Centralized Process Control System: A Choice for Optimizing Mature Field Facilities

摘要

As the Aceh Production Organization (APO) fields continue to mature and production declines, cost and personnel efficiencies become increasingly challenging. Process Control System (PCS) centralization and plant remote monitoring capability are critical elements toward reducing operator surveillance and achieving unmanned field operation. A robust Supervisory Control & Data Acquisition (SCADA) system is also a must to ensure reliable & secure real-time online monitoring, production data reporting, and remote troubleshooting. Previously all the sites in APO have local PCS equipment consisting of individual Distributed Control System (DCS) and SCADA. To achieve centralization in PCS, local DCS was connected via an inter-field network. On top of it, central SCADA servers were built to directly collect data from DCS instead of local SCADA equipment. To minimize project cost, the modification was done by utilizing existing network infrastructure. A key aspect of the new configuration was to ensure that the system was not compromised from a cyber-security standpoint. The PCS centralization in APO supported unmanned operations in 4 out of 7 fields with modification cost US$ 180K, with total saving US$200K/year through reduced operator surveillance. This paper outlines the series of PCS centralization and upgrade activities, including engineering concept selection, challenges faced, optimization, economic analysis, and implementation strategy.