Offshore Oil Asset

Building the capability to achieve operational excellence in late-life assets

The challenge is a common one for all oil majors - assets well into their operational late-life, where maintaining performance levels is becoming increasingly difficult.

This challenge was made greater still in this case by the fact that many of its experienced managers had been redeployed to work on other high-growth areas of businesses. As a result, performance had fallen below its managed-decline plan.

Evolve worked with with the leadership team to first create a vision of what excellent performance should look like a vision that helped people at all levels to understand the key performance levers and operational imperatives for late-life operation that were different from the rules that had existed in the past.

They then developed an analysis and implementation approach that would not only deliver the required results getting the business back on-track but as importantly, would build management and leadership capability both onshore and offshore, that would enable it to stay on-track.

The approach centred on the selection, training and support of an internal consulting team that was able to engage the business in identifying and solving problems, implementing new ways of working, and training offshore staff to make further improvements by themselves. Over the course of a 12-month programme, two to three Evolve consultants developed and worked through a four-person programme team and 12 full-time shift coaches, to make a step-change in performance.

By the end of the programme, the business had reduced its annual rate of production decline from approximately 30% per year to less than 4% - meaning increased oil production worth more than $60 million a year. It has demonstrated new levels of capability and confidence, and now has ambitious plans in place for its medium-term development.
BP TSP Case Study PDF