Monday, April 29, 2013

Dril-Quip Awarded Supply Contract Offshore Malaysia

Dril-Quip, Inc. announced that Dril-Quip Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, its wholly owned subsidiary, in conjunction with its local representative UMW Petrodril (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., has been awarded a contract to supply drilling and production equipment and related services to Sabah Shell Petroleum Company Limited for the Shell Malikai TLP project located offshore Malaysia in approximately 1,800 feet of water.

Dril-Quip will provide subsea wellheads, tensioner systems, risers, production trees, injection trees and tieback connectors for the project. Delivery of these systems is expected to begin in 2014.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Aker Wins Contract for Schiehallion Redevelopment

Norwegian oilfield services firm Aker Solutions reported Wednesday that it has secured an approximately $105 million contract with BP to help redevelop one of the UK's largest oilfields.

Aker said its Aberdeen, Scotland operation will manufacture and supply all subsea controls equipment for the Quad 204 project. This is the redevelopment of the Schiehallion and Loyal fields, which are located approximately 100 miles west of the Shetland Islands.

The Schiehallion and Loyal fields are estimated to contain a further 450 million barrels of recoverable oil and the total redevelopment is budgeted to cost some $4.5 billion. Due to the water depth in the area, Schiehallion is entirely reliant on subsea production technology and oil from the field is collected on a floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO).

Alan Brunnen, the head of Aker's subsea business, commented in a statement:

"West of Shetland is an exciting area for oil and gas and we are delighted to continue our successful relationship with BP by playing such a significant role in the continuing development of this project."

The scope of Aker's work includes subsea controls equipment for subsea trees, manifolds and subsea safety isolation valves, as well as controls distribution assemblies. The work will be managed, designed and built by Aker’s subsea controls center of excellence in Aberdeen, with the first deliveries made in the first half of 2014.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

UK Explorer Cuadrilla Delays Fracking Plans Until 2014

UK Explorer Cuadrilla Delays Fracking Plans Until 2014

LONDON - U.K. shale gas explorer Cuadrilla Resources Ltd. said Wednesday it was delaying its plans to begin hydraulic fracturing at its Bowland shale project in Lancashire, England, to 2014 while it conducts an environmental impact assessment for the site of each exploration well.

Cuadrilla had planned to start hydraulic fracturing, a controversial process used to release natural gas from the rock, this summer. The delay will be a setback for U.K. government ambitions to replicate the North American shale gas revolution that has transformed the U.S. energy market.

"We recognize that within the complex U.K. regulatory framework governing planning this process can prove lengthy but we are determined to spare no effort in meeting our exploration targets in an environmentally and socially sustainable manner," Cuadrilla Chief Executive Francis Egan said.

At the end of last year, the U.K. government lifted a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, as part of plans to stimulate renewed investment in Britain's energy sector and reduce dependence on gas imports as its aging North Sea oil and gas fields start to run dry.

Exploration is still at an early stage in the U.K., making a reliable estimate of the country's reserves difficult. There has been no commercial shale gas production in the U.K. so far.

Cuadrilla said that technical analysis of the Bowland Shale confirms the company's previous estimate that the license area holds at least 200 trillion cubic feet of gas resources.

Cuadrilla, which is the only company using the controversial technology to explore for shale gas onshore in the U.K., halted fracking in May 2011 after two small seismic tremors were detected near their operations.

Cuadrilla is jointly owned by U.S. private-equity firm Riverstone LLC and Australian mining group AJ Lucas and management.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Offshore Drilling Expenditiure to Top $17B by 2016 in Middle East, Africa

An increase in offshore discoveries is prompting a surge in exploration activity across the Middle East and Africa and driving up the amount spent on drilling, stated the latest report form business intelligence firm GBI Research.

The company's latest oil and gas report forecasts offshore drilling expenditure across the region to climb steadily from $13.56 billion in 2012 to $17.03 billion in 2016. Cumulatively, the total expected spend for this five year period is $77.3 billion, which represents an increase of approximately 22 percent over 2007-2011 total of $63.5 billion.

Drilling outlay is expected to grow across all major nations in the region, with those in West Africa leading in terms of exploration activity. Escalating activity in countries relatively new to the offshore drilling industry, such as Sierra Leone and Liberia, may prove to be future competition for the more established nations of West Africa.

Ghana is expected to emerge as one of the most prominent countries in West Africa for the exploration of oil and gas, with 16 offshore discoveries made between 2008 and 2012 – second only to Angola, where 22 discoveries were made during the same period.

In terms of drilling expenditure, Angola is expected to remain the biggest spender in the region by some margin, over the next few years at least. GBI Research expects drilling expenditure in the Southern African country to continue climbing in the near future, hitting $6.67 billion in 2016. Nigeria and Egypt are forecast to place second and third, with totals of $2.26 billion and $1.52 billion, respectively.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Dril-Quip Awarded Supply Contract Offshore Malaysia

Dril-Quip, Inc. announced that Dril-Quip Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, its wholly owned subsidiary, in conjunction with its local representative UMW Petrodril (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., has been awarded a contract to supply drilling and production equipment and related services to Sabah Shell Petroleum Company Limited for the Shell Malikai TLP project located offshore Malaysia in approximately 1,800 feet of water.

Dril-Quip will provide subsea wellheads, tensioner systems, risers, production trees, injection trees and tieback connectors for the project. Delivery of these systems is expected to begin in 2014.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Edge Completes Second Saskatchewan Well in Spring Campaign

Edge Resources Inc. has finished drilling the second well of the Company's Spring drilling program in Primate, Saskatchewan. The well was successfully drilled and cased without incident and is now being prepared for production.

The horizontal well was drilled into a new formation and cased with a slotted liner in 1,624 feet (495 meters) of horizontal pay. Completion and equipping operations will commence immediately and continue during breakup. The rig was released to an all-weather rack site as Spring break-up conditions would not allow the rig to be moved to another drilling location.

Brad Nichol, President and CEO of Edge commented, "We are very pleased that the drilling of our first horizontal well in a new horizon has gone so smoothly and quickly. I must credit our operations and drilling team who utilized their many years of experience and planned this operation meticulously. With continuous oil shows throughout the entire 495 meters of horizontal leg, we are very keen to start producing this well. Given that breakup is almost upon us, we are taking the extra step of building a permanent road so that the well can produce without interruption throughout break-up."

"We anticipate that successful production testing will support several additional horizontal drilling locations, specifically targeting the new horizon. We certainly have the undeveloped land-base to support a large program and are eager to get started," Nichol added.

The Company has a 100% working interest in 20 sections (12,800 acres) of land in Primate, Saskatchewan.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Norway May Adjust Planning Guidelines for Oil, Gas Projects

Norway May Adjust Planning Guidelines for Oil, Gas Projects

OSLO - Norway will review some oil and gas projects and may change its planning guidelines, the government said Wednesday, after the operator and owner of the unsafe Yme platform agreed to scrap it before it had produced a drop of oil.

The Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy will ask the country's Petroleum Directorate "to review some bigger development projects that recently have or should have entered production," said ministry state secretary Per Rune Henriksen.

The owner of the Yme platform in the North Sea, Dutch oil service company SBM Offshore NV, said Tuesday it would pay operator Talisman Energy Inc. $470 million to remove Yme, located in the southeastern part of the North Sea. The platform was evacuated last summer when cracks were discovered in its structure. This is the first time in Norway a platform is to be scrapped without producing oil.

The dismantling of Yme platform is an untypical case, but it raises critical issues over the safety and planning of oil and gas projects, and also has serious cost implications for the government. Other recent oil and gas projects in Norway have also been hit by delays, cost overruns and quality concerns.

In total, the 24 ongoing oil and gas developments off Norway are estimated to overrun their initial budgets by 49 billion Norwegian kroner ($8.6 billion), according to the 2013 government budget. The lion's share of the overruns are at the Skarv, Valhall and Yme projects, it said.

The government's revised project cost of the BP PLC-operated Valhall field is now NOK46.7 billion, up 85.7% from BP's initial estimate from 2007. And the Yme project cost was estimated at NOK14.1 billion, up 188.4% from the initial estimate, the government said.

In Norway, oil companies can deduct 78% of their investments from their tax base, which means that the government can incur huge losses in the form of lost tax revenue due to overruns. The government said that in the case of the Yme project taxes would be handled by the appropriate authorities, without giving any figures.

"This is a project that up until now has only had losers. The economic losses have been huge for all the involved parties," said Mr. Henriksen.

The Norwegian government said it may change the planning of oil and gas projects to reduce the risk of repeating past mistakes, but didn't specify what changes it was considering. Such a review would also reduce tax revenue losses.

Based on the directorate's review, the ministry "will consider whether adjustments should be made, for instance in the guidelines for plans for development and operation," said Mr. Henriksen.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

API: TV Ads Show Americans Don't Support Higher Industry Taxes

New TV ads show Americans don't support higher taxes on the oil and natural gas industry, API Executive Vice President Marty Durbin told reporters in a briefing Wednesday morning:

"Starting today, the API is running ads on broadcast and cable channels that feature the unscripted words of everyday Americans who believe higher taxes on energy companies may translate into higher energy costs for consumers. We decided to run the ads to remind Congress that at a time when many families have had to scramble to balance their budgets, asking them to pay more for the energy they need to live their lives is bad policy and frankly bad politics.

"According to a study by Wood Mackenzie a $5 billion per year tax increase would result in a decrease of $233 billion in revenue to federal, state and local governments by 2030. Further, the study estimates that increased investments, as a result of pro-growth and energy development policies, could generate an additional $800 billion in revenue by 2030. That's a $1 trillion difference to government's bottom line.

"If increased revenue is truly the objective [of those proposing to increase taxes on the industry], then allow the oil and natural gas industry to continue to do what it has always done – invest in America's economy by providing good-paying jobs here at home that develop the energy America needs. That's what the American people support and in the long-term the result would be far better for the American economy, for consumers, for our energy security, and for the nation's long-term economic growth."

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Gregorian Govt OKs Mtsare Khevi Pipeline for Frontera

Frontera Resources Corp. announced that it has received approval to proceed with the installation of the 5-mile (8-kilometer) pipeline and related facilities within the Mtsare Khevi field from the Georgian government. As previously announced, equipment required for the gas pipeline has been procured, mobilized, and stacked in the field and in key staging areas. First gas production is now expected within 120 days. The infrastructure will accommodate production from currently shut-in wells, and the Company is targeting production of approximately 2 million cubic feet per day of gas (57,000 cubic meters per day).

The Mtstare Khevi Field is situated within a larger play area of approximately 31 square miles (80 square kilometers) referred to as the Mtsare Khevi Gas Complex and encompasses gas targets found between 984 and 16,404 feet (300 and 5,000 meters) in depth. Based on Frontera's internal estimates, analysis has revealed significant gas potential throughout this area of up to approximately 1.2 trillion cubic feet of gas in place (28 billion cubic meters) and up to approximately 700 billion cubic feet of recoverable gas (19.8 billion cubic meters). An integrated geologic study, including data from a number of existing wells within the area such as the V-#18 well, previously referenced in the Company's Jan. 31, 2012 announcement, is currently in progress to better understand and define the extent of this potential throughout the greater Mtsare Khevi Gas Complex.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Oil Industry Boosts Efforts to Coax More from Shale

Oil Industry Boosts Efforts to Coax More from Shale

The oil industry is increasing spending on research that it hopes will make it cheaper and easier to coax more crude and natural gas from shale formations and deep-sea oil fields, extending and accelerating the U.S. energy boom.

The largest oil-field-service firms--Schlumberger Ltd., Halliburton Co. and Baker Hughes Inc.--raised their research and development budgets by 24% from 2010 to a combined $2.1 billion in 2012. In recent years, these companies, which provide a range of services for energy exploration, have become the primary R&D engines of the oil industry, surpassing spending by oil-and-gas companies such as Chevron Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC.

The hunt for new sources of fossil fuels has led energy companies into deeper offshore regions and into dense shale formations, both of which are expensive to develop.

Much of the oil-field companies' research is focused on understanding shale rocks better and developing improved tools to get more oil and gas from these formations. A decade after large-scale exploitation of shales began, the industry is drilling thousands of wells every year in Pennsylvania, Texas, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma and North Dakota, and is testing other shale rocks in California and Mississippi.

Right now, even with horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, new shale wells tap only a small percentage of the oil and gas trapped in small pores in the rock, leaving more than 75% behind.

"From 2004 to 2012, the development of shales was basically, hit it with a big sledgehammer and see what comes out," says Richard Spears, vice president of Spears & Associates, a Tulsa, Okla., firm that tracks oil-field spending. "Now the question is who can do it the best and optimize the process. Shales aren't tube socks, a one-size-fits-all thing," he said, pointing to using fracking techniques of differing scale and intensity in different shale formations.

Drilling improvements could mean that the North American energy boom, which has seen natural-gas production rise by 19% and oil by 37% over the past five years, could get a new boost from better tools.

"We are in the dawn of this new age, so now the whole industry is starting to look at this resource and figure out ways to get as much of the oil and gas out as it can from these locations," says Dan Hill, chairman of the Texas A&M University petroleum-engineering department.

He said that small improvements in hydraulic-fracturing techniques, in which pressurized water, sand and chemicals crack open rocks far below the Earth's surface, could result in significant profits for the oil-field companies and additional energy for global markets. One new technique involves changing the order in which segments of each well are fracked, with an eye toward impacting the surrounding rock in a way that improves yields. Another is changing chemical mixtures to better suit the shale being drilled.

Oil-field-service companies are also researching techniques to improve deep-water exploration and production. Schlumberger, which has been developing new oil-field technology since 1927, recently introduced what it said was one of the largest engineering projects in the company's history. Called IsoMetrix, it is a new tool for using seismic waves to accurately spot oil reservoirs in deep water.

Halliburton spokeswoman Beverly Stafford said the company is focused on helping oil companies get improved access "to new hydrocarbon discoveries and to maximize the value of their existing assets." The company is working on shales and deep-water exploration, along with improving energy recovery from mature oil and gas fields that have been producing fuel for years.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here