Drill Cuttings Piles Sampling

(Champion: Shell) – August 2020

Licensees have an obligation under legislation to manage drill cuttings as part of a decommissioning programme. Drill cuttings are pieces of rock that come out of a well, (a deep hole made in the ground, to locate oil) when a well is drilled to an oil or gas reservoir.

Propositions were sought for:

• Improved methods for sampling to provide greater assurance and efficiency of achieving core samples, especially in compact piles. Sample depths should be 50cm minimum, but preferably with a capability of full depth (through pile into the seabed).

• New digital solutions to provide complimentary tools for benchmarking and simulating the future pile marine environment (leach rates and persistence)

• Improved methods for the presentation to stakeholders of drill cuttings pile mapping.