Stories about desperation, innovation and transportation ranked among the most popular articles this past week among Rigzone’s downstream readership. Read on for details in this look back at three of the top articles from the period.
Venezuela Turning Pipelines into Scrap Metal
The collapse of OPEC member Venezuela’s economy and the oil industry that has long driven it are well-known. International sanctions and the sorry state of refineries and other facilities contribute to ongoing fuel shortages. This Bloomberg article points out the Venezuelan government is seeking to pay contractors to repair ravaged refineries with scrap metal taken from dismantled energy infrastructure. National oil company PDVSA reportedly aims to step up recovery of light crude from Monagas state, making the relatively easy-to-produce oil available for processing.
Shell Awards Digital Twin Contract
Shell is seeking to leverage digitalization to improve work processes and optimize facility performance across its global assets and project portfolio. As this article points out, the supermajor has selected Kongsberg Digital to supply digital twin software under an enterprise framework agreement. Kongsberg, which won the contract via a competitive tender process, noted that digital twins boost efficiency by enabling remote operations, automation and better collaboration. The firm added that Shell will implement digital twin and cloud-based services within its upstream, integrated gas, downstream and manufacturing businesses.
Earlier this year, owners of supertankers enjoyed a seller’s market as oil traders sought floating storage to contend with a glut of crude. Output cuts by major oil-producing countries helped to reduce inventories, but oil traders fear that another crude glut may be on the horizon, according to this Bloomberg article. As the news service stated, major oil traders have been busy lately chartering supertankers to prepare for an envisioned need for more crude storage capacity.
To contact the author, email mveazey@rigzone.com.
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