MIC Control and Mitigation in the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry

Course Description

MIC is one of the most insidious integrity threats not only to the hydrocarbon assets, but also to the associated production reservoirs. Poor and inadequate MIC mitigation therefore results both in asset equipment deterioration and reservoir souring and plugging. Furthermore, MIC deterioration rates could reach several millimeters per year. Consequently, once bacterial contamination is introduced into the system, MIC could produce corrosion leaks and failures in a very short period of time.

Therefore, it is of paramount importance to appreciate how and where bacteria grow, what their metabolism reactions are and how they could render their living environment a corrosive one. More importantly it is equally important to appreciate what the best techniques are for assessing bacterial populations and MIC and then how to control and mitigate them.

This training course has been based on extensive field experience in various continents and regions and offers various best practices in MIC monitoring, assessment and mitigation from around the world.

Furthermore, the course also demonstrates that how the corrosion management concept could be utilized to significantly enhance MIC control and mitigation in any upstream oil and gas asset exposed to MIC.

Course Syllabus

Day One: MIC Background in the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry and Bacterial and MIC Basics 

• Introductions (trainer, scope, objectives and references)
• Training Course Objectives, Attributes and Scope
• Training Course Structure and Content
• Corrosion and Corrosion Engineering in the upstream oil and gas industry
• MIC in the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry
• Microorganisms and Bacterial Types in the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry
• Bacterial Nutrition and Growth Conditions
• Bacterial Metabolism
• Biofilm Basics
• Introduction to SRB and its Deterioration Mechanisms
• Predominant MIC Mechanisms and Their Repercussions in the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry
• Bacterial Problems: Seawater Injection Systems
• Bacterial Problems: Firewater Systems

Day Two: Bacterial and MIC Monitoring and Control 

• Bacterial Monitoring
• Bacterial Analysis Techniques: Traditional and Molecular Microbiological Methods (MMM)
• MIC Mitigation Process
• Water Removal
• Biociding – Oxidising and Non-Oxidising Chemicals
• Nitrate Treatment
• MIC and Design, Materials Selection, Coatings and CP
• Integrity and Integrity Management Concepts
• The Classical Integrity Management View
• Corrosion Management Background in the UK’s Upstream Oil and Gas Industry

Day Three: Corrosion Management and MIC Mitigation 

• Corrosion Management and Integrity Management Measure Concepts
• Corrosion Control Matrices and Corrosion Key Performance Indicators
• Improved MIC Mitigation Through Corrosion Management Applications
• MIC and Inspections
• MIC and Corrosion Monitoring and Fluid Sampling
• MIC and Management Requirements
• MIC and RBI
• Introduction to MIC Mitigation in SWIS
• Review of MIC Models
• Conclusions & Recommendations

 What are the Goals?

By the end of this training course, participants will learn to:

• Appreciate the MIC deterioration mechanisms encountered in the upstream oil and gas industry
• Appreciate the basic required conditions for bacterial growth
• Design and utilise various bacterial and MIC monitoring techniques
• Implement various MIC mitigation solutions
• Utilise corrosion management for improved MIC control and mitigation

 How will this Training Course be Presented?

The teaching will be done via PowerPoint slides containing text, tables, plots, pictures, etc. The teaching will be interactive; that is, on a regular basis the participants will be asked to participate in an ongoing topic, discussion or challenge. Past MIC case studies will be presented throughout the training course to promote best international practices while simultaneously discouraging integrity practices which had resulted in impairing asset integrity in various projects. The training course will end with a short assessment to further help all the participants to remember all the important subjects, concepts and practices discussed throughout the course.

 Who is this Training Course for?

This training course is suitable to a wide range of professionals but those who will greatly benefit include: 

• Corrosion & Integrity Engineers
• Production & Operation Engineers
• Inspection Engineers
• Repair & Maintenance Engineers
• Coating & CP Engineers
• Asset Project Engineers & Asset Managers
• Chemical Treatment Specialists
• Corrosion Monitoring Systems Specialists & Lab Technicians

 Organisational Impact

The organization as a whole will gain a new knowledge and set of skills which will help them to significantly enhance their MIC control and mitigation.

The organization gains will include:

1. Improved (site) personnel safety and environmental protection.
2. Enhanced bacterial monitoring and assessment
3. Increased MIC control and mitigation.
4. Optimised MIC costs through more efficient use of chemicals, monitoring systems and inspections.
5. Improved reservoir protection and decreasing the likelihood of reservoir souring and plugging.

Personal Impact

Participants will learn to appreciate about bacterial growth conditions, monitoring techniques and assessment methods. They will also learn how to implement corrosion management applications to enhance MIC mitigation and control. Attending the course will help them to:

1. Learn where to look for bacteria
2. How to carry out bacterial sampling and which methods are best for sampling and enumeration
3. How to plan and implement MIC mitigation using the corrosion management concept
4. How to implement a more effective MIC control plan across their assets
5. How to optimize and integrate various integrity management activities to gain control of MIC issue