The Oil and Gas Journal articles from May 1996

The Oil and Gas Journal archives from May 1996

Don't expect the bulk of Iraqi oil exports to reach world markets before July and possibly September.(Turkey needs to repair export pipeline which will transport Iraqi oil for export)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Don't expect the bulk of Iraqi oil exports to reach world markets before July and possibly September. That's the timetable given by Turkish officials, considering the repairs needed on the Iraqi pipeline through Turkey that will serve as the...

Disclosure of the accord surprised market analysts when oil prices rose in response instead of falling.(effect of oil-sale accord between Iraq and the United Nations, oil futures for May 22, 1996)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Disclosure of the accord surprised market analysts when oil prices rose in response instead of falling, as many had predicted. Markets last week continued to discount the prospect of Iraqi oil exports reaching world markets anytime soon and...

The U.S. Senate will resume debate in June on whether to repeal 4.3 cents of the 18.3 cents/gal federal gasoline tax.(1996)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... The U.S. Senate will resume debate in June on whether to repeal 4.3 cents of the 18.3 cents/gal federal gasoline tax. The House passed a repeal bill 301-108 last week. The legislation asks but does not require gasoline marketers to pass...

U.S. DOE is having trouble selling 12 million bbl of sour crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.(Department of Energy, crude oil)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... U.S. DOE is having trouble selling 12 million bbl of sour crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (OGJ, May 6, p. 44). The Defense Fuel Supply Center (DFSC), which is handling the sale, rejected as too low all bids in a May 16 opening. In a...

Amoco Canada says western Canadian producers have a dilemma deciding how much to spend on E&D.(natural gas industry exploration and development)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Amoco Canada says western Canadian producers have a dilemma deciding how much to spend on E&D. CEO Dave Newman says western Canada producers still face a gas surplus and inadequate export pipeline capacity. The glut has resulted in a spread...

Petroleum Services Association of Canada (PSAC) has hiked its forecast of Canadian drilling activity in 1996.(petroleum industry)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Meanwhile, Petroleum Services Association of Canada (PSAC) has hiked its forecast of Canadian drilling activity in 1996 to 10,700 wells, up 19% from its forecast for the period last October. PSAC says a cold winter boosting gas demand and...

A pair of oil and gas megaprojects off far eastern Russia's Sakhalin Island are marking progress. Sakhalin Energy Investment Co. Ltd. (SEIC), the Marathon led venture set up to develop the Sakhalin II project, will start work 30 days after contract approval by the Kremlin.(Russia offshore oil development)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... A pair of oil and gas megaprojects off far eastern Russia's Sakhalin Island are marking progress. Sakhalin Energy Investment Co. Ltd. (SEIC), the Marathon led venture set up to develop the Sakhalin II project, will start work 30 days after...

Dayrates for offshore drilling rigs worldwide in the past year - expressed as a percentage of the estimated dayrates needed to spur speculative construction of new rigs - have shot up 38%.(offshore oil rig construction in 1995)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Dayrates for offshore drilling rigs worldwide in the past year--expressed as a percentage of the estimated dayrates needed to spur speculative construction of new rigs--have shot up 38%. That's according to the summary of current offshore rig...

Exxon has completed negotiations on separate PSCs for its Ayashskiy and East Odoptinskiy blocks that were part of the 1993 Sakhalin III tender.(production sharing contracts)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Meantime, Exxon has completed negotiations on separate PSCs for its Ayashskiy and East Odoptinskiy blocks that were part of the 1993 Sakhalin III tender. The PSCs will be submitted to the Kremlin and Sakhalin oblast for review and approval....

OPEC and Iraqi oil.(Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)(Editorial)
May 27, 1996... Partial resumption of Iraqi oil exports adds interest to the ministerial meeting June 5 of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Even before last week's agreement between Iraq and the United Nations for limited oil sales, the...

Hungary pushes energy program in upstream, downstream sectors.
May 27, 1996... Hungary's efforts to privatize industry, establish a market economy, and participate in European energy and economic cooperatives are advancing on several fronts. It has not been easy. "Real" privatization is still hampered by attitudes and...

JKX marks progress in F.S.U. field developments.(JKX Oil and Gas PLC, former Soviet Union)
May 27, 1996... A British independent operator has established oil production in Ukraine and Georgia and is considering a radical change into an integrated company. Early last year, JKX Oil & Gas plc of Guildford, U.K., became the first foreign operator to...

Seaway's 20 in. line resumes shipments. (Seaway Pipeline Co.)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Seaway Pipeline Co. in mid-May resumed the flow of crude oil that had been stuck in its 20 in. line running from Texas City, Tex., to Cushing, Okla. The line had been idle since Apr. 30 when waxy, high pour point oil stopped flowing in a...

Novagas Clearinghouse Ltd. (seeking approval for natural gas liquids extraction plant and pipeline project in Alberta; includes information on acquisition of storage site from Procor LPG Storage Inc.)(NGL)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Novagas Clearinghouse Ltd., Calgary, will seek regulatory approval for a 559 mile, 65,000 b/d natural gas liquids pipeline and NGL extraction plant in Alberta. Total cost of the project, slated for completion in fall 1997, is estimated at $250...

Total Energie. (agreement with Electricite de France for solar energy and wind energy projects)(Alternate fuels)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Total Energie, Total's photovoltaic affiliate, and Electricite de France formed an alliance to increase to 25 million francs from 12 million francs outlays for wind energy and solar energy projects in remote areas of developing countries.

Estonia's. (state gas company Eesti Gaas in contract with state gas company of Latvia, Latvijas Gas, for gas from Lativjas' Incukalns storage facility)(Gas storage)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Estonia's state gas company Eesti Gaas (EG) signed a protocol with Latvia's state gas company Latvijas Gas (LG) calling for the latter to supply all of EG's gas needs the next heating season from its Incukalns gas storage site. EG started...

Beach Petroleum. (acquires full interest in production sharing block off North Korea)(Exploration)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Beach Petroleum, Adelaide, obtained a 100% interest in a production sharing block in a frontier area off North Korea. It covers 28,000 sq km of coastal and deeper waters where only two stratigraphic wells have been drilled. Both reached depths...

Elf Congo. (obtains permit for deepwater exploration off Congo)(Exploration)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Elf Congo obtained a deepwater exploration permit, Met Profonde Sud, in the Gulf of Guinea off Congo adjacent to EIf's Haute Mer block, where Elf is slated to start up Nkossa oil field in June (OGJ, Apr. 15, p. 29). Met Profonde Sud covers...

Total. (estimate on light crude production from block off Angola; includes information on partnership)(Exploration)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Total gauged 9,150 b/d of light crude in a wildcat on Block 2/92 off Angola. Appraisal is planned. Total is operator with a 40% interest, with remaining interests held by state owned Sonangol 25%, South Korean firms Daewoo 18.75% and Pedco...

U.S. Minerals Management Service. (new rule allows burning of liquid hydrocarbons)(Environment)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... U.S. Minerals Management Service issued a rule changing its rules restricting flaring or venting of gas to include the burning of liquid hydrocarbons. MMS said, "Requests to burn liquid hydrocarbons are increasing, and we determined that we...

Chevron Niugini. (together with Barracuda are proposing plans for development of Gobe region oil fields in Papua New Guinea)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Chevron Niugini and Australia's Barracuda (MIM) submitted plans to develop Gobe area oil fields in Papua New Guinea near the Kutubu oil fields and export pipeline. Cost is estimated at $335 million to develop Main Gobe and Southeast Gobe fields...

Ampolex Ltd. (production license granted for Wandoo oil field off Western Australia)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Ampolex Ltd., Sydney, obtained production license WA-14-L covering Wandoo oil field off Western Australia. This follows Australian Foreign Investment Review Board's approval of the sale of a 40% interest in Wandoo field to Wandoo Petroleum Pty....

Occidental Petroleum of Qatar Ltd. (contract with McDermott Engineering (Europe) Ltd. for support services)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Occidental Petroleum of Qatar Ltd. let a $35 million, 3 year contract to McDermott Engineering (Europe) Ltd., London, for support services covering major refurbishment of facilities in Idd El Shargi North Dome field, 90 km north of Doha. Work...

Amoco Norway Inc. (contract with AMEC Process & Energy AS for mud and cuttings processing unit for installation on semisubmersible rig)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Amoco Norway Inc. had a mud and cuttings processing module installed on Maersk Guardian semisubmersible rig by AMEC Process & Energy AS, Stavanger. AMEC designed the module to meet oil companies' need for an environmentally safe way to dispose...

Harland & Wolff Ltd. (contract with Mechtool Engineering Ltd. for escape tunnel for production, storage, offloading vessel)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Harland & Wolff Ltd., Belfast, which is building the production, storage, and offloading vessel for Schiehallion oil field development west of the Shetland Islands, let contract to Mechtool Engineering Ltd., Darlington, U.K., to supply an...

Mobil Oil Canada Ltd. (divesting oil and gas producing land to ARC Energy Trust; ARC Financial Corp. issuing preliminary prospectus for public offering)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Mobil Oil Canada Ltd. will sell western Canada acreage producing about 5,000 b/d of oil and 35 MMcfd. of gas to a new royalty trust, ARC Energy Trust ARC Financial Corp., Calgary, filed a preliminary prospectus for a public offering but has not...

Benton Oil & Gas Co. (installation of third phase finished increasing oil production in Uracoa oil field from 34,000 b/d to 45,000 b/d in Venezuela)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Benton Oil & Gas Co., Carpinteria, Calif., completed installation of third phase production facilities in Venezuela's Uracoa oil field, boosting productive capacity to 45,000 b/d from 34,000 b/d. Further Uracoa development calls for drilling 40...

Norway's. (Den norske stats oljeselskap AS in contract with Reading & Bates Corp. for use of J.W. McLean semisubmersible rig for development of Connemara oil field off Ireland)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Norway's Den norske stats oljeselskap AS signed a letter of intent to hire Reading & Bates Corp.'s J.W. McLean semisubmersible rig to develop Connemara oil field, Ireland's only offshore oil strike (OGJ, May 20, p. 33). The project, expected to...

Amoco Exploration & Production Co. gave a firm, long term commitment to Sonat Offshore Drilling Inc.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Amoco Exploration & Production Co. gave a firm, long term commitment to Sonat Offshore Drilling inc., Houston, enabling Sonat to proceed with construction of what it claims will be the largest, most technically advanced deepwater rig. The...

Unocal Thailand Ltd. concluded negotiations with Petroleum Authority of Thailand for sale of gas from Pailin field in the Gulf of Thailand.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... 3 Unocal Thailand Ltd. concluded negotiations with Petroleum Authority of Thailand for sale of gas from Pailin field in the Gulf of Thailand. A 30 year gas sales agreement is to be signed next month following Thai government approval. Under...

Singpore Refining Co. commissioned a 33,000 b/d resid catalytic cracking unit. (barrels per day)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Singapore Refining Co. commissioned a 33,000 b/d resid catalytic cracking unit (RCCU) as part of a $1 billion expansion and upgrade of its Pulau Merlimau, Singapore, refinery. The RCCU will upgrade heavy residues to premium light products,...

Novagas started deliveries through its new pipeline from Northeast British Columbia to Alberta.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Novagas started deliveries through its new pipeline from Northeast British Columbia to Alberta. It is moving 32 MMcfd from fields 248 miles north of Fort St. John, B.C., to the NOVA pipeline system in Alberta. The system, with 87 miles of...

Apache Corp., Houston, completed its $605 million acquisition of Phoenix Resource Cos. Inc.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Apache Corp., Houston, completed its $605 million acquisition of Phoenix Resource Cos. Inc., Oklahoma City (OGJ, Apr. 1, p. 36). Phoenix is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Apache. All of Phoenix's oil and gas assets are in Egypt's Western...

Clyde Petroleum plc, Ledbury, U.K., offered $173 million (Australian) for the entire share capital of Australia's Crusader Ltd.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Clyde Petroleum plc, Ledbury, U.K., offered $173 million (Australian) for the entire share capital of Australia's Crusader Ltd. Crusader holds exploration and production assets mainly in Australia's onshore Cooper basin and offshore Gippsland...

Independent tanker owners operate 72% of the world's crude oil and refined products tanker fleet.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Independent tanker owners operate 72% of the world's crude oil and refined products tanker fleet, according to reports given to the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners annual meeting in Hong Kong. This share is expected to...

Norway's mechanical engineers ended a 10 day strike after reaching agreement on a new compensation package.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Norway's mechanical engineers ended a 10 day strike after reaching agreement on a new compensation package. The walkout shut down most Norwegian shipyards and began to disrupt oil and gas production. A strike by oil workers that also disrupted...

Exxon-BP combine studies options for Gulf deepwater development. (Exxon Exploration Co, BP Exploration Inc, Gulf of Mexico)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Exxon Exploration Co. and BP Exploration Inc. are weighing development options for a Gulf of Mexico oil and gas discovery in more than 4,650 ft of water. Partners began studying development concepts for their Diana discovery after the third...

Texaco proposes central Gulf gas pipeline.(Gulf of Mexico)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... A unit of Texaco Inc. plans a big gas gathering, transmission, and processing system to support deepwater developments in the Central Gulf of Mexico. A $300 million construction program is to include a large diameter subsea system across...

Esso, OMW to combine Karlsruhe refineries. (Esso AG, Oberrheinische Mineralolwerke GmbH)
May 27, 1996... Esso AG, Exxon Corp.'s German affiliate, last week signed a letter of intent to combine its refinery at Karlsruhe in Southwest Germany with an adjacent refinery owned by Oberrheinische Mineralolwerke Gmbh (OMW). The result will be a 326,000...

Reg-neg regrets. (regulatory negotiation process)(Column)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... What seems like a practical approach to federal rulemaking is proving to be a headache for the U.S. oil industry. In recent years, the government has experimented with the regulatory negotiation (reg-neg) process, under which agency officials...

Study renews royalty issue on California crude.(Minerals Management Service study on oil royalties)
May 27, 1996... The U.S. Interior Department is reviewing an interagency study that suggests 10 oil companies may have underpaid royalties on federal oil produced in California by as much as $856 million during the past 20 years. Bob Armstrong, assistant...

More North Sea oil fields due on stream.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Operators are advancing oil production plans in the U.K. and Norwegian sectors of the North Sea. Off Britain, BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd. has completed installation of a conventional steel platform in Andrew field. It's part of a 370...

Companies restructure to tackle U.K. gas market.(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Less than a month after the first part of Britain's residential gas market opened to competitive gas supply, one major gas supply company has announced a split and another new supplier has taken shape. Half a million homes in Southwest...

Chevron steps up gas search off South China.
May 27, 1996... Chevron Overseas Petroleum Inc. (COPI) has expanded exploration for gas off China's Hainan province. COPI affiliate Chevron Overseas Petroleum Ltd. this month signed a production sharing contract with China National Offshore Oil Corp....

Shell's microscope focused on refining.(Watching the World)(Column)
May 27, 1996... Royal Dutch/Shell began layoffs and cost cutting at its central offices in The Hague and London last February (OGJ, Mar. 6, 1995, Newsletter). John Jennings, chairman of Shell Transport & Trading Co. plc, told journalists May 16: "The new...

Many new ventures in the Middle East focus on old oil, gas fields.(Opportunities in the Middle East: OJC Special)
May 27, 1996... Expectations about the Middle East can be summarized as follows: * The region could and should produce much greater quantities of oil and gas than it does now. * The countries in the region should be open to foreign oil companies for...

OPEC Middle East plans for rising world demand amid uncertainty. (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries; crude oil)
May 27, 1996... The Middle Eastern members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries must plan for huge increases in oil production capacity yet wonder whether markets for the new output will develop as expected. With worldwide oil consumption...

Gasification converts a variety of problem feedstocks and wastes.
May 27, 1996... High temperature, entrained-flow gasification has been practiced commercially for more than 40 years. Gasification converts petroleum-based fuels to a clean fuel gas that, when fired in a gas turbine, produces minimal emissions of [SO.sub.2],...

Vessel movement influences offshore communications system design.(offshore oil platform communications)
May 27, 1996... Communication links for the Liuhua 11-1 oil production project, offshore China, required a system that would function with vessel movement under typhoon conditions of heavy rainfall and extreme wave action. The system includes a microwave...

Closed loop drilling systems can eliminate reserve pit costs.(drilling rigs)
May 27, 1996... CLosed loop systems have become more dependable and efficient, making drilling without a mud pit an economically attractive alternative in many drilling programs. A closed loop system is defined simply as a mechanical and chemical system...

Dresser Industries. (David Jarman, president, Dresser Integrated Oilfield Services)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Dresser Industries, Houston, Tex., has named David Jarman president, Dresser Integrated Oilfield Services. Jarman will be responsible for the overall operations of Dresser Integrated Oilfield Services, which provides project planning,...

Foster Wheeler Energy Limited. (G.W. Howe, sales and marketing director)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Foster Wheeler Energy Limited, an engineering contractor, has named G.W. (Bill) Howe director of sales and marketing. Howe joined the organization from its sister company Foster Wheeler Babcock (Pty) Limited in Johannesburg in 1995. Howe...

Citrus Corp./Florida Gas Transmission Co. (Rockford G. Meyer, president)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Citrus Corp./Florida Gas Transmission Co., which is jointly owned by Enron Corp. and Sonat Inc., has named Rockford G. Meyer president. He was also named to the board of directors. Meyer will succeed William V. Aliison who has been named...

JEBCO Seismic Limited. (Colin Pearce, sales and marketing manager)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... JEBCO Seismic Limited, London, England, has named Colin Pearce sales and marketing manager. Pearce will be developing new projects both within the UK and internationally, as well as promoting JEBCO's existing database and non-exclusive...

Middle Eocene, older sequences in rifts key to potential in western Indonesia. (petroleum exploration)(Western Indonesia, part 2)
May 27, 1996... In Part 1 of this article three areas, the Tiga Puluh arch (Sumatra), the Tanjung Raya area (Kalimantan), and the East Java basin in western Indonesia were discussed in terms of sequence stratigraphy. Such data have been interpreted for each...

Bruce M. Brady III. (named president of Great Western Drilling Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Bruce M. Brady III has joined Great Western Drilling Co., Midland, Tex., as president. Brady worked most recently as a consultant. He succeeds W. A. Blackwell.

A. G. Stollery. (named president of Morrison Petroleum Ltd.)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... A.G. Stollery, chairman and chief executive officer of Morrison Petroleum Ltd., Calgary, will assume the additional position of president. He replaces Walter DeBoni, who resigned.

Bob Malone. (named president and chief executive officer of Alyeska Pipeline Service Co.)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Bob Malone has been elected president and chief executive officer of Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., Anchorage. He succeeds David Pritchard, who will return to British Petroleum, the majority owner of the pipeline system. Malone is currently...

Donald Anderson. (Donald Anderson, Fred Fowler and Steven Roverud named corporate group vice presidents of PanEnergy Corp.)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Donald Anderson, president, chairman, and chief executive officer of PanEnergy Services Inc., has been elected corporate group vice-president of PanEnergy Corp., Houston. Also elected corporate group vice-presidents were Fred Fowler, president...

Jerry Albertus. (named president of Ultra Petroleum Corp.)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Jerry Albertus has been appointed president of Ultra Petroleum Corp., Midland, Tex. He succeeds John Hislop, who is resigning as president but will continue as chief financial officer. Albertus is retired from Consolidated Natural Gas Producing...

Steven W. Zuckweiler. (named president and chief executive officer of Coastal Field Services Inc.)(Brief Article)
May 27, 1996... Steven W. Zuckweiler has been elected president and chief executive officer of Coastal Field Services Inc., the natural gas gathering and processing operations subsidiary of Coastal Corp. This new subsidiary will manage operations for Coastal...

OPEC oil production is slipping, but remains well above quota. (January - April, 1996)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Total OPEC output fell to 25.78 million b/d in April from 25.815 million b/d in March, says MEES. This translates to 25.8 million b/d for the first 4 months of 1996, or about 1.28 million b/d above OPEC's 24.52 million b/d ceiling. Once again,...

Royal Dutch/Shell's image continues to take a beating. (former Shell Nigeria employee alleges environmental abuses in Nigeria)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... A former Shell Nigeria employee has claimed on U.K. TV the company's producing operations caused widespread pollution in Nigeria. Bopp van Dessel resigned from Shell after 5 years with the company as an environmental troubleshooter, 2 years of...

The U.K. gas industry remains in turmoil. (court case between Phillips Petroleum Co. and Enron Corp.; British Gas PLC opposes UK's Office of Gas Supply's price tariff proposal)
May 20, 1996... Phillips has won the first round in a legal battle with Enron over the latter's attempt to escape a contract to buy gas from Judy/Joanne fields beginning in October. An English High Court ruling blocks Enron' from refusing to agree to a...

Venezuela has lined up several agreements for sale of its trademark boiler fuel Orimulsion to European countries involving more than $1.4 billion dollars. (negotiations with Wales and Italy)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Venezuela has lined up several agreements for sale of its trademark boiler fuel Orimulsion to European countries involving more than $1.4 billion dollars, says Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Burelli Rivas. The minister's disclosure comes on the...

Canada's gas industry is worried about a possible move by the National Energy Board to cut operating pressures on pipelines as a move to combat stress corrosion cracking.(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Canada's gas industry is worried about a possible move by the National Energy Board to cut operating pressures on pipelines as a move to combat stress corrosion cracking. This comes in response to a recent string of ruptures on TransCanada...

Expansion of Australia's Northwest Shelf LNG export capacity is moving closer to fruition. (Woodside Petroleum Ltd. considering expansion of production capacity)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Expansion of Australia's Northwest Shelf LNG export capacity is moving closer to fruition. Woodside is mulling a $500 million (Australian) gas pipeline from the project's North Rankin A platform to the Burrup Peninsula, facilitating a hike...

German automaker Daimler Benz has unveiled what it claims is the first fuel cell powered car suitable for everyday use.(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
May 20, 1996... German automaker Daimler Benz has unveiled what it claims is the first fuel cell powered car suitable for everyday use. The company contends the new car will be a Competitive, pollution free alternative to combustion engine vehicles and could...

Communicating among disciplines. (multidisciplinary communication in the petroleum industry can yield economic benefits in decision-making)
May 20, 1996... Multidisciplinary communication probably facilitated the work that led to the articles in OGJ's Integrating Earth Science and Technology Special Report that starts on p.41. Leaps in computer capacity and its availability among oil and gas...

Dole's tax relief. (Senator Bob Dole's efforts to suspend the 4.3 cent per gallon federal gasoline tax increase appears out of proportion to the issues involved)(Editorial)
May 20, 1996... The oil and gas industry has reason to cheer Bob Dole's decisions last week to resign from the Senate and quit trying to make political dollars out of a penny-ante gasoline tax. The tax gambit flushed out too much nonsense over energy policy...

Canadian oilsands, heavy oil poised for surge in development.
May 20, 1996... Operators in Canada's oilsands and heavy oil regions are on the brink of a period of growth that could last well into the next century. Several factors are combining in a scenario a National Task Force report on oilsands says could...

Underground storage buoys U.S. winter gas. (American Gas Association report on 1995-96 winter season)
May 20, 1996... Underground storage played a big role in helping U.S. gas pipelines meet a demand surge during the 1995-96 winter, the coldest in more than a decade. American Gas Association data show a net withdrawal of more than 2.4 tcf during that...

Conoco, Phillips eye RMT venture. (Phillips Petroleum Co.; companies considering a joint venture to meld their US-based refining, marketing, and transportation operations)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Conoco Inc. and Phillips Petroleum Co. last week disclosed a move toward combining their U.S. refining/marketing, and transportation (RMT) operations in a joint venture. Present talks could result in a letter of intent for the 50-50 venture....

Oil gathering system planned for gulf. (Amoco Pipeline Co., PanEnergy Field Services Inc., and CNG Energy Services Corp. are planning a pipeline for the Central Gulf of Mexico)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Three U.S. companies plan to lay and operate a $50 million oil gathering system in the Central Gulf of Mexico. The 160,000 b/d pipeline system will serve facilities in the Main Pass and Viosca Knoll federal planning areas. That's where...

EPA to expand toxic release list. (federal district court upholds EPA's intention of adding 286 chemicals to Toxic Release Inventory list)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... A federal district court in Washington has upheld an Environmental Protection Agency decision to add 286 chemical compounds to the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) list. Federal law requires companies to report any chemical compounds on the...

Projects to study complex fracture systems. (Dept. of Energy contributing funding for seven research projects involving the study of oil reservoir fracture systems)
May 20, 1996... The Department of Energy has agreed to provide $4.8 million for seven research projects to improve knowledge of complex fracture systems in U.S. oil reservoirs. Working with BDM-Oklahoma, which runs DOE's National Institute for Petroleum &...

Japan's. (Ministry of Trade & Industry reaches agreement with China for coal-to-gasoline conversion project)(Alternate fuels)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Japan's Ministry of International Trade & Industry will cooperate with China in a coal to gasoline project based on cheap supplies of Chinese coal. A meeting this month is expected to lead to a committee to look into coal types for liquefaction...

Norway's. (offshore oil and gas industry sees strike end after six days on May 9, 1996)(Labor)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Norway's offshore workers ended a strike May 9 after 6 days. The action by oil company staff on some of Norway's largest production platforms was in sympathy with contract workers on mobile installations striking for pay rates comparable to...

Occidental of Bangladesh. (enters into licensing agreement with Institut Francais du Petrole to use the Institut's Ifpexol technology in gas processing plant planned for construction in Bangladesh)(Gas processing)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Occidental of Bangladesh licensed Institut Francais du Petrole's (IFP) Ifpexol technology for use in a gas processing plant it plans to build in Jalalabad gas field near Sylhet, Bangladesh. Plans call for the plant to start up in 1997 at...

Pembina Resources Ltd. (shutting down Diamond Valley gas processing plant in Alberta)(Gas processing)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Pembina Resources Ltd., Calgary, is closing its 19.9 MMcfd Diamond Valley gas processing plant about 6 miles southeast of Black Diamond, Alta. The company said gas previously dedicated to the Diamond Valley plant will be processed at another...

Norsk Hydro. (together with Elf Atochem entering into agreement with Qatar General Petroleum Corp. for construction of petrochemical plant which will produce caustic soda, vinyl chloride, and dichloroethane)(Petrochemicals)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Norsk Hydro and Elf Atochem agreed with Qatar General Petroleum Corp. (QGPC) to build a $500 million, 798,000 metric ton/year complex in Qatar to produce caustic soda, dichloroethane, and vinyl chloride for the Asian market. The complex is due...

Polyethylene Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. (planning polyethylene plant with 45,000 metric tons/year capacity for use in producing water and gas distribution pipe)(Petrochemicals)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Polyethylene Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., a 60-40 venture of BP Chemicals Ltd. and Malaysia's state owned Petronas, plans to build a 45,000 metric ton/year polyethylene plant at Kertih on peninsular Malaysia's northeast coast. Plant output will be used...

National Shipping Co. of Saudi Arabia. (received second of five crude tankers ordered from Mitsubishi Corp.)(Tankers)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... National Shipping Co. of Saudi Arabia (Nscsa) took delivery of the second of five very large crude carriers ordered from Japan's Mitsubishi Corp. under a 5 year, $480 million fleet expansion program. Nscsa agreed with state owned Saudi Aramco...

Phillips Petroleum Co. (and partners' appraisal well in Gulf of Mexico will not be tested, but will temporarily abandoned and later completed and converted into a producing well)(Drilling-production)(Brief Article)
May 20, 1996... Phillips Petroleum Co. and partners' $29.5 million 4 Mahogany appraisal well in the Gulf of Mexico's subsalt Mahogany oil field cut more than 180 ft of gross pay at 14,976-15,158 ft, increasing Phillips' previous estimates of field reserves....