ARCTICREADY

Arctic Exploration and Environmental Responsibility

Interest in Arctic exploration has developed rapidly since the publication of the USGS Circum-Arctic Re-source Appraisal report in 2008, in which the area north of the Arctic Circle is estimated to contain 22% of the undiscovered, technically recoverable, global oil and gas resources. The report also notes that ap-proximately 84% of these reserves are expected to lie in offshore areas. The incentives for exploration are massive, but so are the challenges of operating in one of the world’s harshest, and most sensitive, environ-ments. This situation is well-recognized by the E&P industry, and those companies involved in Arctic ven-tures are naturally focused on operating safely and with as little environmental impact as possible.

Offshore activity is already taking place in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas in North America, offshore West and East Greenland, in the Barents Sea north of Nor-way, and in the Kara and Laptev Seas in the Russian Arctic. Marine seismic operations in these areas must be carried out to the highest environmental standards and with the key priority being the protection of the fragile environment. With these principles as a goal, Polarcus established a pioneering and unique environ-mental agenda, Explore Green™, from the inception of the company and this agenda underlines all the busi-ness activities of the company, being reflected in our processes, our technology choices and our operating procedures.

The Polarcus Explore Green™ agenda brings a unique set of characteristics to our vessel fleet, and these are unmatched in the industry for Arctic operations.

Ultra-modern, X-BOW® design vessels with low fuel consumption, low emissions and low noise character-istics

• DNV High Ice Class (ICE-1A and 1A*) designations• DNV WINTERIZED BASIC class notation• CLEAN DESIGN and BWM-T class notations• DNV Level-1 Triple-E™ rating for energy efficiency

and environmental performance• DNV Emissions Qualification Statement• IMO Green Passports for all vessels in the fleet• Sentinel® solid streamers• Low output seismic source options• Marine Mammal Impact Mitigation program, includ-

ing Passive Acoustic Monitoring on all vessels• DNV Arctic Procedures Qualification Statement• Survey Design service to minimize operational time

and maximize production

Polarcus is today the only seismic contractor in the in-dustry with DNV acknowledged Arctic Procedures. The combination of Arctic operating capabilities and com-petent Arctic operational procedures is fundamental, along with offering the right fleet; ICE-1A and ICE-1A* rated vessels with Winterized Capabilities.

Exploration in environmentally sensitive sea areas such as Arctic waters must be carried out in a respon-sible manner, with the highest possible standards. In such areas, sources of environmental impact are se-verely regulated and scrutinized by the national author-ities that grant permits for offshore operations, and all elements of exploration operations must have required mitigation technologies and procedures in place to meet the strict permit requirements. Polarcus’ invest-ment in specialized vessel design, vessel and seismic technology, and thorough operating procedures has resulted in an unparalleled capability to operate in Arc-tic waters safely, successfully and with the lowest pos-sible environmental impact.

Optimizing Arctic Project PerformanceThe use of a specialized Polarcus high ice class vessel can significantly impact project performance and cost, optimizing time on location, increasing productivity and reducing environmental impact. The vessel design and high ice class designations allow the seismic vessel to navigate through, and operate in, broken ice conditions, enabling:

• Early season transit into an ice-prone area to deploy in-sea equipment• Remaining in the immediate vicinity of a survey area if ice moves in and out of the area• Staying as long as possible in an area before having to transit out in anticipation of closing ice conditions• Minimizing the total time spent on location and therefore the impact of operations on the environment

Vessel Design for Arctic Operations

Polarcus offers a range of specialized seismic vessels for very low environmen-tal impact Arctic operations.

• Radical X-BOW® design, minimizes green water spray on the bridge deck, improves efficiency, re-duces fuel consumption and emissions

• High ice class designations, DNV ICE-1A and ICE-1A*, involving hull strength, propulsion system pro-tection features and winterization elements for safe operations in ice-prone areas

• Specialized vessel systems limit fluid, gaseous, sol-id and acoustic emissions to air and water, to stand-ards unmatched by any other seismic vessels

• Advanced catalytic converters, minimizing emis-sions of nitrogen oxides, soot and hydrocarbons into the atmosphere

• Reduced noise and vibrations internally and radi-ated into the water due to the X-BOW® hull design

• Treatment of bilge water to achieve the highest wa-ter purity standards

• Elimination of any organisms in the ship’s ballast water before discharge

• Double-skin hull design preventing any accidental discharge of fluids should hull penetration occur

Qualifications and Certifications for Arctic Operations

Polarcus has achieved DNV qualification and certification of the high ice class ves-sel designations, the company’s emis-sions mitigation monitoring program and the Polarcus Arctic Operating Procedures, thereby creating the most qualified Arctic marine seismic acquisition capability in the industry.

• DNV ICE-1A and ICE-1A* certifications

• DNV Triple-ETM (Environmental and Energy Effi-ciency) environmental performance rating scheme, involving assessment of the environmental man-agement practices, fuel efficiency, energy efficiency through design, and the monitoring and documenta-tion schemes in use on the vessel. DNV verification of all performance factors resulted in Polarcus’ Ice-Class vessels achieving compliance with the high-est DNV rating.

• DNV Arctic Operating Procedures Qualification. To ensure safe passage through sea ice and safe op-erations in all open Arctic water conditions, Polarcus implemented a management plan based on a com-prehensive suite of Arctic Operating Procedures, covering every operational aspect including vessel-related practices, seismic activities and personnel management. These procedures were assessed, reviewed and qualified by the DNV as representing best practice for Arctic operations, in compliance with the highest standards in place today

• Procedures are fundamental to the effective appli-cation of technology and management programs in all operating environments and any Standard Operating Procedures must be modified for activi-ties in Arctic waters due to the extreme and unique ambient climatic conditions which occur north of the Arctic Circle

• Procedures must be aligned with specialized prac-tices to ensure the safety and protection of people, equipment and all aspects of the environment in which the operation is carried out. In the case of seismic operations in Arctic waters, specific mari-time, seismic and operational procedures must be developed and integrated into a practical manage-ment framework

• The unique Arctic operational capabilities of the Po-larcus vessels, and the DNV certification of the com-pany’s Arctic Operating Procedures, provide confi-dence that Arctic projects can be completed safely, efficiently and with minimal environmental impact within the short acquisition window

Ice Management in Arctic Waters

The extreme environmental conditions which exist within the sea areas of the Arctic Circle mandate that many specific operational criteria must be managed at a very high level. One of the most critical elements is ice management, requiring a comprehensive Ice Management Plan.

• An Ice Management Plan is of paramount impor-tance to the safety and efficiency of the operations. The detection of ice in all its forms in the survey area, the prediction of its movement, and the identi-fication and tracking of ice that may pose a hazard to the 3D streamer spread, or that may cause an interruption to a survey line in progress, is a critical aspect of the management of a towed-streamer 3D operation in Arctic waters

• The Polarcus Ice Management Plan involves the in-tegration of data from numerous remote information sources, such as daily ice reports from Governmen-tal agencies, commercial satellite imagery and ice prediction services

• Supplementing these data, and of paramount impor-tance in the plan, are the active ice monitoring func-tions implemented on each vessel in the operation, including enhanced ice detection radar systems, one or more human specialist ice observers on the support vessels, and at least two “ice coordinators” on each of the seismic vessels

• The ice coordinators are responsible for integrating the Ice Management Plan, and collating the ice fore-casts and observational information from all active sources into a single ice management information system

• The system allows decisions to be made on ice hazards in the area, tracking of ice movements, pre-dictions of areas of clear water where survey lines could proceed with minimized ice risk, and forecast-ing of ice developments which may become severe enough to warrant the retrieval of the seismic spread

• The Ice Management Plan and the ice management philosophy implemented, of detect, track and avoid, contributes significantly to the successful comple-tion of projects in Arctic waters

Marine Mammal Impact Mitigation in Arctic Sea Areas

In addition to an ice monitoring program, each vessel operating in Arctic waters must also implement another monitoring program for marine mammal impact miti-gation. Specialized personnel and proce-dures are employed to ensure that seis-mic operations result in minimal impact on marine life in the survey area.

• Each seismic vessel is staffed with specialized marine mammal observers who carry out visual sweeps for the presence of marine life in the vicinity of the operations during daylight hours

• Each seismic vessel is also equipped with passive acoustic monitoring systems to detect any mammal vocalizations in the surrounding waters during peri-ods of reduced visibility or at night

• Seismic source output is matched to the geophysi-cal objectives of the project so as to ensure that the lowest possible acoustic output is utilized without compromising the goals of the survey

• Soft start and acoustic mitigation source procedures are followed so as to encourage marine life to re-main at a distance away from the operations

• With operating permit restrictions based on pre-dicted migrations, and seismic operations excluded from protected zones and reserves, these meas-ures ensure that little to no interaction occurs with marine mammals during seismic operations

Operational Logistics in Arctic Regions

The remote location of the Arctic sea ar-eas, combined with the extreme ambient climatic conditions, means that logistics management is a critical element of the project plan.

• To ensure that a successful logistics framework can be established and maintained, a local shore base in a settlement close to the survey area is essen-tial. This location provides a project office and a hub from which all operational logistics can be managed locally

• The impact of a logistics hub being located in a re-mote settlement could be very dramatic and this must be taken into consideration when planning such an establishment. Maintaining active and sus-tained communication with local community leaders before, during, and after completion of operations is an essential element of the project management.

• Polarcus shore representatives work from the logis-tics hub, ensuring that the community is engaged in the project in a positive way and local businesses are supported, while rigorous journey management processes are employed to ensure that the opera-tional footprint is minimized

• The operational logistics and footprint minimiza-tion challenges of a remote Arctic project include the management and control of multiple vessels and several hundred personnel, the provision of fuel, food, spare parts and consumables, and the preparation of emergency response procedures to address any incidents which may occur

• Limited commercial transport is available in remote Arctic locations and therefore specialized transport must be arranged, including shuttle tankers to pro-vide fuel and staged helicopters for crew changes and Medevac support

• Crew changes during seismic operations typically take place every five to six weeks and can involve over one hundred individuals on each rotation. As helicopter operations may not be guaranteed due to poor weather conditions, procedures must be in place to allow support vessels to be used for crew change transport from the shore to the survey area.

Medevac Support for Arctic Operations

The difficulty and complexity of mov-ing personnel to and from remote Arctic survey operations highlights the issue of medical care onboard the vessels and the provision for medical evacuation should the need arise.

• In remote locations it may take two or more days to transport a sick or injured person from an offshore vessel to the nearest onshore medical facility, and in Arctic conditions the delay may be even longer. To meet these challenges, a remote healthcare strat-egy specific to the area of operation is implemented to reduce the risk exposure of urgent medevac situ-ations

• For remote Arctic operations the Polarcus vessels are equipped to treat a wide range of immediate medical situations onboard

• Each seismic vessel has onboard a qualified medi-cal team comprised of a doctor and a paramedic

• The onboard hospital facilities are capable of not only providing immediate illness treatment, and first aid and injury stabilization, but also of taking X-Rays and carrying out CRT scanning and dental interven-tion

• Telemedicine capabilities are also implemented so that if necessary the onboard doctor can transmit diagnostic information to an onshore medical facility for further advice and direction

• Should an incident escalate into a medevac situa-tion it would either be carried out using a support vessel, or a helicopter would be mobilized and uti-lized if the flying conditions were conducive. In ei-ther case, one of the medical staff from the vessel would accompany the medevac’d individual

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