Welcome to UPB
An innovative cost effective production solution transforming the economics of undeveloped reserves.
UPB was created to develop the concept of providing unmanned production systems to the offshore oil industry to gain access to previously uneconomical and untapped markets of offshore production.
UPB Ltd is a privately owned company created in 2009 to develop the unmanned production buoy concept and apply it to the offshore oil and gas industry. Based in Banchory, Scotland, UPB Ltd has completed field development studies over the last few years utilising the UPB system, which offers an attractive economic production solution that is independant of infrastructure requirements.
Key Benefits
- Lower capital cost/ capital investment by license Operators
- Lower operational costs of approximately $4/bbl based on a 10,000 bopd field
- Ability for Operators to gain early cash flow due to shorter field development schedules
- Utilisation of proven technology to maximise reliability
- Able to operate economically at low production rates and therefore ideal for small fields and end of life depletion scenarios.
- Greater operational flexibility as the system has been designed for multiple cost effective redeployments.
- Capable of operating independently of existing infrastructure
- Unmanned solution offering an inherently low safety risk
- Capable of operating in a large range of water depths [70-600m (299-1968ft)]
- Redeployable with no additional structures left behind, clean sea bed philosophy
Five Applications of UPB
- Extension of Tail-end Assets
An FPSO/existing production system is in place but are being removed because fields are no longer economic to produce - Proven Undeveloped Discoveries
A UPB can be used as an early production facility to prove reserves delivering contingent reserves - Development of Marginal Fields
where existing technologies do not allow economic production - Emergency Response
Sealing damaged deepwater wells with processing whilst relief wells are drilled, avoids environmental consequences - Extended Well Tests
These market opportunities often remain untapped due to the lack of economically viable solutions where a UPB System can offer an economically attractive solution allowing access to significant reserves prolonging the life of the field and basin.