Sonangol Plans to Downsize
Angola's state oil company Sonangol plans to divest 52 joint ventures, reduce staff and focus on its core business, part of an ongoing reorganization and package of reforms designed to lure back investors, its chairman said on Friday."We are going to sell, close or put out of our group a lot companies," Carlos Saturnino told an oil conference in Paris.
US Rig Count Dips
U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for the first time in three weeks as production growth forecasts from shale, the country's largest oil fields, continue to shrink.Drillers cut eight oil rigs in the week to April 18, bringing the total count down to 825…
Chrysaor to Buy ConocoPhillips’ UK Assets
Chrysaor has reached a deal to acquire ConocoPhillips’ oil and gas exploration and production assets in the UK for $2.675 billion, the companies announced on Thursday.Full-year 2018 production and year-end 2018 proved reserves associated with the assets being sold were approximately 72,000…
Wintershall Wins Argentina Offshore Bid
Germany's largest crude oil and natural gas producer Wintershall won the bidding process for two blocks in the promising Malvinas Basin off the coast of Tierra del Fuego as part of the “Costa Afuera” licensing round.In addition to the CMA-1 exploitation concession, with this award, the company…
ExxonMobil Wins 3 Blocks Off Argentina
U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil Corp said that its unit and an affiliate of Qatar Petroleum had won three exploration blocks offshore Argentina.ExxonMobil has increased holdings in Argentina after its subsidiary ExxonMobil Argentina Offshore Investments B.V. and an affiliate of Qatar Petroleum…
Santos Finds Gas Off Western Australia
Santos announced Tuesday it has confirmed significant gas resource in the Corvus-2 appraisal in the Carnarvon Basin, offshore Western Australia.Corvus-2 is located in 63 meters water depth, approximately 90 kilometers northwest of Dampier in Commonwealth waters within petroleum permit WA-45-R…
Vermilion to Drill Exploration Wells in Central Europe
Canada's Vermilion Energy will drill its first two exploration wells in Croatia in June, a senior official from the company said on Monday. Vermilion won four licences in 2015 for oil and gas exploration in Croatia's flat northeastern areas and the drilling will take place on one of these."Although…
Woodside Expands LNG Supply
Australian exploration and production company Woodside has opened a liquefied natural gas (LNG) truck loading facility at its Pluto LNG project in Western Australia (WA), as it looks to develop the domestic LNG market for remote power generation and transport fuels.The Pluto LNG project is located 190km north-west of Karratha in WA…
Danos Awarded Major Permian Contract
Danos has been awarded a significant contract across multiple services lines with a Texas-based, independent exploration and production company. The project will leverage Danos’ Amelia Integrated Services Complex to fabricate piping and structural components which will then be shipped to the installation site in Midland…
Chevron to Buy Anadarko for $33 Bln
Chevron Corp on Friday said it will buy oil and gas producer Anadarko Petroleum Corp for $33 billion in cash and stock in a deal that doubles down on its bet on U.S. shale and LNG as U.S. energy production is shattering records.The deal makes Chevron the second-largest major by crude production, behind Exxon Mobil Corp, up from fourth.
Gazprom’s Arctic Offshore Platform Hits Milestone
Russian shipping company Sovcomflot (SCF Group) said that the Arctic shuttle tanker Mikhail Ulyanov loaded the milestone 10-millionth tonne of commercial oil produced at Prirazlomnaya offshore platform in the Pechora Sea.The energy shipping companies, specialising in the transportation of crude oil…
Brazil Government to Pay Petrobras $9 Bln
The Brazilian government reached a landmark deal to pay state-controlled oil company Petróleo Brasileiro SA $9.058 billion for revising a transfer-of-rights oil contract, Energy Minister Bento Albuquerque said on Tuesday.Albuquerque told reporters after a meeting in Brasilia that the agreement…
Genel Energy Names Higgs CEO
Genel Energy Plc named oil veteran and Chief Operating Officer Bill Higgs as its top executive, the oil and gas exploration and production company said on Monday.Higgs' appointment as chief executive officer comes as the company, the largest holder of reserves and resources in Iraq's Kurdistan region…
US Rig Count Climbs
U.S. energy firms this week increased the number of oil rigs operating for the first time in seven weeks after oil futures soared nearly 40 percent this year.Companies added 15 oil rigs in the week to April 5, the biggest increase since May, bringing the total count to 831, General Electric…
Shell Faces Lawsuit From Environmentalists
Environmentalist and human rights groups said on Friday they had started a lawsuit against Royal Dutch Shell in the Netherlands to force the energy firm to cut its reliance on fossil fuels.The groups, including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth Netherlands, handed over a court summons to Shell at its headquarters in The Hague, demanding it stop extracting
Lebanon Announces Offshore Blocks
Lebanon announced on Friday five offshore blocks to be included in its coming bidding round for energy exploration and production licences, including four along disputed maritime borders.Offshore energy development has been a central ambition for successive governments in cash-strapped Lebanon…
Ecopetrol, Repsol Sign Joint Deal for Offshore Oil Block
Colombia's state-run oil company Ecopetrol has signed a joint contract with Spain's Repsol to operate an offshore block in the Caribbean, Ecopetrol said on Wednesday.The contract for the GUA-OFF-1 block is the second new offshore deal Ecopetrol has inked with the Colombian government this…
NPD Report on High North Offshore
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), Norwegian government agency responsible for the regulation of the petroleum resources on the Norwegian continental shelf, has presented a report on petroleum activity in the High North at the Barents Sea conference.The report titled "Petroleum activity…
E&P Sector Hits Record Free Cash Flow
The world’s publicly listed oil and gas companies are bringing in cash at the best rate ever witnessed even though oil prices have only partially recovered from the huge drop suffered in 2014 and 2015.According to a report by Rystad Energy, energy research and business intelligence company…
Petrobras to Bid in Israeli Gas Tender
Israel's energy minister said on Sunday that Brazilian state-run oil firm Petrobras will take part in a tender to explore for oil and gas off Israel's shore, Reuters reports."It was agreed that Petrobras ... will take part in a process of oil and gas exploration in Israel," Energy Minister…
Bourbon Wins Shell Contract in Bulgaria
Bourbon Marine & Logistics said on Thursday it has been awarded a contract from Shell to support the oil major's exploration drilling in the Black Sea offshore Bulgaria.The French services company said its project scope covers the full logistics solution project management, offering for the…
Shell Starts Exploratory Drilling off Bulgaria
Royal Dutch Shell said on Tuesday it will start drilling an exploration well in a block off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast next month for oil and gas.Shell has teamed up with Spain's Repsol and Australia's Woodside Energy after sealing a contract with Bulgaria in 2016 for deepwater exploratory…
Sinopec to Develop Weirong Shale Gas Field
Sinopec Corp, China's biggest shale gas operator, said on Monday it plans to develop a new field this year able to produce 1 billion cubic meters (bcm) of shale gas annually.The state-run company said the field will tap a proven reserve equivalent to 124.7 bcm of gas at Weirong in the southwestern province of Sichuan.
US Rig Cuts Continue
U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for a fifth week in a row to its lowest in nearly a year as independent producers follow through on plans to cut spending on new drilling with the government cutting its growth forecasts for shale output.Drillers cut nine oil rigs in the week to March 22…
Murphy Oil Sells Malaysian Assets
Murphy Oil Corp said on Thursday it is exiting Malaysia with the $2.13 billion sale of its oil and gas assets to a Thai company and will use the deal proceeds to pay down debt, buy back shares and fund potential deals in the United States.The buyer, PTT Exploration and Production Public Co Ltd…
The Decommissioning, Marine Life Connection
Data sharing and better understanding of how marine life interacts with manmade structures is the target for the next phase of the Insite program.What to do with offshore structures is a sticky problem for oil companies, regulators and policy makers alike, as many structures are starting to cease production in the North Sea…
Energean Facing Delays at Epsilon
Energean trimmed the top end of its 2019 production forecast after facing delays at its Epsilon well in Greece, the oil and gas producer said on Thursday.Energean expects to produce between 5,000 and 5,500 barrels of oil per day in 2019, compared to its earlier outlook range of between 5…
Oil Majors Rush to Dominate US Shale
In New Mexico's Chihuahuan Desert, Exxon Mobil Corp is building a massive shale oil project that its executives boast will allow it to ride out the industry's notorious boom-and-bust cycles.Workers at its Remuda lease near Carlsbad - part of a staff of 5,000 spread across New Mexico and Texas - are drilling wells…
US Lease Sale a Test for Drilling Demand
The Trump administration will hold its fourth major auction for oil and gas leases in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday, in a fresh test of demand from drillers that have lately been shying away from the region.The outcome of the lease sale will provide the last big signal from the industry about their interest in U.S.
Norway Oil Exploration Refunds Are Not State Aid -ESA
Norway's regulations allowing oil and gas companies to claim refunds for exploration spending do not constitute state aid, the European Free Trade Association Surveillance Authority (ESA) said on Wednesday."Having scrutinized it on the basis of a comprehensive complaint, ESA is satisfied that this tax rule does not entail state aid…
Brazil Likely to Pay Petrobras $10 Bln
The Brazilian government is likely to pay around $10 billion to state-run oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA to settle the so-called 'transfer-of-rights' dispute, newspaper Valor Economico reported on Tuesday, though the parties have not agreed on final terms.The financial daily, citing a source with knowledge of the matter…
Mexico to Invite 4 Firms to Bid on Pemex Oil Refinery
The Mexican government will invite four companies to bid in a restricted tender for work building the new Dos Bocas refinery for state oil company Pemex, Energy Minister Rocio Nahle said at a news conference on Monday.Dos Bocas would be Pemex's seventh domestic refinery and is intended to help wean Mexico off growing fuel imports…
Pemex CEO Questions Ratings Downgrade
The chief executive of Mexican state oil company Pemex on Monday questioned credit agency downgrades to the firm's debt, saying the same agencies had not acted when the company's investment and oil exploration activity diminished under past governments.Octavio Romero Oropeza, speaking at a news conference, said investment in the struggling company was expect
US Rig Count Lowest Since April 2018
U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for a fourth week in a row with drilling slowing to its lowest in nearly a year, prompting the government to cut crude output growth forecasts.Drillers cut one oil rig in the week to March 15, bringing the total count down to 833…
Seismic Shoot Offshore South Africa Begins
Africa Energy Corp., an oil and gas company with exploration assets offshore South Africa and Namibia, has announced the start of a new 3D marine seismic acquisition programme over the Paddavissie Fairway on Block 11B/12B offshore South Africa.The Brulpadda discovery is located on Block 11B/12B…
BHP to Drill More Wells in Trinidad
BHP Group Ltd has stepped up exploration drilling in deep water off Trinidad and Tobago hunting for gas which could supply the country's Atlantic LNG (liquefied natural gas) plant in the 2020s, a senior executive said.The company expects to complete drilling of three wells in block 14, located in its northern contract area…
Norway to Offer More Arctic Exploration Blocks
Norway plans to expand the offshore oil and gas acreage offered to companies under its annual licensing round in so-called predefined areas (APA), oil minister Kjell-Boerge Freiberg said on Thursday.The 2019 APA round will offer 90 new blocks, of which 48 are in the Arctic Barents Sea, 37 are in the Norwegian Sea and 5 in the North Sea…
Wellesley Hits Dry Well in North Sea
Norwegian oil and gas exploration company Wellesley Petroleum has drilled another dry well in the Norwegian section of the North Sea, 220 kilometers northwest of Stavanger.The explorer for oil and gas sees second dry well this year with latest probe using semisub Transocean Arctic. "Following…
Repsol, Emerson Pact for Geoscience R&D
Emerson and Repsol announced they have established a strategic alliance to deliver advanced subsurface geophysical technologies to reduce the time to prospect and produce first oil.Emerson, a global engineering and technology company, will work collaboratively with Spanish energy company…
Eni Makes Major Oil Find Offshore Angola
Italian oil major Eni said on Wednesday it has made a major discovery in Block 15/06, in the Agogo exploration prospect, in the deep waters offshore Angola.The find is Angola's largest offshore discovery in years. Eni said the discovery is estimated to contain between 450 and 650 million…
Large Oil Firms Invest in Shale
Oil majors are readying themselves for the energy transition by investing in shale and waiting for renewable technology to be economical, said Rystad Energy, energy research and business intelligence company.A recent review of 2019 capital budgets reveals that oil majors are the only group…
Colombia, Shell Ink Offshore E&P Contracts
Colombia's government on Monday said it signed two exploration and production contracts with Shell in offshore areas of the Caribbean Sea that will require the company to make initial investments of $100 million.Colombia recently modified contractual terms for offshore exploration and launched a Permanent Area Allocation Process so companies can apply to exp
British Oil, Gas Output Rose 4% Last Year
British oil and gas production rose 4 percent to 1.7 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2018 compared with the previous year, according to the Oil and Gas Authority, an industry regulator."The Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) now projects total cumulative UK hydrocarbon production from 2016 to 2050 to be 3.9 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) more
PTTEP Makes Gas Discovery in Off Australia
Thai oil and gas company PTT Exploration and Production Public Company Limited (PTTEP) has made a gas and condensate discovery at the Orchid-1, the first exploration well in Permit AC/P54 located in the Timor Sea, Australia.Phongsthorn Thavisin, President and Chief Executive Officer of PTTEP disclosed that PTTEP Australasia (Ashmore Cartier) (PTTEP AAA)…
U.S. Drillers Cut Rigs to Lowest Level since May
U.S. energy firms this week cut the number of oil rigs operating for a third week in a row to the lowest level in 10 months as independent producers follow through on plans to cut spending even though oil majors plan to spend more.Drillers cut nine oil rigs in the week to March 8, bringing the total count down to 834…
Norway Fund to Sell E&P Firms
Norway's trillion-dollar sovereign wealth fund, the world's biggest, will sell its stakes in oil and gas explorers and producers but still invest in energy firms that have refineries and other downstream activities, according to a government plan.The proposal announced on Friday said the fund's stakes in integrated companies…
Mossel Bay Port Ready to Serve Total
South Africa’s smallest commercial port, the Port of Mossel Bay is well equipped to provide value following global energy giant Total’s significant gas condensate discovery on the Brulpadda prospects, located on Block 11B/12B in the Outeniqua Basin, 175 kilometres off the southern coast of South Africa…
Plexus Bags Gazprom Contract Via Gusar
Aberdeen-based oil well technology firm Plexus Holdings said its Russian licensee Gusar had clinched its first major contract to supply gas exploration equipment to Gazprom.The contract covered the first year of an up to five-year jack-up gas exploration drilling programme on the Kara Sea Shelf.Under the terms of a 2016 licence agreement with Gusar…
BW Offshore Cleared to Buy Brazil Oilfield
Norway's BW Offshore has won approval from Brazil's antitrust watchdog Cade to buy the Maromba oilfield from Petrobras and Chevron, according to a statement in the official gazette on Wednesday.Petrobras has a 70 percent stake in the field, while Chevron has a 30 percent stake."The transaction represents an opportunity for BW to enter and start its activitie
BW Offshore Approved to Buy Brazil Oilfield from Petrobras, Chevron
Norway's BW Offshore has won approval from Brazil's antitrust watchdog Cade to buy the Maromba oilfield from Petrobras and Chevron , according to a statement in the official gazette on Wednesday.Petrobras has a 70 percent stake in the field, while Chevron has a 30 percent stake."The transaction…
Ecopetrol Wins Offshore Colombia Block
Colombia’s state-run oil company Ecopetrol SA has signed Colombia’s first offshore exploration and production contract under a newly revised contract model.According to a report in Reuters, the deal for a nearly 400,000-hectare (988,000-acre) bloc in the Caribbean is country’s first new oil…
Chevron Expects 3-4% Annual Output Growth
U.S. oil major Chevron Corp said on Tuesday it expects its annual production to grow in the range of 3 percent to 4 percent through 2023, boosted by strong performance in the country's top shale region, the Permian basin.The company expects shale production from the basin to reach 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) by the end of 2020…
Asia: Pertamina, Petronas Join Forces
Indonesian state-owned energy company PT Pertamina and Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas) of Malaysia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop oil and gas business – upstream and downstream, not only in Indonesia or Malaysia but also in other countries.As per MoU, Pertamina will swap crude produced in its Malaysian fields of Kikeh…
US Rig Count Lowest Since May 2018
U.S. energy firms this week cut the number of oil rigs operating to the lowest in almost nine months as some producers follow through on plans to cut spending despite an over 20-percent increase crude futures so far this year.Drillers cut 10 oil rigs in the week to March 1, bringing the total count down to 843…
Petrobras Divestment Plan Pushing Ahead
Petroleo Brasileiro SA is expanding its ambitious divestment program and has "bold" plans for future sales, the Brazilian state-run oil company's chief executive said after the firm reported its first annual profit in five years.On a post-results conference call with analysts on Thursday…
Yinson, First E&P in $902 Mln FPSO Deal
Malaysia’s floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) operator Yinson and Nigerian oil company First Exploration & Petroleum Development Company Ltd (First E&P) have executed a contract for an FPSO to be deployed offshore Nigeria.The contracts worth $901.79 million were entered into…
CNPC to Develop New Shale Oilfield
China's state-owned CNPC has started developing a new offshore shale oilfield near the Bohai Rim Basin, the company said via its official newspaper on Thursday.CNPC aims to produce 50,000 tonnes of shale oil from the Bohai Rim Basin in 2019 and to achieve production capacity of 1 million…
Repsol Net Profit Up 7.5%
Spanish oil and gas firm Repsol beat forecasts with a 7.5 percent increase in fourth-quarter adjusted net profit on Thursday, boosted by higher oil and gas prices and increased production, and said its strategic plan was on track.Repsol started new projects in Algeria, Trinidad and Tobago, Britain, Peru and Malaysia during 2018, and benefited in October-Dece
Oil, Gas Majors Join Blockchain Consortium
A group of seven major oil and gas companies, including ExxonMobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and ConocoPhillips, announced a partnership to establish the first industry blockchain consortium in the United States.With several use cases across the industry value chain, the consortium intends to conduct proofs of concept with this emerging technology in 2019…
Global FPSO Market to Hit USD30Bln by 2025.
The floating storage and offloading (FSO) vessel market is anticipated to surpass USD 30 billion by 2025, said a study.The FPSO market is set to witness vigorous growth on account of shifting trends toward offshore exploration & production driven by depleting onshore oil & gas reserves, said…
