Offshore articles from May 2004

Offshore archives from May 2004

The North "Sea saw".(Comment)(North Sea market )
May 1, 2004... With all the recent discussion about revitalization on the North Sea, a new study published by venture capital company 3i points out that the movement of independent operators into the North Sea still has a long way to go before it can turn the...

Norway hoping for exploration upturn.(North Sea and Norwegian Sea blocks are being evaluated)
May 1, 2004... Norway's Energy Ministry is evaluating bids for 59 North Sea and Norwegian Sea blocks, submitted under its 18th Licensing Round. A total of 95 blocks had been made available, the largest number since licensing started in 1965, in an attempt to...

NPD urges subsea re-think.(Offshore Europe)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Most of Norway's newest discoveries and "fallow" fields lie close to platforms or subsea production facilities. Another NPD study has identified 1,000 prospects yet to be drilled, 65% lying in water depths of 400 m or less and within 50 km of...

Oilexco hits Brenda's sweet spot.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... A small Canadian oil company has made what appears to be Britain's biggest "new" discovery since EnCana's Buzzard. Calgary-based Oilexco's second appraisal well on its Brenda accumulation, in the Outer Moray Firth, flowed 4,785 b/d of...

UK broadens Shetland options.(Offshore Europe)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Britain has launched its 22nd offshore licensing round, inviting bids by June 3 for a record 1,039 blocks or part-blocks. Aside from the re-release of 20 blocks relinquished by previous licensees, the main feature of the round is a new...

Aker Kvaerner Operations has been appointed "duty holder" by Amerada Hess for its AHOO1 semisubmersible platform, until the end of the installation's working life.(Offshore Europe)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Aker Kvaerner Operations has been appointed "duty holder" by Amerada Hess for its AHOO1 semisubmersible platform, until the end of the installation's working life. This is based on the Ivanhoe/Rob Roy fields in the UK central North Sea, but it...

Oilfield bulletin: technology focus on perforating for optimal production.
May 1, 2004... Dynamic underbalance Conventional perforating relies on a large static pressure differential between wellbore and formation, or initial underbalance, to remove perforation debris and crushed-zone damage. Recent testing, performed in the...

Wellhead cutting technology.(Gulf Of Mexico)(subsea rotary drive system)
May 1, 2004... When permanently plugging and abandoning Gulf of Mexico wells in water depths to 2,264 ft, the Minerals Management Service (MMS) requires that operators remove the wellhead and casing to at least 15 ft below the mud line. Oceaneering...

Truss spar projects.(Gulf Of Mexico)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Contracts have been awarded for work on two truss spar projects underway in the Gulf of Mexico. Weatherford International Ltd. will install the special alloy production tubing and accessories and provide drill pipe, rental tools, and nitrogen...

Ultra-deep drilling record set.(Gulf Of Mexico)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... The Minerals Management Service reports a record number of drilling rigs are working in ultra-deepwater in the Gulf of Mexico. Twelve rigs are drilling for oil and gas in 5,000 ft of water or more. Deepwater oil and gas development in the...

Offshore LNG deepwater port buoy classed.(Gulf Of Mexico)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... ABS has contracted with Advanced Production and Loading AS of Norway (APL) to provide classification services for APL's submerged turret loading (STL) system, a single-point mooring system and a component of the industry's first offshore LNG...

Norway weighs subsea to beach.(Subsea/Surface Systems)
May 1, 2004... At the recent Intsok conference held in Houston, discussion centered around the Snohvit subsea-to-beach development. Experts representing different aspects of this ambitious project outlined the technical challenges faced with piping production...

Global pens Pemex pipe projects.(Subsea/Surface Systems)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Global Industries has received several pipelay contracts from Mexican operator Pemex E&P. The company has contracted GI subsidiary Global Offshore Mexico to install 29 km of 24-in. pipeline from Enlace to Uech A in the Gulf of Mexico's Bay of...

Composite drillable drive shoe applied offshore Borneo.(Subsea/Surface Systems)
May 1, 2004... BJ Tubular Services recently completed a contract for pile-driving services on Murphy Sarawak Oil Co.'s jackup-deployed platform off the west coast of Borneo. BJ said the project proved to be an engineering and operational challenge. The...

Dockwise puts new vessel to work.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)(Blue Marlin)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Dockwise Shipping BV took delivery of the Blue Marlin in late February after its conversion into the world's largest semisubmersible heavy transport vessel. The newly converted vessel can now carry cargos up to 73,000 metric tons. After a...

Rowan christens the Scooter Yeargain.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Rowan Companies Inc. christened the Scooter Yeargain jackup April 3, 2004. The new jackup is the first of the Tarzan-class rigs designed especially for shallow-water, deep drilling. The Scooter Yeargain is rated for 250 ft water depth and...

Jumbo Javelin joins the jumbo fleet.(Vessels, Rigs, Upgrades)(Jumbo Shipping)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Jumbo's first super heavy lift carrier, the Jumbo Javelin arrived Feb. 25 at the Huisman-Itrec yard in Schiedam, The Netherlands. Over the following two months, the vessel was to be outfitted with two 800-metric-ton mast cranes. It was to be...

Simulated downhole testing.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... The greater working depths and extended lives needed for intelligent well installations now drive the development of reliable electrical equipment and instrumentation for down hole and wellhead use in deep-sea oil and gas operations. The...

New integration platform.(Drilling & Production)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... A new integration platform for drilling and completions and production operations workflows has been designed and released. Landmark Graphics Corp., a wholly owned business unit of Halliburton, has developed The Engineer's Desktop, an...

RSS downhole test.(Drilling & Production)(Rotary Streerable Systems)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Precision Drilling Corp. has completed a successful downhole test of a new rotary streerable systems (RSS). The Revolution 4 3/4-in. rotary system designed and manufactured at Precision's research and engineering facility in Cheltenham,...

New full-rotation system.(Drilling & Production)
May 1, 2004... A new rotary steerable system includes a fully integrated high-torque power section that converts mud hydraulic power to additional mechanical power. Benefits of the new full-rotation system are fast drilling and a reduction in nonproductive...

New PDC bit performance.(Drilling & Production)(Polycrystalline Diamond Compact )(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Halliburton and its product service line Security DBS says it has released the Z3 polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) cutter technology for Fixed Cutter drill bits. Z3 technology a proprietary development made in conjunction with long time...

Marginal fields.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Oil fields deplete, but most have significant oil reserves remaining, trapped in the rock pores. The task of extracting the remaining reserves is more of an economic problem than a technical issue. There are many older "depleted" fields that...

Superconducting gravity.(Geosciences)(ARKeX Ltd)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... ARKeX Ltd., a spin-off of Oxford Instruments Plc and ARK Geophysics Ltd., is developing superconducting technology for an airborne gravity instrument, the Exploration Gravity Gradiometer (EGG). "Airborne gravity gradiometry gives oil and...

Deep GoM study.(Exploration)(Gulf of Mexico DeepShelf interpretation Project)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... TGS-Nopec has completed the eastern half of its Gulf of Mexico DeepShelf interpretation Project. The regional structural interpretation project, completed by Subsurface Consultants, maps horizons ranging from Lower Pliocene to Oligocene across...

Geomodeling.(Exploration)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Fugro-Jason has released RC&M, software for reservoir characterization and modeling. This technology integrates subsurface data to develop rock property/subsurface information to create a "seismically constrained geological model." RC&M...

Spatial exploration.(Technology)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Spotfire Inc. has released DecisionSite MapConnect, which enables users of ESRI ArcMap and Spotfire DecisionSite to conduct exploratory analysis of spatial data together with other attribute information. Supporting data may be scattered among...

64-bit workstation.(Technology)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... IBM has introduced a new computer workstation, the IntelliStation A Pro, developed in collaboration with Landmark Graphics, which offers 64-bit scalability with compatibility for 32-bit applications. It is designed for increased memory and...

E&P up on a global scale.(International Report)(exploration and production)
May 1, 2004... This year brings with it the promise of considerable exploration and production activity. Not surprisingly, investors have targeted West Africa for continued development. The region will see a significant percentage of the world's capital...

Australia and New Zealand increase exploration.
May 1, 2004... Australia is creating an attractive investment environment for foreign companies. Late last year, Australia's Ministerial Council on Energy approved the establishment of the Australian Energy Regulator (AER), replacing 17 state-based regulators...

Southeast Asia on an exploration binge.(International Report)
May 1, 2004... Billions of dollars are being spent on exploration and production in the Asia-Pacific region. India launched an enormous deepwater drilling program last year, and China continues to invest at home and abroad to supply its huge domestic need for...

Sizable discoveries keep focus on West Africa: high risk brings ample rewards.(International Report)(Oil and gas reserves)
May 1, 2004... Money continues to pour into West Africa. The region has tremendous potential, and improved stability in some of the most prospective regions is making investment in the region more secure. West Africa will see one of the largest increases in...

Guinea Bissau.(Emerging Areas)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Last December, Premier Oil reached agreement with Occidental Petroleum Corp. to farm out 40% of its 100% paying interest in blocks 2, 4A, and 5A offshore Guinea Bissau. Premier and Occidental were jointly granted two new licenses covering...

Republic of Guinea.(seismic data confirms existence of gas in the region)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... In late March, HyperDynamics Corp. subsidiary SCS Corp. completed reprocessing previously gathered seismic data. SCS also acquired and processed 5,000 km of digital long-array data on the Republic of Guinea's offshore. Results indicate there...

Sierra Leone.(Emerging Areas)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Australia's Woodside Petroleum extended its focus in Africa through an agreement to earn a 50% interest in two deepwater exploration areas off Sierra Leone owned and operated by Spain's Repsol YPF. During the initial phase of exploration up...

Liberia.(Emerging Areas)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... In early February, the National Oil Co. of Liberia (Nocal) released the details for the country's 2004 offshore bid round, which will close Nov. 1.The round includes 17 exploration blocks, covering 55,000 sq km, of which six blocks will be...

Cameroon.(first well in the offshore Ebodje block came up dry thereby influencing further exploration in the area)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Cameroon's first well in the offshore Ebodje block came up dry. The Ebodje block in the Douala basin offshore Kribi borders Equatorial Guinea, where the Ceiba project is moving into development. Perenco operates the block with 30% interest....

Namibia.(Emerging Areas)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Though there is an enormous amount of acreage open offshore Namibia, there has not been much activity. Vanco Energy has reportedly made plans to drill a well in the Namibe basin this year, but to date, there has been no activity.

Big budgets for Brazil and Mexico.(International Report)(Oil and gas reserves)
May 1, 2004... Exploration in the Mexican Gulf of Mexico took off last year, and E&P work will continue to be heavily funded through 2004. Brazil has allocated a significant sum to exploration and production work for the coming year. Trinidad and Tobago's...

Caspian Sea poised for growth.(International Report)(Oil and gas reserves)
May 1, 2004... The littoral states of the Caspian Sea just got another nudge toward resolving delineation. A visit from US Defense Secretary 1 Donald Rumsfeld in February 2004 could be a catalyst for change. Rumsfeld noted that the Caspian region is an area...

Mediterranean and Black seas to see more investment.(International Report)(Oil and gas reserves)
May 1, 2004... The North Sea is still an active exploration area, and new licensing structure offshore Great Britain could increase drilling activity. Norway is ramping up to develop Ormen Lange and is looking to the Barents Sea for additional development...

Satellite communications key to cost-effective support of remote operations.(Satellite Communications)
May 1, 2004... By centralizing data collection and distribution into a common support facility, specific location centers can facilitate the distribution of time-critical decision data to experts independent of location or time zone. Using satellite...

Underbalanced drilling with coiled tubing moves safe, efficient.(Drilling & Completion)(drilling-using-coiled-tubing technology)
May 1, 2004... Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij (NAM), a Shell-ExxonMobil joint venture, has used drilling-using-coiled-tubing technology (DUCT) to drill an underbalanced horizontal extension to a producing well while continuing production. NAM used coiled...

India gambles on deepwater play.(Drilling & Production)(Krishna Godavari basin)
May 1, 2004... The drillship Vijay Sagar has tested natural gas at a depth of 428 m in its first deepwater test of a new major campaign, in the Krishna Godavari basin in Indian waters. It is the first discovery in an ambitious deepwater drilling program...

Composite-lined tubing for water injection in the tough environment of the North Sea.(Production)
May 1, 2004... Statoil has developed internal specifications for the use of downhole tubing with composite material liners in the North Sea after an extensive test and pre-qualification program based on results from a well in the Norne field. The Norne...

Political action: success in the hands of industry employees: getting our workforce to the polls is the first step.(Special Report)
May 1, 2004... The motto "Your vote is your voice" is once again getting a quick dust-off in time for what will surely be one of the most hotly contested presidential elections since, well--the last presidential election, which was the closest in US history....

Getting out the vote.(Special Report)(Column)
May 1, 2004... It has been said that all government is an evil. It would be more proper to say that the necessity of any government is a misfortune. This necessity however exists, and the problem to be solved is not what form of government is perfect, but...

Fierce competition narrows supply vessel prospects: supply boat operators fear the future.(Support Vessels)
May 1, 2004... The past 18-24 months have been mediocre for the offshore supply vessel industry, despite robust oil and gas prices. Last year saw oil prices peak at over $35/bbl and natural gas at a one-day high near $20/Mcf, but averaging $6/Mcf. Even so,...

New system at Heidrun removes sulfate from seawater: nanofiltration provides upgrade to injection program.(Subsea)
May 1, 2004... Last November, the Heidrun TLP became the first Norwegian platform equipped to remove sulfate from seawater. The nanofiltration membrane system, supplied by Gloucester, UK-based Axsia (part of the NATCO Group), was installed as part of a major...

Well abandonment system speeds well closures: ship-based system reduces costs.(Subsea)
May 1, 2004... There are thousands of temporarily suspended subsea exploration and appraisal wells around the world that are redundant and require permanent abandonment. These wells, if not properly abandoned and the wellheads removed, are a potential...

DNV sets the standard for risk assessment.(Construction & Installation)
May 1, 2004... Oil and gas exploration is an inherently risky business, but much of the risk associated with E&P is quantifiable and manageable. Counter to common belief, however, managing risk is not just managing health and safety issues. Managing risk is...

Construction vessel marks debut with Snohvit templates.(Boa Offshore's product introduction)
May 1, 2004... Boa Offshore, the Norwegian towing, barging, heavy-lift and salvage operator, is close to introducing the first of two newbuild deepwater subsea services and construction vessels to the market. The Boa DeepC and Boa DeepC II can also be...

New LNG conversion technology expands terminal options: DOE research describes offshore salt cavern potential.(Pipeline & Transportation)(liquified natural gas)(Department of Energy)
May 1, 2004... Combining offshore LNG receiving terminals with gas storage in man-made salt caverns offers an opportunity to improve the security, economics, and scale of the LNG value chain in the US. With particular focus on the Gulf of Mexico, LNG...

Access and maintenance lifts.(Sweden technology profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Alimak specializes in rack and pinion-driven lifts for industrial locations and has more than 25 years' experience in offshore applications. The modular-built lifts are adaptable in size and capacity and do not need a machine room or lift...

Acid-proof unit heaters.(Sweden technology profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Coiltech's ATD Aero temper unit heater is now available also in acid-proof material for offshore and marine applications. Typical installations include workshops, changing rooms, galleries, and storehouses. Hot water as well as steam can be...

Drinking water treatment.(Sweden technology profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... E.C.T. Offshore Service provides comprehensive systems and services for treating drinking water offshore. Its systems operate on over 250 rigs and platforms, many of which have annual service contracts with E.C.T. Due to the company's close...

On/off-line turbine cleaning.(Sweden technology profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Gas Turbine Efficiency develops systems for cleaning gas turbines, which minimize environmental impact by keeping C[O.sub.2] and N[O.sub.X] emissions as low as possible. The GTE concept provides a high degree of atomization of heated water with...

Hydraulic drives.(Sweden technology profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Hagglunds hydraulic drive systems are engineered to perform under severe conditions and to provide reliable power to applications above or below the water fine. The company's high torque, low speed motors have a very low moment of inertia and...

Living quarters materials.(Sweden Technology Profiles)(Isolamin AB, Momec AB, Premec AB)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Isolamin, Momec and Premec are fabricators and worldwide suppliers of floating floors, walls, ceilings, doors, and wet units for offshore vessels and platform/fig accommodation modules. All products are designed to complement each other and are...

Hot isostatic pressing.(Sweden Technology Profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Metso Powdermet has won several challenging contracts from the offshore sector in recent years. It supplies HIPed near-net shape products from the world's largest hot isostatic processing facility, in Surahammar, Sweden. Main applications are...

Accommodation modules.(Sweden Technology Profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Pharmadule Emtunga is a leading supplier of offshore accommodation modules. Between 2002-04, it will have delivered more than 10 such modules to installations in the North Sea, Caspian, Gulf of Mexico, and Far East. The company fabricates to...

Drill hole survey systems.(Sweden Technology Profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Reflex Instrument was established in 1984, and is today one of the world's leading manufacturers of drill hole survey instruments. The company currently makes five main products: Reflex Maxibor, Reflex EMS, Reflex EZ-Shot, Reflex EZ-AQ/EMS, and...

Spill-free handling.(Sweden Technology Profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Todo has been making and supplying couplings and valves for the oil and chemical industries for over 30 years. Its most notable product is the Todo-Matic Dry Break coupling, designed for spill-free connection and disconnection where aggressive...

Volvo Penta.(Sweden Technology Profiles)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Volvo Penta is one of the world's leading suppliers of marine engines for professional use. With outputs ranging from 100 to 2,000 hp, the company offers an extensive range of engines for powering everything from small, fast rescue and patrol...

Bureau Veritas analyzing stresses on tandem-moored and converted floaters.(France)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Offshore operators are turning to Bureau Veritas for analysis of structural issues associated with FPSOs. "We have worked on a lot of new floater-based developments these past three years," says Franck Legerstee of BV's Marine division,...

Angola deepwater FPSO tailored to shipyard work processes.(France)
May 1, 2004... Pre-2000, Doris Engineering was best known for its fixed platform concepts and designs. But since the turn of the century, many of the man-hours at headquarters in Paris have been taken up with floating production projects. The recent reference...

Fabricator's focus switches to modular living quarters.(France)
May 1, 2004... Over the past three years, Eiffel's fabrication powers have been tested in four diverse offshore projects. The last of these, a workover rig for a Libyan gas field, is due for delivery late this summer. The unusually busy schedule for the...

Water-driven technique quickens recovery from sunken tankers.(France)
May 1, 2004... An ROV-operated oil recovery system could cut pollution from sunken tankers by at least 70%, says its inventor, Jean-Luc Dabi. The JLMD system, which has been in development for the past four years, has had its basic principles verified by...

French offshore contractors start year with major contracts.(France)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... This year has started well for France's leading offshore engineering contractors. Both Technip and the Paris-based division of Stolt Offshore have picked up some of their most prized orders to date. These include: * A $730-million contract...

FPSO monitoring technique improves damage tracking and prevention: long-life duration without human intervention.(France)
May 1, 2004... Offshore contractors are interested in the feasibility of installing permanent monitoring systems for floating production platforms. These structures are expected to be at sea for long periods (typically 20 years) without being brought to...

Synthetic grooves for winch cut mooring abrasion.(France)(Kley France' product information)
May 1, 2004... Ultra-deepwater synthetic rope moorings are suffering damage during installation and pull-out, due to friction imparted by the winch system. Depending on the level of tension exerted, some ropes can be written off after just one deployment. ...

Flexible riser connections adapted to testing deepwater applications.(France)(Hydrogenated acroNytrile Butadiene Rubber)
May 1, 2004... Over the past five years, Techlam, based in Cernay, eastern France, has developed a range of flexible connections for deepwater applications. Parent company Snecma Moteurs is a specialist in rubber materials, which it has also adapted for...

Total takes oilfield E&P to the city.(France)(exploration and production)
May 1, 2004... Paris' Cite des Sciences et de l'Industrie science center is staging a six-month exhibition, designed in partnership with French oil company Total, to improve public perceptions of the oil industry. "Oil, New Challenges," the second featured...

Joint projects probing pipe-in-pipe impairment, flow assurance concerns.(France)
May 1, 2004... Production from deep offshore oil and gas fields often requires good thermal insulation to limit the risk of hydrate formation or wax deposition. Pipe-in-Pipe structures (PIP) are one of the most effective solutions for obtaining low thermal...

More flights to remote sites.(France)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Air France has launched Dedicate, a new series of scheduled routes and direct flights to some of the more remote oil and gas centers in Asia and West Africa. Subject to granting of air traffic rights, the company plans to offer twice...

Deepwater Mediterranean test site taking shape.(France)
May 1, 2004... Dynamic behavior of prototype risers, umbilicals, and mooring systems for deepwater use is normally analyzed on computers or on scaled-down models in test basins. These trials can never provide a true picture, however, as no facility is...

Shock absorbers ease deck-jacket transfer: almost unlimited vertical loading.(France)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Heavyweight platforms are subject to extra stresses during float-over operations. Paulstra, a specialist in vibration suppression/shock absorption, has contributed to some of the most ambitious installations of recent times in West Africa and...

Customized grout secures Valhall piles: high degree of mechanical strength.(Denmark)
May 1, 2004... Aalborg-based Densit produces the Ducorit range of grouting materials, which are claimed to offer a high degree of mechanical strength, low shrinkage, and low heat of hydration. These properties in turn lead to increased compressive strength...

Dry/wet friction braking.(Denmark)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Over the past four years, Svendborg Brakes has been developing the SWET Brake, which combines dry and wet friction braking in one system. A wet brake is a totally encapsulated braking system featuring fluid inside a chamber with a brake disc...

US Navy research overcomes seismic streamer constraints: 'birds' to fly no more.(Geology & Geophysics)
May 1, 2004... For years, the geophysical industry has used expensive "birds," attached to its towed acoustic streamers, for maintaining depth, measuring depth and magnetic heading, and determining the slant range to other birds and reference points. Although...

PRAC maximizes research results through 'clusters of excellence'.(Management & Economics)(Petroleum Research Atlantic Canada)
May 1, 2004... Academia, government, and industry are pooling their resources to increase petroleum related research in Atlantic Canada. Petroleum Research Atlantic Canada (PRAC) is one means to that end. PRAC's goal is to foster, fund, and facilitate...

One more way to improve cost efficiency offshore.(innovations in seismic and drilling technology )
May 1, 2004... The latest innovations in seismic and drilling technology can reduce the time and cost to drill a well offshore. This drive for continuous cost reduction provides long-term benefits to both the oil and gas companies and their service...

Tubing-conveyed borehole deployment isolates seismic sensors.(Equipment & Engineering)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... A new technology allows seismic sensors that are acoustically isolated from flow-noise to be placed in live wells as part of the completion, allowing continuous seismic reservoir monitoring, the system developer says. The common industry...

BP.(Business Briefs)(British Petroleum Company PLC)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... The board of BP has announced that Dick Olver will relinquish his role as deputy CEO and will step down from the board on July 1. Olver, who has been with BP for 30 years, will be retiring from BP to take the position of chairman of BAE...