Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1983. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 248-252).

Thesis (M.A.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Advisor: Dr. Dennis D. Moore, Florida State University, College of Arts and Sciences, Program in American and Florida Studies. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Mar. 2, 2004). Includes bibliographical references.

Report (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. M.S. 1991. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-73). Also available via the Internet.

This thesis explores two themes on upstream oil and gas economics centred on offshore safety economics and third party access to infrastructure in the United Kingdom Continental Shelf (UKCS). The first part involves work that explores the nexus between the offshore safety regime and safety outcomes. It contributes to the literature by explaining the post-Piper Alpha safety regime changes with regard to our understanding, framing of safety decision making and benchmarking of safety outcomes. The second part investigates third party access to infrastructure issues in the UKCS. It contributes to our understanding of how different third party access to infrastructure arrangements can be utilised to maximise economic recovery. Each chapter addresses fundamental issues of North Sea oil and gas operations through the application of microeconomic, operations research and econometric methods within a formal analytical framework. The results provide insights into decision-making complexities in the upstream oil and gas industry by guiding policy makers. Specifically, part one of this thesis looks at safety performance in the post-Piper Alpha era in the UKCS. It investigates ways through which a more comprehensive and theoretically informed framework can be used to understand the linkages that arise when dealing with safety regulations and their impacts on the offshore oil and gas industry. Our objective is to empirically ascertain the determinants of offshore hydrocarbon releases within the context of the post-Piper Alpha offshore safety regime regulations. This is done using an observed number of hydrocarbon releases linked to a population denominator data of the number of the installations present in the UKCS. Three research problems are examined: (1) the transmission mechanisms through which safety regulation influence firm and industry productivity; (2) the assessment methods utilised in measuring and benchmarking regulatory outcomes in terms of safety compliance; and (3) the extent to which safety policies contribute to enhancing safety levels in the oil and gas industry. We initially review the background and literature on offshore safety with a particular emphasis on the UKCS in Chapter 2. We also frame our research questions and underlying hypothesis here. In Chapter 3, we present our underlying empirical framework and model specifications followed by some descriptive analysis of the hydrocarbon releases data. The results of the various econometric model specifications are analysed in Chapter 4. The second part of the thesis explores how possible different ownership patterns (including access arrangements) might affect the economic viability of exploiting remaining resources in the UKCS. This section attempts to answer two critical questions namely how the impact of the separation of infrastructure and field ownership affect economic recovery and the impact of taxation on field and hub economics in a mature oil basin. We explore how possible different ownership structures and access arrangements might affect the economic viability of remaining UKCS reserves. We apply a mixed integer programming (MIP) model to field data from the Northern North Sea. Specifically, we examine how the unbundling of infrastructure and field ownership, as well as different cost sharing and tariff arrangements, affect the long-term economics of hubs and their user fields. Regarding the layout, Chapter 5 talks about access to infrastructure issues in the UKCS namely the regulatory framework for access and related legislation. It leads to the development of a conceptual framework and model based upon which extractions are made to capture the various potential market outcomes. In Chapter 6, the empirical model, which utilises the mixed integer programming approach, is discussed. The data sources and characterization, as well as the presentation of the results from the Baseline Model, are presented in Chapter 7. The analysis of the Tax Model and the Cost Sharing plus Tax Model including structure and simulated results with underlying assumptions are presented in Chapter 8. Finally, Chapter 9 leads to a thorough discussion of the results followed by conclusions and policy recommendations.

Thesis. 1977. Ocean E.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Ocean Engineering. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Includes bibliographical references. / Ocean E.

Thesis (M. S.)--Texas A&M University, 2004. / Vita. Abstract. "Major Subject: Petroleum Engineering" Includes bibliographical references.

A exploração offshore tem crescido muito nos últimos anos e grandes estruturas e equipamentos têm sido projetados e construídos para remover o óleo que se encontra abaixo da superfície do mar. Para plataformas offshore fixas tipo jaqueta é necessário analisar os problemas decorrentes da exposição dessas instalações ao ambiente hostil do oceano. Estas perturbações induzem vibrações excessivas nas estruturas, afetando o conforto e a estabilidade da instalação, e para combater essas vibrações uma ferramenta matemática foi utilizada para monitorar o estado da integridade da estrutura, a Transformada de Hilbert-Huang (HHT). O HHT foi utilizada com sucesso para a identificação de parâmetros modais, como frequência fundamental e fator de amortecimento da plataforma. Finalmente, uma técnica de controle de vibração ativa baseada no Controle Linear Quadrático (LQ) é implementada com o objetivo de reduzir os efeitos de perturbações oscilatórias indesejáveis causados por ondas e correntes marinhas. / The offshore exploration has grown tremendously in recent years, and large structures and equipment has been designed and built to remove the oil that lies beneath the sea surface. For fixed jacket type offshore platforms is necessary to consider the problems arising from exposure of these facilities to the hostile ocean environment. These perturbations induce excessive vibrations in the structures affecting the comfort and stability of the facility, and for to combat these vibrations a mathematical tool was used to monitor the integrity health of the structure, namely the Hilbert-Huang Transform (HHT). The HHT was used for the successfully identification of modal parameters, as fundamental frequency and damping factor of the platform. Finally, an active vibration control technique based on the Control Linear Quadratic (LQ) is implemented aiming to reduce the effects of undesirable oscillatory perturbations caused by waves and marine current.