Independent upstream oil and gas company KrisEnergy has begun 2D seismic recording in West Papua. Part of an acquisition program that is expected to last four months, the company also plans to undertake aerogravity and magnetic survey in the block, which covers 5,400 sq km over the Bintuni Basin, a proven prolific gas province containing several multiple-trillion-cubic-feet gas discoveries.
Gazprom Management is set to construct a new gas pipeline into Turkey. At a meeting with the Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources yesterday chairman Alexey Miller of the firm to consider a preliminary feasibility study on the venture that will connect the Black Sea with Turkey.
Lancashire County Council has deferred a decision on an application to explore for shale gas for a further eight weeks. Councillors met today, a week after planning officers recommended the sites be refused planning permission due to noise and traffic.
Petrochemicals group Sasol said it would delay its $8.1billion investment in a GTL (Gas-to-liquid) plant in the US as a result of falling oil prices. The company said it would also be identifying other opportunities to reduce its costs over the next few years.
Oil major BP has reduced its workforce in Azerbaijan by 8% following the global drop in crude prices. The company said around 225 jobs would go as it looks to streamline its business in the “challenging market environment”. Last year the company announced it would be making cuts of $1billion to its operational costs.
Shell has signed a deal with Iraq worth $11billion to build a petrochemicals plant. The agreement was announced by Industry Minister for the country, Nasser al-Esawi, who said the Nibras complex was expected to come on line within the next five to six years. The southern oil hub in the Basra region would make it the largest petrochemical producer in the Middle East.
Campaigners have called for permission for two new fracking sites in Lancashire to be refused, ahead of a meeting by county councillors to consider the plans. Shale company Cuadrilla has applied for permission to explore for shale gas at two sites between Preston and Blackpool, in Preston New Road, near Little Plumpton, and Roseacre Wood, near Roseacre. But the firm last week asked for the decision on whether to give the go-ahead to be deferred, as it submitted new information after planning officers for Lancashire County Council recommended the sites be refused planning permission due to noise and traffic.
Profits at Ashtead Technology jumped by almost 40% after the Aberdeenshire-based subsea machinery supplier invested a record amount in rental equipment. The company pumped £10.1million into its capital expenditure programme in the year to April 30, 2014,up from £9million in the previous 12 months and the highest tally since the business was founded 29 years ago. Operating profits rose to £13.6million, from £9.7million previously, on the back of a 23% increase in turnover to £27.4million.
Norwegian energy service giant Aker Solutions said yesterday the current phase of its work on Premier Oil’s Solan development in the UK North Sea would end on February 27. About 280 contractors who were recruited for the work on temporary terms have been notified about the end date, which was determined by the planned departure of the Safe Scandinavia accommodation vessel. Safe Scandinavia is leaving for another project later than expected, with Aker having previously anticipated it would be available only until sometime this month.
The new energy jobs taskforce, launched by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon earlier this month in response to tumbling oil prices, will meet for the first time in Aberdeen today. Chaired by Scottish Enterprise (SE) chief executive Lena Wilson, it will focus on jobs across the entire energy industry but with an initial emphasis on the oil and gas sector. Membership includes industry bodies and commercial interests as well as cross-government representation.
North Sea helicopter manufacturer Airbus Helicopters is betting on military deals to lift orders as the plunge in the price of crude hits demand from oil explorers. The French company, which is part of aerospace and defence giant Airbus Group, said yesterday it expected stabilisation in the industry during 2015. Its new helicopter deliveries fell by 5.2% to 471 last year, while net sales fell by 20 units to 402.
The more oil a country produces, the more likely a foreign power will intervene in its internal conflicts, according to new research. The study by the universities of Portsmouth, Warwick and Essex has found that oil is often the reason for interfering in another country’s civil war - confirming the beliefs of many conspiracy theorists. The researchers found that the decision to interfere was dominated by the interveners’ need for oil over and above any historical, geographical or ethnic ties.
An oil tanker that hauled 1 million barrels of Kurdish crude to the US six months ago didn’t unload its cargo and is now making a return trip across the Atlantic Ocean with the shipment still on board. The United Kalavryta is heading to Gibraltar, the British territory on the southern tip of Spain, Kyriakos Maragoudakis, operations manager at Piraeus, Greece-based Marine Management Services M.C., the ship’s operator, said.
Oil giant BP has offered a Voluntary Separation of Employment Programme (VSEP) to staff in Trinidad and Tobago as it makes cuts from its global operations. The company said the move was part of a "group-wide programme" to simplify and increase its efficiency. A spokesman said there was no firm number on how many employees would be affected by the changes to BP's operations but there was an expected "impact on headcount".
Industry officials believe the Budget is the right time to bring forward any further North Sea oil tax changes, George Osborne has claimed amid calls for urgent action. The Chancellor gave assurances in the Commons that the Government will do everything to support the North Sea oil and gas industry while it attempts to cope with falls in the oil price. But Labour and the SNP warned Mr Osborne against waiting for the Budget on March 18 to announce further help for the industry.
Eneabba Gas has signed a $15 million farm-in agreement with Finder No 6 Pty for a project in western Australia. Finder has agreed to fund a two-stage work program The Ocean Hill Block in the North Perth Basin where it will earn an 85% interest.
Independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company Dejour Energy has completed the Woodrush oil well tie-in. The B-100 halfway oil site out well of the project in north east British Columbia has now reached production stage while the A-100 Gething gas well from the recently completed 2014 drill program.
Buru Energy has spudded the Sunbeam 1 well in the Canning Basin of Western Australia. The well has a maximum depth of 1,200metres and is expected to take some 16 days to drill. It is located in the exploration permit of EP 129 and the completion of the well will satisfy the four year work commitment on that permit.
Billionaire pipeline owner Kelcy Warren knows better than most how the tumultuous energy market is ripe for empire-building. Warren, who built a fortune worth $5.3 billion over the past 15 years through more than a dozen acquisitions, made a first move Monday designed to pave the way for more deals. His Energy Transfer Partners LP (ETP) agreed to pay $11 billion to consolidate its Regency Energy Partners LP (RGP) unit under one roof.
Technip has been awarded two subsea contracts in the Gulf of Mexico by Stone Energy. The flexible pipe supply contract and an installation contract are for the Amethyst field located at the Mississippi Canyon 26. The first contract includes engineering, procurement, fabrication, assembly and testing of a five-inch production static riser.
Oil extended losses to trade near an almost six-year low as OPEC’s warning that prices may surge without new investment in production failed to shift the market’s focus from more immediate signs of a global supply glut. Futures fell as much as 0.6% in New York. A spike to $200 a barrel is possible without spending for the long term, according to OPEC Secretary-General Abdalla El-Badri. US crude inventories probably rose to 402.1 million barrels last week, the most in records dating back to August 1982, a survey shows before a government report on Wednesday.
Vital North Sea oil and gas reforms remained on track last night after a bid to scupper the plans failed in Westminster. The "cornerstone" of Sir Ian Wood’s recommendations for the future of the sector is now poised to become law within weeks after a wrecking amendment by a group of MPs fell in the Commons. Members of the environmental audit committee tried to remove a section of the Infrastructure Bill which for the first time would enshrine in law "the objective of maximising the economic recovery of UK petroleum".
BP is freezing base pay across the group this year, the latest in a series of steps by oil majors to cut costs in response to sinking oil prices. Many have accelerated cuts in capital and operating expenditures, including freezing some projects, as crude prices more than halved since June to below $50 per barrel. Salaries in the oil sector are a major part of operating expenses.
A former BP executive who contested whether he can be charged for downplaying the severity of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico spill has had his appeal declined by the US Supreme Court. Prosecutors alleged David Rainey had misled members of Congress over the size of the spill almost five years ago. Mr Rainey said the government had missed the deadline to file an appeal after a district court judge dismissed an obstruction charge.
Power and temperature rental service Aggreko has extended a project in Africa by three years. The Glasgow head-quartered firm confirmed a three year extension to its 200MV gas-fired power project with an option to carry on for a further two.