worked with commercialization of new technology and procurement projects before becoming investment manager. Ingunn holds board positions in Sentry Security and SWAY.

RESMAN to Install Well Monitoring Technology in Skinfaks Field

This summer, two wells at the Skinfaks field in the Gullfaks/Tampen area will be equipped with RESMAN polymer matrix tracer technology. With RESMAN technology, operators can monitor clean-up, production start-up and water breakthrough in all well zones with an affordable, wireless setup. Leading Statoil reservoir engineer for the Tampen area, Lasse Stoltenberg said, “We see a potential for RESMAN’s technology, which we consider more cost effective than alternative technologies, in the Tampen area, and we have placed an order for Skinfaks as the first step.”

In the next 20 years, increasingly more of the world’s oil and gas will be produced from “difficult” wells that, due to their economical marginality or technical complexity, have to be monitored closely to ensure overall profitability. Without the ability to affordably monitor inflow, some of these wells—such as long horizontals, multilaterals, zone-isolated wells and wells in complex geometries—might not even be drilled due to the high risk.

RESMAN is experiencing increasing interest from customers in its low-cost wireless permanent monitoring technology and is currently working on several large projects. CEO Oddvar Solemsli said, “The Skinfaks order is an important milestone in our commercial success. Since its inception in 2005, the company has focused on delivering affordable wireless monitoring and control solutions without wires, batteries or downhole electronics.”

First pilot system installed at Urd

RESMAN has successfully installed its first full scale pilot in a producing oil well at the Urd development offshore Norway. This is the world's first permanent well monitoring system based on wireless, chemically "intelligent" technology.

RESMAN's technology is utilized to monitor water breaktrough in the Urd well and preliminary reults during well wash-out provided an early indication of success.  Says Sigurd Hunsnes at Statoil, "We have chosen to test this technology at Urd because we believe it is a very useful tool for the future."  In this case RESMAN's tracers are placed permanently in sand screens along the production zone without any reduction in the oil production.  Says Fridtjof Nyhavn at RESMAN, "It would be immoral for us to wish for water in Urd's wells, but we are confident that when the day comes, our system will work and tell the operator exactly where water breakthrough has occured."

New CEO appointed

Oddvar Solemsli has been appointed CEO of RESMAN as of 23 February 2007, he replaces Fridtjof Nyhavn who will continue to take responsibility of the company's sales.

Oddvar holds an MSc in engineering from the University of Trondheim, an ecomonics degree from the Norwegian School of Management and a Master's degree in Energy and Environmental Economics from ENI's Scuola Enrico Mattei.  He was marketing manager of the Norwegian electronics firm Comrod AS, R&D manager at Norsk Agip (now ENI Norge), president of the venture investment firm TNI and has held various leading positions at the puiblicly listed electronics company Q-Free, most recently as Vice President for business development.  Oddvar has held board positions with several companies including Epcon AS, Dossier Solutions AS, Smartmotor AS (chair), Fedem Technology AS (chair), Reslab AS (chair), Norsk Agip AS.

"I look forward to developing RESMAN from being the name of a promising technology to an international organization bringing great value to its clients.  Permanent well monitoring will become increasingly important as more of the world's oil and gas demand will come from challenging wells where no other technology can match RESMAN.  I also look forward to building a great team of dedicated professionals that have fun together while working hard to satisfy our customers and owners."

Oddvar lives in Trondheim with his wife and two children, enjoys fishing, cooking and being with his family.  He is Italy's honorary vice consul in Trondheim.

Petromaks project awarded to RESMAN AS

Future wireless well monitoring system using environmentally friendly tracers for permanent monitoring of well influx, a Petromaks project, awarded to RESMAN, June 2006, for a duration of 3.5 years

RESMAN Technology Status

The basic function of a downhole wireless system, based on chemically intelligent release of tracers from polymer matrixes, was successfully demonstrated under laboratory conditions in a DEMO2000-project. As part of the project, a full-size pilot system carrying nine different tracers, was installed in an oil well at the Svale field offshore Norway in July 2006. The objective for this pilot was to monitor and locate unwanted water influx. The well will come on stream by late August 2006 and liquid samples will be processed continually and analyzed.

The main idea of a follow-up project will be to advance the technology into a state-of-the-art wireless monitoring system. The function of this system will be to monitor well clean-up and production start-up, to locate unwanted water influx in the production zone, and ultimately to measure flow rates of all phases. All these tasks are performed without expensive intervention.

Scope of work

• Evaluate and find a sufficient number of unique tracers for the detection of water and hydrocarbons. The tracers should meet environmental requirements and have ultra-low detection thresholds.
• Develop/optimize release systems with sufficient stability for downhole environments (temperature, pressure, and liquid composition).
• Design units for various well completions.

Trondheim company monitors oil and gas wells

The start-up company RESMAN AS, a SINTEF and IFE spin-off, will produce chemical intelligent materials to monitor flows in oil and gas wells. The whole process will take place without the use of cables.

RESMAN was established with the active support of Statoil Innovation AS, and its technology will efficiently remove uncertainties regarding what actually happens in oil and gas wells: What is flowing where, how much is flowing, and how does the flow develop over time?

Operators will obtain a better understanding of the physics of underground formations and thus a basis for optimizing oil and gas recovery.

The oil companies work continuously on the development of new technologies and methods that can provide them with more information from oil and gas reservoirs. The traditional method has been to drop cable-based measurement instruments down into the well. A natural development was to install the instruments permanently in the well in order to obtain an enhanced picture of the changes in the flows. It is in this area that both IFE and SINTEF, in collaboration with Norwegian and international oil companies, have been working on the development of permanent, reliable and competitive technologies. Several patents have been granted, and a license from Norsk Hydro on some of their tracer technology completes the technology basis for RESMAN AS.

The chemical intelligent materials are based on polymers that react with their surroundings by releasing tracer elements. By distributing the polymer units throughout the well and ensuring that the tracer elements are recognized when they migrate to the surface, operators can obtain valuable information about flow in the formation, and how the flow evolves over time.

RESMAN will be entering a huge global market, and current market contacts indicate a high level of interest in its product in several countries. The company has been set up by two entrepreneurs, Fridtjof Nyhavn from SINTEF Petroleum Research and Anne Dalager Dyrli from SINTEF Materials and Chemistry. Apart from the founders, shareholders in the new company include SINTEF Venture, IFE and Statoil Innovation AS.

Contact persons: Fridtjof Nyhavn, tel: +47 9167 1331 or Anne D. Dyrli, tel: +47 9167 1332