List of abbreviations in oil and gas exploration and production

The oil field is full of acronyms and abbreviations of all shapes and sizes.

A

• API - American Petroleum Institute
• ASV - Annular Safety Valve

B

• bbl - barrel of oil
• bbl - Barrels of oil
• bcf - billion cubic feet (of natural gas)
• BHA - Bottom Hole Assembly (toolstring on coiled tubing or drill pipe)
• boe - barrel of oil equivalent
• boed - barrel of oil equivalent per day
• BOP - Blowout preventer
• BPV - Back Pressure Valve (goes on the end of coiled tubing a drill pipe tool strings to prevent fluid flow in the wrong direction)
• BRT - Below Rotary Table (used a datum for depths in a well)
• BS&W - Basic Sediments and Water

C

• CBL - Cement Bond Log (measurement of casing cement integrity)
• CHP - Casing Hanger Pressure (pressure in an annulus as measured at the casing hanger)
• CITHP - Closed In Tubing Hanger Pressure (THP when the well is shut in)
• CT - Coiled Tubing

D

• D&C - Drilling and Completions
• DHSV - Downhole Safety Valve
• DSV - Diving Support Vessel
• DTI - Department of Trade and Industry (United Kingdom)

E

• ESP - Electric Submersible Pump
• ETAP - Eastern Trough Area Project

F

• FIV - Formation Isolation Valve
• FPSO - Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel
• FWV - Flow Wing Valve (also known as Production Wing Valve on a Xmas tree)

G

• GBT - Gravity Base Tank
• GIIP - Gas Initially In Place
• GLM - Gas Lift Mandrel (alternative name for Side Pocket Mandrel)
• GLV - Gas Lift Valve

H

• HSE - Health, Safety and Environment or Health & Safety Executive (United Kingdom)
• HP - High Pressure

I

• ICoTA - Intervention and Coiled Tubing Association
• ID - Inner Diameter (of a tubular component such as a casing)
• IPC - Installed Production Capacity

L

• LAT - Lowest Astronomical Tide
• LMV - Lower Master Valve (on a Xmas tree)
• LNG - Liquified Natural Gas
• LOLER - Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations
• LP - Low Pressure

M

• MD - Measured Depth
• mbd - thousand barrels per day
• mbod - thousand barrels of oil per day
• mmbd - million barrels per day
• mmbod - million barrels of oil per day
• mmscfd - million standard cubic feet per day
• mmstb - million stock barrels

N

• NASA - Non Active Side Arm (term used in the North Sea for kill wing valve on a Xmas tree)
• NRV - Non Return Valve (Chicksan valve that only allows flow in one direction)

O

• OD - Outer Diameter (of a tubular component such as a casing)
• OIM - Offshore Installation Manager
• OOE - Offshore Operation Engineer (senior technical authority on an offshore oil platform)
• OTL - Operations Team Leader

P

• PBR - Polished Bore Receptacle (component of a completion string)
• PBU - Pressure Build Up (applies to integrity testing on valves)
• PE - Petroleum Engineer
• POOH - Pull Out Of Hole
• PUR - Plant Upset Report
• PUWER - Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations
• PWV - Production Wing Valve (also known as a flow wing valve on a Xmas tree)

R

• RE - Reservoir Engineer
• RIH - Run In Hole
• RKB - Rotary Kelly Bushing (a datum for measuring depth in an oil well)

S

• scf - standard cubic feet (of natural gas)
• SITHP - Shut In Tubing Hanger Pressure (another term for CITHP)
• SPM - Side Pocket Mandrel
• SSSV - Sub-Surface Safety Valve
• stb - stock tank barrel
• STOIIP - Stock Tank Oil Initially In Place
• STOP - Safety Training Observation Program

T

• TD - Target Depth
• THP - Tubing Hanger Pressure (pressure in the production tubing as measured at the tubing hanger)
• TR - Temporary Refuge
• TRSCSSV - Tubing Retrievable Surface Controlled Sub-Surface Valve
• TRSCSSSV - Tubing Retrievable Surface Controlled Sub-Surface Safety Valve
• TVD - True Vertical Depth

U

• UKOOA - United Kingdom Offshore Operators Association
• UMV - Upper Master Valve (from a Xmas tree)

W

• WAG - Water Alternating Gas (describes an injection well which alternates between water and gas injection)
• WEG - Wireline Entry Guide
• WSS - Well Services Supervisor (leader of Well services at the wellsite)
• WHM - Wellhead maintenance
• WHP - Wellhead Pressure
• WOE - Well Operations Engineer (a key person of Well services)
• WRSCSSV - Wireline Retrievable Surface Controlled Sub-Surface Valve