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Index Terms— Backspin, Boscan, Controllers, Cavity, Loss Phase, Progressive, Pump, Variable.

I. NOMENCLATURE

PCP: Progressive Cavity Pump VSD: Variable Speed Drive DFL: Dynamic fluid level from surface (Ft) SFL: Static fluid level from surface (Ft) Ptbg: Tubing fluid pressure (Psi) Pcsg: Casing gas flow pressure (Psi) GR: Gear ratio

Terry Ernst is with UNICO Inc., Venezuela. Ernst.terry@unicoven.com) Frank Santiago is with UNICO Inc., Venezuela(e-mail: frank.santiago@ unicoven.com) Harry Schulz is with Unico, Inc., Franksville, WI, U.S.A(e-mail schulzha @unicous.com) Frank Bustamante is with Baker Energy, Venezuela(e-mail: buef@chevron.com) Juan Biternas is with Chevron , Venezuela(e-mail: bite@ chevron.com) Jesus Borjas is with Chevron , Venezuela (e-mail: jssb@ chevron.com) Benigno Montilla is with R&M company, Venezuela Jesus Molina is with Baker Energy, Venezuela(e-mail: jmze@ chevron.com) John Bernard is with EpSolutions, Venezuela (e-mail: john.bernard@ep-solutions.com)

BPD: Barrels per day (Bls/d) GOR: Gas oil ratio (scf/d) Ft-lb: Unit for torque (foot x pound) CVX: Chevron Texaco oil Company

II. INTRODUCTION

All wells producing with PCP system take the shape of communicated tubes 1 with different pressure at the same depth. When the well VSD is turned off the fluid level in both tubing and annulus space try to go to the same horizontal line or the static fluid level. This also occurs if the VSD trips due to an incoming power disturbance.

Power dips (brownouts), phase loss, and power outages (blackouts) can cause a significant loss in progressive cavity pump (PCP) production. Loss of control of the PCP due to power problems causes the pump to backspin while fluid drains from the production tubing. Backspin times can last from minutes to hours depending on the specifics of the pump application. Deep wells will generally have longer backspin times than shallow wells or wells operating with high casing fluid levels.

The actual loss of production time could be as much as twice the backspin time since fluid drained from the tubing must be pumped back to the surface.

III. THE BACK SPIN PROBLEM

A. Backspin in the Boscan Wells PCP Wells in the north of Boscan field, use VSDs to

control the induction motor at the surface. The standard VSD is very susceptible to momentary electrical power interruptions, even those shorter than 0.600 seconds. In the Boscan field the typical power interruption lasts 0.300 seconds. During momentary interruptions of the electrical power due to temporary faults to ground, power dip or power outages, or phase loss in the distribution network, the motor turns off. When the motor turns off the weight of the column of crude causes the motor to turn in the opposite direction. The motor will spin in the reverse direction until all the oil has fallen back down the production tube and the oil level in the production tube and the well are equal. This phenomenon is known as “back spin”.

Fig. 1 below shows the typical PCP system used in the CVX Boscan field.

Fig. 2 shows the backspin effect when power goes out. There are four phases: In phase I the well is producing under

Back Spin Control in ProgressiveCavity Pump for Oil Well

Terry Ernst , Frank Santiago, Harry Schulz, Frank Bustamante, Juan Biternas , Jesus Borjas, Benigno Montilla, Jesus Molina, and John Bernard

1-4244-0288-3/06/$20.00 ©2006 IEEE

2006 IEEE PES Transmission and Distribution Conference and Exposition Latin America, Venezuela

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normal conditions at pump speed (V1) and torque (Td). In phase II the motor turns off due to a power disturbance. Fluid flow goes to zero (0). Torque in the rod starts to release and fluid in the tubing starts to drains down.

Fig. 1. - Typical PCP well in CVX Boscan Field

This causes the rod string and pcp pump to begin turning in reverse at V2. The rod string continues to turn reverse until fluid in the tubing is down to the same level as fluid in the well. When the rod string comes to a stop and power is restored and the VSD may be restarted.

Fig. 2.- Example of Backspin effect

Fig. 3 shows how the communicated tubes theory is used to understand the backspin effect. When the well is producing there is a higher pressure at P2 than at P1. When the VSD turns off the fluid level in the tubing goes down and fluid level in the annulus space go up to try to balance equal pressure in any horizontal reference. In a PCP well while this effect is occurring the rod string is turning in reverse.

B. Back spin Consequences Frequent power outages can significantly diminish PCP

production. Completely uncontrolled backspin can also create excess speed that is unsafe to personnel and/or damaging to

equipment. In this case a hydraulic brake may be used to limit the reverse speed. The backspin effect can also unscrew the rod string causing additional loss of production and expenses.

Fig. 3.- Backspin effect as a communicated tubes theory 1 .

C. Lost oil production due the Backspin effect The backspin time in oil wells is a function of pump depth,

working pump torque, fluid level above the pump, fluid viscosity, fluid density, type of rod string (Continuous, API, fiber glass, etc), tubing and casing diameter, etc. In the Boscan Field this time is between 4 and 6 hours. One power disturbance per day would cause a daily loss of production of 17% to 25%.

IV. METHODOLOGY TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM

A. Applied Methodology The VSD manufacturer, Unico Inc., started investigating

ways to reduce lost production in PCP systems due to power problems in 2003. This work resulted in several patent applications under the title “Method and System for Improving Pump Efficiency and Productivity Under Power Disturbance Conditions”. Lab tests looked promising. In May 2005, Unico, Inc. gathered input from the customer (CVX), field service engineers (eP Solutions), and PCP operator in the Boscan field (R&M Energy systems) to refine their ideas. Unico Inc. asked CVX about conducting field tests of the new technology. Permission was obtained to conduct tests in one of the problematic wells. The software was first tested in the well BN-793. Problems with DC Bus Overvoltage faults occurred. Test results were sent to Unico Inc in Wisconsin, U.S.A to be analyzed by the Engineering department. The decision was made to add a dynamic braking resistor and associated controls to prevent overvoltage faults. The software was further refined and improved.

After about a month Unico Inc. was ready for further field tests. Tests were resumed at well BN-793 June, 2005. The phase loss and backspin controller were successfully tested. Plans were made to install the new software and dynamic braking resistor and associated controls in 5 wells for thorough long term testing. Tests at all 5 wells were successful.

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B. Theory Solution VSDs rectify the AC line voltage into a DC bus voltage.

The DC bus voltage is converted by output switching devices into the variable frequency voltage used to control the motor. In addition the DC bus voltage is used to power the bus switched power supply that creates the low voltage supplies needed to power the controls. The DC bus voltage is applied to bus capacitors that store electrical input energy for transfer to the output. The energy stored in the bus capacitors is a function of their capacitance and the square of the applied voltage. 1) Brown Out Controller

Normally a VSD will trip with an Under Voltage fault if the incoming voltage is 15- 25% low. At lower voltages the power supplies may shut down and motor performance could be negatively affected. The VSD manufacturer (Unico Inc.) modified their bus switched power supply to operate at 50% of nominal bus voltage. A brown out controller was added to the software to field weaken the motor based on bus voltage and motor speed. This allows operation at 56% of nominal bus voltage. At 56% bus voltage a 1760 rpm is field weakened at 986 rpm instead of 1760 rpm for example. This maintains proper motor performance. Under heavy load at reduced incoming voltage the motor slows down while riding the current or torque limits. Under light loads at reduced incoming voltage the drive may be able to maintain speed. The motor automatically runs as fast as possible with the reduced incoming voltage or at the requested speed. When the voltage is restored the drive goes back to running normally. 2) Phase Loss Controller

Normally a VSD will trip with a Phase Loss fault if power is lost at one of the three phase power inputs. Running with a phase loss causes the ripple current in the bus capacitors to go up dramatically. Continued operation at high capacitor ripple current can lead to failure or reduced capacitor life. Also with a phase loss, the incoming current in the two live inputs goes up dramatically. This can lead to blown fuses or failure of the rectifier bridge. Unico Inc. added a phase loss controller to its VSD software to reduce motor speed instead of tripping the drive. The phase loss controller monitors the DC bus capacitor ripple current. The motor speed is reduced to maintain an acceptable ripple current. If the ripple current level is acceptable the incoming current is reasonable. The motor automatically runs as fast as possible with the phase loss or at the requested speed. When the phase is restored the drive goes back to running normally. 3) Backspin Controller

Normal bus capacitors will provide enough energy storage to ride through power outages of about 0.05 seconds. Power outages of greater than about 0.05 seconds would result in an Under Voltage fault. In order to avoid backspin of the rod Unico Inc. added a backspin controller to its VSD software.

When the backspin controller detects a power outage the motor is decelerated. The motor then accelerates in the reverse direction to a speed known to regenerate more than enough power to keep the VSD running.

When the motor is running in reverse, torque is applied in the forward direction to hold the tension in the rod and thus hold up the column of fluid. With torque and speed in opposite directions the induction motor acts like a generator. The energy in the tension in the rod and the column of fluid is slowly released as the PCP turns slowly backward. The motor regenerates just enough power to keep the drive running.

When the drive is first running reverse it regenerates some what more energy then needed. This excess energy is absorbed by the dynamic braking resistor. The dynamic braking resistor is turned on and off as needed to prevent an Over Voltage fault. With in a short period of time the reverse speed is reduced to where the dynamic braking resistor is no longer needed. Gradually the motor speed is slowed down further to reduce the bus voltage. The motor is sped up as needed if the bus voltage gets too low.

When the bus voltage is low enough then the drive can detect if the incoming voltage is restored. When the incoming voltage is restored the drive switches back to running forward and resumes normal production.

If the incoming voltage in not restored, at some point the tension in the rod and energy in the fluid will prove to be insufficient to maintain bus voltage. Depending on well specifics this may take from a few minutes to 20 minutes or more. When this happens the drive will trip with an Under Voltage fault. Since the energy in the rod and fluid column is reduced the rod backspin time after the drive trips is reduced.

The backspin controller provides a cost effective method of eliminating virtually all production loss except for the actual power outage period.

V. FIELD RESULTS

A. Selection of Wells for Field Testing. Six wells were selected for the field testing; they are BN-

793, BN-559, BN-124, BN-762, BN-781, and BN-186. Each one has a particular bottomhole and surface condition. They were selected taking in account the High pump torque, High GOR, High pump depth, High water cut, low pump intake pressure, high pump intake pressure.

Fig. 4.- Well BN-793 was the first one tested using the Backspin controller

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software.

B. How Was carried out the Field Test This setup and test procedure was carried out in each well.

Unico Inc, eP Solution, R&M Energy, Baker Energy, and CVX were represented. The following procedures were followed:

b.1.- Prepare work plan and Procedure taking in account HSE Rules.

b.2.- Up load well data from the VSD b.3.- Turn off the well (Using power off breaker) b.4.- Measure the backspin time b.5.- Modify hardware 2 to install dynamic braking resistor

(see Fig. 5) and associated controls according to the power capacity of VSD. Install board with modified bus switching power supply.

b.6.- Install new Software, including brown out, phase loss, and backspin controllers

b.7.- Upload well parameters into the new software b.8.- Run AC Tune test to calibrate the drive to the motor b.9.- Get data from bottomhole and surface sensors. b.10.- Start up the well and wait until fluid is flowing to the

surfaceb.11.- Stop the drive. The drive will decelerate and reverse

direction. As the rod turns slow backward the drive is recording the speeds needed to regenerate adequate power at different torque levels and the time for the motor to get to speed in reverse. When the recordings are done start the drive and it will return to running forward.

b.12.- Wait for fluid to start flowing to the surface. Then turn off the drive incoming power. The drive will decelerate and reverse direction. As the rod turns slow backward the drive recalculates the time for the motor to get to unwind speed. When the calculation is done power can be restored. The drive will return to running forward.

b.13.- To record and graph Pump Speed, Motor Torque, and Bus Voltage use UEDIT software.

b.14.- While recording data with UEDIT turn off power. The backspin controller runs the motor slowly in reverse. Restore power. The motor returns to running forward.

b.15.- Turn off power to drive. The motor switches to running reverse. With power off removed one of the 3 phase high voltage fuses. Then power was turned back on. The motor returns to running forward but at a reduced speed because of the missing phase. Then turned off the power and the motor switches to running reverse. Data was recorded with UEDIT . This test was not run on all wells.

Fig. 5.- Field Technicians installing DC Resistor bank set.

C. Preliminary Results Using the procedure described in the above paragraph the

work team group carried out the field test simulating a power loss and phase loss. Table 1 shows well parameters for each well that was tested. Although the well parameters differ the same backspin controller software was used successfully in all wells.

TABLE IWELL CONDITIONS BEFORE FIELD TESTING.

Parameter / Well BN-559

BN-124

BN-186

BN-762

BN-781

BN-793

Motor speed (Rpm) 1175 1222 376 376 1175 1316 Rod speed (Rpm) 250 260 80 80 250 180

Flow Line pressure (Psi) 110 160 160 160 70 75 Motor current (Amp) 57 47 48 44 24 47

Casing gas pressure (Psi) 0 0 0 0 0 0 Flow line Temperature (ºF) 112 102 90 90 125 128

Tubing Fluid level from surface(Ft) 0 0 0 0 0 0

Annulus gas vent condition Open Open Open Open Open Open Tubing fluid density (Psi/ft) 0.435 0.433 0.433 0.434 0.446 0.438

Check valve in the line flow ? SI* SI* SI* SI* SI* SI* Pump intake pressure (Psi) 918 538 660 382 2207 1423

Annulus fluid level from the surface (Ft) 5794 6803 6236 5855 797 4260

Fluid level above the pump (Ft) 2481 1454 1784 1032 5965 3846 Bottomhole temperature (ºF) 182 199 187 165 168 181

Is there any Check in the bottomhole? NO NO NO NO NO NO

Sand problem? NO NO NO NO NO NO Obstruct pump problem? NO NO NO NO NO NO

In the Fig. 6 the upper line is the BUS Voltage, the second line (PL1) is the motor torque in ft-lb, the third line is the pump speed, and the lower line is the motor torque in %. At P1, the PCP pump was running at 280 Rpm, motor torque was 56% (154 ft-lb), and the bus voltage was 610 Volt DC. At P2 the electrical power was turned off. Pump speed went to -28 Rpm, rod torque to about 26% (79 ft-lb), and Bus voltage increased to 764 Volt. From P2 to P3 the backspin controller runs the motor reverse; at some point power is restored ; from P3 to P4 the rod is accelerated back to 280 Rpm. Note that the motor runs backward about 15 seconds. Note: Parameters values were taken from source data.

In the Fig. 7 shows a test of the phase loss controller and the backspin controller. At P1, the well BN-793 was running at 280 Rpm. At P2 the power was turned off at the front breaker and the motor reversed direction. Then the Electrical field operator took out one high voltage fuse. Then the front breaker was turned back on. The drive returned to running

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Fig. 6.- Field test of backspin controller in well BN-793 during power loss

forward. At points P2 to P3 the drive runs at a reduced speed of 60 Rpm because the drive is running on a single phase. Then the front breaker was turned off again and the drive reversed direction from P4 to P5. Note: Parameters values were taken from source data.

Fig. 7.- Field test of phase loss controller and backspin controller in well BN-793

Fig. 8 demonstrates the backspin controller on a different well. At P1 well BN-559 was running a 250 Rpm under normal conditions. Power was removed at P2. Between P2 and P3 the pump runs slowly backward. Some time between P2 and P3 power was restored. At P3 the pump returns to running forward. Similar field test results were found for other tested wells BN-124, BN-762, BN-781, and BN-186. These results can be seen in Fig.s 9 – 12.

Fig. 8- Field Test of backspin controller in well BN-559 during power loss

Fig. 9.- Field test of backspin controller in well BN-793 during power loss

Fig. 10.- Field test of backspin controller in well BN-762 during power loss

Fig. 11.- Field test of backspin controller in well BN-781 during power loss.

Fig. 12.- Field test of phase loss controller and backspin controller in well BN-186

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D. Problems found in the field tests Since power was turned off at the front breaker of the drive

it was not possible to measure the time the power was off, but in most cases the power was off several seconds. In any case, the power was off for more than the 300 msec, that is the typical power loss time in the Boscan field.

The brown out controller although tested in the lab was not tested in the field since there was no way to reduce the incoming voltage.

E. Final solution The first field tests were done with prototype software.

Final tests were done with improved software Unico Inc. number 805-704.077 3 . Each of the 60 Hp Unico Inc. VSDs were upgraded with the following parts: 1) 805-704.077 backspin controller software, 2) a new Gate drive module with modified bus switching power supply and driver for the dynamic braking transistor, 3) dynamic braking transistor, and 4) dynamic braking resistor.

F. Field Implantation The field testing results prompted CVX Texaco to upgrade

100% of the PCP wells running in its oil field. The upgrade plan was carried out in two stages: In the first stage 50% of the wells were upgraded. In the second phase the rest of the wells will be upgraded.

VI. EVALUATION UNDER REAL ELECTRICAL FAILURES

At the same time CVX was upgrading its PCP wells with the new backspin control software, CVX was monitoring the performance of the PCP. Fig. 9 shows the backspin controller working during an actual power outage. Without the backspin controller 2-7 hours of production (8-30% production loss) would have been lost. With the backspin controller only 1.5 minutes of production was lost. Fig. 13 and 14 are two examples of electrical power disturbances in the Boscan field. Table II shows well BN-793 riding thorough a power disturbance unaffected. Fig. 14 shows well BN-559 slowing down due to a power disturbance.

SCADA and Datalogger systems are used by CVX in all of the Boscan field.

TABLE IIMONITORING OF THE PCP WELL CONDITION AFTER INSTALL UPGRADED

SOFTWARE. THEY ARE OPERATION CONDITIONS OF THE WELL BN-793 IN 06/28/2005

Nine additional instantaneous electrical power disturbances were observed during this real evaluation in wells BN-793, BN-559, BN-124, BN-762, BN-781, and BN-186. Always the Backspin controller worked very well avoiding loss of oil production

VII. CONCLUSIONS

The brown out, phase loss, and backspin controllers will not prevent all production loss due to power disturbances but would be expected to work most of the time. The controllers have substantially reduced production loss to power disturbances in PCP Wells running in the Boscan field managed by CVX. Using the Backspin Controller, backspin time was reduced from as much as 6 hours to about 1 min, potentially saving 25% of daily oil production in each well every time there is a power disturbance.

The phase loss controller allows the drive to keep running at the same or reduced speed on a phase loss. This could potentially save a significant amount of production.

The brown out, phase loss, and backspin controllers should work in any PCP well. This was shown by testing in several wells in the Boscan field with a wide range of characteristics.

The benefits of the brown out, phase loss, and backspin controllers can be obtained by upgrading old drives in VSDs that include the appropriate software and hardware.

Date& Time

Intake Pressure

(PSI)

Intake Temperature

(F) RPM Torque I Motor

(A)

Vol-tage (V)

Fre-cuency (Hz)

28/06/2005 20:52:25 1346.41101 181.29274 280 723.69 48.82 414 66

28/06/2005 20:52:37 1346.41101 181.29274 280 723.69 49.01 429 66

28/06/2005 20:52:49 1346.41101 181.29274 280 723.69 49.01 444 66

28/06/2005 20:53:01 1358.22180 181.01958 280 611.39 49.14 459 66

28/06/2005 20:53:13 1355.75427 181.08574 280 648.82 49.23 474 66

28/06/2005 20:53:25 1354.91711 181.08151 280 623.87 49.33 489 66

28/06/2005 20:53:37 1353.81580 181.26242 280 636.35 49.42 504 66

28/06/2005 20:53:49 1352.87634 181.18211 280 648.82 49.52 519 66

28/06/2005 20:54:01 1352.04749 181.22221 280 661.3 49.61 534 66

28/06/2005 20:54:13 1351.44248 181.19794 280 673.78 49.71 549 66

28/06/2005 20:54:25 1350.18787 181.16808 280 723.69 49.8 435 66

28/06/2005 20:54:37 1349.58875 181.17857 280 723.69 49.19 439 66

28/06/2005 20:54:49 1349.63147 181.17484 280 723.69 48.92 421 66

28/06/2005 20:55:01 1349.75574 181.12221 280 723.69 49.09 410 66

28/06/2005 20:55:13 1349.40759 181.16731 280 723.69 48.55 443 66

28/06/2005 20:55:25 1349.66492 181.13686 280 723.69 48.47 448 66

VIII. ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors gratefully acknowledge the contributions of: Unico Inc. – United States Unico Inc. – Venezuela Operations Chevron TexacoeP Solutions R&M Energy Solutions

IX. REFERENCES

[1] CRAFT, B. y Hawkins, M.. Ingeniería Aplicada de Yacimientos Petrolíferos. (Título Original: Applied Petroleum Engineering, Versión español: H. Vásquez), Editorial Tecnos, Madrid, 1968. Section 3.40.

[2] Unico Inc, Guide to installation, troubleshooting and maintenance,Wisconsin, USA, 2005.

[3] Unico Inc, User’s Guide to Start-Up, and Operation (Application Software Manual 805-704.077), Wisconsin, USA, 2005.

[4] Unico Inc, Drive Control Options to Optimize PCP Production During Power Disturbances, Wisconsin, USA, 2005.

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X. BIOGRAPHIES

Terry Ernst was born Jan. 19, 1953 in Racine, Wisconsin USA. He graduated from the Hertzing Institute in 1974 as Computer System Analyst and served in the United States Marine Corps, as an Aviation Radar Technician. He started his professional career with Unico in 1977. He has held several positions with Unico. Present position at Unico is South American General Manager. He has been living in Venezuela since 1995 working in the Oil Industry on advancing oil

production using new Technologies.

Harry Schulz was born Dec. 21, 1955 in Racine Wisconsin. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin Parkside in 1979 with a Bachelor’s of Applied Science degree. He started his professional career with Unico in 1979. He has held several positions with Unico in hardware and software development. He is a co-inventor of a patented Fault Detection System for use in an Electronic Feed Transfer

System. He has worked on variable speed drives for the Oil Industry since 1988. He is co-inventor of 3 patents applied for to improve positive cavity pump productivity. His special fields of interest are motor control and application software.

Frank Bustamante was born in Tovar, Merida, Venezuela. He is graduated as Electrical Engineer in “Universidad de Los Andes” in 1989. In 1998, He obtained a Master Degree in power System at UNEXPO, Venezuela. From 1989 has been worked in Oil & Gas Industrial Companies as a Maintenance and Advisor Engineer. He had written some technical documents and paper related to Surges and Lightning, and had been participated an some congress, seminars and Forums as a presenter. Actually he works for

Chevron since 2005.

Frank Santiago was born in Trujillo, Venezuela, in 1969. In 1994, He Graduated as Computer Programmer Technician from “Antonio Jose de Sucre” University. He started his career at Corpoven Oil Company. He started his professional career with Unico in 1995. His present position at Unico is Technical Supervisor for Unico West in Western Venezuela, applying the development of the new technologies in the methods of artificial lift in BES, BCP and SRP systems.

Juan Biternas was born in CARACAS, Venezuela. He is graduated as Electrical Engineer in “Universidad RAFEL URDANETA” in 1989. In 1993, He has graduated as mechanical Eng at EMP, Greece. From 1989 has been working in Oil, Textile, petrochemicals & Gas Industrial Companies as a Design, Construction, Maintenance, and Advisor Engineer. He has participated in several congresses, seminars and Forums as a presenter. Actually he works for Chevron, Campo Boscan since 2001.

Jesús Borjas was born in Cabimas, Zulia Venezuela. He is graduated as Electrical Engineer in “Universidad Rafael Urdaneta” in 1996. Since 1989 he has been working in the Oil Industry holding positions of increasing responsibility in the planning, design, installation, commissioning, maintenance, automation and development of Electrical Power Systems, Turbo machinery and High Voltage Motor Controls systems, combined with a solid background in the operation and maintenance of 230, 115, 34.5, 12.4 and 6.9 kV Power

Sub-stations and Transmission and Distribution Power Lines. Actually he works for Chevron since 2003

Jesus Molina was born in Queniquea, Tachira, Venezuela in 1971. He graduated as Power Electonic Technician in I.U.T. “Region los Andes” in 1995, in 2001 graduate as Electric Engineer from “Universidad Fermin Toro”. He started his professional career with “Enelven” a western pubic electric power utility in 2001. In 2002 integrate the new automaton Weatherford division - ePsolutions an oilfield optimization company. He has several

positions with ePsolutions. Present position at ePsolutions is Western Venezuela Services Supervisor. He has worked on electric power protection systems also he has worked on variable speed drives developing new technologies with automation equipments.

John Bernard was born in San Fernando, Trinidad, W.I. in 1963. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1986 with a B.B.A. in International Business. He began his career in the oilfield in 1990 as an Order Control Specialist for Baker Oil Tools in Houston, Texas. In 1994 thru 1997 he worked as an MWD Field Specialist for Baker Hughes Inteq covering Texas, Louisiana, and the Gulf of Mexico. At the end of 1997 he returned to Baker Oil Tools as an Applications Specialist were he worked until

October of 2001. At that time he transferred to Anaco, Venezuela were he took the position of Multinationals Sales Coordinator for Baker Oil Tools. In August of 2004 he joined eP Solutions as Western Venezuela Operations Manager.