The Oil and Gas Journal articles from September 1997

The Oil and Gas Journal archives from September 1997

Some key petroleum privatization efforts in Asia have marked milestones. (includes news of Iran, Thailand, Pakistan)
September 29, 1997... Some key petroleum privatization efforts in Asia have marked milestones-Iran may break a state monopoly and allow private investment in grass-roots refinery construction. An Iranian newspaper reports that privately funded refineries...

A joint venture of BASF and Fina is planning the world's largest single-train liquids cracker.(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... A joint venture of BASF and Fina is planning the world's largest single-train liquids cracker. The 820,000 metric ton/year ethylene plant will be built for $800 million at Fina's Port Arthur, Tex., refinery. BASF will operate the...

Saudi Aramco has pulled out of talks with Petrogal over the acquisition of a stake in the Portuguese state oil firm. (Saudi Arabian Oil Co.; Petroleos de Portugal)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Saudi Aramco has pulled out of talks with Petrogal over the acquisition of a stake in the Portuguese state oil firm, citing a change in its strategy away from Europe and towards southern and eastern Asia. The announcement took Petrogal...

Texaco has pulled out of Yetagun gas field project off Myanmar, collowing U.S. sanctions against the country's military regime.(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Texaco has pulled out of Yetagun gas field project off Myanmar, following U.S. sanctions against the country's military regime. Texaco's 42.9% stake and operatorship will be divided between Premier Oil--which will take on 6.6% and...

India will have to increase product imports to meet a supply shortfall caused by a deadly accident at Hindustan Petroleum's Vishakhapatnam, India, refinery.(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... India will have to increase product imports to meet a supply shortfall caused by a deadly accident at Hindustan Petroleum's Vishakhapatnam, India, refinery (OGJ, Sept. 22, 1997, P. 42). The refinery is not expected to restart for at...

Two new breakthrough energy technologies have been announced. (Gas Authority of India Ltd. will convert naphtha to gasoline; Mitsubishi and Tepco will use green algae to convert CO2 to fuel)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Two new breakthrough energy technologies have been announced. Gas Authority of India Ltd. (GAIL) plans to build a plant that will use a process that can convert the country's excess naphtha and NGL to LPG and gasoline. The technology,...

Turkmenistan details Caspian license round. (offshore tenders)
September 29, 1997... Turkmenistan has offered 11 eastern Caspian Sea contract areas in a licensing round due to close Nov. 28. The round was announced at the American Association of Petroleum Geologists International Conference and Exhibition Sept. 10 in...

Fast track and trade. (President Clinton's negotiating authority)(Editorial)
September 29, 1997... The oil and gas industry should support renewal of fast-track negotiating authority for the U.S. President in matters of trade. As trade goes, so goes a large measure of economic growth. And as economic growth goes, so goes demand for oil...

China's deregulation, expansion not enough to restore market balance. (part 1)
September 29, 1997... The Chinese oil market surprised the world again in 1996, showing striking signs of a boom year and recovering from its 1994 downturn. But, despite increased production of crude oil and refined products, strong demand has kept fundamentals...

Spreading demand for gas treatment. (chemical purification)(Column)
September 29, 1997... Since the fall of the communist regime, gas-producing countries among former Soviet Union (FSU) satellites have been increasingly competing for customers inside and outside the FSU. Some of their target customers in western Europe have...

Shell to acquire Tejas Gas Corp. (Shell Oil Co.)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Shell Oil Co. has agreed to acquire Houston's Tejas Gas Corp. in a deal valued at $1.45 billion. The move is the latest in a string of such deals involving natural gas businesses (OGJ, Apr. 21, 1997, p. 19). Under terms of the...

Forest Service blocks leasing in Montana national forest.(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... The U.S. Forest Service has decided against oil and gas exploration in most of the Lewis and Clark National Forest in Montana. Forest Supervisor Gloria Flora decided not to allow drilling along the Rocky Mountain front range from the...

MMS lists options for royalty rule changes. (US Minerals Management Service options regarding oil valuation rule)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... The U.S. Minerals Management Service has released alternatives for proceeding with its controversial oil valuation rule (OGJ, Sept. 15, 1997, p. 25). The rule would require the value of most production to be set on the average of New York...

Campbell Wells. (CBS News report on oilfield wastes to focus on Louisiana's Campbell Wells waste disposal facility)
September 29, 1997... U.S. petroleum industry groups are preparing for an onslaught of criticism when television network CBS airs a special news report on oil field wastes, probably in October. The show will focus on U.S. Liquids Corp.'s Campbell Wells...

Texas Development Corp. (buys 24% stake in cogeneration plant being built at Anonima Petroli Italiana refinery in Ancona, Italy)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Texaco Development Corp., White Plains, N.Y., acquired a 24% equity interest in a 276-MW cogeneration plant under construction at Anonima Petroli Italiana's (API) 77,000 b/d refinery at Ancona, Italy. The power plant, scheduled for 1999...

Total SA. (Electricite de France and Indonesia's PLN planning Sumatran power plant)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Total SA, Electricite de France, and Indonesian state electric utility PLN are planning a 200-MW gas-fired power plant in southern Sumatra's Jambi region. Partners will perform a feasibility study to confirm site suitability and optimal plant...

El Paso Energy International Co. (in agreement to build Araucaria, Brazil, gas-powered power plant)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... El Paso Energy International Co., Houston, signed a joint development agreement with Cia. Paranaense de Energia (Cope!), Petrobras Distribuidora SA, BHP Power Inc., and British Gas of Brazil to build a 440-MW thermoelectric power plant fueled...

Apache Corp. (announces oil discovery in China's Bohai Bay)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Apache Corp., Houston, disclosed a new field discovery in the C segment of its Zhao Dong block in China's Bohai Bay (see map, OGJ, June 1, 1992, p. 30). On test, the C-4 discovery well flowed a combined 8,321 b/d of 34-38 [degrees] gravity oil...

Total SA. (production sharing deal with Indonesia's Pertamina)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Total SA signed a production-sharing contract with Indonesian state oil company Pertamina covering North Sokang block in the East Natuna basin, about 150 km northeast of Natuna Island in the South China Sea. Water depth on the 10,000 sq km...

Apache's. (oil discovery in Egypt's East Beni Suef concession)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Apache's Beni Suef-1X exploratory well on the 6.8 million acre East Beni Suef concession in Egypt's western desert flowed 5,200 b/d of 42 [degrees] gravity oil from a 40-ft Kharita interval at about 7,000 ft through a 48/64-in. choke with...

Lasmo plc. (wins Pakistani energy exploration concessions)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Lasmo plc, London, won three exploration concessions in Pakistan. Lasmo will hold 95% and the Pakistani government 5%. Pab concession covers 7,390 sq km and is sandwiched between Lasmo's Bela North and South concessions to the west and Kirthar...

Jordan Petroleum Refinery Co. Ltd. (names M.W. Kellogg to conduct feasibility study of expansion of Zerka refinery)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Jordan Petroleum Refinery Co. Ltd. (JPRC) selected M.W. Kellogg Co., Houston, to perform a detailed feasibility study on the expansion of Jordan's only refinery, a 100,000 b/d plant at Zerka. JPRC wants to upgrade the refinery to meet demand...

Santa Fe International Corp. (names Keppel Fels Ltd. to build universe-class jack up)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Santa Fe International Corp., Dallas, let contract to Singapore's Keppel Fels Ltd. for construction of a universe-class jack up for heavy-duty work in harsh environments. Work will begin immediately, with delivery expected in third quarter...

Unocal Thailand Ltd. (tests two gas wells in Gulf of Thailand's Moragot field)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Unocal Thailand Ltd. tested two gas wells in Moragot field in the Gulf of Thailand. This brings to four Unocal's number of successful appraisal wells drilled on Block B12/27 (OGJ, Jan. 21, 1991, p. 28). Moragot-3 flowed 11.1 MMcfd of gas and...

Azerbaijan's. (Chirag-1 oil platform in Caspian Sea to begin producing in October 1997)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Azerbaijan's Caspian Sea Chirag-1 platform will begin producing early in October, says Norway's Statoil. Statoil is a member of a group--Azerbaijan International Operating Co.--undertaking a phased development of Chirag, Azeri, and Guneshli...

Amerada Hess Ltd. (contract to ABB Vetco Gray U.K. for subsea wellhead and tree systems)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Amerada Hess Ltd. let a 50 [pounds sterling] million ($80 million) contract to ABB Vetco Gray U.K. Ltd., Aberdeen, for supply of a subsea tree and wellhead systems, with support services, for the next 5 years. Amerada said lead times for...

Thai Shell Exploration & Production Co. Ltd. (halts production at Nang Nuan well in Gulf of Thailand)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Thai Shell Exploration & Production Co. Ltd. halted oil production from Nang Nuan because of excessive water coning. This is the second time production at the one-well field in the Gulf of Thailand has been shut in (OGJ, Apr. 18, 1997, p. 73)....

Scotland's. (Shetland Offshore Environmental Services Ltd. to develop drill-cuttings processing plant for Atlantic Margin region)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Scotland's Atlantic Margin region soon will have a 1.5 [pounds sterling] million ($2.4 million) plant to process 20,000 metric tons/year of drill cuttings. The plant will be developed by Shetland Offshore Environmental Services Ltd., Lerwick,...

NTI Resources Ltd. (buys Sumatra's Benakat oilfield from PT Suryaraya Teladan)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... NTI Resources Ltd., Calgary, acquired the Benakat oil field in southern Sumatra, Indonesia, as part of a purchase agreement with PT Suryaraya Teladan (SRT). NTI purchased all shares of SRT from PT Abdi Nusaputra and will issue 750,000 new...

Russia's. (Bashneftegeophyzika and Tatneftegeophyzika in agreement with FXC Exploration Ltd. to form FXC Poisk)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Russia's Bashneftegeophyzika and Tatneftegeophyzika geophysical companies, based in Ufa and Bugulma, respectively, agreed to form a new company with FXC Exploration Ltd., Guild-ford, U.K. The new venture, FXC Poisk, will be based in Ufa and...

BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd. (to buy optical-fiber well management equipment from John Wood Group)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd. let a 2 [pounds sterling] million ($3.2 million) contract to John Wood Group pie, Aberdeen, to provide optical fiber well management equipment for 20 wells in its Eastern Trough Area Project development. Two...

Premier Oil plc. (deal with Boral Energy Resources for Australian exploration license farmouts)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Premier Oil plc acquired farmouts in a number of Australian exploration licenses under a deal with Boral Energy Resources Ltd., Sydney. Premier will take a 29.43% interest in Yolla discovery in the Bass basin off Australia. Premier says the...

A gas leak. (cause of explosion at National Plastic Co. plant in Saudi Arabia)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... A gas leak in a new furnace at National Plastic Co.'s Al-Jubail vinyl chloride monomer plant in Saudi Arabia caused an explosion that injured four employees. The two remaining furnaces resumed normal production about 24 hr after the accident...

Sasol Chemical Industries Ltd. (to build Sasolburg, South Africa, methanol plant)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Sasol Chemical Industries Ltd., a unit of Sasol Ltd., Johannesburg, will build a 140,000 metric ton/year methanol plant at Sasolburg, South Africa. The 100 million rend project involves converting an existing reactor to produce crude methanol,...

TransCanada International. (to have 49% stake in Thai petroleum products pipeline)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... TransCanada International (TCI), Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT), and other Thai investors are planning a 63,000 b/d, $361 million products pipeline from central Thailand to the northern and northeastern regions. TCI will have a 49%...

BHP Petroleum Pty. Ltd. (buys 7% stake in Bolivia-Brazil gas pipeline)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... BHP Petroleum Pty. Ltd. acquired a 7% interest in the $2.7 billion (Australian) Bolivia-Brazil gas pipeline (see El Paso Energy brief, p. 48). BHP will buy a direct share for $34 million and supply $154 million in nonrecourse project funding....

Japanese firms eye Alaskan LNG project stake. (Mitsubishi Corp. and Mitsui and Co. want 10% stake in project to export liquefied Alaska North Slope gas to Asia)
September 29, 1997... Mitsui & Co. and Mitsubishi Corp. are seeking a 10% stake in a proposed project to export Alaska North Slope (ANS) liquefied natural gas to Asia. The Japanese trading houses hope to negotiate a deal with Exxon Corp. and partners to import...

Petrochemical deals mark European shakeout. (partnership changes in Montell and Borealis joint ventures)
September 29, 1997... Europe's petrochemical's industry shakeout continues with disclosure of partnership changes in two recently formed giant joint ventures, Montell and Borealis. Royal Dutch/Shell has bought for $2 billion from Montell JV partner Montedison...

Price/demand strength buoys 1st half profits. (includes financial results for North American gas & oil companies)
September 29, 1997... Higher oil prices and increased petroleum product consumption have boosted first half profits for a sampling of North American oil and gas companies. Most of the increase was due to extremely favorable financial results in the first...

Water depth production record set off Brazil.(OGJ Special Production Report)
September 29, 1997... ABOUT THIS REPORT... This production report describes advances in technology that permit oil and gas production from deeper water and tighter and more complex reservoirs. Offshore Brazil, a well recently set a record for producing...

Technology tackles low-permeability sand in South Texas.(OGJ Special Production Report)
September 29, 1997... Through aggressive applications of advanced technology, Swift Energy Co. increased its natural gas and oil production from the AWP Olmos field in South Texas by more than fivefold in less than 2 1/2 years. At the same fume, it...

Permeability profiles provide new reservoir management tools.(OGJ Special Production Report)
September 29, 1997... New tools and interpretation techniques provide continuous well permeability profiles without coring or extensive well testing. These profiles obtained from wire line logs are ideally suited for reservoir description and management. ...

Canadian plant ups C3 recovery without more dehydration.
September 29, 1997... Poco Petroleums Ltd., Calgary, has enhanced propane recovery at its Wolf South plant, near Edmonton, without additional dehydration or external solvent make-up. This was accomplished with a 45-MMscfd addition that uses the Mehra...

Floating dry dock and wheel-on-rail system expedites jack up repairs.
September 29, 1997... A unique wheel-on-rail system and floating dry dock expedited leg removal and repair work on a Gulf of Mexico jack up. Sundowner Offshore Services Inc. contracted Ingalls Shipbuilding of Pascagoula, Miss., to replace the jacking gears...

To diversify its petrochemicals portfolio, GCC needs liquid feeds. (Gulf Cooperation Council)(Downstream in the Persian Gulf, part 3)
September 29, 1997... The utilization of condensates and refinery-derived feedstocks will fill the gap in the GCC's current petrochemical slate. But numerous opportunities exist for further development of the region's petrochemical industry during the next 20...

M-I Drilling L.L.C. (name change)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... M-I Drilling L.L.C. Houston, Tex., has changed its name to M-I L.L.C. This simple change was made to better reflect the company's directions and the markets it serves. M-I is no longer a drilling fluids company. It serves the...

Newpark Resources Inc. (acquisition)(Brief Article)
September 29, 1997... Newpark Resources, Inc., Metairie, La., has acquired Bockmon Construction Co., Inc., a Beaumont, Tex. based oilfield site contractor. Newpark Resources, Inc. provides integrated environmental and oilfield services to the exploration and...

Coastal lists Smackover, Sunniland objectives in gulf off Florida.
September 29, 1997... Coastal Petroleum Co., Apalachicola, Fla., has made public more details about its drilling prospects in the Gulf of Mexico off Florida. The company is in a many-year legal fight with the state to drill on an 880,000-acre band of leases...

New exploration concepts spark Swiss gas, oil prospects.
September 29, 1997... A recently completed data synthesis and evaluation[1] based on the interpretation of public well data and seismic lines and the application of modern basin-modeling tools upgrades gas and oil prospects in Switzerland. The study gives...

Look for winter weather to be the key driver of crude oil prices in the coming months. (London Centre for Global Energy Studies forecasts for winter of 1997-1998)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Look for winter weather to be the key driver of crude oil prices in the coming months, since Iraq's return to exports has not undermined prices. So says London's Centre for Global Energy Studies, which reckons world oil demand will...

World demand for jack ups and deepwater rigs continues to swell.(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... World demand for jack ups and deepwater rigs continues to swell (see related articles beginning on p. 45) Global Marine's (Glomar) August summary of current offshore rig economics (Score) registered a 1-month increase of 0.5% to 65.3...

Petro Source and MCN Energy subsidiary Mcnic Pipeline & Processing have formed a joint venture to develop CO2 pipelines, processing plants, and marketing projects in support of EOR projects. (enhanced oil recovery)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Petro Source and MCN Energy subsidiary Mcnic Pipeline & Processing have formed a joint venture to develop [CO.sub.2] pipelines, processing plants, and marketing projects in support of EOR projects. The new company, [PSCO.sub.2] LP, will...

Developments abound in South America's oil sector.(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Developments abound in South America's oil sector. A Petrobras official told OGJ that the company is reviewing its accounting procedures to be able to launch Level 2 or 3 American Depository Receipts (ADRs) in a year or so. "We...

The U.K.'s National Power plc says it will not convert its 2,000 MW Pembroke power plant in Wales to Orimulsion.(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... The U.K.'s National Power plc says it will not convert its 2,000 MW Pembroke power plant in Wales to Orimulsion. This is the second time in 2 weeks Pdvsa has seen its plans to export large quantities of Orimulsion thwarted (OGJ, Sept....

Southeast Asia's downstream is hurting from the double whammy of weak currencies and poor product demand.(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Southeast Asia's downstream is hurting from the double whammy of weak currencies and poor product demand. Since April, product prices have slipped while crude prices have risen, hurting refiners' bottom lines. The currency factor...

Japanese firms are stepping up energy and resource diversification. (Itochu Corp.; Tokyo Electric Electric Power Co.)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Japanese firms are stepping up energy and resource diversification. Itochu Corp. has reached an accord with Russian conglomerate Rosprom on a wide-ranging deal including oil product exports. Itochu will help Rosprom export...

Thailand has denied a press report that its negotiations have collapsed regarding purchase of natural gas from Indonesia's huge Natuna field and investment in a pipeline to deliver the gas.(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Thailand had denied a press report that its negotiations have collapsed regarding purchase of natural gas from Indonesia's huge Natuna field and investment in a pipeline to deliver the gas. Deputy Prime Minister and Industry Minister...

Counting the rigs.(Column)
September 22, 1997... Over the past 5 months, I have received more than a dozen calls from analysts, investors, and oil field managers asking how many rigs are actively drilling, how many are available, and what the differences are among the various rig-count...

Environmental justice.(Editorial)
September 22, 1997... The notion of environmental justice has escaped its jar in the Clinton administration and flitted into the real world of people and money. Before an outright infestation develops, someone should find an effective pesticide. Noting...

Elf aims to be a major player in Europe's deregulated gas market. (Elf Aquitaine Gaz)
September 22, 1997... Elf Aquitaine SA is honing its gas strategy to take advantage of the deregulation of European gas markets. At the same time, a careful approach is required to carve a substantial niche out of the highly nationalized French gas industry....

Rising LNG/LPG use to expand carrier fleets. (liquefied natural gas; liquefied petroleum gas; Ocean Shipping Consultants Ltd. report)
September 22, 1997... Global demand for liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas is expected to grow significantly to 2010. That will result in eventual growth of seaborne shipping capacity for both sectors. Large-scale expansion in the LNG...

Gas to pace Aussie energy demand growth. (Australian Gas Association report; includes related article on Chevron Corp. promotion for pipeline from Papua New Guinea)
September 22, 1997... Natural gas will be Australia's fastest growing energy source during the next 30-35 years, predicts the Australian Gas Association. AGA, Canberra, expects growth to average about 3%/year during 19972030. Gas is forecast to increase...

GRI: U.S. gas markets to continue to grow. (Gas Research Institute forecasts to 2015)
September 22, 1997... The Gas Research Institute says that the growth in U.S. natural gas markets during the last decade can continue in the long term but will be determined by electric industry restructuring, emissions regulation, and the expansion of gas...

Kansas gas producers facing huge payback. (ad valorem taxes on natural gas invalid; refunds to customers ordered by Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has ordered Kansas natural gas producers to refund consumers an estimated $500 million plus interest. FERC said Kansas producers included the Kansas ad valorem--or local property--taxes in the...

Galveston Bay gas prospects heating up.(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Two Houston independents will develop a large gas discovery in western Galveston Bay off Texas and will press exploration of more than a dozen other prospects there and in South Louisiana. TransTexas Gas Corp. and Davis Petroleum Corp....

DiBona to retire. (Charles DiBona, president of American Petroleum Institute; includes news of other associations' officers)(Column)
September 22, 1997... The American Petroleum Institute said last week that Red Cavaney, American Plastics Council president, will succeed Charles DiBona as API president on Oct. 1. Coincidentally, the three largest Washington, D.C.-based oil and gas...

U.S. refiners set more records. (American Petroleum Institute report)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... The American Petroleum Institute reports U.S. gasoline production averaged 7,999,000 b/d in August, a record for that month. API said overall refinery inputs were a record 15,322,000 b/d in August, and refinery utilization exceeded 98%....

U.K. taxation green herring. (Scotland's self-government not expected to push for taxes on offshore oil and gas)(Column)
September 22, 1997... At most Offshore Northern Europe (ONE) conferences down the years, one Scottish politician or another has claimed oil and gas off Scotland--and revenues from its exploitation--belong to Scotland alone and not the U.K. This year there was...

Latest Peruvian privatization sale back on track. (Empresa de Petroleos del Peru)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Petroperu SA's privatization committee has resumed the sale of bid documents, continuing to Oct. 7, for the auction of 10-year renewable contracts to operate the state company's oil terminals. The auction, which had earlier been...

Two U.K. North Sea developments approved.(UK Department of Trade & Industry approves North Sea oil field development projects of Kerr-McGee Oil (U.K.) PLC and Lasmo PLC)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Kerr-McGee Oil (U.K.) plc has received U.K. Department of Trade & Industry (DTI) approval to develop Janice discovery, which lies in 300 ft of water on U.K. North Sea Block 30/17. Elsewhere off the U.K., Lasmo plc has been given the green...

E&P sector spending still gaining momentum.(financing oil and gas exploration and production in 1997)
September 22, 1997... Oil and gas companies' 1997 spending plans at midyear indicated that the exploration and production sector could experience its strongest year since 1981 in terms of capital spending growth, according to Salomon Bros. Inc. Salomon Bros.'...

Amoco Corp.(to start exploration of gas field off Trinidad)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Amoco Corp. found another world-class gas field off eastern Trinidad. The Sparrow-1 and Sparrow-2 wells were drilled 40 miles southeast of Galeota Point in 215 ft of water to depths of, respectively, 10,430 ft and 9,108 ft. The wells cut more...

Triton Energy Ltd.(discovers gas field in Malaysia-Thailand joint development area)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Triton Energy Ltd., Dallas, discovered a seventh gas field on Block A-18 in the Malaysia-Thailand joint development area. Samudra is the third field discovered on the block this year (OGJ, July 7, 1997, p. 32; May 5, 1997, p. 52). The Samudra-1...

Swift Energy Co.(reports oil and gas exploration in Trinity County, TX)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Swift Energy Co., Houston, reported what it claims is the first successful horizontal Austin chalk well drilled in Trinity County, Tex. The well was drilled vertically to 9,800 ft, then 4,000 ft horizontally in the chalk. Great Western CMT No....

Eurogas Corp.(explored gas well in Tunisia)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Eurogas Corp., Calgary, spudded the 15,000-ft Nefta-1 exploratory well in south-central Tunisia's Sud Nefta permit area, reported 8% interest owner GHP Exploration Corp., Houston. Main objectives on the prospect, a 44,000acre structural...

Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc.(contract with Exxon Co. international affiliate for semisubmersible)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc., Houston, signed an 18-month contract extension with an Exxon Co. International affiliate for a fourth-generation semisubmersible, Ocean Valiant. The semi will be used in deep water off West Africa. The extension...

Energy Development Corp.(to develop gas field in Ecuador's Gulf of Guayaquil)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Energy Development Corp. (EDC), Houston, will start development of Amistad gas field in Ecuador's Gulf of Guayaquil with a $104 million investment. EDC just completed a 3D seismic survey of the area. Plans call for production of 60 MMcfd of gas...

Woodside Petroleum Group Pty. Ltd.(to develop oil fields in Timor Sea off Australia)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Woodside Petroleum Group Pty. Ltd., Perth, let the two remaining major subcontracts for development of Laminaria and Corallina oil fields in the Timor Sea off Australia. Coflexip Stena Offshore Asia-Pacific won a $60 million (Australian)...

Enterprise Oil plc.(to lease offshore oil production modules from Aker Maritime AS)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Enterprise Oil plc, London, issued a letter of intent to Aker Maritime AS, Oslo, for the lease of production modules to be used in development of Pierce field off the U.K. The plant will have capacity to produce 45,000 b/d of oil and will be...

Esso Production Malaysia Inc.(contracts with Fluenta AS for multiphase meters)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Esso Production Malaysia Inc., Kuala Lumpur, ordered two multiphase meters from Fluenta AS, Bergen, for the unmanned Seligi F and Tapis E platforms. This will be Esso parent Exxon Corp.'s first use of multiphase meters. The meters will be used...

Rio Alto Exploration Ltd.(to purchase Seagull Energy Canada Ltd.)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Rio Alto Exploration Ltd., Calgary, agreed to acquire the Canadian exploration and production subsidiary of Seagull Energy Corp., Houston. Rio Alto will purchase the stock of Seagull Energy Canada Ltd., for which Seagull expects to receive at...

Norway's Statoil.(contract with Aker Maritime AS to upgrade offshore oil drilling platform in Norwegian North Sea)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Norway's Statoil let a 180 million kroner ($25 million) contract to Aker Maritime AS, Oslo, for work on the Staffjord C platform in the Norwegian North Sea. Aker will upgrade the platform's water injection system to help boost production in...

Formosa Group. (building contract)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Formosa Group let a $98 million contract to Samsung Corp. to build a naphtha-based petrochemical plant in northern Taiwan. Work on the 900,000 metric ton/year ethylene plant will start in November, with completion scheduled for February 2000....

Saudi Methanol Co. (loan)(Brief Article)
September 22, 1997... Saudi Methanol Co., a unit of Saudi Basic Industries Corp., secured a $175 million loan from Export-Import Bank of Japan. The money will help fund construction of the company's fourth chemical-grade methanol plant at Al-Jubail. The plant will...