Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) and its subsidiaries made great efforts to safely and effectively implement the Bien Dong project No.1, which is said to be a miracle of the country’s oil and gas industry in 2019.

The success of Bien Dong project No.1 invested by Petr✅oVietnam’s Bien Dong Petroleum Operating Company (Bien Dong POC) in the East Sea has shown the internal strength, intelligence and bravery o🧜f Vietnamese petroleum workers.

Experts from PetroVietnam said that constant difficulties have faced the drilling work in wells in Hai Thach – Moc Tinh field.

Meanwhile, safety must be at the forefront on oil rigs, they said.

Hai Thach - Moc Tinh is a gas field with high temperature and pressure, so the task of ensuring safety on the rig is even more demanding. Workers must strictly follow safety rules and rhythmical and methodical coordination during their working time.

It is impossibꩲle to make any mistake on the oil rig, experts 🦹stressed.

According to Vo Van Phuc, who has worked on the rig for many years, he himself and others working on the platform are motivated by patriotism and the determination to assert Vietnam's sovereignty.

Everyone on board the platform wants to contribute to the construction of the sustainable marine project, which is a milestone to assert the sacred sovereignty of the homeland’s sea and islands.

Now their wishes have come true. The Bien Dong project No.1 is a great success, with the PQP-HT central processing platform standing in the middle of the East Sea and being given the name “Marine Dinosaur”.

In 2010-11, Nguyen Van Tho, project manager of the drilling project, said that during the initial drilling time, there were so many difficulties and small errors halted construction. But from the second year onwards, when everyone became familiar with the Semi-submersible Tender Assist Drilling Rig (TAD) - PV Drilling V’s technology and equipment as well as workflow, everything came into place. Four consecut𒉰ive years later, the PV DRILLING V rig’s safety was absolutely ensured with very high drilling efficiency, up to 95 percent.

Although before the construction of the new TAD rig, workers carefully considered technical design with special geological conditions at the Hai Thach – Moc Tinh field, they could not know what was happening under the sea. There was an incident while they were drilling Moc Tinh 2X Well, the deepest well where the temperature is much higher than other wells, Tho said.

The cement did not set normally like the previous wells when it was pumped into the well, creating ☂holes. The drillers sought help from experts of the world's top companies, but could not solve the problem because no one had ever encountered anything similar. The Vietnamese drilling team had to do their own research and found a solution. They used an additive called polymer mixed with cement to make sure it set.

Another problem was losing fluid while drilling, making it compulsory to improve drilling fluid quality. In the past, BP used water-based drilling fluids and encountered problems. The lesson for Bien Dong POC and PV Drilling to study was the application of other drilling fluids, specifically synthetic oil. But this solution required some environmental standards before the fluid is discharged into the sea. Therefore, the project management unit and the drilling fluid supplying unit had to ask for approval from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to get a certificate. The replaced fluid was not only suitable for mining conditions, making the drilling process much smoother, but also helped the project save money as it was cheaper than the old fluid.

These are two of many typical technical innovations that Vietnamese engineers have studied and implemented to overcome difficulties while working on the project. Many of these innovations have contributed to the success of the Bien Dong project No. 1. It demonstrates the internal strength, intelligence and bravery of Vietnamese petroleum workers.

Talking aboutও conditions that make PV DRILLING V and♊ drilling campaign of the Bien Dong project No.01 successful, Tho said: “It was made by the Vietnamese.”

It was the determination and internal power of Vietnamese people, he stressed.

A new generation of drilling experts and engineers who are brave and experi꧃enced to meet high technical and scientific requirements of PV Drilling and Vietnamese petroleum sector has been trained during five years of the Bien Dong project No.1.

In the near future, the team will conduct drilling for other projects, which are just as difficult and complex as Hai Thach – Moc Tinh.

When the old oil and gas fields near the shore have been exploited for many years, with the output declining, PetroVietnam is forced to explore and exploit new fields locat𝔍ed in farther𝓡 and deeper waters with more severe conditions.

That is also the time when the drilling team of PetroVietnam’s subsidiaries has the opportunity to promote their internal strength and bravery./.