Shell to Exit Baltic LNG Oroject
Royal Dutch Shell has decided to exit the Baltic liquefied natural gas (LNG) project led by Russian gas producer Gazprom in the Leningrad region, the chairman of Shell's Russian unit said on Wednesday."Following Gazprom's announcement on March 29 regarding the final development concept of Baltic LNG, we have decided to stop our involvement in this project," Cederic Cremers, Shell Russia's chairman, said.Shell said earlier on Wednesday it was studying the possible implications of a recent decision by Gazprom to move towards the full integration of its Baltic LNG an
Norway Eyes Offshore Wind to Power Gas Plant
Norwegian gas system operator Gassco and Canadian energy firm Enbridge are working on reviving a 350 megawatt (MW) offshore wind project to boost power supply security at Norway's Nyhamna gas processing plant, they told Reuters.The project, which would be the country's first offshore wind farm, is called Havsul 1 and was fully licensed by Norwegian energy regulators in 2009 before being abandoned in 2012 due to profitability concerns and insufficient subsidies.Nyhamna is one of Norway's biggest gas processing plants, handling output from Shell's Ormen Lange field.
Middle East Oil & Gas Shipping Routes are at Risk
Saudi Arabia said on Thursday it was suspending oil shipments through the Red Sea after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis attacked two crude tankers, underscoring risks caused by the conflict in the world's top oil exporting region.Iran, in its row with the United States over sanctions, has also threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, the other major strategic shipping route for oil from the region and the main route for Iranian crude exports.Below are facts about region's shipping routes:Bab al-MandebAny move to block the Bab al-Mandeb…
Danos Completes Offshore Facility Turnaround
Danos reports it has completed a turnaround comprising four client offshore facilities in Equatorial Guinea. Though estimated to require 10 days of downtime, Danos completed the work ahead of schedule, with production resuming after only seven days. The project required approximately 70 skilled craftsmen who were mobilized from 10 different cities and then transported to West Africa, plus a crew of workers from the Philippines with specialized expertise in British Standard Scaffolding.
Apache's Latest Plan Shows U.S. Shale Boom Has Legs
Apache Corp Chief Executive John Christmann is betting the future of his company on a remote corner of the Permian Basin, the largest U.S. oilfield, planning to spend billions of dollars in the next 20 years to drill more than 5,000 wells. The development of the company's Alpine High field holds ramifications for U.S. oil reserves and future output from the already prolific Permian oilfield in Texas. The region was first tapped in the 1920s. After decades of drilling, it was considered largely exhausted by the late 1990s.
German Industrial Plant Building Orders dip to 2004 Levels
German manufacturers of large industrial plants reported a 12-year low in new orders for 2016 as the weak oil price held back demand in the Middle East while Germany's move to renewable energy wiped out demand for conventional electricity generation. Orders booked by the Germany-based companies - which include Linde, Siemens and Thyssenkrupp - fell 3 percent to 18.9 billion euros ($20.6 billion), their lowest level since 2004, with foreign orders down 10 percent.
Kollsnes Gas Plant to be Partially Shut in May and Sept
Norway's largest gas-processing plant, Kollsnes, will be partially shut from May 6-20 and from Sept. 2-20 next year, gas system operator Gassco said on Friday, announcing its 2017 maintenance plans. Norway exports natural gas from its offshore fields via a dense network of subsea pipelines to Britain, Germany, France and Belgium after processing it at onshore plants. Norwegian gas meets about 25 percent of Europe's demand. The Kollsnes plant in western Norway processes gas from the country's biggest offshore field…
Norway's Gas Maintenance to Peak in May, September
Maintenance on Norwegian gas fields and processing facilities in 2016 will peak towards the end of May and in early September, gas system operator Gassco said on Wednesday. Norway is the biggest gas supplier to western Europe and provides one fifth of European Union consumption. Production capacity will be reduced by 144.5 million cubic metres (mcm) per day from May 28 to June 9, when the Kollsnes gas processing plant will shut for maintenance. Production at Norway's biggest gas field, Troll, which delivers gas to Kollsnes, will also be shut during that period.
ATR Group Invests in Zone II Compressors
Equipment specialist ATR Group has unveiled two exclusively designed ‘whisper quiet’ type Zone II compressors following a multi-million pound investment in new fleet built to service the UK and international regions. The Aberdeen-based company has collaborated with manufacturers Cummins to deliver improved safety and operating features on the compressors as well as significantly reduce noise emission levels. These upgrades will offer a safer working environment to the offshore oil and gas workforce both in the North Sea and internationally.
Tanzania Gas Pipeline Built, But Not Ready to Start
A pipeline connecting offshore natural gas fields to Tanzania's commercial capital Dar es Salaam is complete, but technical setbacks will keep it from going online until November, officials said on Tuesday. Tanzania estimates it has at least 53.28 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of recoverable natural gas reserves off its southern coastline. Discoveries offshore of Tanzania and Mozambique waters have led to predictions the region could become the world's third-largest exporter of natural gas.
Statoil Evacuates North Sea Platforms Ahead of Storm
Norwegian oil and gas producer Statoil is moving some workers off seven North Sea platforms in anticipation of a weekend storm, but production should not be affect, a spokesman said on Friday. "We are partly unmanning the Statfjord B and C, Troll B, Snorre B, Veslefrikk, Huldra and Heimdal platforms, but production should not be affected," Statoil spokesman Oerjan Heradstveit said. Statoil did not say how many workers would be moved. Wind speeds could reach hurricane levels of 35-45 metres per second…
New Definitions Needed for Condensate, Gas Liquids
"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet," William Shakespeare wrote in "Romeo and Juliet". But he was not working for the U.S. government and trying to define what constitutes condensate and natural gas liquids. A simple and workable definition might have baffled even the undisputed master of the English language. In the world of condensates and natural gas liquids, a rose is never just a rose, and producing simple and consistent definitions has eluded federal regulators.
China Walks Tightrope over Natural Gas Prices
China's natural gas dilemma was neatly illustrated by two recent announcements, the first a price increase and the second the closing of two gas-processing plants. The two developments show the tightrope Beijing is trying to walk by increasing natural gas prices to the level where increased exploration, production and imports are viable, but not so much so as to crimp demand. Natural gas prices for bulk buyers and non-residential users will be raised effective on Sept.
MarkWest PA NatGas Plant Back in Service
MarkWest Energy Partners LP's Plant III at its Houston natural gas processing and fractionation complex in Washington County, Pennsylvania, has returned to service after nearly two months, the company said. The company also said in a statement late Tuesday that it had completed or was close to completing new units at a couple of gas processing plants in Ohio. The Houston complex consists of three processing plants totaling 355 million cubic feet per day and 98,000 barrels per day of ethane and heavier fractionation capacity.
LG, Hyundai Clinch $4b Deals with Gas-rich Turkmenistan
South Korean industrial conglomerates LG and Hyundai will build gas processing plants in Turkmenistan worth a total of $4 billion, Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said on Friday. "Turkmenistan sees a long-term partner in South Korea. And today we concluded two large-scale agreements worth a total of $4 billion," Berdymukhamedov Told journalists after holding talks with his visiting South Korean counterpart Park Geun-hye. After the talks the contract to build two processing plants was signed by Turkmen state gas company Turkmengas…
Explosion Rocks Natural Gas Processing Plant In Wyoming
An explosion on Wednesday rocked a natural gas-processing plant in Wyoming that can churn out about 2 percent of the daily U.S. gas supply, though no injuries were reported. The blast at the Williams Companies Inc plant in Opal, Wyoming, touched off a fire that was still burning several hours later, company spokeswoman Michele Swanersaid. She said all 42 employees of the evacuated plant had been accounted for and were not injured. The Lincoln County Sheriff's Department said the fire had been contained to one area of the plant.
