Wireline Issue 48 - Summer 2020

“SNF is in this industry for the long run; we know the importance of the North Sea to the UK and Scottish economies and are positioning to add capabilities and capacities over the long term.”

site is ideally located, being both close to a major UK chemical manufacturing hub and the ports necessary to enable shipment of CEOR polymers to the North Sea by supply boat.” In addition to supplying chemical products, SNF’s dedicated oilfield customer engineering teams based in France can also advise on how best to design plant and handling equipment for storage and injection into the reservoir. EOR polymers are manufactured on a bespoke basis to meet the specific requirements of each oil or gas field, but Woollin says that the earlier SNF’s technical teams can get involved in a project, the more expertise, and hence value, they’re able to offer operators. Whatever the short-term disruption to the market, Woollin is unequivocal about SNF’s long term commitment to the North Sea: “SNF is in this industry for the long run; we know the importance of the North Sea to the UK and Scottish economies and are positioning to add capabilities and capacities over the long term.”

to ensure continuity of supply is vital, especially in the case of multi-million-dollar EOR projects where production can decline dramatically without regular polymer injection. “Having plants around the world means we can source raw materials and produce polymers efficiently and effectively on a global basis,” he explains. It also provides flexibility in supply. As at Billingham, most of the group’s manufacturing plants are able to respond according to demand, increasing output when and if demand rises. “That’s very much the philosophy of SNF — whatever customer demands are placed on us we want to be able to meet them,” he explains That also has implications for cost and for the sustainability of the supply chain. Woollin is bullish on the impact that co-ordinated logistics and supply chain management can have for end users: “Once the polymer is manufactured, value can be created by optimising the supply chain to minimise vehicle movements to both reduce cost and to drive carbon out of the supply chain,” he notes. “Our Billingham

The Billingham site has been designed to allow rapid expansion of capacity as required by the market.

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