TNK-BP to Establish a Drone Fleet to Monitor Samotlorskoe Field, TNK-BP

Release Date: 2011-11-30

TNK-BP plans to organize a fleet of drones to control Samotlorskoe field, the company reported in a news release. The drones that were specially designed for TNK-BP in the Space Research Center (Korolyov, Moscow region) are currently pilot tested in West Siberia.

A high-tech drone equipped with a digital photo and video camera and a thermal imager is adapted to operate in a difficult climate and can work in an autonomous mode to monitor the general situation, assess the environmental conditions and identify infrastructure and pipeline operation disturbances in remote field areas.

TNK-BP expects its drones to start monitoring Samotlorskoe field on a round-the-clock basis as early as in two years. This can be achieved using six machines flying over the facilities at least four times a day.

'The global market currently has neither specialists nor similar software for the aircraft serving such purposes',-said Sergey Zakharov, Chief Process Engineer, Pipeline Operation and Repair Base, TNK-Nizhnevartovsk.

'Our preliminary tests confirmed high technology capabilities of the drones', he emphasized. - As soon as the Korolyov designers modify and retrofit the drones considering our comments and wishes, we will conduct the next stage of the tests'.

Copyright 2011, TNK-BP. All rights reserved.

Type:	NORMAL
Company:	TNK-BP
Country:	Russian Federation
Url:	http://www.oilandgaseurasia.com/news/p/0/news/13658