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Kristina is excited about a new project she will be working on for the coming years: a new subsea well in the Dutch asset. She is looking forward to the possibilities this will bring to develop her technical skills – as learning is what she loves best.

Is this a big challenge for you?

‘I do not like the word challenge. I see work as a learning curve, and I welcome any opportunity to develop myself. For this project – as well as the others I will still be working on – I will be involved in completion, well testing, production, and cost optimization; the latter being a hot topic lately as most of the wells are mature by now, in their tail stage. One of the subjects I hope to learn a lot about in this new project is flow assurance. I will be involved in setting up models for the production prediction and optimization, based on the reservoir performance and the constraints of the production system.’

What do you mean by constraints?

‘A production system includes the reservoir, wells, facilities, and export system, so constraints can be associated with any of these network components. For example, you should not open a new well too strongly as this might cause erosion of the pipes or reservoir water influx. You need to take aspects into account such as maximum capacity of surface facilities (separators, compressors, etc.) and, last but not least, contract obligations.’

Can you give me an example of what can go wrong?

‘I remember a few instances when a well got blocked with salt. Chloride can cause salt precipitation in a well and plug it up. We try to minimize this, of course, for example by controlling flowing pressure, but when it does happen, you need to take measures to unblock it. This may involve injecting water or acid from the top of the well or using special downhole equipment, which is a more expensive option.’

When and how did you join Wintershall?

‘I was born and raised in Moscow, Russia, to a family of Armenian descent. At the age of 17, I passed my entrance exams to go to University, and as my father – and other family members as well – worked in the oil and gas industry, I decided to study petroleum engineering. My idea was that it is interesting work, the pay is good, and it offers lots of ways to learn new things and meet new people. After graduating with a Master’s degree from Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas in Moscow, I worked in the department of underground gas storage of a research institute. At an international conference organized by the institute, I was introduced to several people working in the Underground Gas Storage department of WINGAS. As the contacts were established, the opportunity was offered to go to Germany for a one-year work experience placement. I was excited about the chance to learn German and develop my skills, but when I was there, I noticed that all the technical work was actually done by contractors. That was when I decided to apply for the SPEAD programme of Wintershall, a two-year programme for young engineers with projects around the world. From there, I was selected for a position in Rijswijk. This was in 2012. I remember that I came here on my first day, and a colleague told me about problems in several wells that would have to be solved urgently, and I thought: How am I going to fix all that on my first day of work? I have to smile when I remember this now… But they reassured me that this is a team effort, and we are all here to help each other.’