Adopting Electrical Remote Operation and Intelligent-based System at Offshore Installation

The offshore platforms in Peninsular Malaysia water are located hundreds of kilometers away from shore which were already more than 30 years in operations. Based on the available technology during that time, all main platforms were designed with manned operation facilities, which requires operators to be mobilized and available 24hrs on the platforms. Over the years, the operational cost becomes higher due to the offshore logistics and maintenance of the aging facilities. As there is a need to reduce the escalated operating cost while optimizing production, coupled with the necessity to enhance HSE while working at high-risk operation, the requirement to convert to unmanned platform with remote-controlled operations and the integration of intelligent-based system for equipment and system analytics has become more relevant and demanding. This is also supported by the advancement of digital and network communication technologies with the availability of data centralization and integration as well as intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) with standardized communication protocol that are more affordable and reliable as compared to previous years. Although remote operation is not a new practice to the electrical operation particularly at onshore facilities, implementing electrical remote operation at offshore facilities with the integration of intelligent-based systems is considered as a breakthrough in offshore environment. This paper describes the current pain points, description on the proposed solution, the challenges to realize the solution, as well as the way forward and steps taken to overcome such challenges.