We are back with some more WRS Jargon Busting today, and this time we are cracking open some key Oil and Gas terms that might be very uncommon in the average person's day to day conversation, or simply sound familiar but mean something completely different! How many do you know before reading the definitions?
Let's get started.
Abandon. In this iteration, the term abandon most immediately refers to wells. An abandoned well is a well no longer in use; this could be due to being dry, inoperable, or simply no longer productive.
Blow-out preventers. A blow-out preventer is essentially a large valve at the top of a well that can be closed if the drilling crew loses control of formation fluids. The valve will usually be operated remotely via hydraulic actuators. A blow-out preventer can be known as a BOP and they come in a variety of styles, sizes, and pressure ratings.
Derrick. A derrick is a structure deployed to enhance the support of the crown blocks and the drillstring of a drilling rig. Sound like a load of technical jargon? You bet it does. Derricks are often pyramidical in shape, and offer fantastic strength-to-weight ratios. Specially certified ironworkers are sometimes deployed to assemble a derrick piece-by-piece. If the derrick is to be moved, they will also disassemble it.
E&P. Also known as Exploration and Production, or Upstream, E&P pertains to equipment, facilities, or systems located in the wellbore or the production train before the 'surface choke' or Christmas tree (which is a type of valves set).
GTL. Gas-to-Liquids. GTL is a refinery process, and it revolves around converting natural gas, or a different gaseous hydrocarbon(s) into longer-chain hydrocarbons including diesel fuel and gasoline.
So there you have it, five Oil and Gas terms, all certainly worth knowing if you're looking to enter this industry! We'll be releasing part two soon, too, so keep your eyes peeled for more jargon busting.