LNG
carriers Reliquefaction System
Moss RS LNG Reliquefaction system 30 August 2005
Hamworthy holds a worldwide license for the sale and fabrication of the
Moss RS LNG Reliquefaction system, which helps owners to realise
savings by adopting diesel or diesel electric propulsion. Unlike all
other cargo ships, liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers have continued
to use steam turbine propulsion plant despite more efficient diesel
engines being available. This is because the gas that naturally
evaporates from the cargo (called boil-off) is used as fuel for the
steam turbines, and until recently there was no other use for it. The
ability to reliquefy the gas given off by the cargo now makes it
possible to increase the amount of LNG delivered to the discharge port,
which is more profitable than using it as ships’ bunkers.
 The patented
process offered by Hamworthy reliquefies boil-off gas and returns LNG
back into the cargo tanks. This, in combination with an efficient
propulsion system, offers great technical and economical advantages
over the steam turbine based propulsion system. Reliquefaction paves
the way for the installation of more efficient propulsion systems on
LNG carriers. The efficiency of diesel engines is up to 50 per cent,
compared with approximately 30 per cent for a steam turbine plant. The
economic advantage of diesel engine propulsion translates to minimum
savings of 2 to 5 million USD per year for a LNG carrier depending on
size of vessel and LNG price.
The liquefied natural gas is kept in a liquid state at -163°C in the
tanks. Due to warming up during transportation, gas naturally
evaporates from the cargo and the boil-off gas can be used in the
boiler for production of some of the steam required for a steam-turbine
propulsion plant. In principle there are two ways of handling the
boil-off gas. It can either be burnt in a boiler, gas turbine or
dual-fuel diesel engine to provide power for the propulsion of the
vessel, or the boil-off gas can be reliquefied and returned to the
cargo tanks, resulting in increased cargo quantity delivered.
Reliquefaction is based on a closed nitrogen cycle extracting heat from
the boil-off gas. Several novel features such as separation and removal
of incondensable components have resulted in a compact system with low
power consumption. A boil-off gas reliquefaction system in combination
with slow speed diesel-mechanical or diesel-electric propulsion has
both economic and technical advantages, according to Hamworthy.
Hamworthy Reliquefaction plants are skid mounted units ready to be
installed onboard ship. The plants are delivered complete and tested
with internal piping, valves, instrumentation and control
devices. They can be operated locally or via remote control
positioned by conventional instrumentation or through an integrated
computer control system. A typical skid unit will include a section of
the partition bulkhead between compressor and the motor-room to
simplify the installation and alignment.
Ethylene vapour is reliquefied in cascade with a separate refrigeration
system integrated with the conventional cargo cycle. As a
refrigerant we utilize environmental friendly liquids such as Propane
as substitute for Freon. Typically the cargo compressor is of oil free
piston type and the refrigeration compressor of oil lubricated screw
type.
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AIOC produces 4m
tons of oil from Chirag
Baku, August 10, AssA-Irada The Azerbaijan International Operating
Company (AIOC) produced 4.075 million tons of oil from the Chirag
platform in January-July 2005. The company extracted 583,000 tons of
oil from Chirag in July, BP Azerbaijan told AssA-Irada. In
January-July, AIOC exported 4.080 million tons of oil through the
Baku-Supsa western pipeline. 3.487 million tons of oil was exported in
the first half of this year and the remaining 593,000 tons this month.
The average daily oil production from Chirag made up 139,000 barrels in
July. In 2004, AIOC produced a total of 6.565 million tons of oil from
the Chirag platform and exported 6.297 million tons of oil via the
western route. The AIOC shareholders plan to produce 134,000 barrels of
oil daily from the Chirag platform. The figure was 132,000 barrels
against the planned 125,000 barrels last year. Currently, there are 19
wells on the Chirag platform, including 15 that are used for production
and 4 water injection wells.*
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Alfa Laval Natural
Gas Project in Qatar
STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Aug. 12, 2005 PRIMEZONE
Alfa Laval -- a world leader in heat transfer, centrifugal separation
and fluid handling -- has received an order from CTEP for the supply of
plate heat exchangers for a major liquid natural gas project in Qatar.
The Alfa Laval plate heat exchangers will be used for central cooling,
using seawater for cooling the liquid natural gas facility. The total
order value is about SEK 120 million and the final delivery will be in
the end of 2006.
The Qatargas II Development Project is a major step in Qatar's
long-term plan to increase its exports of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG). The
development project is an integrated project comprising offshore
platforms, an onshore LNG gas receiving terminal and LNG transport
carriers. The first delivery of liquid natural gas is scheduled for
early 2008 to the United Kingdom. "The liquid natural gas market offers
a huge potential," says Ulf Granstrand, Executive Vice President, head
of Process Technology Division at Alfa Laval. "Already today the global
demand is some 150 million tonnes per year and demand is expected to
increase fivefold between the years 2000 and 2030. Alfa Laval has
efficient technology to offer in this field, and the order for this
project in Qatar is another important milestone."
Editor's notes:
CTEP is a joint venture between Chiyoda Corporation and Technip France.
The Chiyoda Corporation is an integrated engineering contractor working
with some of the world's leading companies within the energy,
hydrocarbon and chemical industries. Technip France is one of the
world's largest providers of engineering, technology and construction
services for the oil and gas and petrochemical industries. For further
information, please visit the Alfa Laval website at www.alfalaval.com
and read the background information "Large demand in Liquid Natural
Gas" under the "PRESS" ticker.
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Gazprom
Bovanenkovskoye & Kharasaveiskoye Onstream in 2008
Interfax Information Services, B.V. 8/15/2005
It will cost some $70 billion to equip the Bovanenkovskoye and
Kharasaveiskoye gas condensate fields on the Yamal Peninsula, Viktor
Kalinin, spokesman for Gazprom's Nadymgazprom subsidiary, which holds
the licenses to the fields, told Interfax.
Kalinin, who quoted figures provided by Nadymgazprom's general
director, Viktor Kononov, said Bovanenkovskoye would be the first to go
on stream. He said plans to develop the field were undergoing state
appraisal. Infrastructure is already being built at the field, he said.
He said the new Yamal fields would go commercially on stream "by the
deadlines stipulated by the license agreements."
Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller has said the Russian gas giant's executive
board would consider investment plans for the project by the end of
this year. The two fields should be ready to go on stream in 2008-2009
and production should begin in earnest in 2009-2010. Nadymgazprom plans
to produce 63.1 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas in 2004, 7% less than
in 2004.
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Sibneft
Establishes New Production Subsidiary
Moscow, August 16, 2005
Sibneft has initiated the formation of a new subsidiary to manage oil
and gas projects in Russia’s Omsk and Tomsk regions in a move designed
to optimize the company’s production management structure.
The new subsidiary will absorb the divisions of
Sibneft-Noyabrskneftegas that currently oversee operations at the
Krapivinskoye field in Omsk region, as well as the Archinskoye,
Urmanskoye and Shinginskoye fields in Tomsk region. Sibneft employees
in these divisions will be employed by the new subsidiary.
In February 2005, Sibneft similarly established Sibneft-Khantos to
develop oilfields in the Khanty-Mansiisk Autonomous District. Since the
beginning of the year, Sibneft has won open regional auctions for
petroleum exploration and development licenses for the Salym-2, Salym-3
and Salym-5 blocks in Khanty-Mansiisk as well as the nearby Zimniy
block in Tyumen region.
Sibneft-Noyabrskneftegas, the company’s core production unit, created
an excellent foundation for the expansion of Sibneft’s oil production
geography outside of its base in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District.
The positive experience gained during and after the creation of
Sibneft-Khantos encouraged the formation of a third production
subsidiary. These new Sibneft operators will continue to receive human
resources and organizational support from Noyabrskneftegas.
“The changes in Sibneft’s corporate structure are a direct reflection
of the diversification of the company’s operating geography. They will
allow us to quickly incorporate newly-acquired licenses into our field
development system, and serve as a basis for continued growth,” said
Sibneft president Eugene Shvidler. “The new management center will also
provide an opportunity for our colleagues from Noyabrsk to apply their
years of experience on promising new projects in new locations.”
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Bolivia Upstream
Investment Down 40% First Half of 2005
Business News Americas (BNamericas.com) 8/15/2005
Upstream investment in Bolivia's hydrocarbons sector fell 40% in the
first six months of this year to US$62.5mn from US$103mn in 1H04, the
hydrocarbons chamber said in a statement.
Even more worrying is that exploration investment over the six-month
period was only US$7.5mn, down 83% from US$46.5mn, while investment in
production fell 4.6% to US$55mn.
By comparison investment in exploration in 1998 was US$375mn and the
total was US$608mn including production.
Investment in 1H05 "has fallen to levels similar to those of the 1990s,
which neither allows for sustainability in the sector nor guarantees
support for the state over the medium term. The conditions for
investment in this area have deteriorated," the statement said.
Political uncertainty and the new hydrocarbons law approved earlier
this year that increased royalties and taxes on hydrocarbons production
to up to 50% have taken their toll on private investment in the country.
Natural gas reserves were at about 45 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) at
mid-2005, slightly lower than in 2004, when reserves were about 52Tcf,
the statement said.
Natural gas production grew 41% in 1H05 to 32.3 million cubic meters a
day (Mm3/d) due to export demand in Argentina and Brazil. However,
current production is less than the 35M3m/d delivery capacity for which
the country has export contracts.
Through June this year royalties and other charges brought in
approximately US$180mn to state coffers, on track to reach US$400mn by
year-end. In 2004 the sector contributed a total US$409mn, of which
US$286mn corresponded to royalties and the rest to taxes.
Overall the state has earned US$1.3bn in royalties between 1997 and
2004, the statement said.
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Indonesia's
Aceh Peace May Prompt Oil-Powered Economic Boom
by Phelim Kyne FWN Select 8/16/2005
A peace treaty signed Monday in Helsinki that ended a three-decade
pro-independence insurgency in Indonesia's northwestern Aceh may power
an oil-fueled economic development boom in the tsunami-wracked
province. The peace deal promises a new era of stability and security
that will encourage foreign and domestic investment in sectors
including energy, said analysts, government officials and industry
representatives.
"The signing of the Aceh peace deal...(will) help improve investors'
confidence in Indonesia (and) mining and oil companies will have a
greater degree of comfort working around the (Aceh) area," CIMB-GK
Research Pte. Ltd. Vice President Song Seng Wun told Dow Jones
Newswires.
U.S. oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) will likely expand gas and oil
exploration operations in the province due to the newly minted peace
agreement, Indonesia's Vice President Jusuf Kalla said recently. "Exxon
of course can (now) explore more, and if Exxon explores more, there are
taxes and money for the government," Kalla said, without elaborating.
Exxon Mobil Oil Indonesia, which has operations in Aceh including gas
liquefaction facilities and a 50% non-operating stake in Mobil Block A
Ltd. in Lhokseumawe in northern part of the province, declined to
comment on potential Aceh expansion plans.
An oil investment-powered economic boom in Aceh would help jump-start
economic development in a province still recovering from the Dec. 26,
2004, earthquake and tsunami that killed 131,000 people and pulverized
infrastructure.
A greater flow of oil and gas from Aceh from expanded investment in
exploration and extraction activities would also reduce the
government's budget-crippling reliance on foreign oil imports.
Indonesia, Southeast Asia's sole Organization of Petroleum Exporting
Countries member, will be a net oil importer in 2005, Coordinating
Minister for the Economy Aburizal Bakrie said last week.
Medco Energi Eyes Aceh Ops
Indonesia's rupiah hit a 41-month low of IDR 9.925 to the U.S. currency
early Tuesday due to dollar purchases by oil importers to fund imports
while global crude oil prices hover around the $65-a-barrel mark.
Soaring global oil prices increase the burden of government fuel price
subsidies, which drained state coffers of $7.4 billion, or 3% of gross
domestic product, in 2004.
The end of hostilities between Indonesian military and pro-Independence
Free Aceh Movement, or GAM, forces has already prompted Indonesia's
Medco Energi International (MEDC.JK) to consider investment stakes in
Aceh.
"Aceh province geologically is a good place for the gas and oil
industry," Medco's Chief Executive Officer Hilmi Panigoro told Dow
Jones Newswires recently. "Medco had observed that the peace deal would
take place, so we are interested in bidding for a 50% stake owned by
Exxon in Mobil's Block A field," Panigoro said.
Exxon Mobil Oil Indonesia said last week that the firm was "soliciting
offers" from firms on Exxon's Block A stake, without elaborating.
But investor concerns about Indonesia's regulatory environment and
perceptions of an unpredictable judiciary will continue to hamper
foreign investor participation in the oil sector in Aceh and elsewhere
in the country, said Kurt Barrow, head of the Singapore office of
Houston-based energy consultancy Purvin & Gertz Inc.
"(Civil conflict) isn't the only aspect to Indonesia that's retarding
upstream oil and gas investment," Barrow said. "There's increased
uncertainty about the rules of the game and who exactly is the referee."
Aceh Desperately Needs Private Investment
Aceh's in desperate need of private investment to make up for donor
shortfalls in funding to assist the recovery of the province's private
sector. "(Investment) is very important because when it comes to
rehabilitation and reconstruction... What's also very important is the
sustainability of the economy," said Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, head of
Aceh's official Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency. "Otherwise
people will just rely on us to support them for their livelihood."
The government has tasked Kuntoro's agency with disbursing $7 billion
in donor funds for the province's post-tsunami reconstruction.
World Bank data indicate the tsunami inflicted losses of $1.2 billion
on Aceh's private sector, compared to an official Aceh reconstruction
master plan that's allocated only $380 million to help revive private
business operations, said the International Finance Corp.'s country
manager, German Vegarra. The IFC is the World Bank's private sector
lending arm.
Vegarra said Aceh's agricultural sector, particularly coffee and palm
oil plantations, offers "great potential" to private investors. "We
really have to come up with some sustainable industries," he said.
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Brazil Expects Accord
with Bolivia on Petroleum Interests
EFE News Services 8/16/2005
Brazil's top diplomat said he is confident of reaching an accord with
Bolivia that will allow his country's state-owned petroleum company to
maintain and enhance its investments in this Andean nation's oil and
gas sector. Celso Amorim commented about the situation of Brazil's
Petrobras after meeting with Bolivian counterpart Armando Loaiza.
The Brazilian foreign minister's visit comes as La Paz is mulling how
to respond to a request from some of the big energy companies doing
business here - Spain's Repsol-YPF, British Gas, U.S.-based Vintage,
Pan American Energy and French major TotalFinaElf - for talks on an
amicable accord as an alternative to the firms's hauling Bolivia before
international courts of arbitration over its new hydrocarbons law.
The controversial legislation sharply increases taxes and royalties on
the mainly foreign-owned enterprises that pump oil and gas in Bolivia.
It also reaffirms the state's ownership of the petroleum resources "at
the wellhead."
Several multinationals were threatening even before the law was passed
that they would seek arbitration if Bolivia's Congress approved the
measure, which the companies say violates their contracts.
Petrobras currently holds the rights to 17.5 percent of Bolivia's
estimated 48 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The Brazilian firm
says it has invested $990 million in its Andean neighbor since 1996,
though most of that came in the late 1990s, with the flow slowing to
$18.6 million last year. "It is not our place to say what Bolivia
should do, but I'm certain that whatever system and regime it
sovereignly chooses, it will find a way to move forward in this field,"
Amorim said Monday.
The visiting official stressed that his country has a strategic
commitment to Bolivia and wants to see Petrobras and other Brazilian
firms continue to invest here. It is obvious, Amorim said, "that like
any other enterprise, our companies have to make their economic
calculations, but they will do so always taking into account that the
decision over how to manage those natural and economic resources
belongs to the people of Bolivia."
Separately, Amorim and Loaiza signed an accord under which Brasilia
pledges to legalize over the next 12 months some 100,000 undocumented
Bolivians employed in the factories of Sao Paulo state, Brazil's
industrial heartland.
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PetroChina to pay
US$2.5b for parent firm's overseas assets
www.chinaview.cn 2005-08-18
BEIJING, Aug. 18 -- Shareholders of the nation's largest oil and gas
producer PetroChina have agreed to pay 20.7 billion yuan (US$2.5
billion) for half the overseas assets of its State-owned parent, the
oil major told the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in a
statement. Shareholders representing 175 billion
PetroChina H shares with voting rights, or 99.9 per cent of the total
number of issued H shares, attended a general meeting on
Tuesday. "As many as 99.728 per cent of the
PetroChina shareholders voted in favour of the overseas expansion plan
(for getting a half stake of its parent China National Petroleum Corp's
(CNPC) venture)," PetroChina said in the statement yesterday.
In June, the Beijing-based and Hong Kong-listed oil behemoth showed its
keenness to buy 50 per cent of CNPC's subsidiary Newco which sits on
oil and gas assets in 10 countries: Kazakhstan, Venezuela, Algeria,
Peru, Oman, Azerbaijan, Canada, Ecuador, Niger and
Chad. According to the acquisition agreement, the
transaction will not involve CNPC's assets in Sudan, which make up more
than half its overseas portfolio. PetroChina will
also inject its Indonesian oil and gas assets, worth 579.4 million yuan
(US$71.4 million), into the venture.
The capital acquisition and the finalization of the deal is scheduled
to be wrapped up by the end of the year and February of next year
respectively, PetroChina earlier said in a statement.
Bi Jianguo, spokesman for PetroChina, yesterday refused to give more
details, saying the oil company would release its interim report at the
end of the month. Industry analysts said the
company's move reflects domestic oil majors' thrust for a strong
footing in the world market by trying for new assets around the
globe. The overseas asset acquisition will enhance
the company's international reserves by as much as 879 per cent to
reach 866 million barrels of oil equivalent, said PetroChina on its
website. It will also increase the company's total
oil and gas reserves by 4.31 per cent and lift output by 5.41 per cent.
Soaring crude prices on the world market as well as the nation's rising
demand for energy has raised PetroChina's crude output by 2 per cent
and gas turnover by a robust 23.4 per cent in the first half of this
year.
Crude oil production reached 396 million barrels from January to June,
an increase of 8.1 million barrels from the same period last year.
On the gas front, the company said solid domestic demand as well as
enhanced pipeline facilities have raised output by 96 billion cubic
feet year-on-year, to top 506.3 billion cubic feet for the first six
months. During the six-month period, PetroChina's
parent CNPC has seen its revenue soar 39.6 per cent to hit 335 billion
yuan (US$41.3 billion), as the group company's oil and gas output
increased 3.9 per cent and 20.1 per cent
respectively. CNPC said its overseas projects have
also made major progress, since 9.6 per cent more crude was produced in
its overseas fields in the first six months, and its gas turnover from
these foreign assets rose 8.1 per cent.
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Tighter
Pinedale Anticline spacing approved
By OGJ editors HOUSTON, Aug. 17
The Wyoming Oil & Gas Conservation Commission has approved 10-acre
spacing for drilling in the Lance and Mesaverde formations in parts of
giant Pinedale Anticline gas field in the Green River basin.
Subsidiaries of Questar Corp., Salt Lake City, operate the affected
acreage. The newly approved 10-acre spacing locations join 10-acre
pilot locations in other areas included in a pilot program that WOGCC
approved on July 19, Ultra Petroleum Corp., Houston, said.
Operators have estimated that Pinedale Anticline field has more than 40
tcf of original gas in place (OGIP), according to WOGCC.
With the benefit of additional 10-acre pilot well results and
additional data on older wells, Questar estimated that gross
recoverable reserves for 10-acre density wells will be 2-7 bcfe/well.
In testimony before the WOGCC, Questar presented data indicating
20-acre density wells will recover about one quarter of OGIP, and that
10-acre-density wells will recover a little less than half of OGIP.
When developed on 10-acre density Questar expects to have an average
67% working interest in 932 wells. The WOGCC 10-acre approval covers
12,700 acres, which Questar currently believes to be the productive
limits of its core acreage in Pinedale field.
Ultra has an average 28% working interest in Questar's Stewart Point
and Mesa areas of Pinedale Anticline in Sublette County, Wyo.
Other approvals Since 2003, the WOGCC has approved 11 applications by
six operators for increased density in the Pinedale Anticline. Seven
applications included the drilling of 232 wells on 20-acre spacing and
four contained 381 wells on 10-acre spacing.
Beside Questar and Ultra, the companies involved are Anschutz Corp. and
Petrogulf Corp., which are both private Denver companies; Yates
Petroleum Corp., Artesia, NM; and Shell Oil Co.
WOGCC Oil and Gas Supervisor Don Likwartz said, "Since there's some
overlap in a few of the dockets, the total area covered is 19,900 acres
out of a total proven field area of 51,000 acres. Pinedale Anticline is
on statewide 40-acre spacing, except for the referenced areas covered
by the 11 dockets."
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Gazprom & Lukoil
Discuss Cooperation in Timan-Pechora Province
Interfax Information Services, B.V. 8/18/2005
Gazprom and Lukoil are discussing prospects for cooperation in the
Timan-Pechora oil and gas province in the north of Russia, Gazprom's
press service said earlier this week, following a recent meeting in
Moscow between Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller and Lukoil president Vagit
Alekperov.
The two companies also discussed cooperation in oil and gas projects on
the Caspian Sea shelf and in Eastern Siberia and the Far East.
Cooperation between Gazprom and Lukoil is based on a general agreement
signed in March 2005 on strategic partnership between the two companies
for 2005-2014.
The agreement envisions the joint realization of projects connected
with the exploration and development of oil and gas fields in the
Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District, the Nenets Autonomous District, the
Russian sector of the Caspian Sea, Uzbekistan and other regions. It
also envisions developing cooperation in shipping oil and gas
condensate by sea from the northern parts of the Nenets and
Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Districts.
As part of the agreement, the companies intend to support partnership
in deliveries of hydrocarbon raw materials, the production of oil and
gas chemical products and delivering free oil and gas condensate
resources to private gas and oil refineries in Russia and abroad.
In July 2003, Gazprom and Lukoil set up a parity-based joint venture,
called TsentrKaspneftegaz to develop the Tsentralnaya or Central
structure in the Caspian jointly with the Kazakh company KazMunaiGaz.
Tsentralnaya is located 150 kilometers from Makhachkala in the Russian
sector of the Caspian.
Lukoil and Gazprom signed an agreement in October 2003 on the supply of
gas from the Nakhodka field of the Bolshekhetskaya depression in the
Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District. In accordance with the agreement,
Lukoil will sell Gazprom up to 750 million cubic meters of gas in the
fourth quarter of 2005 and up to 8 billion cubic meters in 2006.
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Turkish national oil
company Results Ayazli-2 & Ayazli-3 Wells
Toreador Resources Corporation 8/18/2005 URL:
http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=24549
Toreador Resources and its partners Stratic Energy Corporation and
TPAO, the Turkish national oil company, announced successful test
results from the Ayazli-2 and Ayazli-3 wells located in the Company's
South Akcakoca Sub-Basin project in the Black Sea offshore Turkey.
The Ayazli-2 well successfully tested approximately 20 meters of gas
pay in two zones between 920.5 meters and 1045.0 meters at an aggregate
rate of 9.0 million cubic feet of gas per day through a 48/64-inch
choke. Other productive intervals are present between depths ranging
from 725.0 meters to 877.0 meters. The Company expects, following
common industry practice, to ultimately perforate and produce an
additional 31 meters of gas-bearing sands uphole after the deeper zones
described above are fully depleted. As previously announced, wireline
logs indicated the presence of gas in six intervals with approximately
64 meters of gas-producing sands in the Eocene-age Kusuri formation.
The Ayazli-3 well also successfully tested approximately 33 meters of
gas pay in five intervals between 747.0 meters and 1067.0 meters at an
aggregate rate of 8.7 million cubic feet of gas per day through a
48/64-inch choke. Several additional zones remain to be tested. The
aggregate flow rate does not represent the full capacity of the
intervals tested; due to the higher pressure encountered in the lower
zones, the flow from the lower pressure upper zones was severely
limited during the well test. Based on these results, future wells will
be designed for dual completion in order to maximize flow rates.
"The Ayazli-2 and Ayazli-3 are the two best wells drilled in the
project to date," said G. Thomas Graves III, Toreador President and
Chief Executive Officer. "The series of four wells drilled in our South
Akcakoca Sub-Basin project area have established six distinctive
productive sand packages."
Continued Graves, "As we further refine our knowledge of the area we
will be able to maximize production on future wells to enhance the
economics of the project. We continue to be optimistic about our
estimates of potential reserves and believe that further drilling will
confirm the presence of other significant natural gas reserves in our
western Black Sea concession."
As operator of the wells, Toreador has a 36.75% working interest, TPAO
is the owner of a 51% working interest and Stratic holds a 12.25%
working interest.
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Canadian Co.
PetroKazakhstan Sold to CNPC
Canadian Press 8/22/2005
Canadian-based oil company PetroKazakhstan Inc., which placed itself on
the auction block, announced Monday it has been entered into an
agreement to be purchased by a subsidiary of China National Petroleum
Corporation in a deal worth $4.18 billion US.
CNPCI will offer $55.00 US per share in cash for all outstanding common
shares of PetroKazakhstan, the company said in a release. The offer
represents a premium of 24.4 per cent based on the weighted average
closing price of PetroKazakhstan (TSX:PKZ) common shares on the New
York Stock Exchange for the 20 previous trading days ending Aug. 19,
2005 and a 21.1 per cent premium to the closing price on Aug. 19, 2005,
the most recent date on which the shares traded.
The agreement has been reviewed by the special committee of the board
of directors of PetroKazakhstan and has been approved by the boards of
directors of both PetroKazakhstan and CNPCI. The board of directors of
PetroKazakhstan has recommended that its shareholders accept CNPCI's
offer. Goldman Sachs International is acting as financial adviser to
PetroKazakhstan.
The transaction will be subject to the approval of 66 2/3 per cent of
the votes cast by PetroKazakhstan shareholders at a meeting expected to
be held in October. Closing is subject to certain other conditions,
including court approvals.
The agreement prohibits PetroKazakhstan from soliciting any other
acquisition proposal but allows the board of directors of
PetroKazakhstan to accept and recommend a superior proposal if it is
required to do so to avoid breaching its fiduciary duties and upon
payment of a termination fee of $125 million US. Under the agreement,
CNPCI has the right to match any such superior proposal.
PetroKazakhstan, which is headquartered in Calgary but operates solely
in the central Asian country of Kazakhstan, announced in late June that
it had received approaches from a number of different parties regarding
a potential acquisition or a merger. PetroKazakhstan, formerly known as
Hurricane Hydrocarbons, is one of the largest foreign energy companies
operating in Kazakhstan and has been there for the last eight years.
But the company has had a variety of high-profile troubles this year
which played havoc with its share price, leading to the late-June
announcement that it was examining possible takeover bids. In late
April, a ruling from Kazakh regulators forced the company to
immediately stop flaring gas - a move that slashed second quarter
production by 30 per cent - to 106,000 barrels per day from 151,000
barrels in the same period last year.
Along with the flaring issue, the company has been publicly scrapping
with Russian oil giant Lukoil over a joint venture called Turgai
Petroleum. Both sides have filed multi-million dollar claims against
each other.
CNPC International Ltd. (CNPCI) is wholly owned by China National
Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). CNPC is a leading integrated energy
corporation and has been ranked 10th among the world's top 50 oil
companies.
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Qatar WGI expanding
its oil, gas work
Company will open offices in Texas, Qatar
Melissa McGrath The Idaho Statesman 08-23-2005
Boise-based Washington Group International is expanding its reach in
the booming oil and gas markets by opening an engineering center in
Texas and an office in the Middle Eastern nation of Qatar. Steve
Johnson, WGI senior executive vice president, said oil and gas
companies are expected to invest $200 billion a year over the next
decade to upgrade infrastructure. The oil and gas markets are expanding
because of increased demand and reduced supply of oil and gas around
the world, Johnson said.
The company is not creating any new jobs in Boise with this expansion,
he said, but it is planning to recruit 200 new workers for its
engineering center in Houston over the next year.
Oil and gas processing projects are part of WGI's industrial and
process business unit, which makes up about 14 percent of the company's
revenues, according to recent earnings releases. Johnson would not
speculate on how much the company planned to increase revenues or
profitability in this business unit with the expansion.
Geoffrey Black, who chairs the economics department at Boise State
University, said moving into the liquid natural gas part of the
industry is very profitable, especially as oil prices continue to rise.
"As oil prices are high and remaining high and projected to remain
high, there is more and more demand for natural gas," Black said. "As
the demand for natural gas goes up, its price goes up and it makes it
more profitable to be in that industry." WGI continues to grow in
this market over the years, Black said, it will probably mean an
increase in jobs at its Boise headquarters. "It's nicer to have a
company like Washington Group with highly trained, highly paid people,
than a company like a call service (based in Boise)," he said.
Adding jobs to the headquarters would cause positive "ripple effects"
for the economy.
"For every job at a company like this, it is going to be two and a half
additional jobs created," said Black.
WGI has worked in the oil and gas sector for about 30 years with
projects focused on gas-and-oil separation, gas conditioning, gas
treating, sulfur recovery and gas storage. But after an oil company
asked WGI to step up its work in this market, company officials decided
to expand into other processes, like converting natural gas to liquid
form.
"It is a piece of the business which is not insignificant," Johnson
said. "It could become a business (unit) all on its own in the future."
For now, WGI will be "extremely selective" in the projects it chooses
related to the new expansion, Johnson said, by looking at commercial
return, contractual risk and the security and other risks of working in
foreign countries.
In the first step of its expansion, Johnson said the company has
retrofitted a facility in Houston, the "energy hub of the United
States," to serve as the sector's headquarters.
WGI is looking to hire 200 people within a year and 500 people within
three years to staff the new office in Houston, which will be the oil
and gas headquarters for WGI. The company is also adding 50 jobs to its
oil and gas office in Denver.
WGI currently has 25,000 employees working in more than 30 countries.
About 700 are located in Boise. The expansion will not immediately
impact Boise but could in the future, Johnson said.
"There's no doubt that the hub of oil and gas is unfortunately not in
Idaho," Johnson said. "But having a headquarters of a very global
company in the fastest-growing (energy) market can only be beneficial."
Johnson said he expects the expansion of processing oil and gas will
lead to an expansion in the company's infrastructure sector, which is
based in Boise. When companies select WGI to do oil and gas processing,
he said, they may also contract with the same company to build the
needed infrastructure — roads, pipelines, etc.
Most of the WGI's targeted oil and gas projects are in North America,
the Middle East and the former Soviet Union, Johnson said.
WGI also is opening an office in Doha, Qatar. WGI received a $360
million contract from Qatargas Operating Co. in June to design and
construct a new sulfur-handling plant to process the sulfur that is
removed from natural gas before the gas is shipped to be sold.
The closest gas project to Idaho is the Lost Cabin Gas Plant in Lysite,
Wyo. WGI built the facility and is responsible for the engineering
design.
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California Aspen
Tests Two Successful Gas Wells
Market Wire 8/27/2005 URL:
http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=24761
Aspen Exploration Corporation, with offices in Bakersfield, California,
and Denver, Colorado, announced today two successful flow tests on
recently drilled gas wells in the Sacramento Valley gas province of
northern California.
The Morris #12-3 well located in the West Grimes Gas Field, Colusa
County, California, was drilled to a depth of 8,000 feet and
encountered approximately 60 feet of potential net gas pay in various
intervals in the Forbes formation. A Forbes interval was perforated and
tested gas at a stabilized rate of 2,181 MCFPD. Aspen has a 21%
operated working interest in this well. The Strain #10-2 well, also
located in this field, is currently being drilled. Following the Strain
#10-2, Aspen has 5 additional wells to drill this year in the
Sacramento Valley.
The Merrill #31-1 well located in the Malton Black Butte Field, Tehama
County, California, was drilled to a depth of 4,875 feet and
encountered approximately 200 feet of potential net gas pay in various
intervals in the Forbes and Kione formations. One of the Forbes
intervals was perforated and tested gas at a stabilized rate of
approximately 700 MCFPD. We believe numerous potential gas zones remain
behind-pipe in this well. Aspen has a 31% operated working interest in
the Merrill #31-1 well.
Aspen has entered into fixed contracts for a portion (approximately
33%) of its gas, at fixed prices ranging from $8.40 to $9.49 per MMBtu
for the five month period from November 2005 through March 2006.
Aspen's summer hedge for the 6 month period ending September 30, 2005
was approximately $6.67 per MMBtu for 40% of Aspen's production.
PG&E Citygate gross prices are currently $0.45 per MMBtu less than
NYMEX gas prices.
Aspen drilled ten successful gas wells out of ten attempts in 2004 for
a 100% success rate, and three gas wells out of four attempted in 2005.
During the previous 4 1/2 years, Aspen participated in the drilling of
28 operated wells, 24 of which were completed as gas wells, and 4 dry
holes which were plugged and abandoned, a success rate of 86%. Aspen
currently operates 47 gas wells and has non-operated interests in 15
additional wells in the Sacramento Valley of northern California.
Future news releases will keep shareholders informed of Aspen's
continuing progress and drilling activity. Aspen's stock is quoted on
the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol ASPN. For more information
concerning Aspen, contact Bob Cohan, President and CEO, in Aspen's
Bakersfield office at (661) 831-4669. Aspen's web page can be found at
www.aspenexploration.com.
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California Delta to
Commence Drilling northeast of Sacramento
Market Wire 8/27/2005 URL:
http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=24764
Delta Oil and Gas, Inc. is pleased to announce that the drilling of its
first well on its Cache Slough property is expected to commence within
the next 45 days. The Cache Slough prospect is a prolific natural gas
area northeast of Sacramento, California. The property is located next
to and partially on one of the largest gas fields in the State of
California, the 3.5 trillion cubic feet ("Tcf") Rio Vista gas field.
Pipelines located near and within the project area make it easy to
transport and sell any production encountered.
The Cache Slough property covers approximately 825 acres of land.
Analysis of 3-D seismic survey, in combination with all available well
data, has resulted in the recognition of several natural gas prospects
on the property. The initial drilling focus is expected to be on the
high side of the Midland Fault, a major structural feature in the Rio
Vista area that has historically produced significant amounts of
natural gas.
Delta Oil and Gas has agreed to pay 18.75% of all costs of drilling,
testing and completion of the first test well to earn a 12.5% economic
interest. Thereafter, Delta Oil & Gas will pay 12.5% of all costs
of future wells to earn a 12.5% economic interest.
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China,
Philippines, Vietnam Work Disputed South China Sea
Xinhua News Agency 8/26/2005 BEIJING
China began cooperation with the Philippines and Vietnam in a joint
marine seismic undertaking in the disputed South China Sea area, and a
ceremony for the project was held on Friday. The China National
Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), China's largest offshore oil
producer, announced here Friday that one of its subsidiaries, China
Oilfield Services Ltd. (COS), was involved in the work.
The ceremony, held in Shenzhen of Guangdong Province, marks a new
progress in the cooperation among China, the Philippines and Vietnam in
the disputed South China Sea area, the CNOOC said.
The COS won the two-dimensional seismic exploration project in the
bidding jointly organized by the national oil companies of China, the
Philippines and Vietnam during Aug. 8-12, for its excellent market
analysis and bidding strategy, the company said.
The three national oil companies signed an agreement on a joint marine
seismic undertaking in the South China Sea area this March, under which
they will jointly gather two-dimensional and three-dimensional seismic
data in the 140,000-square kilometer sea area in three years. They will
also join hands in processing the two-dimensional seismic data
collected in the area.
An official of the CNOOC hailed the cooperation, saying it is an
important step of the three countries to jointly implement the
Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. The
declaration, signed between China and members of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations in 2002, is a major political document on
resolving disputes in the South China Sea by peaceful means. The
cooperation will benefit the people of the three countries and
contribute to stability and development in the region, said the
official.
Listed in Hong Kong in 2002, the COS is China's largest offshore oil
field services company, with 65 percent stakes held by the CNOOC.
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Lima opens its doors to
the methane industry
with an exhibition and simultaneous conferences Peru – ExpoGNV 2006
After Camisea’s gas deposit started operating, and as a consequence of
the massive use of this fuel for vehicles, the country is getting ready
to host ExpoGNV 2006. This exhibition will take place from 10 to 12 of
August next year at Jockey Plaza Shopping Center, in the city of Lima.
This large center has an area of 4,000 sqm for booths.
In this exhibition there will be a wide range of NGVs –sports, street,
prototypes, light and heavy-duty vehicles-, valves and accessories,
(classic and ultralight new) storage cylinders, compressors, dispensers
and refueling stations suppliers, conversion kits of third, fourth and
fifth generation, among other products. Furthermore, within the
exhibition –in two simultaneous conference rooms- there will be more
than 20 presentations on topics related to natural gas for vehicles,
technologic developments, mobile gas pipes, and marketing.
Peru CNG train will
decrease farmers’ freight costs to half the price
The first CNG train in the world –which was on the cover of July’s PV-
will be available for farmers from the center of Peru. From next month
farm and food products will be carried from Huancayo to Lima with 50
per cent off regarding freight costs. Juan de Dios Olaechea, president
of the company Ferrocarril Central Andino (FCCA), said that this new
service will be directly measured against the traditional vehicle
transport.
“We have started to compete strongly in a very important market from
the social point of view, offering prices that we are now able to offer
thanks to the state-of-the-art railway. We hope this will eventually
cut down costs in other sectors,” said Olaechea.
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Philippines CNG is
thought as the best alternative for the government
Due to the continued increase in oil prices and the global heating
problem, alternative fuels as CNG are becoming the best alternative as
replacement of gasoline and diesel.
The country’s first CNG mother refuelling station was opened in
Tabangao, and its daughter refuelling station in Laguna.
Facilities like these will allow the commercial use of the first 200
CNG buses, which will be imported in December. Furthermore, the
government announced that 2,000 of these vehicles will be on Manila’s
roads by 2010.
These projects are part of the official program launched by Philippines
President, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, to promote the use of natural gas
in transport, in order to ensure fuel supply, and to improve the air
quality.
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Israel
Natural Gas Cars Rising
Sharp rise in gas prices has led the Israeli government to push cars to
be converted to run on compressed natural gas. August 25, 2005.
Israel’s Ministry of National Infrastructure said on Thursday it
expects a sharp increase in the number of cars fueled by compressed
natural gas in the coming years.
The move follows a sharp rise in the price of gasoline and government
approval for the use of dual-fuel cars in Israel.
“We expect tens of thousands of cars will be using compressed natural
gas within a matter of two to three years,” predicted Vladimir
Nemirovsky, deputy director general of the Ministry of National
Infrastructure. Currently Israel has only a few hundred cars running on
natural gas.
Mr. Nemirovsky added that the ministry has approved the sale of
compressed natural gas at 40 filling stations throughout Israel. Two
are already in operation.
The import of hybrid cars has not taken off in Israel, and so far there
have been few solar or electric cars in use in Israel.
The use of compressed natural gas is expected to get a big push in the
coming weeks after the Israeli Finance Ministry’s Tax Authority
determines a new system that will make it possible for car importers to
obtain tax exemptions for imported natural-gas-powered cars.
At present only cars that are converted locally receive an exemption.
This has held up the conversion of cars by most importers. Only one
Subaru importer, for example, currently honors warranties for cars that
have been converted locally in Israel.
Israel Motor Vehicle Importers Association Chairman Yaki Enoch said the
local importers have expressed interest in bringing in natural
gas-powered cars due to the sharp leap in gasoline prices.
One liter of compressed natural gas currently costs half the price of a
liter of gasoline. Mr. Enoch predicted that once the tax exemption
issue is straightened out, the large-scale importing of
natural-gas-powered cars could begin.
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Israel
NGVs may now be imported
Tax authorities have designed a new system which will make possible to
obtain tax exemptions for imported natural gas-powered vehicles. Yaki
Enoch, from the Israel Motor Vehciles Importers Association, said that
the sector had expressed interest in acquiring NGVs, due to the leap in
gasoline prices. In this country gaseous fuels cost half the price of
liquid ones. Enoch also predicted that this could open the door to
large scale NGVs imports in the next few months.
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