PVN demonstrates its capacity by successfully building world's most modern TAD rig

• Imprints of PVC-MS in building offshore structures
• PV DRILLING V – the most modern TAD drilling rig in the world

Vo Van Phuc, 40, Deputy Head of the PVD Deep water Drilling Ltd. Co’s Drilling Management Office often wakes up at night and checks his phone to see if there is a message. He has had the habit since he worked at the Semi-submersible Tender Assist Drilling Rig (TAD) or the PV Drilling V of the Bien Dong 01 project to exploit two gas and condensate fields.

PVN demonstrates its capacity by successfully building world's most modern TAD rig

Any minor problems occurring on an oil drilling rig off the coast of southern Vietnam could be catastrophic.

The successful construction of the PV Drilling V was considered an outstanding achievement of the oil and gas sector of Vietnam as it was the first TAD rig in the world that high technology was applied in drilling high pressure and high temperature wells.

Furthermore, the rig’s operation also required great efforts and skills of experts and technicians.

Phuc said during the five years of the drilling process, his mobile phone had to be active around the clock to get updated information from the oil rig. He had to check his mobile phone every night to give instructions to operational teams to handle problem emerging.

“If a problem suddenly happened and we failed to handle it in time, it would result in severe consequences and losses,” he said.

Everyday, Phuc and his colleagues spent at least two hours discussing working plans and carefully examining operational procedures. “That became part of my life,” he said.

Even though the drilling at the Bien Dong 01 project successfully ended in 2016, Phuc still had the habit for a period of time. He said that the work at the TAD had been so hard but he was still proud of working with it. 

The Bien Dong 01 project was considered  a big success of the oil and gas industry of Vietnam. The project aimed to exploit the two gas and condensate fields of Hai Thach and Moc Tinh. The two fields could be exploited for 25 years with production capacity of 8.5 million cubic meters of natural gas per day.

At that time, a number of foreign-based oil and gas giants came and went away because of the difficult terrains and geological complexities of the fields. Some affirmed that they had no technology and machinery to drill wells and exploit natural gas from the fields.

So the successful drilling and exploitation of PetroVietnam in these oil fields demonstrated its technological and human capacities and professional expertise.