QA Techniques Across the Project Lifecycle

Quality Assurance should be applied at every stage of an upstream energy project’s lifecycle:

1. Exploration Phase

During exploration, data acquisition QA ensures the reliability of seismic, geological, and geophysical data. Prospect evaluation reviews standardize the interpretation of subsurface / renewable energy source data, reducing inconsistencies in resources characterization. Uncertainty analysis identifies data gaps and recommends additional surveys to improve decision-making.

2. Appraisal Phase

In the appraisal stage, well testing and reservoir characterization validate exploration assumptions and refine models. Peer reviews of reservoir models help ensure consistency in technical interpretations. Risk-based decision gates provide justification for further investments or project termination.

3. Development Phase

The development stage involves Front End Engineering Design (FEED) QA, which ensures design integrity and feasibility. Supply chain and procurement audits verify the quality of equipment and materials. Cost and schedule assurance reviews assess the financial and timeline robustness of development plans.

4. Production Phase

During production, operational excellence programs drive continuous improvement and efficiency gains. Process safety audits ensure compliance with Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) standards. Production forecasting validation prevents data interpretation bias in reserve estimates, enhancing project value estimation accuracy.

5. Decommissioning Phase

In decommissioning, regulatory compliance checks confirm adherence to environmental and safety guidelines. Lessons learned workshops capture insights from previous projects to optimize future decommissioning efforts. Cost and schedule risk reviews assess financial and logistical feasibility, ensuring smooth project closure.

The Importance of Decision Gates in QA

Effective decision gates ensure alignment with corporate objectives and risk tolerance. They are key in validating data quality and interpretation accuracy. They serve to screen whether further investments are justified based on clearly defined technical and economic criteria. They also provide a structured mechanism for capturing lessons learned for long-term corporate knowledge retention.

Decision gates also serve as structured evaluation points, ensuring project feasibility and alignment with corporate objectives. Standardized evaluation criteria provide clear metrics for go/no-go decisions. Stakeholder engagement involves technical, financial, and regulatory experts in decision-making.

By addressing uncertainties and key questions early, decision gates mitigate risks before advancing to the next project phase. Integration with PPM software automates workflows, fosters multi-disciplinary collaboration, and tracks approval processes, thereby enhancing organizational efficiency.

I’ve written more about Decision Gates in a useful and free to download guide:

Peer Reviews for Quality Assurance

Peer reviews act as an independent verification mechanism at various project stages. The focus of the reviews may vary depending on the project maturation phase and the nature of the technical interpretations and inherent assumptions. The reviews provide an objective assessment, helping identify and mitigating biases to improve data interpretation accuracy.

Cross-disciplinary expertise is leveraged to bring diverse perspectives into evaluations. The Peer Review process therefore fosters knowledge sharing and multi-disciplinary collaboration. Best practice adoption ensures that learnings from similar projects are incorporated into new development initiatives, enhancing overall portfolio quality.

Work-Stream Specific QA Activities

Different disciplines within the project lifecycle require tailored QA approaches. In geoscience and reservoir engineering, ensuring data quality and interpretation rigour e.g., in seismic interpretations and reservoir models, is crucial. For economic evaluations, systematic capital and operating cost forecast validation, and rigorous sensitivity analyses, help to satisfy QA objectives.

Drilling and completions teams conduct Blowout Preventer (BOP) integrity tests and well control audits to prevent operational failures. Facilities and engineering teams implement Hazard and Operability (HAZOP) studies to ensure safe design and construction. Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) teams conduct environmental impact assessments and safety drills to mitigate risks.

Corporate Portfolio Management Benefits of QA

A structured QA approach enhances overall corporate portfolio management by improving decision-making through objective, data-driven evaluations. It also enhances resource efficiency by prioritizing high-value, low-risk investments.

In a sector where uncertainty, high capital costs, and evolving sustainability requirements are the norms, a disciplined QA approach not only mitigates risks but also strengthens the connection between corporate strategy, environmental objectives, and project delivery.

By fostering a culture of continuous improvement, organizations institutionalize best practices and drive better performance. Ensuring regulatory and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) compliance helps maintain industry credibility and stakeholder trust.

The Role of Portfolio and Project Management (PPM) Software Solutions

PPM software solutions provide a centralized approach to managing multiple projects within an organization’s portfolio. These platforms help standardize processes, ensuring uniformity in project execution from exploration to decommissioning. They also enhance data integrity and quality control by aggregating and validating critical project data, thereby reducing risk, and improving accuracy.

Such integrating applications enable upstream energy firms to standardize project workflows and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. They facilitate consistency in data evaluation and interpretation across projects, whilst offering automated and routine reporting mechanisms. In addition, such software provides a central data register, with granular access permissions capability, to provide an authoritative ‘single-source-of-truth’ for executive decision-makers concerning all projects’ performance metrics, energy resources, economics, etc.

PPM software supports risk management by identifying, assessing, and mitigating project risks through systematic procedures. Decision support is another crucial function, offering analytics and real-time dashboards to facilitate informed decision-making. Additionally, these digital solutions enable seamless communication and collaboration among multidisciplinary teams, enhancing overall project efficiency.

By integrating QA principles within these multi-user software solutions, upstream energy companies can ensure adherence to industry standards and regulatory requirements while optimizing project outcomes.

Conclusion

Implementing a structured QA process in the upstream energy sector is fundamental to achieving operational excellence, mitigating risks, and optimizing resource allocation. The principles of QA remain relevant across conventional energy, renewables, and carbon capture & storage projects, ensuring a seamless transition to sustainable energy solutions.

By leveraging PPM software, decision gates, peer reviews, and work-stream-specific QA activities, companies can improve project outcomes, maximize corporate portfolio value, and foster long-term learning and success in an evolving energy landscape.