GLG News by Mr. Michael Lynch, Consultant
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Anadarko's Lucius appears to be a big field on a large subsalt structure
December 20, 2011
Apache to Develop Lucius Project in Deepwater Gulf of Mexico | www.rigzone.com
The 2009 discovery well cut 200 feet of high quality 29º API crude oil. The appraisal sidetrack drilled upstructure found 650 feet of crude oil plus a gas condensate zone. Anadarko (which holds a 35% stake) completed a unitization agreement with co-owners Plains E&P (23.3%), Apache (11.7%), Petrobras (9.6%), ExxonMobil (15%) and Eni (5.4%). The unit is expected to go on production from a spar in 2014 at 80,000 bbl/day.
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Reading the tea leaves on Gulf of Mexico OCS lLease sSale 218
December 19, 2011
First Post-Macondo Lease Sale Draws US $337 million in High Bids | www.rigzone.com
The first federal offshore lease sale since the MC-252 spill in April 2010 resulted in $337 million in high bids. The auction included 3,913 blocks covering more than 21 million acres (an average of 5,366 acres/block). Twenty oil and natural gas companies submitted 214 bids totalling $712 million, up 28% from lease sale 210 in August 2009. In the 2009 sale, 27 companies bid on 162 tracts.
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Eagle Ford shale discovery in Louisiana extends play probability in Texas
December 15, 2011
Eagle Ford activity doubles in 2011, tests move into Louisiana | www.ogfj.com
The Eagle Ford was originally developed as a dry gas play in LaSalle County in 2007-08 when natural gas prices were higher than today's. Later, a condensate window and then a northern oil rim was found. This liquids-rich find in Louisiana suggests that other Texas counties are prospective.
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Venoco says the Sevier discovery is risky, but it will keep drilling
December 14, 2011
Venoco Updates 2012 Spending, Monterey Shale Activity | www.rigzone.com
Venoco reported production guidance and drilling plans for 2012 in a press release dated December 12. Production is expected to be in the range of 17,750 - 18,250 bbl/day of oil equivalent. The company reported a capital and exploratory budget of $255 million with $100 million to drill Monterey shale wells. The Sevier discovery still needs to be derisked.
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Sister Chevron aims to produce 3.3 million bbl/day by 2017
December 12, 2011
Chevron Sets 2012 Capex at $32.7 B | www.rigzone.com
Each passing year sees increased capital and exploratory expenses for all oil companies. Chevron will spend $33 billion in 2011 and again in 2012. To get to 3.3 million bbl/day by 2017, Chevron's annual budgets will have to rise every year after 2012 to account for inflation and the increasing difficulty of replacing reserves.
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Where is the ultra-deepwater rig market?
December 12, 2011
Hope Floats on Petrobras Rig Contracts | www.rigzone.com
To develop the large pre-salt crude oil deposits in the Santos basin, offshore Brazil, Petrobras has an ambitious plan to build 21 expensive deep water rigs. Each rig will cost about $700 million. If the tender launched last October results in construction awards, SembCorp and Keppel Fels stand to be the big winners. Financing for the construction could come from a consortium of several Brazilian pension funds, commercial banks and Petrobras.
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It's too early in the game to write off Shtokman
December 8, 2011
US Shale Gas Poses New Challenge to Shtokman | www.rigzone.com
The Shtokman natural gas/gas condensate field was discovered in the Barents Sea over twenty years ago. Though it was not economically viable at the time due to low natural gas prices, it was a huge deposit and not to be ignored. Today the technical problems have been resolved and the project can be financed. Despite current difficulties, there will almost certainly be an agreement on the project by year end 2011.
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U.S. shale gas: Farewell to the feathermerchants
December 8, 2011
Musings: Imagining the Future for The Natural Gas Industry | www.rigzone.com
Mr. G. Allen Brooks always presents valuable and entertaining insights on the state of the oil and gas industry. Lately he’s given special focus to how shale gas drilling will affect the U.S. economic scene. In this thoughtful "Musings," he tries, with some success, to illuminate the financial problems of the shale gas drillers.
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Syrian crude oil production to decline further as Shell exits the scene
December 6, 2011
Shell Exits Syria Amid Fresh Sanctions | www.rigzone.com
As late as 2002, Syria produced over 500,000 bbl/day, but all of those fields are small to medium-sized and old enough to be classified as "mature." Today, normal production hovers around 330,000 bbl/day. Shell has been a large producer in Syria. With the supermajor out of the picture, further production declines are inevitable.
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Royal Dutch Shell continues to lead in research and development
December 5, 2011
Swellable Packers Help Boost Hydrocarbon Recovery | www.rigzone.com
Swell Fix, a company backed by Shell, commercialized swellable well packers in 2005, following more than ten years of testing. Then in 2009, SwellFix was combined with four other companies backed by Shell into a company called “Tendeka.” Shell Technology Ventures Fund, which has existed for some years, has an open door for inventors looking for capital to build new products. This is one of many approaches Shell uses to stay ahead in research and development.
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Election year politics cloud the oil and gas employment picture
December 5, 2011
Will EPA Shut Down Shale? | www.rigzone.com
The oil and gas industry has done pretty well in 2011 despite the “slow go” in the Gulf of Mexico. Shale oil and gas drilling has prospered, as has redevelopment activity in the depleted fields of West Texas, Oklahoma and California. Shale gas drilling in particular has been helped by foreign oil companies determined to get in on the boom. However, this has now slowed for two reasons. The shale gas economics remain far from ideal and environmentalists seem determined to stop it.
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Imaginative shale gas propaganda from Rice University's Baker Institute
December 2, 2011
U.S. Shale Boom Reduces Russian Influence Over European Gas Market | www.rigzone.com
Kenneth B. Medlock III, Amy Myers Jaffe and Peter R. Hartley of the Baker Institute have published an imaginative picture of how U.S. shale gas production has damaged Gazprom’s European sales model and will have a future impact on all liquefied natural gas (LNG) producers. The study covers the period from 2009 to 2040. The flaw in their thinking is that since 2009 Russia has continued to increase natural gas sales to Europe, and any predictions about the future can only be based on speculation. The Baker Institute study was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.
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Drying up capital will impact future crude oil supply
December 2, 2011
Argos Rejects Participation in Falkland Drilling Campaign | www.rigzone.com
Until 2011, solid oil and gas companies, both large and small, easily found capital for worthy exploration and production campaigns. Today, capital must go to recapitalizing banks and paying down maturing debt. While the major international oil companies can continue to fund their programs with retained capital, many, if not most, of the smaller companies rely on capital markets. This can only have one consequence. The majors will budget to meet their own demand forecasts for refined products. Smaller companies will defer projects until funds become available again.
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Remote operated vehicle surveys improve prospects for oil offshore Jan Mayen
December 2, 2011
Jan Mayen Ridge Rock Samples Indicate Bright Future | www.rigzone.com
Jan Mayen, Norway, is a 146-square mile island that separates the Greenland Sea to the northwest from the Norwegian Sea to the southeast. Beerenberg mountain, on the northeast tip of the island, is the northernmost active volcano in the world. The Jan Mayen Ridge formed before the Eocene Epoch, about 40 million years ago, during which continental drift began toopen the northeastern Atlantic. Because of the island’s proximity to the Norwegian shelf, speculation of possible hydrocarbon formations have intrigued geologists.
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International oil companies continue to do what they do best: Manage money
December 2, 2011
Oil Majors Face Tall Order Replicating Shale Boom Overseas | www.rigzone.com
Much has been published about the worldwide rush to shale gas. It is exaggerated. The internationals continue to be risk-averse and are staking out positions in prospective shale gas plays around the world because they know how to make money at it. That doesn’t mean they will be in a hurry. What they are in a hurry to do is maintain their pre-eminent positions as producers of energy sold at prices the people of the world can afford. It is only on this basis that recent moves into promising foreign shale gas plays can be evaluated.
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Oil fields are dangerous but remunerative places to work
December 2, 2011
Canadian Rig Worker Shortage Prevails, Despite Innovative Training | www.rigzone.com
ho have wanted to find work in the oil fields have been able to do so. When work became slack in one region, another would be getting started. This remains the case. In North America, Canada, Texas, California, Oklahoma, much of the mountain west and parts of the east are booming. There are also many opportunities abroad. The jobs pay well and there is little monotony. Drilling operations change by the hour. Danger always lurks but it also lurks in aviation, space travel, diving and even in road construction. Today when unemployment is high in the U.S. and Europe, oil field jobs go begging. Why is this so?
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Sea floor oil seep at Chevron's Frade field roils Brazilian government
December 1, 2011
Government Suspends Chevron's Offshore Brazil Operations | www.rigzone.com
Chevron has now cemented off the pay zone in the appraisal well. While this seep is nothing compared to the Macondo disaster in 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico, the Brazilian government has magnified a minor incident. Brazil needs money and sees a chance to extract it from Chevron. This story is far from over and may have political repercussions that affect all operators in Brazil.
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Total puts giant Pazflor on line offshore Angola
November 29, 2011
Total Inaugurates Pazflor Development | rigzone.com
Total is determined to hold its own in the ranks of the international major oil companies. Its involvement in offshore Angola has been heavy since the first concessions were offered 20 years ago. Now Total’s efforts are paying off in a big way. Total will soon be the largest oil producer in Angola with more to come when CLOV begins production in 2014.
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Safe and responsible oil production coming to GOM by 2017
November 29, 2011
BOEM announces proposed Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing program for 2012-2017 | www.offshore-mag.com
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management announced its Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil and gas leasing program for 2012-2017. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar offered it as an expansion of “safe and responsible oil and gas production from the outer continental shelf.” Twelve annual area-wide lease sales will begin in the fall of 2012 to make available all unleased acreage in the western, central and eastern Gulf of Mexico. There will also be sales in the Beaufort Sea (2015), Chukchi Sea (2016) and Cook Inlet (2013). This proposal is consistent with the administration’s Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future.
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Technip continues rocket-like growth in oil and gas industry
November 23, 2011
Technip Creates Consultancy Company | www.rigzone.com
Technip was organized in Paris in 1958 with 100 people. During the 1970’s, the French Petroleum Institute established Coflexip to design, manufacture and supply flexible subsea flowlines. In 2000, Technip and Coflexip merged. Today Technip is a recognized leader in the engineering, design, manufacturing and installation of various types of projects in areas including petrochemicals refining, natural gas-LNG and upstream exploration and production, in both shallow and deep water and onshore. Technip’s subsea operations are a fast-growing segment as umbilicals replace rigid steel tubulars. Technip operates all over the world and employs 25,000 people.
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Most Popular Energy & Industrials News
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It's too early in the game to write off Shtokman
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