Strategic role for telecoms

Telecommunications has become such an integrated part of the petroleum industry that telecoms providers will soon join operators, engineers, fabricators, and other contractors in project alliances. This is the view of Robin Scurlock, senior sector manager-energy, Equant Network Services Ltd., Slough, U.K. Equant claims to operate the world's largest privately owned communications network. Equant's network of more than 120,000 users linked through more than 1,000 access points worldwide

Feb. 2, 1998

3 min read

David Knott
London
[email protected]

Telecommunications has become such an integrated part of the petroleum industry that telecoms providers will soon join operators, engineers, fabricators, and other contractors in project alliances.

This is the view of Robin Scurlock, senior sector manager-energy, Equant Network Services Ltd., Slough, U.K. Equant claims to operate the world's largest privately owned communications network.

Equant's network of more than 120,000 users linked through more than 1,000 access points worldwide was originally built up by international airlines, which had information they needed to share globally.

In 1989, the airlines decided to privatize their network and seek customers in other businesses. Scurlock says the network now covers 225 countries and territories.

He noted that energy companies are similar to airlines in needing to transfer large amounts of data globally. They are also keen to use telecoms to improve their day-to-day operations.

Key weapon

"We have seen a number of changes," said Scurlock, "because of the pressures of cost reduction, particularly in exploration and production.

"Majors, independents, and service companies alike have decided information technology is a strategic enabler, not a support function.

"They say it is fundamental to their business, and for some, there is a dilemma over whether to do it themselves or contract it out."

Scurlock says telecoms business in the oil and gas sector is growing rapidly. Equant typically provides intranets-private corporate data networks-to petroleum companies.

"The oil industry is paranoid about security," said Scurlock, "because of the quality and confidentiality of its data. With an intranet, we can provide different types of encryption, firewalls, and authentication processes to guarantee security of data."

Now, said Scurlock, there is increasing interest in giving people from outside oil companies access to certain parts of their intranets, so they can provide input on projects.

Extranets

"Bringing people outside your company into your intranet makes it an extranet," said Scurlock. "This gives the potential to build subcommunities within the network to share information."

Outsiders brought into an extranet can have their access to intranet data restricted: "This is easy, because everything in the network is software-defined."

Now Equant is pursuing petroleum industry projects where a number of communities can be brought together, such as geologists, reservoir engineers, construction engineers, fabricators, and administrators.

Royal Dutch/Shell is an Equant customer, with a global intranet covering more than 100 international sites. The relationship with Shell has developed in an unprecedented way.

"Shell wanted an improved information flow in and between its businesses," said Scurlock, "and to keep things simple by dealing with a single provider as opposed to dual sources as before.

"Now with Shell we are working on project bids in which Equant is an alliance partner for the telecoms part of the package."