Bechtel to Open Global Engineering Center in UAE

Bechtel announced Monday that the company will establish a global center of engineering excellence in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) initially focused on rail and marine engineering projects. The center uniquely positions Bechtel to provide customers with high-quality, innovative engineering solutions more efficiently and cost effectively.

"Rail and port infrastructure go hand-in-hand and are the lifeline for transporting goods around the world from major petrochemical, power, and mining facilities," said Amjad Bangash, managing director of Bechtel's global rail business. "The global demand for rail and port infrastructure will increase substantially during the course of the next 10-15 years. This center provides customers around the world with a comprehensive solution for a successful project right from the start."
"Much of the growth for new railways and ports is in the Gulf region. We have worked in this region for more than 70 years, and our decision to base the center in the UAE represents part of our ongoing commitment to the region," added David Welch, Bechtel's regional president for Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

The center will draw upon Bechtel's global experience and expertise in the design and construction of railways and ports, and will offer services from master planning studies through to engineering execution.

The company is currently involved with Crossrail and the Dulles Metrorail Expansion and has successfully delivered dozens of rail projects including the Channel Tunnel, High Speed 1, and the Athens Metro. In addition, Bechtel has been involved with more than 80 port and marine projects around the world including Khalifa Port and Kizad, and King Fahd Industrial Port.

The new center will open in the third quarter of 2013.

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.

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Center Formed to Provide Shale Performance Standards

A group of leading environmental organizations, philanthropic foundations, and energy companies have collaborated to form a unique center to provide producers with certification of performance standards for shale development. The Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) has established 15 initial performance standards designed to ensure safe and environmentally responsible development of the Appalachian Basin's abundant shale gas resources. These standards will form the foundation of the CSSD's independent, third-party certification process.

"CSSD is the result of an unprecedented effort that brought together a group of stakeholders with diverse perspectives, working to create responsible performance standards and a rigorous, third-party evaluation process for shale gas operations," said Robert Vagt, president of The Heinz Endowments. "This process has demonstrated for us that industry and environmental organizations, working together, can identify shared values and find common ground on standards that are environmentally protective."

CSSD's founding participants are:

ChevronClean Air Task ForceCONSOL EnergyEnvironmental Defense FundEQT CorporationGroup Against Smog and Pollution (GASP)Heinz EndowmentsCitizens for Pennsylvania's Future (PennFuture)Pennsylvania Environmental CouncilShellWilliam Penn Foundation

Technical support has been provided by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, ICF International, and the law firm of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott.

"While shale development has been controversial, everyone agrees that, when done, producers must minimize environmental risk," said Armond Cohen, executive director at Clean Air Task Force. "These standards are the state of the art on how to accomplish that goal, so we believe all Appalachian shale producers should join CSSD, and the standards should also serve as a model for national policy and practice."

Through discussions over the past two years, CSSD participants established a shared vision of performance and environmental risk minimization for natural gas development in the Appalachian region. The group's participants have worked to adopt a set of progressive and rigorous performance standards based on today's understanding of the risks associated with natural gas development and the technological capacity to minimize those risks.

"CSSD is focusing on the establishment of standards that will initially address the protection of air and water quality and climate, and will be expanded to include other performance standards such as safety," said Nicholas J. DeIuliis, president of CONSOL Energy. "Fundamentally, the aim is for these standards to represent excellence in performance."

Companies can begin seeking certification in these areas later this year.

CSSD also plans to develop programs to share best practices.

"Raising the bar on performance and committing to public, rigorous and verifiable standards demonstrates our companies' determination to develop this resource safely and responsibly," said Bruce Niemeyer, president of Chevron Appalachia. "Throughout the development of CSSD, the collaborative effort of environmental organizations, foundations and energy companies has been the key to achieving consensus on regional performance standards."

"This initiative is an important complement to strong regulatory frameworks. It's also a model of the regional collaborations recommended by the Shale Gas Production Subcommittee of the U.S. Secretary of Energy's Advisory Board to help drive a process of continuous improvement," said Jared Cohon, president of Carnegie Mellon University and a member of CSSD's Board of Directors.

"While the potential economic and environmental benefits of shale gas are substantial, the public expects transparency, accountability and a fundamental commitment to environmental safety and the protection of human health from the companies operating throughout the region. CSSD is a sound step toward assuring the public that shale development is being done to the requisite standards of excellence," said Paul O'Neill, former Secretary of the Treasury and retired Chairman of Pittsburgh-based Alcoa and a member of CSSD's Board of Directors.

Members of CSSD's Board of Directors are:

Armond Cohen, Executive Director, Clean Air Task Force;Jared Cohon, President of Carnegie Mellon University;Nicholas Deluliis, President of CONSOL Energy;Paul Goodfellow, Vice President, U.S. Unconventionals, Shell;Paul King, President, Pennsylvania Environmental Council;Fred Krupp, President, Environmental Defense Fund;Jane Long, Principal Associate Director/Fellow, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (retired);Bruce Niemeyer, President, Chevron Appalachia;Paul O'Neill, former Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Department and former CEO of Alcoa;David Porges, President and CEO of EQT Corporation;Robert Vagt, President, The Heinz Endowments; andChristine Todd Whitman, former Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and former Governor of New Jersey.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.

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Center Formed to Provide Shale Performance Standards

A group of leading environmental organizations, philanthropic foundations, and energy companies have collaborated to form a unique center to provide producers with certification of performance standards for shale development. The Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) has established 15 initial performance standards designed to ensure safe and environmentally responsible development of the Appalachian Basin's abundant shale gas resources. These standards will form the foundation of the CSSD's independent, third-party certification process.

"CSSD is the result of an unprecedented effort that brought together a group of stakeholders with diverse perspectives, working to create responsible performance standards and a rigorous, third-party evaluation process for shale gas operations," said Robert Vagt, president of The Heinz Endowments. "This process has demonstrated for us that industry and environmental organizations, working together, can identify shared values and find common ground on standards that are environmentally protective."

CSSD's founding participants are:

ChevronClean Air Task ForceCONSOL EnergyEnvironmental Defense FundEQT CorporationGroup Against Smog and Pollution (GASP)Heinz EndowmentsCitizens for Pennsylvania's Future (PennFuture)Pennsylvania Environmental CouncilShellWilliam Penn Foundation

Technical support has been provided by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, ICF International, and the law firm of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott.

"While shale development has been controversial, everyone agrees that, when done, producers must minimize environmental risk," said Armond Cohen, executive director at Clean Air Task Force. "These standards are the state of the art on how to accomplish that goal, so we believe all Appalachian shale producers should join CSSD, and the standards should also serve as a model for national policy and practice."

Through discussions over the past two years, CSSD participants established a shared vision of performance and environmental risk minimization for natural gas development in the Appalachian region. The group's participants have worked to adopt a set of progressive and rigorous performance standards based on today's understanding of the risks associated with natural gas development and the technological capacity to minimize those risks.

"CSSD is focusing on the establishment of standards that will initially address the protection of air and water quality and climate, and will be expanded to include other performance standards such as safety," said Nicholas J. DeIuliis, president of CONSOL Energy. "Fundamentally, the aim is for these standards to represent excellence in performance."

Companies can begin seeking certification in these areas later this year.

CSSD also plans to develop programs to share best practices.

"Raising the bar on performance and committing to public, rigorous and verifiable standards demonstrates our companies' determination to develop this resource safely and responsibly," said Bruce Niemeyer, president of Chevron Appalachia. "Throughout the development of CSSD, the collaborative effort of environmental organizations, foundations and energy companies has been the key to achieving consensus on regional performance standards."

"This initiative is an important complement to strong regulatory frameworks. It's also a model of the regional collaborations recommended by the Shale Gas Production Subcommittee of the U.S. Secretary of Energy's Advisory Board to help drive a process of continuous improvement," said Jared Cohon, president of Carnegie Mellon University and a member of CSSD's Board of Directors.

"While the potential economic and environmental benefits of shale gas are substantial, the public expects transparency, accountability and a fundamental commitment to environmental safety and the protection of human health from the companies operating throughout the region. CSSD is a sound step toward assuring the public that shale development is being done to the requisite standards of excellence," said Paul O'Neill, former Secretary of the Treasury and retired Chairman of Pittsburgh-based Alcoa and a member of CSSD's Board of Directors.

Members of CSSD's Board of Directors are:

Armond Cohen, Executive Director, Clean Air Task Force;Jared Cohon, President of Carnegie Mellon University;Nicholas Deluliis, President of CONSOL Energy;Paul Goodfellow, Vice President, U.S. Unconventionals, Shell;Paul King, President, Pennsylvania Environmental Council;Fred Krupp, President, Environmental Defense Fund;Jane Long, Principal Associate Director/Fellow, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (retired);Bruce Niemeyer, President, Chevron Appalachia;Paul O'Neill, former Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Department and former CEO of Alcoa;David Porges, President and CEO of EQT Corporation;Robert Vagt, President, The Heinz Endowments; andChristine Todd Whitman, former Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and former Governor of New Jersey.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.

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Scottish Diving Center Wins Energy Skills Funding

A Scottish subsea diver training center has been awarded an additional $196,000 as part of an initiative to encourage Scottish residents to begin a new career in commercial diving.

The Underwater Centre in Fort William received the funding package from the Scottish government's Energy Skills Challenge Fund just three months after it was awarded $543,000 towards the training of 42 divers. The new funds will enable the center to take on an additional 15 trainees.

The Underwater Center General Manager Steve Ham commented in a statement:

"This is great news for those who want to pursue a career in diving but have perhaps never had the opportunity financially to go for it," he said. "It is also good news for industry, which is struggling to find skilled workers for the subsea sector at a time of sustained growth and expansion."

"We had a huge number of calls from people from a range of career backgrounds, including construction workers and yard hands, when the first round of funding was announced in October, and we ran a number of successful assessment days for those interested."

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.

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Center for Offshore Safety Names Director, Former Shell Chief Scientist

The naming of Charlie Williams as the first executive director of the new Center for Offshore Safety marks an important milestone in America's efforts to safely and responsibly develop its vast offshore energy resources.

Williams leads the center after 40 years with Shell, where most recently he was the company's chief scientist for well engineering and production technology. His work included developing high-pressure, high-temperature wells and specializing in drilling and completion equipment for extreme environments, such as deepwater exploration and development. Williams was introduced Wednesday:

"We have assembled the best and the brightest minds to help ensure we develop America's vast resources in the safest manner possible. Our top priority is to develop practices and programs that will help operators perform at their very best in implementing safety and environmental management systems."

The center's governing board includes operators, drilling contractors, service and supply contractors and trade association representatives. The center will help deepwater operators implement advanced safety and environmental oversight management systems, an audit checklist and third-party review systems so operators can measure the effectiveness of those systems against standards developed by API and its members. Williams:

"The role of the (center) is to provide a forum for industry to come together and focus on developing programs, sponsoring activities and sharing good practices aimed at continually learning from and improving industry's safety performance."

Williams said the center faces start-up challenges common to most new organizations, including building a staff and prioritizing its efforts:

"Another unique challenge is finalizing all the audit tools, training auditors, and verifying auditors. This is a very large new effort and one of the first things the center must address.  Although our top goal is a forum supporting continuous learning and improvement of Safety and Environmental Management Systems, auditing of SEMS is both a center and regulatory requirement."

Key to the center is connecting industry efforts to improve safe and responsible offshore operations with the American public. Williams:

"We are committed to communicating with the public and communities regarding the programs and goals of the center. The industry is fully committed to producing oil and gas safely and responsibly.  The creation of the center, the dedication of resources to it, and the broad participation of industry in the center clearly demonstrates this commitment.  The center also demonstrates an enhanced commitment by industry in creating a 100 percent safety focused forum for coming together, learning, and continuously improving safety and environmental management systems and enhancing safety culture."

API President and CEO Jack Gerard welcomed Williams' selection:

"Safe, responsible development of our offshore oil and natural gas is critical for U.S. energy security, and it provides U.S. families and businesses with affordable and reliable energy for our future."

Learn more about the Center, its governance and information on how to become a member at www.centerforoffshoresafety.org.

View the original article here

Center for Offshore Safety Names Director, Former Shell Chief Scientist

The naming of Charlie Williams as the first executive director of the new Center for Offshore Safety marks an important milestone in America's efforts to safely and responsibly develop its vast offshore energy resources.

Williams leads the center after 40 years with Shell, where most recently he was the company's chief scientist for well engineering and production technology. His work included developing high-pressure, high-temperature wells and specializing in drilling and completion equipment for extreme environments, such as deepwater exploration and development. Williams was introduced Wednesday:

"We have assembled the best and the brightest minds to help ensure we develop America's vast resources in the safest manner possible. Our top priority is to develop practices and programs that will help operators perform at their very best in implementing safety and environmental management systems."

The center's governing board includes operators, drilling contractors, service and supply contractors and trade association representatives. The center will help deepwater operators implement advanced safety and environmental oversight management systems, an audit checklist and third-party review systems so operators can measure the effectiveness of those systems against standards developed by API and its members. Williams:

"The role of the (center) is to provide a forum for industry to come together and focus on developing programs, sponsoring activities and sharing good practices aimed at continually learning from and improving industry's safety performance."

Williams said the center faces start-up challenges common to most new organizations, including building a staff and prioritizing its efforts:

"Another unique challenge is finalizing all the audit tools, training auditors, and verifying auditors. This is a very large new effort and one of the first things the center must address.  Although our top goal is a forum supporting continuous learning and improvement of Safety and Environmental Management Systems, auditing of SEMS is both a center and regulatory requirement."

Key to the center is connecting industry efforts to improve safe and responsible offshore operations with the American public. Williams:

"We are committed to communicating with the public and communities regarding the programs and goals of the center. The industry is fully committed to producing oil and gas safely and responsibly.  The creation of the center, the dedication of resources to it, and the broad participation of industry in the center clearly demonstrates this commitment.  The center also demonstrates an enhanced commitment by industry in creating a 100 percent safety focused forum for coming together, learning, and continuously improving safety and environmental management systems and enhancing safety culture."

API President and CEO Jack Gerard welcomed Williams' selection:

"Safe, responsible development of our offshore oil and natural gas is critical for U.S. energy security, and it provides U.S. families and businesses with affordable and reliable energy for our future."

Learn more about the Center, its governance and information on how to become a member at www.centerforoffshoresafety.org.

View the original article here

Center for Offshore Safety Names Director, Former Shell Chief Scientist

The naming of Charlie Williams as the first executive director of the new Center for Offshore Safety marks an important milestone in America's efforts to safely and responsibly develop its vast offshore energy resources.

Williams leads the center after 40 years with Shell, where most recently he was the company's chief scientist for well engineering and production technology. His work included developing high-pressure, high-temperature wells and specializing in drilling and completion equipment for extreme environments, such as deepwater exploration and development. Williams was introduced Wednesday:

"We have assembled the best and the brightest minds to help ensure we develop America's vast resources in the safest manner possible. Our top priority is to develop practices and programs that will help operators perform at their very best in implementing safety and environmental management systems."

The center's governing board includes operators, drilling contractors, service and supply contractors and trade association representatives. The center will help deepwater operators implement advanced safety and environmental oversight management systems, an audit checklist and third-party review systems so operators can measure the effectiveness of those systems against standards developed by API and its members. Williams:

"The role of the (center) is to provide a forum for industry to come together and focus on developing programs, sponsoring activities and sharing good practices aimed at continually learning from and improving industry's safety performance."

Williams said the center faces start-up challenges common to most new organizations, including building a staff and prioritizing its efforts:

"Another unique challenge is finalizing all the audit tools, training auditors, and verifying auditors. This is a very large new effort and one of the first things the center must address.  Although our top goal is a forum supporting continuous learning and improvement of Safety and Environmental Management Systems, auditing of SEMS is both a center and regulatory requirement."

Key to the center is connecting industry efforts to improve safe and responsible offshore operations with the American public. Williams:

"We are committed to communicating with the public and communities regarding the programs and goals of the center. The industry is fully committed to producing oil and gas safely and responsibly.  The creation of the center, the dedication of resources to it, and the broad participation of industry in the center clearly demonstrates this commitment.  The center also demonstrates an enhanced commitment by industry in creating a 100 percent safety focused forum for coming together, learning, and continuously improving safety and environmental management systems and enhancing safety culture."

API President and CEO Jack Gerard welcomed Williams' selection:

"Safe, responsible development of our offshore oil and natural gas is critical for U.S. energy security, and it provides U.S. families and businesses with affordable and reliable energy for our future."

Learn more about the Center, its governance and information on how to become a member at www.centerforoffshoresafety.org.

View the original article here