The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has approved Santos’ proposed acquisition of Quadrant Energy. Under the proposed transaction which was announced three months ago, Santos will acquire 100% of Quadrant Energy for $2.15 billion in addition to potential contingent payments flowing from the Dorado offshore oil discovery. After detailed investigation the ACCC said it was unlikely that the acquisition would result in a substantial reduction of competition in the supply of gas to users in Western Australia.
Company Updates
Fresh exploration potential in offshore Argentina highlighted in new study.
Explorers interested in Argentina’s upcoming offshore bid round will benefit from a new geological study which constrains the timing and structural context for Triassic to Early Cretaceous basin development prior to and during continental rifting of the South Atlantic Ocean. This new framework for basin evolution will inform exploration strategy and reduce investment risk in the unexplored and underexplored Argentina and Falklands regions. The Offshore Argentina and Falkland Islands SEEBASE® Multi-client Study and GIS is an integrated geological and geophysical study of basement and basin evolution on the Argentine Shelf.
ADNOC unveils $132 billion capex program targeting gas exports and increased oil production
The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s (ADNOC) announced, has announced plans to launch a new integrated gas strategy and increase its oil production capacity to 4 million barrels per day (mmbpd) by the end of 2020 and 5mmbpd by 2030 following approval from the Supreme Petroleum Council. The company also announced capital investment growth of $132.33 billion between 2019-2023 and new discoveries of 1 billion barrels of oil. ADNOC’s gas strategy will add potential resources that will enable the UAE to achieve gas self-sufficiency, with the aim of potentially transitioning to a net gas exporter.
Bass Oil achieves record oil production at Indonesia field
Bass Oil (ASX: BAS) has announced that it produced a record monthly oil production of 27,795 barrels of oil JV share, or 15,287 barrels Bass share, from its Indonesian Tangai-Sukananti KSO during the month of October. This represents an average daily rate of 896 barrels of oil per day, a 7% increase over the previous Joint Venture production record of 26,077 bbls set in October 2015 and a 63% increase over September 2018 production levels of 17,081 barrels of oil Joint Venture share.
Fast-Track PSTM Data from CGG’s Mozambique Multi-Client Survey available
CGG announced during Africa Oil Week that the fast-track 3D seismic data from its recent Mozambique multi-client survey in the outer Zambezi Delta Basin is now available for license. Interested international oil companies with an Africa focus can view the high-end data set in CGG data rooms in anticipation of the country’s 2019 licensing round. The data covers a 15,400 km2 area over blocks Z5-C and Z5-D and surrounding open acreage. It was acquired as part of a multi-client program agreed between CGG and Mozambique’s Instituto Nacional de Petroleo (INP) in 2017.
TGS announces Q3 results earnings per share up 78%
Oslo-listed marine seismic data providers TGS has posted a net income of $16,8 million for the third quarter of 2018, compared to 9 million in the third quarter of 2017, with net operating revenues of $140.7 million showing a decrease of 1% compared to $141.7 million in Q3 2017.
ExxonMobil’s third quarter earnings surge 57 percent
ExxonMobil has boosted third quarter earnings by 57 percent, buoyed by increased crude oil and natural gas prices compared to the corresponding period a year ago. In its financial report published on Friday, the supermajor said earnings had increased by 57% to US$6.2 billion in the third quarter compared to $3.97 billion in the same period last year. The company’s revenues rose to $76.6 billion from $61.1 billion in the previous corresponding period in 2017. Oil-equivalent production was 3.8 million barrels per day, down 2 percent from the third quarter of 2017.
Chevron doubles 3Q yield with record earnings
Chevron has doubled its third quarter earnings, spurred by higher crude oil prices, to US$4 billion compared to $2 billion in the third quarter of 2017. The U.S. supermajor reported that the current quarter included write-off, an asset impairment and a non-recurring contractual settlement totalling $930 million in the upstream segment. A gain of $350 million was recorded from the sale of southern Africa refining, marketing and lubricant assets. Foreign currency effects decreased earnings in the 2018 third quarter by $51 million, compared with a decrease of $112 million a year earlier.
Bass Oil on track for record monthly output
Bass Oil (ASX: BAS) has announced that during October it achieved sustained high daily oil production levels averaging almost 900 barrels of oil per day (bopd) Joint Venture share, at the Tangai Sukanati KSO. The Melbourne-based company said it was on track to challenge the previous Joint Venture production record for the KSO of ~26,000 bbls. The previous record was set in October 2015. “This compares favourably to September production levels of 17,081 barrels of oil Joint Venture share,” Bass Oil said. Bass has a 55% interest in the Joint Venture.
Pakistan’s Bahria University Benefits from CGG GeoSoftware’s Donation Program Promoting Geoscience Education
Postgraduate students at Pakistan’s Bahria University (Karachi Campus) can now conduct more complex research into quantitative geophysics thanks to the donation by CGG GeoSoftware of a full suite of its advanced geoscience software. Exploration & production companies around the world use this software to better understand the Earth’s subsurface, manage exploration and development risks, and maximize the potential of oil and gas reserves.