Pemex
lets $683 million drilling contract to Halliburton
By OGJ editors HOUSTON, Jan. 23
Mexico's Petroleos Mexicanos has let a 3-year, $683 million contract to
Halliburton Co. to manage the drilling and completion of 58 land wells
in the southern region of Mexico.
The contract spans a number of well conditions, including depressurized
and high-pressure/high-temperature formations, combined with complex
geologies and tremendous depths, ranging 3,500-6,500 m.
Halliburton's project management group will provide wellbore-cementing
tools, stimulation equipment and wireline technology, as well as
drilling fluids, drill bits, directional-drilling services, and
completion tools.
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Bulgaria Serbia and Russia signed Gas Pipeline/Energy Deal
AFX News Limited 1/22/2008
The government of Serbia said it had agreed a draft pipeline deal with
Russian oil and gas giant Gazprom, in a move seen as increasing
Moscow's energy presence in the region. "The government of Serbia
adopted at today's session a draft agreement with the government of
Russia on cooperation in the energy and gas field," the government
statement said. The deal includes a pipeline to be built by
Gazprom in southern Serbia and an underground gas storage facility in
northern Vojvodina province, as well as the sale of the oil monopoly
NIS, it said, providing no further details.
Last month, Gazprom offered 400 mln eur (595 mln usd) for 51 pct of NIS.
Gazprom also promised to invest 500 mln eur in the company and ensure
passage via Serbia of a planned 900 km (560-mile) South Stream pipeline
to transport gas from Russia to southern Europe. The government
coalition had previously delayed agreement on the deal due to
reservations by ministers from the pro-reform Democratic Party of
President Boris Tadic. However ministers from the Democratic
Party of Serbia of conservative Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica,
pushed strongly for the deal, claiming it was crucial for Serbia's
economy development.
Serbian Economy Minister Mladjan Dinkic has openly opposed the deal
over NIS, saying if the company was sold by tender, "the price could be
five to eight times higher than the Russian offer".
Kostunica is expected do address the press later in the day, a
government source told Agence France-Presse.
Last week, Bulgaria and Russia signed a deal on the 10 bln eur (14.7
bln usd) South Stream pipeline to carry Russian gas to Europe, another
accord which was widely seen as giving Moscow an even greater say in
European energy supplies.
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China
hopes Iran can Supply Gas
Greenwire 1/22/2008
China National Offshore Oil Corp. could within two weeks sign an
agreement with Iran for a guaranteed supply of liquefied natural gas
for three Chinese terminals, two people familiar with the situation
said Jan.21. If concluded, the National Iranian Oil Co. would
deliver 10 million metric tons of the gas for three new or expanded LNG
terminals in China. The gas would come from Iran's North Pars project,
the sources said.
"Iran is our target place for sourcing LNG," said a sales manager with
Guangdong Zhuhai Jinwan LNG Corp., which is working with CNOOC in
developing one of the terminals. But analysts are skeptical Iran
will be able to secure liquefaction technology to meet its commitment,
as it has struggled to seal agreements on its natural gas reserves with
foreign investors because of spiraling costs and U.S. sanctions.
Iran, China's $16bn-natural gas deal 22 Jan 2008 South Pars Field, Iran
Kenok Development Limited and Iran are to sign a deal on exports of 10
million tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Iran to China.
This deal satisfies the LNG needs of three terminals of the company and
is worth $16 billion, said Iran's MehrNews, quoting The Wall Street
Journal.
Experts are of the view that Iran has the ability to export this amount
of gas. There are several factors hampering foreign investment, one
being Iran is currently under pressure from the US. Fluctuations in the
price of natural gas have also posed questions for some foreign
investors.
A spokesman for Kenok said they were negotiating with Iran, but that
the contract had not yet been signed.
Experts believe this amount of gas can be exported from the South Pars
field in Iran to the three terminals, of Kenok located in Gundong and
Ningibo provinces of China.
One executive at Gundong Natural Gas, a firm that cooperates with
Kenok, reportedly said: "For LNG, our target country is Iran."
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Iraq Extends Oil
Contracts Deadline to Feb. 18
AFX News Limited 1/22/2008
Iraq has extended until Feb 18 the deadline for foreign oil companies
to apply for service contracts linked to exploitation of its vast crude
reserves, the oil ministry said. "The deadline was extended from Jan.
31 to Feb. 18," ministry spokesman Asim Jihad told Agence
France-Presse. "A ministry committee has invited international
companies to apply for service licences related to the extraction of
oil, the development of oil fields and the deployment of expertise,
equipment and training for projects that will be implemented by
Iraqis," Jihad said. "These licences are not investment
contracts, but service contracts that will last for two years."
After then, companies will be allowed to bid for lucrative long-term
exploitation contracts, he added.
The ministry has previously said that companies which have signed deals
with Iraq's autonomous northern Kurdish region will be excluded from
national contracts. The Kurdish regional government has signed 15
oil contracts with 20 foreign companies to explore and export oil
discovered in the northern region. Oil Minister Hussein
Shahristani said in November that all such deals signed by the regional
government with foreign companies stand cancelled as the Iraqi
parliament has yet to pass a draft oil law.
Iraq's oil reserves -- the
world's third largest -- lie in the Kurdish north and Shiite south.
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Iran Edison Signs a
contract for the exploration of hydrocarbons
09.01.2008
Edison strengthens its upstream operations: the objective is to achieve
annual production equal to 15% of the Group’s total needs
Milan, January 9th 2008 – During a ceremony attended by Iran’s Oil
Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari, Edison signed today a contract for the
exploration of hydrocarbons in Iran. In particular, Edison was awarded
the offshore block called Dayyer, which spans for 8,600 square
kilometres in the Persian Gulf, tendered by National Iranian Oil
Company (NIOC). The contract envisages an exploration period of 4
years, during which studies will be made, seismic data will be acquired
and processed and one exploration well will be drilled: investments
will be approximately 30 million euros. If reserves were discovered,
Edison will directly enter the development phase.
This new contract is consistent with Edison’s Industrial Plan which
calls for an expansion of Edison exploration and production operations,
with the goal of increasing reserves and boosting hydrocarbon
production to a level equal to about 15% of the Group’s future needs.
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Bulgaria Black Sea Exploration a Success Melrose Resources
Melrose Resources 1/21/2008
Melrose Resources plc reported that the results of recent exploration
drilling and a planned development project in Bulgaria.
Following the announcement of the award to Melrose of the Block Galata
exploration concession, Melrose has drilled the Galata E3 - Kaliakra
exploration well using the Atwood Cross drilling rig. The well was
drilled to test a structural feature similar to that at the nearby
Galata gas field, with the main reservoir target in a Palaeocene-aged
formation. The well intersected the top reservoir at a measured depth
of 2743 feet and found a gross hydrocarbon column of 46 feet. Open hole
log data indicates a net pay interval of 33 feet with an average
porosity of 31% and high gas saturations. Due to the high quality of
the reservoir, flow testing was not required and the well has been
suspended for use as a production well.
Plans are now being formulated for the development of the field using a
subsea completion and tying the well back approximately 15 kilometres
to the Galata platform production facilities. The objective is to
achieve production from the well no later than mid 2009.
Based on the open log data, the reserves in the immediate vicinity of
the well are estimated at 7 billion cubic feet ("Bcf") and there is
additional upside in the field of over 40 Bcf if a shale-filled channel
to the east of the structure acts as an effective seal. Based on
seismic mapping and regional analogues, the estimated chance of success
for the upside reserves case is 50%. The total field size will become
clear after a period of production. Further exploration potential also
exists on trend with the discovery in three structural prospects which
have combined unrisked reserves of 31 Bcf with an average chance of
success of 45%.
As mentioned in the previous press release dated 7 December 2007,
Melrose expects to reduce its working interest in the Block Galata to
around 60%.
Commenting on this, David Thomas, Chief Executive, said, "We are very
pleased to have made a new shallow water discovery in Bulgaria and to
have proved up an extension to the productive Galata reservoir trend.
The new flow line installation will allow us to rapidly develop the
reserves using our existing offshore and onshore facilities and to
access the economic upside potential in both the discovery and
offsetting prospects."
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Alaska Leases Scheduled for Chukchi Sea,
Rigzone Staff 1/18/2008
The Chukchi Sea in Alaska is safe for oil and gas exploration, said the
directors of two Interior Department agencies on Jan. 17. Environmental
concerns had halted planned oil lease sales, which should now be on
schedule. Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), chairman of the House
Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, wants to
ensure that the ESA listing decision will come before the scheduled
Feb. 6 oil lease sales. Markey introduced legislation that would
require the Interior Department to delay its drilling rights sales in
the Chukchi Sea until after it makes a decision on the whether to
protect the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act.
An environmental impact statement from MMS on the proposed Chukchi
lease said there was a 33 to 51 percent chance of a large oil spill. If
there was a spill, it could have "significant impacts" on polar bears,
according to the report. But John Goll, the Alaska regional
director for MMS, noted that the statistics the agency uses to make
those estimations include figures about oil spills from years ago when
spills were more likely than they are with current technology. The
agency has not seen a significant spill since 1980 and thinks a spill
unlikely in the Chukchi Sea, Goll told the committee.
Randall Luthi, director of the Minerals Management Service, which is
conducting the oil lease sales, said the bear already is adequately
protected against harm from oil and gas development under the Marine
Mammal Protection Act. And he said the lease sales include provisions
to mitigate the impact on the bear. Luthi said even if the leases
are issued before a decision is made on the bear, future listing will
have to be taken into account when oil companies seek exploration and
development permits.
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Iraqi in Talks With
Shell for Test on Akkas Gas Field
BAGHDAD (AP)
The Iraqi Oil Ministry is negotiating with Royal Dutch Shell PLC to
conduct output tests on a prized natural gas field in western Iraq, the
ministry's spokesman said Wednesday.
Assem Jihad said these negotiations are part of the ministry's plans to
develop the country's oil and gas fields. Four other companies are
taking part in the talks, which he said were held last month and will
resume "in the coming days."
"There is an active movement by the ministry to develop a number of oil
and gas fields in southern, central and northern Iraq," Jihad told The
Associated Press in a phone interview. "The ministry is contacting oil
majors to submit their studies about these fields in order to achieve
the ideal investment and increase production."
In London, a spokeswoman for Shell told Dow Jones Newswires that it was
in talks with Iraq to conduct a "long-term production" test on Akkas
gas field in Iraq's former insurgent stronghold of Anbar west of
Baghdad. "The Iraqi Ministry of Oil has requested Shell to
facilitate a long-term production test for the Akkas gas field," the
spokeswoman said in an e-mail. "Shell has responded to the
request to facilitate with a proposal, which will now be subject to
further negotiations," she added.
Iraq has the world's third-largest oil reserves with an estimated 115
billion barrels and also sits on an estimated 112 trillion cubic feet
of natural gas reserves.
Its Akkas gas field, which has five wells that are ready to be
interconnected, is expected to produce up to 17.5 billion cubic feet of
gas a day that could be pumped through Syria to consumers in Europe.
Jihad didn't say how much natural gas Iraq would supply Syria, but on
Monday the Oil Ministry told the Arab satellite TV channel Al-Arabiya
that the field could provide the Syrian market with approximately 50
million cubic feet per day, a preliminary agreement Syria signed with
Iraq before the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
According to the Syrian Oil Ministry, Syria's gas output has tripled in
the last five years from 70 million cubic feet per day in 1997 to 490
million cubic feet per day in 2007, with a reserve capacity estimated
at 23.8 trillion cubic feet.
Syria announced on Monday that Iran would supply it with natural gas by
the end of 2009 to help Damascus cope with increasing demands for
energy.
Under the agreement, Iran will supply Syria with some 105
million cubic feet of gas per day through Turkey and will increase the
quantity to 315 million cubic feet per day in three years.
Early this month, Iraq set a Jan. 31 deadline for international oil
firms to register to compete for tenders to help develop a number of
oil and gas fields.
Tenders are expected to concentrate on the redevelopment of Akkas, as
well as other fields such as Rumeila South, Rumeila North,
Subba/Luhais, Zubair and Missan in southern Iraq, and Kirkuk in
northern Iraq.
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Iran ready to revive
liquefied natural gas deal with India
New Delhi, Jan 17 (IANS)
Iran is ready to revive the stalled 5-million metric tonne per
annum (MMTPA) liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal with India, said an
Iranian minister after meeting Indian Petroleum Minister Murli Deora
here Wednesday. The Iranian minister also invited Indian
companies to invest in Iranian gas fields and natural gas liquefaction
projects so that they could bring additional LNG supplies to India.
"It is because Iran does not have enough LNG supplies to meet India's
additional requirement," said Danish Jafri, Iran's minister for
economic affairs and finance, at a joint press briefing held after the
meeting. "The chapter on the LNG deal is not closed and Iran is
ready for further discussions on it," he said.
"The Iranian side came out with the response after I raised the issue
in the meeting," Deora said.
India signed a deal with Iran in June 2005 for contracted 5 MMTPA LNG
supply for 25 years at a price of $3.215 per million British thermal
unit (MBTU). But later, the negotiations broke down when Iran
insisted on renegotiating the deal. The June 2005 contract had
linked LNG prices with the Brent crude oil price with a cap at $31 per
barrel. But Iran wanted to raise this ceiling to $55, raising the
LNG price to $4.78 per MBTU.
Indian rejected Iran's
demand and ever since the talks have been
stalled.
On the proposed Iran-Pakistan-Indian gas pipeline, Jafri said Iran was
close to completing discussions with Pakistan and is expected to strike
a similar deal with India. "We are near finalising discussions
with Pakistan on the proposed gas pipeline and hope to do a similar
deal with India," the Iranian minister said.
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Syria the northern edge
of the Homs basin
OGJ.com Dec. 07
The president of Syria signed parliament’s ratification of
the exploration, development, and production contract that governs
Block 9 said Loon Energy Inc., Calgary.
The block covering more than 10,000 sq km is on the northern
edge of the Homs basin, which contains the large Palmyra, Cherrife Da,
and Ash Shaer fields.
Loon has committed to shoot 600 line-km of 2D seismic and
drill two exploration wells in the 4-year first exploration phase. The
phase can be extended for up to 9 years in phases by performing further
work.
Loon has 100% interest in Block 9, and Ansco Inc. has the
right to acquire a 5% working interest subject to approval of the
ministry and Syrian Petroleum.
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