Offshore articles from March 2005

Offshore archives from March 2005

Seismic vessel demand gains strength.(Comment)
March 1, 2005... The seismic vessel market is bustling again after years of difficulty and consolidation. That's the consensus that Exploration Editor Victor Schmidt found in compiling this year's Seismic Vessel Survey ("Vessel market improves as industry seeks...

Active rig fleet, February 2005.(Global Data)(Illustration)
March 1, 2005... Active rig fleet, February 2005 Floaters Jackups US GoM 33 (+1) 103 (+1) Mex GoM 13 (0) 30 (-1) North Sea 35 (0) 31 (0) East Atlantic 2 (0) 1 (0) L. America 35...

GoM drilling permits issued.(Global Data)(General of Marines )(Illustration)
March 1, 2005... GoM drilling permits issued July 81 Aug. 90 Sept. 77 Oct. 77 Nov. 81 Dec. 78 Jan. 89 Source: US Minerals Management Service Note: Table made from bar graph.

This month Infield Systems looks at the trend of subsea wells.(Global Data)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... This month Infield Systems looks at the trend of subsea wells per greenfield development in shallow water ( The number of wells for each field represents the entirety of the field's life, West Africa is continuing through its deepwater...

Gulf of Mexico day rates.(Global Data)(Illustration)
March 1, 2005... Gulf of Mexico day rates Month/Year Minimum Average Maximum Drillship Feb 2004 $105,000 $164,204 $205,000 Mar 2004 $105,000 $160,398 $205,000 Apr 2004 $82,000 $164,577 $205,000 May 2004 ...

Murphy Oil Corp.'s deepwater Azurite Marine No. 1 exploration well hit oil off West Africa.(Africa)
March 1, 2005... Murphy Oil Corp.'s deepwater Azurite Marine No. 1 exploration well hit oil off West Africa. The exploration well, drilled in 4,531 ft of water in the Met Profonde Sud block offshore the Republic of Congo encountered significant oil pay in...

At long last the Nigeria-Sao Tome e Principe Joint Development Authority has begun awarding licenses.(Africa)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... At long last the Nigeria-Sao Tome e Principe Joint Development Authority has begun awarding licenses. Exxon Mobil Corp. subsidiary Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria-Sao Tome "One" Ltd., and its coventurers have signed a PSC to explore in...

Repsol YPF has won the right to explore and develop offshore block 16 in Liberia's first international bidding round.(Africa)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Repsol YPF has won the right to explore and develop offshore block 16 in Liberia's first international bidding round. Woodside Petroleum Ltd. subsidiary, Woodside West Africa Pty Ltd., won 100% interest in adjoining block 15. Last summer,...

The first well on Statoil's Snohvit development in the Barents Sea is now under way.(Europe)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... The first well on Statoil's Snohvit development in the Barents Sea is now under way. Transocean's Polar Pioneer semisubmersible, which has been on station since early December 2004, is due to complete the initial 10-hole drilling phase by...

While Statoil moves forward on Snohvit, Norsk Hydro is beginning exploratory drilling of the Obelix prospect, also in the Barents Sea.(Europe)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... While Statoil moves forward on Snohvit, Norsk Hydro is beginning exploratory drilling of the Obelix prospect, also in the Barents Sea. The exploration zone is 190 km offshore between the island of Bjornoya (a.k.a. Bear) off Norway's northern...

Kerr-McGee Corp. subsidiary Kerr-McGee China Petroleum Ltd. signed a production-sharing contract with CNOOC for block 43/11, which covers 2.4 million undeveloped acres in the South China Sea.(Asia-Pacific)
March 1, 2005... Kerr-McGee Corp. subsidiary Kerr-McGee China Petroleum Ltd. signed a production-sharing contract with CNOOC for block 43/11, which covers 2.4 million undeveloped acres in the South China Sea. Kerr-McGee holds a 100% foreign contractor's...

Total signed two agreements.(Asia-Pacific)(offshore exploration contracts)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Total signed two agreements to participate in exploring two offshore blocks off northwest Australia. Under the terms of one agreement with Australia's Woodside, Total takes a 30% interest in WA-269-P, 150 km offshore in 300-1,500 m water...

Saipem will soon begin work offshore Kazakhstan.(Central Asia)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Saipem will soon begin work offshore Kazakhstan. The company won a contract to install the offshore facilities system relating to the experimental phase of the Kashagan field development program in the Caspian Sea. The contract, awarded by...

India's offshore draws a crowd at the NELPV road show.(Global E&P)(New Exploration Licensing Policy)(foreign investments)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... A delegation from the Indian government, accompanied by representatives from India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd., drew a record crowd at the New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) V road show in Houston in January. India launched a...

Technip, in conjunction with Qatar's National Petroleum Construction Co. (NPCC), will be in charge of the engineering, procurement, and construction contract for the offshore facilities of the Qatargas II LNG plant expansion project.(Middle East)
March 1, 2005... Technip, in conjunction with Qatar's National Petroleum Construction Co. (NPCC), will be in charge of the engineering, procurement, and construction contract for the offshore facilities of the Qatargas II LNG plant expansion project. Qatar...

BHP Billiton reported first oil from the Angostura field offshore Trinidad in early January.(Americas)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... BHP Billiton reported first oil from the Angostura field offshore Trinidad in early January. Gas production began in mid December of last year. The new facility was commissioned on a rapid schedule, just 40 months after the discovery of crude...

Libya awarded its first oil exploration licenses to foreign companies in 18 years.(Mediterranean)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Libya awarded its first oil exploration licenses to foreign companies in 18 years following easing of US and European Union trade embargoes. More than 150 companies registered bids, with Occidental Petroleum Corp. of the US and Liwa of UAE...

License season in full swing.(Offshore Europe)(Frontier drilling and petroleum exploration license)
March 1, 2005... Frontier drilling is set for a flourish in northern Europe, following a series of license awards off Ireland and the Faroes. Norway, meantime, is opening up new North Sea acreage, as it bids to step up the pace of exploration. In January,...

Unocal's shallow gas plan.(Offshore Europe)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Unocal is looking to develop several shallow-lying gas reservoirs in the Dutch North Sea with a series of new platforms. The fields are strung out among blocks A/12a, A/18a, A12b-B/10a, B/13a, and B/16a, and were originally discovered by...

UK production decline slowing.(Offshore Europe)(North Sea offshore production)
March 1, 2005... UK North Sea production is declining more slowly than expected and exploration is picking up after a recent dip. These are two of several positive trends picked up by the UK Offshore Operators Association (UKOOA) in its latest review of...

First production of New Year.(Gulf Of Mexico)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... BP has begun oil and natural gas production from its Mad Dog development in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, approximately 220 mi south of New Orleans, Louisiana. BP designed Mad Dog, in 4,500 ft of water in Green Canyon block 826, to process...

Offshore LNG terminal.(Gulf Of Mexico)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... ConocoPhillips has submitted an application to the US Coast Guard for the construction of a new offshore LNG regasification facility in the GoM. The proposed Beacon Port Clean Energy Terminal will be in federal waters 56 mi south of the...

Production stabilizes.(Gulf Of Mexico)(hurricane damages drilling platforms)
March 1, 2005... This past year was marked by a 30-year high in oil imports, due in part to a record-breaking hurricane season, the Minerals Management Service reports. Oil and gas production in the GoM is expected to return to normal this year, following the...

Hydro awards subsea work.(Subsea/Surface Systems)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Hydro has awarded Aker Kvaerner a Nkr265 million contract for reconstruction of the Troll C platform to produce oil from the satellite Fram East field. Kvaerner Oilfield Products (KOP) will deliver the subsea installations for Fram East,...

2H Offshore to design riser monitor system.(Subsea/Surface Systems)(2H Offshore Engineering Ltd.)
March 1, 2005... BP has awarded 2H Offshore Engineering Ltd., an Acteon company, a contract to design and supply a monitoring and response evaluation system for the drilling riser on the oil company's Thunder Horse prospect in 1,800 m of water in the Gulf of...

Oceaneering buys ROV technology.(Subsea/Surface Systems)(Oceaneering International Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Oceaneering International Inc. has acquired SpiderBOT Remotely Operated Vehicle technology and assets from Dark Matter LLC. The technology enables completion of unique subsea missions using small ROVs, which achieved notoriety for conducting...

Mooring record.(Subsea/Surface Systems)(InterMoor Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... InterMoor Inc., an Acteon company, participated in setting a world record for a conventional mooring system in the offshore Sabah, East Malaysia, Todak-1 exploration well. The deepest leg of the 8-leg conventional mooring system reached...

Bourbon orders supply vessel.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)(Bourbon Offshore Norway)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Fosnavag-based shipowners Bourbon Offshore Norway have contracted Ulstein Verft AS to build an Utstein P105 supply vessel. Steel cutting was to begin the end of November 2004, with delivery scheduled for autumn 2005. Earlier this year. the...

Keppel FELS wins jackup contract.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)
March 1, 2005... Keppel Corp. Ltd. subsidiary Keppel FELS Ltd. landed a contract to build a KFELS B class jackup for Gulf Drilling International Ltd., Qatar's first national drilling company. The jackup Gulf-4, which will be built to Keppel FELS'...

Bollinger delivers mega mini vessel.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)(Bollinger Shipyards Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Bollinger Shipyards Inc. has delivered the M/V Capt. Rudy to Seahorse Marine Inc. of Lockport, Louisiana. The M/V Capt. Rudy is the first of a new vessel concept that was modeled from the original Bollinger 145-ft mini supply vessel design. ...

Aker yards busy.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)(Aker Brattvaag AS)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Aker Promar, a part of Aker Brattvaag AS, won a contract from NorSkan Offshore Ltda., Brazil, to build an anchor handling tug supply (AHTS) vessel. The vessel will be 80 m long and 18 m wide and will have the designation UT 722 L, designed by...

Kvaerner tagged for newbuild.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)(Kvaerner-Masa Yards Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Far-Eastern Shipping Co. has contracted Kvaerner Masa-Yards to build an icebreaking stand-by and supply vessel following a September 2003 contract with Kvaerner to design two such vessels. According to Kvaerner, the new vessel is 100 m long...

Coiled tubing, thru-tubing solutions.(Drilling & Production)
March 1, 2005... An independent Canadian operator has demonstrated that conventional coiled tubing can be used to perform downhole rotational and removal operations. Recent operations, as described by Gordon Mackenzie and Graeme Kelbie of Baker Oil Tools, came...

Second intervention.(Drilling & Production)(coiled tubing operations)(tubing rotary drilling methodology)
March 1, 2005... With the second of the planned coiled tubing operations, Baker attempted to clean out a liner obstruction in a well that had been sidetracked with a through-tubing rotary drilling methodology in conjunction with a custom designed 3.375-in. OD...

Waning wiggles?(Geosciences)(reflection seismic method)
March 1, 2005... Have we reached the end of the reflection seismic method? This was the question posed to me at a recent industry meeting. It set me thinking about how the "soundings" of the deep are produced and used, the constraints imposed by our processing...

NAPE.(Geosciences)(North American Prospect Expo)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Upbeat and active, the annual NAPE prospect expo brought thousands of explorers to hundreds of opportunities for hungry exploration companies to consider. The IHS Forum, which preceded the exhibition, showed the vast array of opportunities...

Norway survey.(Exploration)(oil and gas development)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Fugro Multi Client Services in cooperation with TGS-Nopec will acquire an additional 10,000-15,000 km of the Mid Norway Regional (MNR) 2D seismic survey (phase 2) in 2005. The MNR is shot as a 4x4 km UTM grid covering the majority of the...

Tunisia survey.(Exploration)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... PGS Geophysical AS began collecting a 2,540 line-km 2D survey in the Tyrrhenian basin of the Mediterranean offshore northern Tunisia. This area covers 25,000 sq km and will have a licensing in round 4Q 2005. The basin contains a fold thrust...

New Zealand survey.(Exploration)(oil and gas development)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Multiwave Geophysical will shoot a 100,000 sq km survey for the New Zealand government. The survey is part of a $15 million investment fund approved by the government in September to encourage new oil and gas development. The survey will extend...

Workstation.(Technology)(BOXX Technologies introduced processors.)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... BOXX Technologies introduced a workstation based on AMD Athlon 64 and AMD Athlon 64 FX-55 processors. The BOXX 3200 system includes the NVIDIA nForce 4 chipset, dual PCIe x16 SLI capable slots, 3 Gb/ s SATA, and expandable internal storage to 4...

Workflow.(Technology)(Schlumberger Information Solutions releases production workflow)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... Schlumberger Information Solutions (SIS) released a new Petrel PC-based exploration and production workflow. The Reservoir Engineering module allows creation and running of Eclipse reservoir simulation models from the integrated environment....

Cost evaluation.(Technology)(IHS Energy released new version of its Que$tor Offshore software)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2005... IHS Energy released a new version of its Que$tor Offshore software, recently rewritten using Microsoft's .NET development platform. The software has a cost calculation engine that uses IHS' field and basin databases as a starting point for...

Petrobras' profile moves toward light oil, gas, condensates: new discoveries change direction of investment.(Brazil)
March 1, 2005... Significant light oil discoveries in the last two years, including a major one in the Golfinho field announced in January, are changing Brazil's reserves profile. State-owned Petroleo Brasileiro SA forecasts that the current profile of reserves...

Deepwater wells: high production, high risk: risk assessment mitigates potential loss.(Operations/Management Information)
March 1, 2005... The oil and gas industry has always thrived on taking risks. That won't change. What has changed are the tools that formalize the risk analysis process. One of the greatest risks in deepwater is the risk of losing well control. A blowout...

Effective risk management facilitates accelerated deepwater development.(Operations/Management Information)
March 1, 2005... A clear understanding of upfront risks is a key component of accelerated deepwater development projects. The project team for the Zia subsea development in the Gulf of Mexico defined and documented all project risks at the beginning of the...

Design, engineering key to adequate fire protection.(Operations/Management Information)
March 1, 2005... As the search for hydrocarbons extends into deeper and more remote locations with larger production facilities, controlling fires becomes increasingly important for protecting personnel and preserving significant assets. While fire protection...

Water-based fluids approach synthetic capabilities: managing temperature, pressure effects.(Drilling & Completion)
March 1, 2005... Deepwater drilling poses significant additional challenges to the operator. Drilling fluid for a deepwater operation should have rheological properties that provide optimum hole cleaning along with minimum equivalent circulating density (ECD)...

Eastern GoM hub frees independent deepwater fields: six fields on fast track to development.(Production)(Eastern Gulf of Mexico)
March 1, 2005... Five independent exploration and production companies and a midstream energy company are on the fast track to producing gas in a deepwater Eastern Gulf of Mexico project. The Atwater Valley Producers Group, composed of Anadarko Petroleum...

Pemex orders AIS tracking system for Bay of Campeche helicopters.(Helicopter/Vessel Monitoring)(Aeroservicios Especializados S.A)
March 1, 2005... Saab TransponderTech has made the first delivery of its latest generation of automatic identification system (AIS) airborne transponders. The Saab R4A AIS has been purchased by Aeroservicios Especializados S.A. de C.V. (ASESA), an offshore...

Stabilized VSAT antenna extends options for data and accuracy.(Satellite Communications)(very small aperture terminal)(C2SAT Communications )
March 1, 2005... Developments in maritime satellite communications should bring users, including operators of drilling fleets and floating production systems, more efficient services at lower cost. VSAT--very small aperture--services are challenging the...

Software optimizes heat recovery.(Energy Efficiency)(Ecoterm Optima software)(www.coiltech.com )
March 1, 2005... Heat recovery in ventilation systems can be a good way of improving energy efficiency on offshore installations. Coiltech, a producer of heat exchanger and ventilation systems, offers not only heat recovery systems, but also a dimensioning...

Infra-red thermography enhancements improve scale formation control.(Inspection & Maintenance)
March 1, 2005... As the market for infra-red (IR) thermography grows, the cost of equipment is dropping, even though the technology is becoming more sophisticated. These developments enhance the benefits this technology has to offer the offshore industry,...

Crane monitor improves overload detection.(Piab develops Crane Safety Monitor)
March 1, 2005... A crane safety monitor (CSM) from Piab Sweden is helping to safeguard crane operations in offshore fabrication yards and shipyards. Piab is a specialist in overload protection, weighing, and force measurement. The CSM is an electronic...

Compact Divator apparatus is lighter and easier to operate.(Interspiro introduces respiratory protection equipment for underwater operations)
March 1, 2005... Interspiro, a specialist in respiratory protection for diving, fire-fighting, and general work in hazardous environments, has introduced a new range of scuba diving products of interest to the offshore sector. The Sweden-based company, owned by...

Multi-purpose brakes for vessels, drilling operations.(STL-modular braking technology )
March 1, 2005... A new stopping, turning, and locking system from Dellner Brakes provides controlled turning of propeller shafts during maintenance. The system, known as STL-modular, is being supplied to four anchor handling tug supply (AHTS) vessels under...

Compact jack provides high lifting capacity.(Simson Power Tools produces Simson Kompakt hydraulic jacks)
March 1, 2005... Simson Kompakt, the compact hydraulic jack produced by Simson Power Tools, is a powerful tool widely used in offshore fabrication yards and shipyards. Aker Stord in Norway is among the company's offshore customers, while one of the company's...

Stud solution aids mooring chain performance.(Ramnas Bruk hints on mooring system design)
March 1, 2005... Studlink or studless? According to chain-maker Ramnas Bruk, this remains a key question to address when specifying mooring systems for floating production units and mobile drilling rigs. In the past, concerns over studlink chain have led many...

MSS 6000 to monitor pollution on Canada's eastern seaboard.(Maritime surveillance system takes off)
March 1, 2005... Swedish Space Corp. has won its first order for MSS 6000, the latest generation of its maritime surveillance system. The C$2.3-million contract was awarded in December following a public tender by Transport Canada. SSC's maritime...

Vessel market improves as industry seeks new prospects: more boats back to work.(Vessel making to go up in tune with oil exploration)
March 1, 2005... The seismic vessel market is bustling again after years of difficulty and consolidation. The expanded exploration budgets of oil companies as they begin rebuilding their prospect inventories are encouraging the optimism and energy that began...

Worldwide seismic vessel survey.(Survey)
March 1, 2005... Worldwide Seismic Vessel Survey Year rigged or Total Total Vessel name converted length beam BGP/Noreen Shipping Ltd., Norway * Bin Hai 504 1988 ...

Northern Espirito Santo basin canyon models ancient sand transport: sequence stratigraphy, seismic attributes and depth imaging combined.(Northern Espirito Santo)
March 1, 2005... Two modern canyon systems used as analogs to model deepwater sediment fairways in the Cretaceous can predict which fairways in the Rio Doce deepwater canyon system of the Northern Espirito Santo basin off Brazil are sand-rich and which ones are...

Zero discharge: food for thought.(Beyond The Horizon)
March 1, 2005... In the current atmosphere of environmental awareness, we increasingly use the phrase "zero discharge" without giving much thought to its real meaning. Even in the strictly controlled North Sea OSPAR region, only drill cuttings generated using...