The Oil and Gas Journal articles from May 1999, page 2

The Oil and Gas Journal archives from May 1999

AGA NATURAL GAS STORAGE [*].
May 31, 1999... AGA NATURAL GAS STORAGE [*] 5-14-99 5-7-99 Change (bcf) Producing region 588 565 23 Consuming region east 716 671 45 Consuming region...

Newsletter.
May 24, 1999... Several moves are afoot to attract additional investment into the petroleum industries of key Latin American countries. Mexico will open its LPG market to foreign competition later this year or early in 2000, Pemex Director Adrian Lajous...

U.S. INDUSTRY SCOREBOARD 5/24.(Illustration)(Brief Article)
May 24, 1999... U.S. INDUSTRY SCOREBOARD 5/24 4 wk. 4 wk. avg. % Year-to-date Latest week 5/14 average year ago [*] change average [*] Demand (1,000 b/d) Motor gasoline ...

LETTERS.
May 24, 1999... IPAA and dumping The Houston Chronicle carried an article in their issue dated May 12 about the IPAA supporting a petition to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the International Trade Commission, darning that Venezuela, Mexico, Kuwait,...

Managing data.(Brief Article)
May 24, 1999... Many refiners have jumped on the bandwagon of using asset-information management systems to reduce maintenance costs. These refiners are convinced that accurate equipment data are the beginning of good planning and maintenance. Are the...

A court rebuke to EPA.
May 24, 1999... The oil and gas industry should welcome a judicial rebuke that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency received this month over aggressive regulation against air pollution. On May 14, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of...

Unocal goes to extremes to remediate two California petroleum spills.
May 24, 1999... When Unocal Corp. sold all its California holdings to Torch Energy Advisors Inc. in 1995, it could not include two properties in San Luis Obispo County, one of which involved underground diluent leaks that rank among the world's largest...

IChemE launches process safety database.
May 24, 1999... The institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), Rugby, U.K., has launched a new version of its accident database, which is intended to enable the process industries to learn from earlier mistakes. Although the first version of the...

Pre-empting outrage.(Brief Article)
May 24, 1999... New software from consultant Dames & Moore, London, is designed to pre-empt public relations debacles such as Exxon Valdez and Brent spar. Outrage is a reputation risk-management program intended to help companies identify and quantify...

NRC study finds little benefit from oxygenates.
May 24, 1999... A National Research Council panel has concluded that the two principal types of oxygen additives used in reformulated gasolines (RFG) in the U.S. con- tribute little to reducing ozone pollution. The NRC study examined the differences...

French refiners warn of investment shortfall.(Brief Article)
May 24, 1999... Despite the 6.1 billion franc record profits last year of the seven companies that comprise France's refining industry, their profitability remains insufficient to cover the big investments they will have to make in order to meet European...

Iran details petrochemical expansion plans.
May 24, 1999... Iran is looking to drastically expand its petrochemical industry and is seeking outside investors to help it do so. To kick-start its petrochemical development program, Iran's National Petrochemical Co. (NPC) held the first Iran...

U.S. gas groups confident of 30-tcf market.
May 24, 1999... Natural gas industry groups have told a U.S. Senate committee they are confident the U.S. industry could supply a 30-tcf market within the next 10-15 years. Testimony came from the American Gas Association, Interstate Natural Gas...

U.S. crude oil production down 7% for 1999.(Brief Article)
May 24, 1999... U.S. crude oil production has dropped 7% since the beginning of the year, the American Petroleum Institute reports. It said U.S. output was down 6.9% in April at 5.89 million b/d from the same month in 1998, and Alaskan output was off...

OPEC slashes output but falls short of target.
May 24, 1999... The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries reduced oil production dramatically during April but failed to meet targeted cuts. Total OPEC output averaged 26.31 million b/d in April, according to Middle East Economic Survey (MEES),...

MMS assesses EPSO use in gulf.(Brief Article)
May 24, 1999... The U.S. Minerals Management Service has awarded a $1 million contract to Ecology & Environment Inc. (E&E), Buffalo, for assessment of the environmental effects of using floating production, storage, and offloading vessels (FPSOs) in the U.S....

Money and moratoriums.
May 24, 1999... U.S. congressional committees are expected to mark up bills this summer to earmark federal revenues from Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas production. The legislation would designate 50% or more of OCS revenues, about $2.5...

BHP Petroleum Pty. Ltd.
May 24, 1999... BHP Petroleum Pty. Ltd. unit BHP Petroleum (Trinidad) Ltd. made a natural gas discovery with the first exploration well on its Block 2c production-sharing contract area 40 km off northeastern Trinidad. Angostura-1, in 40 m of water, flowed 30...

BG plc.
May 24, 1999... BG plc unit BG Egypt drilled a gas discovery on the West Delta Deep Marine concession in the Nile Delta off Egypt BG said this is its 10th consecutive find in the Nile Delta in the last 2 years. The WDDM-5 well was drilled in 530 m of water...

Pennar Refineries Ltd.
May 24, 1999... Pennar Refineries Ltd., a unit of privately owned Indian industrial firm Nagarjuna Group, let contract to ABB Lummus Global, Zurich, for the relocation of the idle. Mobil refinery at Woerth, Germany, to the Pennar site at Cuddalore, India....

French and Ivorian firefighters.
May 24, 1999... French and Ivorian firefighters returned May 16 to Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to put out a reignited fire they had worked for 2 days, since May 13, to extinguish. The original fire began when a pipeline to an oil storage tank exploded, sending up...

A fire.
May 24, 1999... A fire that erupted May 13 in the SK Corp. refinery at Ulsan, South Korea, was put out after 16 hr. The blaze began following a "mysterious blast" in a heavy oil cracker at the facility, according to press reports. Four people were injured in...

Cenco Oil Refining Co.
May 24, 1999... Cenco Oil Refining Co., Santa Fe Springs, Calif., let a $150 million turnkey contract to LG International Corp., Seoul, and affiliated unit LG Engineering to revamp its Santa Fe Springs refinery. The refinery's previous owner, Powerine Oil...

Bahrain Petroleum Co.
May 24, 1999... Bahrain Petroleum Co. (Bapco) plans to spend $846 million to revamp its refinery at Sitra, Bahrain. Work on the 63-year-old refinery is slated for completion in 5 years. About $420 million of this sum will be spent to produce low-sulfur...

Saudi Petrochemicals Co.
May 24, 1999... Saudi Petrochemicals Co. (Sadaf), Jubail, plans to double its production of styrene capacity to 1 million metric tons/year using a recently acquired $300 million loan, which will cover 70% of the project's cost. The work, to be performed by...

Reliant Energy Services Inc.
May 24, 1999... Reliant Energy Services Inc., Houston, signed a natural gas purchase agreement with Quicksilver Resources Inc., Fort Worth, for the supply of 91 bcf of gas over a 10-year period for an assured minimum payment of more than $225 million.

Sonat Exploration Co.
May 24, 1999... Sonat Exploration Co., Houston, let a 5-year contract to Koch Midstream Services Co., Houston, for the transportation and treating services of up to 50 MMcfd of gas from Sonat's production in Leon and Freestone counties in East Texas. Exact...

Electricite de France.
May 24, 1999... Electricite de France (EdF), under a build-operate-transfer contract signed with Egypt's Electricity Authority, will build two gas-fired, 650-MW power plants in Egypt for a total of $760 million. The project will be funded 30% through EdF's...

A $1 billion (Australian) class action.
May 24, 1999... A $1 billion (Australian) class action lawsuit against Esso Australia Ltd., which arose from the 1998 Longford gas explosion and fire, will proceed to trial after the full bench of the Australian Federal Court rejected an attempt by Esso to...

U.S. Energy Department.
May 24, 1999... U.S. Energy Department issued a final rule adding "P-series" fuels to the list of alternate fuels eligible for tax credits. P-series fuels are blends of ethanol, methyltetrahydrofuran (MTHF), natural gas liquids, and butane. The ethanol and...

Partners in the.
May 24, 1999... Partners in the Guardian pipeline project let contract to Willbros Group Inc., Tulsa, for management and engineering services on the proposed 147-mile, 36-in, system (OGJ, Mar. 29, 1999, p. 27). Willbros will assist CMS Energy Corp., the...

Seaway Pipeline Co.
May 24, 1999... Seaway Pipeline Co., a general partnership of ARGO and Phillips Petroleum Co. units, plans to increase the capacity of its 30-in, crude oil pipeline by about 110,000 b/d. The increased capacity will come from the addition of three pump...

Apollo Management LLP.
May 24, 1999... Apollo Management LLP, New York, will acquire the retail operations of Clark U.S.A. Inc., St. Louis, for $230 million in a recapitalization transaction. Clark owns and operates 700 company-owned and 200 franchised convenience and gasoline...

Caspian Pipeline Consortium.
May 24, 1999... Caspian Pipeline Consortium, led by Chevron Corp., started construction of the marine terminal for the 900-mile crude oil pipeline from western Kazakhstan to Novorossiisk, Russia (OGJ, Mar. 22, 1999, p. 46). The terminal will have 400,000 Cu...

Aramco Overseas Co.
May 24, 1999... Aramco Overseas Co. let a fabrication contract to J. Ray McDermott Middle East Inc. for the supply of five jackets, three production deck modules, and the spools, risers, and shrouds for eight pipelines. Under a separate contract, Saudi...

Nippon Oil Exploration Ltd.
May 24, 1999... Nippon Oil Exploration Ltd., Tokyo, will acquire a 10% participating interest in development of the 22,400-acre, six-block Kongnan project in the Dagang oil complex in China. Nippon will align with 100% Dagang interest holders Sunwing Energy...

Russian oil producer.
May 24, 1999... Russian oil producer Permtex, a 50-50 joint venture of Lukoil and SOCO International plc, London, secured a $45 million loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The money will be used to improve environmental...

Columbia Energy Group.
May 24, 1999... Columbia Energy Group, Herndon, Va., withdrew its offer to acquire Consolidated Natural Gas Co. (CNG), Pittsburgh, after the CNG board approved a revised merger agreement from Dominion Resources Inc., Richmond, Va. Dominion's modified offer,...

Enogex Inc.
May 24, 1999... Enogex Inc., a unit of Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co. parent OGE Energy Corp., will acquire the Oklahoma natural gas gatherer, processor, and transporter Transok LLC, Tulsa, from Shell Oil Co. unit Tejas Energy LLC, Houston, for about $700...

Apache Corp.
May 24, 1999... Apache Corp., Houston, closed the acquisition of certain Gulf of Mexico properties from Shell Exploration & Production Co., Houston, for $715 million plus 1 million shares of Apache common stock (OGJ, May 10, 1999, p. 36). The properties are...

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP.
May 24, 1999... Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP closed its acquisition of Chevron Corp.'s 27.13% share in Plantation Pipe Line Co., a unit of Shell Pipe Line Corp., for about $124 million (OGJ, June 29, 1998, p. 40). The transaction boosts Kinder Morgan's...

An Alberta court.
May 24, 1999... An Alberta court ordered Fracmaster Ltd., Calgary, into receivership, giving the company until May 21 to seek new bidders. A decision to delay the sale of the firm was granted earlier this month (OGJ, May 10, 1999,p. 36). The judge said the...

Tullow Oil plc.
May 24, 1999... Tullow Oil plc, Dublin, announced a joint venture between its subsidiary Tullow India Operations Ltd. and Indian conglomerate Larsen & Toubro Ltd. Under the deal, Tullow India will take over all the oil and gas interests of Larsen & Toubro in...

Edison Mission Energy.
May 24, 1999... Edison Mission Energy, a unit of Edison International, Rosemead, Calif., completed its acquisition of a 40% stake in Contact Energy Ltd. from the New Zealand government for $1.2 billion (N.Z.) (OGJ, Apr. 5,1999, p. 40). The remaining 40% of...

Texas Utilities Co.
May 24, 1999... Texas Utilities Co., Dallas, changed its name to TXU, which also is the company's stock symbol. The change will affect all U.S. and international subsidiaries of the firm. TU Electric/Lone Star Gas, for example, will be renamed TXU Electric &...

U.S. Minerals Management Service.
May 24, 1999... U.S. Minerals Management Service and the Interior Department's Office of Hearings and Appeals amended parts of a rule governing the appeal of MMS orders. One change will ensure that the agencies act on appeals within 33 months. Also, lessees...

Results-based supplier relationships improve maintenance effectiveness.
May 24, 1999... Matthew G. McKenna is a vicepresident of Booz Allen & Hamilan Inc. in Houston. He focuses on performance improvement for energy and related corn panics. McKenna's experience includes work in petrochemicals, refining, upstream, and utilities....

Engaging the entire organization key to improving reliability.
May 24, 1999... Winston J. Ledet is s principal in the Manufacturing Game organization and is one of the original contributors to the creation of the game. Over the past 5 years, he has worked with over 40 companies on reliability improvement efforts in a...

Refinery embraces risk-based inspection plan.
May 24, 1999... A risk-based inspection (RBI) plan allowed the Conoco Inc. Commerce City, Colo., refinery to markedly cut its inspection costs and evaluate crudes, according to David Long, reliability leader at the refinery. From May through November of...

Fenceline-monitoring system solves bin Problem.
May 24, 1999... The Tosco Refining Co. Rodeo, Calif., refinery installed a fenceline-monitoring system in 1997. According to Dale Iverson, senior environmental engineer, it is the first of its kind in the world. The system identifies and measures the...

Refiner uses software to optimize maintenance processes.
May 24, 1999... Chevron Products Co. is implementing enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions for refining maintenance activities. Two of its refineries--at Richmond, Calif., and El Segundo, Calif.--are piloting the new maintenance-planning systems....

Pilot line verifies calculations for interface length, mixing.
May 24, 1999... Tests of a pilot pipeline, built to mirror conditions of an operating Egyptian pipeline, have confirmed the validity of commonly available equations for calculating length and quantity of interfacial mixing. The research investigated...

Steerable PDC bits require balanced design.
May 24, 1999... Mark Dykstra is responsible for drag and rolling cutter bit innovation, modeling and analysis of drilling system dynamic response, and the coordination of special research projects for Hughes Christensen. He has extensive experience with...

Belt descalers.
May 24, 1999... Here's a line of heavy duty power transmission belting pipe descalers. Handles and scrapers for the belt descaler line are blackened for rust protection. Features include light weight, plus long length to ease back strain, the firm...

Scada applications software package.
May 24, 1999... ScadaBase is a new, graphically enhanced, menu driven, and user configurable supervisory control and data acquisition (scada) applications software package. It supports batch and continuous process control applications in oil and gas...

Reservoir simulation software.
May 24, 1999... The Eclipse 99A reservoir simulation software suite is Year 2000 ready. This suite's technology is enhanced with the release of two programs: FrontSim streamline reservoir simulation software and GridSim pre- and postprocessing reservoir...

Electronic linebreak detection.
May 24, 1999... LineGuard 2100, an electronic linebreak detection system, is a self-contained system designed for installation at a pipeline valve site to provide supervisory control and data acquisition for a valve actuator. The 2100 continuously...

Remotely operated vehicles.
May 24, 1999... The Innovator remotely operated vehicle line consists of a high voltage power drive system (4,500 v), rated in excess of 3,500 m water depth. The system is suited for uses in deepwater construction and drilling support as well as...

MOVES AND PROMOTIONS.
May 24, 1999... Gas Research Institute, Chicago, Ill., has named Raymond C. Giese vice president of marketing and sales. Giese will develop and implement marketing and sales initiatives, working with each of GRI's business units-Exploration and...

Energy Security Analysis, Inc.
May 24, 1999... Energy Security Analysis, Inc. has developed an energy hedging and trading advisory service with METIS Trading Advisors, LLC. METIS is registered with the National Futures Association and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission as a...

Seychelles thermal history, hydrocarbon generation traced.
May 24, 1999... THE AUTHORS Douglas Waples has worked in petroleum exploration for nearly 30 years. After postdoctoral years in West Germany and Chile he worked for Chevron and Mobil taught at the Colorado School of Mines and worked in Japan for JNOC...

Indonesia.
May 24, 1999... Halliburton Energy Development Co. acquired part of Citra Paternindo NP's shares in enhanced oil recovery contracts in three fields in South Sumatra. Halliburton operates Abab, Raja, and Dewa fields, near Pendopo, with 50% interest (OGJ,...

Israel.
May 24, 1999... Isramco Inc., Houston, let a contract to Atwood Oceanics Inc. to drill the Yam West 2 and an optional additional well starting in August 1999. Yam West 2 is to be drilled to 11,483 ft in 2,461 ft of water on the Med Yavne license in the...

Kazakhstan.
May 24, 1999... Kazakhoil let a contract, funded by U.S. Trade and Development Agency, for a study on setting up a national oil and gas E&P database and petroleum information service for Kazakhstan. Oklahoma University's Sarkeys Energy Center, as prime...

Venezuela.
May 24, 1999... A group led by Tecpetrol de Venezuela SA is drilling the No. 20 well in continuing development of Campo Rosario field, Colon Block, Maracaibo basin. The No. 18 well's initial production rate is 3,966 b/d of oil from Eocene Mirador at...

Viet Nam.
May 24, 1999... Anzoil (Asia) Pte. Ltd. said its D144A appraisal well in the Hanoi basin cut more than 100 m of gas bearing sandstone reservoirs of modest quality. Logs showed at least six gas bearing sands at 3,200-3,800 m that warrant evaluation and...

Gulf of Mexico.(gas and oil exploration)
May 24, 1999... Stone Energy Corp., Lafayette, La., is spending about $19 million this year on facilities modification, recompletions, and drilling of five wells in Vermilion Block 255 field. The field was producing 21.2 MMcfd of gas and 2,900 b/d of oil...

California.(gas exploration)
May 24, 1999... Royale Energy Inc., San Diego, completed a new pool discovery well in Thornton West-Walnut Grove field in the Sacramento basin. The 1 Blossom, in 32-5n-5e, San Joaquin County, flowed a stabilized 3.8 MMcfd of gas plus condensate on a...

Oklahoma.
May 24, 1999... Mannix Oil Co., Tulsa, completed two horizontal coalbed methane wells in the Arkoma basin and has drilled two more such wells, IHS Energy Corp. reported. The wells, in 9 and 14-8n-19e, Haskell County, tested about 175 Mcfd of gas with...

Texas.
May 24, 1999... East Mitchell Energy & Development Corp. plans an offset this month one mile west of a step-out from Dew field, Freestone County, and is looking at as many as five to eight more locations for drilling in the field. The 1 Evans...

Wyoming.
May 24, 1999... Wexpro Co. completed a $5.5 million exploratory test on the 2,500 acre Kinney Unit in the Vermillion Creek area of the Green River basin and was evaluating other potential locations. The 13-1 Kinney, in 13-13n-100w, Sweetwater County,...

CORRECTION.(Correction Notice)
May 24, 1999... In an article, "Dutch North Sea platform expands on conventional glycol scheme," by Leo J.F.M. Festen, et al., which appeared in OGJ, Mar. 22, 1999, P. 86, there were errors in Figs. 2 and 3. The corrected figures are shown below.

OGJ CRACK SPREAD.
May 24, 1999... OGJ CRACK SPREAD 5-14-99 [*] 5-15-98 [*] Change % $/bbl change SPOT PRICES Product value 19.72 19.35 0.37 ...

API IMPORTS OF CRUDE AND PRODUCTS.
May 24, 1999... API IMPORTS OF CRUDE AND PRODUCTS District 1-4 District 5 Total U.S. 5-14 5-7 [*] 5-14 5-7 [*] 5-14 ...

API CRUDE AND PRODUCT STOCKS.
May 24, 1999... API CRUDE AND PRODUCT STOCKS Motor gasoline Blending Jet fuels Crude oil Total Comp. [+] Naphtha Kerosine ...

API REFINERY REPORT--MAY14, 1999.
May 24, 1999... API REFINERY REPORT--MAY14, 1999 REFINERY OPERATIONS Total Input refinery Crude to crude Operable % District ...

OGJ GASOLINE PRICES.
May 24, 1999... OGJ GASOLINE PRICES Price Pump ex tax price [*] ...

BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT.
May 24, 1999... BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT 5-14-99 5-15-98 Alabama 4 4 Alaska 4 12 Arkansas 1 12 Califormia 18 29 ...

OGJ PRODUCTION REPORT.
May 24, 1999... OGJ PRODUCTION REPORT 5-14-99 [*] 5-15-98 [+] (1,000 b/d) (Crude oil and lease condensate) Alabama 29 ...

REFINED PRODUCT PRICES.
May 24, 1999... REFINED PRODUCT PRICES 5-7-96 ([cent]/gal) Spot market product prices Motor gasoline (Conventional-regular) New York Harbor ...

SMITH RIG COUNT.
May 24, 1999... SMITH RIG COUNT 5-14-99 5-14-98 Proposed depth Rig % Rig % (ft) count footage [*] count footage [*] 0 - 2,500 14 ...

U.S. CRUDE PRICES.
May 24, 1999... U.S. CRUDE PRICES ($/bbl) [*] 5-14-99 Alaska-North Slope 27[degrees] 7.55 Southern Louisiana Light 16.50 California-Kern River 13[degrees] 11.75 Lost Hills...

WORLD CRUDE PRICES.
May 24, 1999... WORLD CRUDE PRICES ($/bbl) [*] 5-7-99 United Kingdom-Brent 38[degrees] 15.38 Russia-Urals 32[degrees] 13.88 Saudi light 34[degrees] 16.53...

AGA NATURAL GAS STORAGE [*].
May 24, 1999... AGA NATURAL GAS STORAGE [*] 5-7-99 4-30-99 Change (bcf) Producing region 565 543 22 Consuming region east 671 623 48 Consuming region...