Archives for June 2018

Still ‘plenty of discoveries to be made’ on the Norwegian shelf

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The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) says new and larger discoveries will have to be made for Norway to maintain production of oil and gas after the mid-2020s. This was revealed in the Norwegian regulator’s 2018 Resource Report for Exploration, published on 21 June. The report concludes that there is much remaining oil and gas on the Norwegian shelf, providing significant opportunities in both mature and less explored areas. Increased knowledge, more and improved data, new work methods and new technology will create new exploration possibilities and can yield more profitable discoveries. However, the report warned that to maintain production over…

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Oil demand tipped to top 2 million barrels a day extra in 2H

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The worst kept secret in the oil world this week is how much Russia and Saudi Arabia plan to increase output to cool rising crude prices in the coming weeks, the popular estimation suggesting that the spigots could open up to about 700,000 barrels a day in the second half of 2018. Brent crude fell over 1.5% to US$74.21 at the start of this week and was 1.8% down on their last close, having initially risen on Friday after the OPEC agreement had failed to meet confirmed expectations of a 1 to 1.5million bopd increase - albeit without the meeting…

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New Harry Butler Science Centre opened on Barrow Island

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The Harry Butler Science Centre, named in honour of the Australian environmental pioneer, was officially opened on Barrow Island last week by Chevron and Murdoch University as partners of the University’s Harry Butler Institute. Representatives from Murdoch University, Chevron and the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions travelled to Barrow Island to launch the Centre and tour both Chevron’s oil and gas production facilities and the ‘Class A’ nature reserve of Bandicoot Bay. Murdoch University Vice Chancellor Eeva Leinonen said the new facility provided an essential resource for researchers and students to continue the late Harry Butler’s legacy of environmental…

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Global LNG capacity is set to soar

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Global liquefied natural gas (LNG) liquefaction capacity is expected grow 117% from 419 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) in 2018 to 907mtpa in 2022, according to data and analytics company, GlobalData. In regional terms, North America continues to lead in terms of planned and announced liquefaction capacity growth, contributing 82% of the total global growth. The region is expected to add 400 mtpa of liquefaction capacity by 2022. Africa and Oceania follow with expected capacity additions of 37 mtpa and 26 mtpa, respectively. From a country perspective, the US leads in terms of planned liquefaction capacity additions with 259 mtpa.…

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Wheatstone Train 2 whistles into motion

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Production has started from Train 2 at the Wheatstone Project’s onshore facility near Onslow in Western Australia. Woodside announced that production from the Chevron-operated LNG plant, fed by offshore gas from the lago, Julimar and Brunello fields, had commenced and was running smoothly Woodside CEO Peter Coleman said the safe start-up had demonstrated the success of the project as part of Woodside’s growth strategy and the company’s legacy of safely delivering domestic gas and LNG to Western Australia and the world for over 30-years. “We are very pleased Train 1 to date has run above nameplate capacity and we will…

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Cooper suspends Sole flow back due to foul weather

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Cooper Energy has taken a decision to suspend operations at its Sole well offshore Victoria in the Gippsland Basin due to adverse weather conditions. The E&P company said it had battened down the hatches after the Bureau of Meteorology had red flagged encroaching conditions that were “outside operating limits for the forthcoming weekend.” “In such weather conditions safe operations of the Sole flow back cannot be assured and therefore preparations for the flow back have been suspended until the weather forecast improves. It is expected the weather will result in an interruption to operations of three to five days,” the…

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OPEC trio ready to red card Russia and Saudi Arabia

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Saudi Arabia and Russia’s desire to open the spigots to cool the surging price of oil is heading for a World Cup style gang tackle from Iran, Venezuela and Iraq at the OPEC meeting in Vienna on Friday. According to Bloomberg, quoting Iran OPEC representative Hossein Kazempour Ardebili, any agreement to raise or cut output agreement requires unanimity from the Vienna meeting and any attempt at increased production will meet with resistance. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak has suggested a desired output of 1.5 million barrels a day is the target, while Saudi Arabia has flagged an increase of between…

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CGG Completes Mozambique Multi-Client Survey in Zambezi Delta

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CGG has completed acquisition of 15,400 km2 of 3D marine seismic data in the outer Zambezi Delta Basin, west of the Beira High. The survey area covers blocks Z5-C and Z5-D and surrounding non-held acreage. This is the first survey to be conducted following the agreement CGG signed with Mozambique’s Instituto Nacional de Petroleo (INP) in 2017 for the acquisition of a new multi-client program. CGG said the fast-track PreSTM data set will be available in Q4 2018 in anticipation of a licence round during 2019 and final PreSDM deliverables will be made available in Q4 2019. A JumpStart™ integrated…

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Dr Graeme Bethune

Local government “out of its depth” opposing oil drilling in the Great Australian Bight

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Independent energy consultant Dr Graeme Bethune, CEO EnergyQuest, contributed this article on exploration in the Great Australian Bight It’s ironic SA’s local government is being manipulated to oppose oil exploration in the Great Australian Bight. Councils’ claims, led by Kangaroo Island, include that they express the ‘voice of hundreds of thousands’, drilling threatens tourism, ecosystems will become dysfunctional and regulation will be poor. Local government has fallen under the spell of experienced propagandists, the Wilderness Society, which funded a visit to Norway by KI’s Mayor to protest Bight drilling and lecture Norwegians on the evils of oil exploration. The Norwegian…

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Equinor toasts its ‘first’ oil discovery at the Utsira High

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Norwegian multinational energy company Equinor, formerly Statoil, and partners Lundin and Spirit Energy have struck oil in the PL 167 licence at the Utsira High in the North Sea with a discovery estimated to contain 15-35 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalents. The wildcat well 16/1-29S is located in the central part of the North Sea and was drilled by the Deepsea Bergen drilling rig, which is now scheduled for appraisal drilling duties at another nearby well operated by Equinor, 15/3-10 in production licence 025. “We are very pleased to announce the first Equinor discovery,” said Nicholas Ashton, Equinor’s senior…

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