Aker BP signs long-term maintenance contract with Framo

Aker BP has signed a new long-term “smart” maintenance contract for seawater lift pumps with Norwegian engineering company Framo.

The “smart contract” means Aker BP will pay Framo based on the uptime of the five field centres it operates.

In August 2018, Aker BP signed a smart service contract with Cognite and Framo Services to digitalise Aker BP-operated Ivar Aasen field in the North Sea. Since then, the facilities have relayed large volumes of data to the mainland.

The companies developed digital data boards for the facilities, based on sensor data from Cognite Data Fusion and Framo-developed algorithms. Aker BP said it negotiated an incentive model around these elements.

The latest maintenance contract follows on from the 2018 deal. The new contract lasts for six years, with the option to extend for another six years.

Aker BP field development operations head Kjetel Digre said: “A considerable effort has been made on the part of Aker BP and Framo to establish a full-fledged smart contract.

“The contract represents a huge step within digitalisation and predictive maintenance. Going forward, algorithms and sensor data will help us to increase uptime and reduce maintenance on our seawater lift pumps.”

Framo Services AS managing director Trond Petter Abrahamsen said: “Basing contract models on real-time data has been uncharted territory. With the release of these data flows, Framo has been able to predict the condition of equipment, foresee what will happen with the pumps in the future, and in turn plan effective maintenance.”

Last month, Aker BP formed a strategic partnership with global industrial AI-based SaaS firm Cognite to explore the potential of robotics in the offshore oil and gas platform.

In the same month, the company received approval from the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate for the start-up of the Skogul oil field in the North Sea.