Glossary
Browse the IADC Lexicon alphabetically or by category. Get comprehensive definitions of drilling industry terms.
Verification/Calibration
Definition(s)
Verification/Calibration:
Testing and correcting, if necessary, a measuring device to ensure compliance with industry accepted, manufacturer's recommended, or regulatory required standard of accuracy. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsTemperature Base
Definition(s)
Temperature base:
The temperature at which gas and liquid hydrocarbon volumes and quality are reported. The standard temperature base is 60 °F. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsSurface Commingling
Definition(s)
Surface commingling:
The surface mixing of production from two or more leases and/or unit participating areas prior to royalty measurement. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsStandard Conditions
Definition(s)
Standard conditions:
Atmospheric pressure of 14.73 pounds per square inch absolute (psia) and 60 °F. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsSales Meter
Definition(s)
Sales meter:
A meter at which custody transfer takes place (not necessarily a royalty meter). Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsRun Ticket
Definition(s)
Run ticket:
The invoice for liquid hydrocarbons measured at a royalty point. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsRoyalty Tank
Definition(s)
Royalty tank:
An approved tank in which liquid hydrocarbons are measured and upon which royalty volumes are based. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsRoyalty Meter
Definition(s)
Royalty meter:
A meter approved for the purpose of determining the volume of gas, oil, or other components removed, saved, or sold from a Federal lease. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsProve
Definition(s)
Prove:
To determine (as in meter proving) the relationship between the volume passing through a meter at one set of conditions and the indicated volume at those same conditions. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsPressure Base
Definition(s)
Pressure base
The pressure at which gas volumes and quality are reported. The standard pressure base is 14.73 psia. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsPressure base
Assumed atmospheric pressure used in calculations requiring "absolute" pressure. (DATUM. Source: IADC UBO / MPD Glossary, December 2011. Global StandardsPipeline (Retrograde) Condensate
Definition(s)
Pipeline (retrograde) condensate:
Liquid hydrocarbons which drop out of the separated gas stream at any point in a pipeline during transmission to shore. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsOperating Meter
Definition(s)
Operating meter:
A royalty or allocation meter that is used for gas or liquid hydrocarbon measurement for any period during a calibration cycle. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsNatural Gas
Definition(s)
Natural gas
Typical composition is (approximate percentages) 80% methane, 7% Ethane, 6% Propane, 2.5% Butane, 1.5% Isobutane, and 3% Pentane. Used in UB Drilling where it is available from local pipelines or other sources at reasonable cost. Has advantage of eliminating downhole corrosion and combustion problems, but surface handling presents safety issues during connections and tripping.
Natural gas
“Natural gas” means all kinds of gaseous hydrocarbons, whether wet or dry, produced from oil or gas wells; and also includes the residue gas remaining after the extraction of liquid hydrocarbons or by-products from wet gas. Source: Law of Information Energy, Petroleum Act B.E. 2514 (1971), Thailand, as of June 2013. LegislationNatural gas
A highly compressible, highly expandable mixture of hydrocarbons which occurs naturally in a gaseous form and passes a meter in vapor phase. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsNatural gas
A highly compressible, highly expandable mixture of hydrocarbons which occurs naturally in a gaseous form and passes a meter in vapor phase. Source: The Oil Industry (Development) Act, 1974, Act No. 47 of 1974, India, as amended as of May 2013. LegislationNatural Gas
“Natural gas” means gas obtained from bore-holes and consisting primarily of hydrocarbons. Source: The Petroleum and Natural Gas Rules, 1959 (As amended from time to time), India, as amended as of May 2013. RegulationsNatural Gas
“Natural gas” means gas obtained from bore- holes and consisting primarily of hydrocarbons and includes-- gas in liquid state, namely, liquefied natural gas and regasified liquefied natural gas,
- compressed natural gas,
- gas imported through transnational pipe lines, including CNG or liquefied natural gas,
- gas recovered from gas hydrates as natural gas, (v) methane obtained from coal seams, namely, coal bed methane, but does not include helium occurring in association with such hydrocarbons.
Malfunction Factor
Definition(s)
Malfunction factor:
A liquid hydrocarbon royalty meter factor that differs from the previous meter factor by an amount greater than 0.0025. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsLiquid Hydrocarbons (Free Liquids)
Definition(s)
Liquid hydrocarbons (free liquids):
Hydrocarbons which exist in liquid form at standard conditions after passing through separating facilities. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsInventory Tank
Definition(s)
Inventory tank:
A tank in which liquid hydrocarbons are stored prior to royalty measurement. The measured volumes are used in the allocation process. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsGas Volume Statement
Definition(s)
Gas volume statement:
A monthly statement showing gas measurement data, including the volume (Mcf) and quality (Btu) of natural gas which flowed through a meter. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsGas Royalty Meter Malfunction
Definition(s)
Gas royalty meter malfunction:
An error in any component of the gas measurement system which exceeds contractual tolerances. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsGas Processing Plant
Definition(s)
Gas processing plant:
An installation that uses any process designed to remove elements or compounds (hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon) from gas, including absorption, adsorption, or refrigeration. Processing does not include treatment operations, including those necessary to put gas into marketable conditions such as natural pressure reduction, mechanical separation, heating, cooling, dehydration, desulphurization, and compression. The changing of pressures or temperatures in a reservoir is not processing. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsGas Lost
Definition(s)
Gas lost:
Gas that is neither sold nor used on the lease or unit nor used internally by the producer. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsForce Majeure Event
Definition(s)
Force majeure event:
An event beyond your control such as war, act of terrorism, crime, or act of nature which prevents you from operating the wells and meters on your OCS facility. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsCompositional Analysis
Definition(s)
Compositional Analysis:
Separating mixtures into identifiable components expressed in mole percent. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsAllocation Meter
Definition(s)
Allocation meter:
A meter used to determine the portion of hydrocarbons attributable to one or more platforms, leases, units, or wells, in relation to the total production from a royalty or allocation measurement point. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsProduction Facility
Definition(s)
Production Facilities
the equipment used for the production of oil or gas located on a production installation, and includes separation, treating and processing facilities, equipment and facilities used in support of production operations, storage areas or tanks and dependent personnel accommodations. Source: Atlantic Canada Offshore Petroleum Industry, Standard Practice for the Training and Qualifications of Personnel, 2013, Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, Global StandardsProduction Facilities
Production facilities means OCS facilities that receive hydrocarbon production either directly from wells or from other facilities that produce hydrocarbons from wells. They may include processing equipment for treating the production or separating it into its various liquid and gaseous components before transporting it to shore. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsProduction Facilities
“Production facility” means equipment for the production of oil or gas located at a production site, including separation, treating and processing facilities, equipment and facilities used in support of production operations, landing areas, heliports, storage areas or tanks and dependent personnel accommodations, but not including any associated platform, artificial island, subsea production system, drilling equipment or diving system (matériel de production). Source: Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Installations Regulations, SOR/95-191, Canada, current to May 31, 2012. Regulations Source: Canada Oil and Gas Installations Regulations, SOR/96-111, Canada, current to May 1, 2014. Regulations Source: Canada Oil and Gas Installations Regulations, SOR/96-118, February 2013. Regulations Source: Nova Scotia Offshore Certificate of Fitness Regulations, SOR/95-187, Canada, current to May 31, 2012. Regulations Source: Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Drilling and Production Regulations, SOR/2009-317, Canada, current to May 31, 2012. RegulationsProduction Facilities
“Production facility” means production, separating, treating and processing equipment and facilities necessary in production operations, including airstrips, helicopter landing areas and field accommodation (installation de production). Source: Canada Oil and Gas Occupational Safety and Health Regulations, SOR/87-612, February 2013. Regulations Source: Oil and Gas Occupational Safety and Health Regulations, SOR/87-612, Canada, current to April 29, 2013. RegulationsProduction Facilities
“Production facility” means production, separating, treating and processing equipment and facilities necessary in support of production, including helicopter landing areas and field accommodation. Source: Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Occupational Health & Safety Requirements, Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board, Canada, December 2000. RegulationsProduction Facility
Typically, an area where production wells, stock tanks, separators, lease automatic custody transfer (LACT) units and other production equipment are located. Source: Petroleum Safety Orders--Drilling and Production, Definitions, California Code of Regulations, 8 CCR § 6505, December 2012. RegulationsOut-of-service Pipeline
Definition(s)
Out-of-service pipelines:
Out-of-service pipelines are those pipelines that have not been used to transport oil, natural gas, sulfur, or produced water for more than 30 consecutive days. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsLease Term Pipeline
Definition(s)
Lease term pipelines:
Lease term pipelines are those pipelines owned and operated by a lessee or operator and are wholly contained within the boundaries of a single lease, unitized leases, or contiguous (not cornering) leases of that lessee or operator. Source: Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf, 30 CFR 250 (2013). RegulationsDOT Pipeline
Definition(s)
DOT pipelines:
DOT pipelines include:- Transporter-operated pipelines currently operated under DOT requirements governing design, construction, maintenance, and operation;
- Producer-operated pipelines that DOI and DOT have agreed are to be regulated under DOT requirements governing design, construction, maintenance, and operation; and
- Producer-operated pipelines downstream (generally shoreward) of the last valve (including associated safety equipment) on the last production facility on the OCS that do not connect to a transporter-operated pipeline on the OCS before crossing into State waters and that are regulated under 49 CFR parts 192 and 195.
DOI Pipeline
Definition(s)
DOI pipelines:
DOI pipelines include:- Producer-operated pipelines extending upstream (generally seaward) from each point on the OCS at which operating responsibility transfers from a producing operator to a transporting operator;
- Producer-operated pipelines extending upstream (generally seaward) of the last valve (including associated safety equipment) on the last production facility on the OCS that do not connect to a transporter-operated pipeline on the OCS before crossing into State waters;
- Producer-operated pipelines connecting production facilities on the OCS;
- Transporter-operated pipelines that DOI and DOT have agreed are to be regulated as DOI pipelines; and
- All OCS pipelines not subject to regulation under 49 CFR parts 192 and 195.