Hurricane Katrina hits the Gulf (of Mexico) Coast hard, followed by Hurricane Rita which knocks out

even more rigs and refineries. Saudi Aramco has scheduled shipments of crude to those refineries. Soon, the shipments are backing up. What to do? Cut production? Increase storage? Build up inventory? Redirect tankers?

The hurricanes that hit the United States were severe events that cost billions of dollars and hundreds of lives. They also caused gas prices to shoot up in the States. Like a pebble in a pond, the ripple effect was felt around the world. However, thanks to a combination of extraordinary, highly experienced people and leading edge technology, Saudi Aramco was able, literally, to weather the storms and continue to supply customers with the right mix of product and not cut back production. This is what OSPAS (the Oil Supply Planning and Scheduling Department) does every day. It is the operations heart of Saudi Aramco. OSPAS is the only organization in Saudi Aramco that has a global view, said Adel H. Al-Dossary, manager, OSPAS. Our mission is to manage

and optimize hydrocarbon sysKey OSPAS officials, from right: Adel H. tem capacities and inventories Al-Dossary, OSPAS to deliver quality products to manager; Mitrik M. AlShaalan, shift planning the customer at the right time coordinator; Essam and place with maximum net Al-Eissa, administrator, revenue to Saudi Aramco. Real-Time Systems Division; and Maan For most people in the Shami, group leader, world, the acronym OSPAS is Planning and Programs. devoid of meaning; few people even inside the company understand just how vital the organization is to the success of Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabia and our many customers around the world. The key to understanding OSPAS, is that the organization touches almost every aspect of Saudi Aramcos opera-

14 Saudi Aramco Dimensions

OSPAS keeps Saudi Aramco running smoothly, even in a crisis

tions, said Al-Dossary. Its participation in virtually every project creates a solid foundation for the companys continued success. This is a case where the right hand definitely knows what the left hand is doing. OSPAS is composed of six divisions: Oil, Gas and Natural Gas Liquids, Terminal, Refined Products, and Supply Planning and Engineering. The department plans, schedules, coordinates and monitors movements (quantity and quality) of millions of barrels of crude oil daily from all Saudi Aramco wellheads to company terminals. In addition, the organization also tracks refined-product movements from five domestic and two joint venture refineries, 19 bulk plants, 18 air refueling sites, four Saudi Strategic Storage Program complexes, and 1,600 kilometers of refined-products pipeline. It also tracks gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) from five gas plants, three fractionation centers and more than 5,000 km of pipeline. Saudi Aramco also operates 44 export berths at five marine ports, loading millions of barrels of oil, products and natural gas each day onto enormous ocean-going tankers that can exceed 500,000 deadweight tons. OSPASs comprehensive system allows Saudi Aramco to know exactly where, in effect, every drop of its hydrocarbons is located at any instant in time. Though not technically a part of OSPAS, electrical power generation and distribution needs of Saudi Aramco are also carefully managed on the Operations

The biggest video wall Coordination Center (OCC) in the hydrocarbon Big Board. industry serves as a winBut despite its multifaceted dow into Saudi Aramco operations in oil, gas, mandate, the one virtue refining, terminal operaOSPAS obsesses about is teamtions and electric power. work. Communications is the byword; no one is ever left in the dark about any issue. Open communications across all divisions is an absolute requirement, said Al-Dossary. From our morning 7:05 meeting to the dozens of conference calls and quick meetings throughout the day, we are in easy communications with all Saudi Aramco operations people around the Kingdom and around the world. In addition, OSPAS recruits its members from all over the company including Sales and Marketing, Engineering, Exploration, Refining among many others in order to provide a complete view of Saudi Aramcos operations. In short, OSPASs people represent a cross-section of the company, and this bolsters the excellent coordination among Saudi Aramcos component parts. That is important because OSPAS majors on two interrelated jobs long-term planning and contingency planning. We are constantly planning for the future, said Ziyad A. Azzouz, general supervisor of the Oil Division. We try to anticipate everything that may affect the entire span of Saudi Aramco operations up to a decade and more in the future. Long-term planning puts concepts on paper. But the real world has a way of producing surprises at regular events.

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The long-term planning is constantly adapted, said Azzouz. We are proud of the fact that OSPAS has been able to rapidly and effectively make the critical decisions to blunt any harmful impact of disasters like Hurricane Katrina. Its like taking pieces of a giant puzzle thats constantly changing and solving that puzzle over and over again, said Al-Dossary. Our success is dependent upon OSPAS people being able to put the pieces together time after time after time.

amount of information the The video wall, shown above, can display screens display is gathered, real-time images from verified and used. cameras, satellites or the Internet. This is the story about the people who are responsible for providing the OCC and OSPAS with information, and the people who use that information to aggressively run, protect and optimize Saudi Aramcos critical operations.

IT A critical component The new focus

Recently, the focus of OSPAS has been the new OCC video wall, inaugurated Sept. 12, 2005. The first OCC was built in 1978, and its computer systems were replaced and upgraded twice since 1982 (a third upgrade is scheduled for 2008). The center was completely renovated in 1995. Loaded with new display technology, todays massive (biggest in the hydrocarbon industry) series of screens on the OCC wall simply overwhelms visitors and provides a realtime display of Saudi Aramcos key operations oil, gas and natural gas liquids (NGL), terminal planning operations and refined products for OSPAS, plus electric power distribution. As magnificent as the video wall is, it is merely a tool. The real story of OCC and OSPAS is how the massive We cant make mistakes, said Esam M. Al-Eissa, administrator of the Real-Time Systems Division (RTSD) and the leader of the group responsible for obtaining the data used by the OCC. Youve heard of learning by your mistakes, well that golden rule doesnt apply here. We make a mistake, and the company could lose millions of dollars and people could be injured. The Information Technology (IT) component of OSPAS is vital. Now a part of Saudi Aramcos IT system and organizationally separate from OSPAS, the RTSD continues to be in charge of OSPASs data. According to Al-Eissa, We believed that moving from OSPAS to IT would provide us with a greater opportunity to integrate OSPAS systems with other company systems.

16 Saudi Aramco Dimensions

shift coordinators, who watch President and CEO Abdallah S. Jumah, clapover the entire OCC, can ping second from left, instantly take action to and other executives celebrates the inauguprevent major problems. ration of OCCs new One of the hallmarks of video wall. OSPAS is change. Nothing stands still, said Al-Shami. We are continually upgrading and optimizing. One example is the use of the Plant Information Systems (PI) components. PIs gather all types of information from within the plant environment. Right now, we get 35 percent of our data from PIs, said Al-Eissa. That information used to come from RTUs. How impressive is the control center! The world economy may rely on the The PIs advantage is that they are in the plant efficiency of Saudi Aramco. Oliver Appert, President & CEO, French Institute of Petroleum anyway and can gather the data automatically. This eliminates the need for RTUs and frees up the RTU-dedioperators at the OCC with alarms. cated circuit. However, the RTUs play an important role The ability to provide us with critical information out in the desert with the pipelines. rapidly helps us prevent stoppages or failures, said Al-Eissa. In fact, we have a field electronics system that The master SCADA systems not only gathers data but enables us to actually control Two SCADA systems serve as the centerpieces for data remote operations without anyone being present. The OSPAS relies on vast amounts of information and needs to be fed from as wide a range of sources as possible. Our move to IT makes this easier. Information gathering is a vital part of OSPASs success. Data is gathered from all operation sites, said Maan Al-Shami, Planning and Programming group leader plants, refineries, GOSPs, terminals, pipelines. Much of the data is gathered by Remote Terminal Units, or RTUs. These units monitor operations located far from plants or manned operation centers. The RTUs and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems are highly sensitive, able to detect developing problems and alert

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Above: Critical meetings can be held in the room that overlooks the OCC. Pictured from right are General supervisor Khalid Al-Omair, engineer Jaman Al-Zahrani, OSPAS manager Adel Al-Dossary, group leader Maan Shami, general supervisor Abdulrahman Ghabra, general supervisor Awad Al-Qahtani and specialist Mutlaq Al-Daajani. All coordinators can call up a vast number of images on their computer systems, and the shift coordinator can remotely operate critical functions.

gathering. One is the central dispatch system for all hydrocarbon operations and the other is for power distribution in the Kingdom. The hydrocarbon SCADA system is one of biggest in the world, said AlEissa. It provides Video Wall 25,000 points of data for the OCC. Replaced the map-boards with video walls in 2005. The power distribution SCADA sysThe video walls size is 67 meters tem interfaces with long by 3 meters high. the Saudi Electricity Co. and monitors the Consists of 150 stitched, black power distribution masked 1.7-meter screens. system within Saudi Aramco 24/7, watchProjection uses Digital Light ing the status of Processing (DLP) technology. breakers, voltage and transformers. However, even the SCADA system is subject to change. Menahi D. Al-Gahtani, applications and system specialist, Real-Time Systems Division, is the project coordinator for replacing the current hydrocarbon SCADA system. IT systems become obsolete quickly, so we are continuously upgrading and improving the system, Al-Gahtani said, but there comes a point when it needs to be changed. The new SCADA system will be able to handle more applications and interfaces, and handle all the additional projects the growing OSPAS organization will need to monitor. The new system should be up and running by middle of 2008, said Al-Gahtani.

Information at your fingertips

Applications are a big part of IT support. According to Mohammed A. Makhdoum, supervisor, Applications Support Unit Real-Time Systems Division, his people provide all-day everyday support for the hydrocarbon and power

SCADA systems. Also, they relentlessly seek and implement the latest technologies that help OCC planners perform their job in a more efficient manner. Another function of this unit is to develop new applications that provide users with monitoring and control Central Dispatch Center has about 18,000 data points updated every 15 seconds. capabilities of field devices. SAP (operations-management software) Our applicainformation is also updated every tions allow the shift 15 seconds, except for the Saudi coordinator in the Strategic Storage Program information, OCC to control which is updated every 20 minutes. valves remotely from his computer, PDS has about 12,000 points updated Makhdoum said. every 2 seconds. The objective is to make the technology work at the optimum rate. Developers have created a wide range of applications that provide critical information quickly and effortlessly. One example is the Tank Monitoring Application. Weve been able to provide a view of all of the companys tanks, said Makhdoum. We can see which tanks are available, which are under repair. A planner can click on a tank icon and see its activity, which product it is storing, its level and the pumpable quantity on a real-time basis. One strength of the application-development team that translates across all of OSPAS is communication among all members of the team. We live with the users, talk their language and value their requirements so we can develop the applications they need to do their job, said Makhdoum. In addition, if we see an application or any enabling technology we believe will help operations, we obtain it and customize it for our peoples specific use.

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Applications development also created the Marine Terminal Planning Board System. This provides a view of all tankers arriving at and departing from Saudi Aramco marine terminals within a four-day time frame. This application provides information about the cargo, load, destination, arrival date and all the ships data, Makhdoum said. Operations must be on top of all aspects of distribution all the time, and this application provides key information that allows them to make decisions accurately and quickly.

They bring that quality to their work. What we do is find the best people and develop them to be integrated with everyone in OSPAS. That gives them the grounding to be proactive, come up with ideas, and turn those ideas into value-added reality.

Operations: Efficiency in action

OSPAS is at the very heart of Saudi Aramco. This remarkable organization is dedicated not just to perfection but continual improvement. Thats because everything its people do can be ultimately measured in money Congratulations for your safe and reliable operational control room. a lot of money. Present and future are always We, from Petrobras, appreciate very much your experience and efficiency. considered in great detail. Jos Srgio Gabrielli de Azevedo, President and CEO, Petrobras The time span covered ranges from every two seconds that data is refreshed to an 11-year plan that foreThe bottom line is that IT has positioned itself to see casts demand and supply of hydrocarbons, as well as all exactly what Operations needs. According to Al-Eissa, the factors that may potentially affect Saudi Aramcos We keep on top of technology advances around the world. future business. Anything that provides added value for Operations will be All aspects of operations are monitored, and any impact purchased and implemented. In fact, you could say our job is on supply of products to custo make Operations jobs easier by providing the technology The video wall, below, tomers is determined. For that provides better information that can be easily accessed. is able to display photoexample, the entire Testing and It isnt just technology; it is also people. As Al-Eissa graphic images and specially designed icons. Inspection (T&I) of plants, underscored, You cant teach people to be proactive.

pipelines, etc., is carefully noted and arranged so that there is little or no disruption when a facility is routinely shut down. Of course, not all shutdowns are routine. Emergency closings of plants or specific operations must be quickly contained and contingency plans put into play. Every person from planners and staff engineers in the OCC to all the divisions quickly determines how to mitigate any difficulty. That is why they are well trained with a clear objective: Always ensure supply gets to the customer in the safest manner and that profits are maximized. These goals explain the many-faceted nature of OSPAS. On one hand its people are thoroughly engaged in ensuring that Saudi Aramco operations are uninterrupted. The huge video-wall projects an amazing amount of views and information that help instantly spot potential problems. If a problem occurs, contingency plans are immediately launched so that any potential supply interruption is eliminated or, at least, minimized. On the other hand, OSPAS also is responsible for continuously optimizing operational processes, ensuring that all decisions reflect the goal of increasing the Kingdoms profits. The organization that focuses on long-term supply and projects is Supply Planning and Engineering. Our vital objective is to provide long-term supply planning to ensure continuous supply of hydrocarbon products to Saudi Aramco customers, and provide technical

support to OSPAS operations divisions and Executive Management, said Yousef A. Al-Ali, general supervisor of the Supply Planning and Engineering Division. We provide optimization analysis, economic reviews and evaluations on projects, operations and system operating strategies. We also produce all types of optimization plans (from monthly to annually to 10-year plans) for crude, gas, NGL, gas condensate and refined products systems, Al-Ali said. And since we see the entire picture of Saudi Aramco operations present and future we sometimes have to adjust a specific plant operation to keep in step with our global optimization, said Essam A. Ali, supervisor of Refined Products Supply Planning. That sometimes means a plant locally loses money by running against its own optimal operation, but globally the Kingdom is realizing additional revenue, he said. The OSPAS intricate global optimization model enables us to see how losing a few million dollars within a plant may help us earn hundreds of millions of dollars globally. Its a matter of perspective, and OSPAS operations are full of such examples. Eisa S. Al-Madani, The video wall is Engineering and Technology designed to show the real-time interrelationGroup Leader, said, We also ship of oil, gas, refining, review capital projects and terminal and electric incorporate major comments power operations.

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Movement of oil, gas, natural gas liquids (NGL), terminal (shipping) and refined products all have a place on the video wall. For oil, monitoring the ever-changing demand for product and creating the perfect mix of products for export and in-Kingdom consumption is vital, said Azzouz. We plan out everything, taking input from petroleum engineering to The Big Board understand oil availability. Again, the objective is to ensure When you walk into the OCC, the enormous video wall the right mix of product for Saudi Aramcos customers. (67 meters wide and three meters high) grabs your attenThe Oil Division is responsible for monitoring the vast tion. This is the nerve center of Saudi Aramco. All 18,000 complex of pipelines in the kingdom. real-time, hydrocarbon-movement operations, updated We are the first line of defense, said Azzouz. We need every 15 seconds, and 12,000 electric-power generation to see the overall picture of interconnecting the pipeline and distribution operations, updated every two seconds, among operations. are reflected on its 150 1.7-meter screens. The absolute scale of operations overseen by OSPAS is In this room, planners, shift coordinators and engineers gargantuan. In addition to being the major supplier of oil monitor all data, looking for possible problems, checking to the world, Saudi Aramco owns the fourth largest gas to see which product or tanker needs to be redirected, and reserves, but that isnt the whole story. they are in contact by phone, radio and network to field Our Master Gas System is the largest integrated syspersonnel. It is a free flow of information coordinated and tem in the world, said Emad A. Al-Reshoud, general supervisor, Gas and NGL Division. We are Congratulations on this extraordinary room at OSPAS, which demonstrates unique. There is nothing like this anyplace. Our Aramcos technological leadership and mastery, its unique place in world oil system is huge, and we and the outstanding capabilities and dedication of its people. This is a hisare leveraging these resources for the KingMr. Daniel Yergin, Chairman of Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) toric occasion. doms benefit. Our gas and NGL operations managed by highly motivated people with a great deal of are massive to an extent that our NGL production exceeds experience. In fact, most OSPAS employees have 15 or the oil output of some OPEC countries. more years of field experience and know Saudi Aramco As vast as OSPAS operations are, everyone continues to operations from top to bottom. be focused on the bottom line. Nasser Al-Mahasher, general The video wall also reflects the reality of OSPAS, and that supervisor, Refined Products Division, understands the is that everything is interconnected. One operation smoothly importance of his task: My customers are those who drive flows into another on the wall and in real life. And if cars, run utility plants and provide power to their nations. something interferes with the smooth operation, all operatThe Refined Products Division, as is the case with all ing organizations are flexible enough to rapidly adapt. OSPAS operations, is extremely flexible. We need to meet Tankers are responsible for moving crude oil and our customers demand, but we also must meet the Kingproducts, said Abdulrahman M. Ghabra, general supervidoms needs and maximize profitability, Al-Mahasher said. sor, Terminal Planning Division. We have to interact with Plus, when an unexpected event occurs, Refined Products oil and refined products because we are working in a fine must be able to shift on the fly and create a new mix of balance. Weather, breakdowns or various disruptions may products that takes advantage of any situation. cause one or more tankers to be late in getting to one of Not part of OSPAS, but critical to operations is the our terminals. This has ramifications for production, storPower Operation and Control Unit (PO&CU). It monitors age and customers. If product cant be transported, we and controls the Saudi Aramco power network. We are may have to cut production as the last resort after maxistationed at the OCC to effectively coordinate with the mizing storage. Our decisions must be fast and accurate companys oil and gas operations to ensure electrical or we will lose money. power is provided safely, reliably and in a cost-effective

that contain operational sense to achieve company objectives. In addition, we are the only entity that looks after the long-term testing and inspection plans for all Saudi Aramco facilities. We always assure that shutdown activities are planned in due time with no impact on meeting customers commitment.

22 Saudi Aramco Dimensions

manner, said Abdallah S. Guraishi, Supervisor, Power Operation & Control Unit. We also are the single point of contact for Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) in dealing with interrelated power operations.

The Future

A team approach
One aspect of operations that every single person emphasized was teamwork. All divisions and IT work together, said Al-Dossary. In fact, teamwork and communications is so important that at 7:05 every morning there is a conferencecall meeting in which key personnel in OSPAS, operations organizations and IT are represented. Just like the old American police dramas, everyone gathers together to discuss potential difficulties that may be encountered during the day. This meeting brings everyone together, said Al-Shami. All divisions are represented, and anything that may impact operations is brought to light. We all have our objectives, and we act accordingly. Of course, during any major crisis, OSPAS goes on an even more impressive footing. Select additional personnel (in addition to those who would be there anyway, since OSPAS is a 24/7 operation) stay all night, and senior managers may view operations from a specially designed conference room with a window that overlooks the OCC and the video wall.

OSPAS will continue to search for improvements and optimize performance. We are the Think Tank of Saudi Aramco daily hydrocarbon management, said Al-Dossary. As operations grow ever more complex with additional huge projects, joint ventures and third party operations, OSPAS will continue seeking new technologies to overcome future operational challenges. Al-Dossary said that Sales and Marketing departments may place representatives in the OCC to capture market opportunities on the minute. Also, in the optimization arena, Hamdan Al-Ghamdi of Supply Planning and Engineering is leading an effort to develop a simulation-based optimization model that will integrate upstream operation activities. This will provide us with a continuous reach from well-head to gas and NGL operation, and with the existing refining optimization system, we will be able to optimize both upstream and downstream operations, said Al-Ghamdi. One thing is certain, Al-Dossary concluded, OSPAS will continue to lead the way to bring the latest technology and highest level of expertise to ensure Saudi Aramco continues to be the reliable supplier of energy to the world.

Screens from individual systems can be displayed on the video wall to get a larger perspective.

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