Egypt plans to return to normal oil and gas production by 2025, says PM
In a Thursday press conference, the Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced that Egypt will return to normal oil and gas production levels by 2025. After a series of recent discoveries including the huge offshore Zohr gas field estimated to contain 30 trillion cubic foot of gas, the North African nation had aimed at becoming a regional hub of liquefied gas. The scarcity of foreign currencies led to a build-up of arrears…
Energean Power FPSO Hull Leaves China
Mediterranean Sea-focused oil and gas company Energean Oil and Gas has informed that its Energean Power FPSO Hull sailed away from the COSCO yard in China on Friday, April 3, 2020.The hull will now be towed to the Sembcorp Marine Admiralty Yard in Singapore, where the topsides will be integrated before the completed FPSO is towed to the Karish field in Israel for installation and hook-up.
MOL Purchases Azerbaijan ACG, BTC Pipeline Stakes
MOL has signed an agreement with Chevron Global Ventures Ltd and Chevron BTC Pipeline, Ltd to acquire their non-operated E&P and mid-stream interests in Azerbaijan, including a 9.57% stake in the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) oil field, and an effective 8.9% stake in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline that transports the crude to the Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, for total consideration of $1.57bn (subject to adjustments at closing).
Shell Aims to Operate Egypt Concessions in 2020
Royal Dutch Shell is aiming to start operating in its concession areas in Egypt in the second half of 2020, a senior executive said.Shell won three oil and two gas concessions in Egypt in February.Eni, BP and ExxonMobil also won some of a total of 12 tenders as Egypt looks to sustain an investment upswing spurred by major discoveries.Shell has also applied to take part in a bidding round in Egypt for oil and gas drilling in the Red Sea…
Suez Canal Accounts for 8% of LNG Trade
Total oil flows through the Suez Canal and the SUMED pipeline accounted for about 9% of total seaborne traded petroleum in 2017, and LNG flows through the Suez Canal and the SUMED pipeline accounted for about 8% of global LNG trade."The Suez Canal and the SUMED Pipeline are strategic routes for Persian Gulf crude oil, petroleum products, and LNG shipments to Europe and North America," U.S.
Deepwater Leads in Discovered Oil and Gas
Half of the 6.7 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) new conventional oil and gas discoveries in the first half of 2019 were deepwater finds, signalling a return for explorers to high-risk frontier deepwater plays, said analyst Rystad Energy.Year-to-date average monthly discovered volumes above 1.1 billion boe reflect an uptick of approximate 35% compared to the 827 million boe seen in 2018, according to Rystad's mid-year review.
Rowan Rig Wins Repsol's Guyana Well Order
The offshore drilling contractor Rowan announced that Repsol Exploracion Guyana, a unit of Spanish energy major Repsol, has signed a contract for the EXL II, a high-specification Super 116E Jack-up rig, for work in Guyana.The contract is for one well beginning in the third quarter of 2019 with a duration of approximately 45 days, said a press release from the provider of…
France to Test Floating Wind Turbines
The European Commission said on Monday it had authorized French subsidies to four offshore wind farm projects which are aimed at testing a new way of producing electricity from wind.The EU competition regulator said in a statement that the state aid was in line with EU rules as it was proportionate and could help develop a new type of technology to produce renewable energy.Three of the floating wind farms are in the Mediterranean Sea and one in the Atlantic Oce
Shell, Eni, Exxon Win Concessions in Egypt
Royal Dutch Shell, Eni, BP and Exxon Mobil were among winners of Egypt's international tender for oil and gas exploration on Tuesday, with 12 concessions awarded in total.It marks Exxon Mobil's entry into gas exploration in Egypt, while Shell was awarded the most concessions in the tender - three for oil and two for gas.Neptune Energy, Merlon, Shell, Eni and state-controlled Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) were awarded seven oil exploration conces
Egypt Okays BP, Mubadala Acquisition of Stake in Eni's Noor Concession
Egypt’s petroleum ministry has signed an agreement for UK Petroleum giant British Petroleum (BP) and UAE investment fund Mubadala to buy a 45 percent stake in the country's Noor offshore natural gas concesion in the Mediterannean from Italy’s Eni.In the concession, which is in participation with Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), Eni as operator through its subsidiary, IEOC, now holds a 40 percent interest.
Turkish Drillship to Start Mediterranean Operations
A Turkish drilling ship will start operating in the Mediterranean Sea on Wednesday, 100 km (62 miles) off the coast of Antalya province, Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said, adding it would aim to open two drill holes annually.Donmez made the comments on Tuesday during a ceremony to mark the launch of the ship and added that Turkey is very close to buying another drilling ship.(Reporting by Can Sezer; Writing by Ali Kucukgocmen; Editing by Daren Butler)
Arkas Bunkering, Sumitomo Corporation in LNG Bunkering Deal
Arkas Bunkering have signed a protocol with Japan-based Sumitomo Corporation for the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as bunker fuel in Turkish and nearby seas. As environmentally-friendly buildings, vessels and fuels have become more popular than ever, new applications acting as reminders for both states and civil initiatives of their environmental responsibilities continue to emerge.
Rowan Sells Two Jack-up Rigs to ARO Drilling
Texas-based offshore drilling contractor Rowan Companies announced that it has concluded the sale of two LeTourneau TARZAN Class jack-up rigs, the Scooter Yeargain and the Hank Boswell, to ARO Drilling.The net economic impact of this transaction was that Rowan received approximately $90 million in cash and $176 million in shareholder notes from ARO Drilling as consideration for the two rigs.In addition to Rowan's 50% equity stake in ARO Drilling…
Rowan Norway Awarded Turkish Petroluem Contract
Rowan Companies plc announced that the Rowan Norway, an N-Class ultra-harsh environment jack-up rig, has been awarded a two-well contract in the Mediterranean Sea by Turkish Petroleum with an estimated duration 100-140 days. The contract is expected to commence in late 2018.The Rowan Norway is currently warm-stacked in the United Kingdom sector of the North Sea.
MDL Awarded Umbilical Installation Project
U.K. based Maritime Developments said it has won a flex lay contract on a major gas field in the Mediterranean Sea.The project, due to start in 2019, will cover installation of an umbilical connecting the production wells to a fixed offshore processing platform.The work will be carried out using MDL TTS-4/310 Series Tensioner, a 110-metric-ton unit, operated by MDL personnel…
Rosneft Starts Production at Zohr Gas Field
Russian energy major Rosneft said on Wednesday an international consortium has started production at the Zohr gas field in Egypt, in which it has a stake. Gas output at the field, the largest in the Mediterranean Sea, will total up to 28 billion cubic metres a year by 2020, the company added. Rosneft owns up to 35 percent in Zohr, Eni controls 60 percent and BP has 10 percent. Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin
Turkish Navy Monitoring Drilling Vessel near Cyprus
Turkey has sent two ships and a submarine to monitor a drilling vessel in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, the military said on Thursday, in a move likely to increase tension with Cyprus after reunification talks failed last week. The drilling work, a contractual obligation between Cyprus and France's Total, comes a week after the collapse of talks to reunify the divided island nation, split between ethnic Greek and Turkish Cypriots.
Topaz Resolve Goes to Work in the Mediterranean
International offshore support vessel company Topaz Energy and Marine said its multipurpose supply vessel (MPSV) Topaz Resolve has commenced a charter in support of geophysical and geotechnical survey operations in the Mediterranean Sea for a European oil major. Topaz Resolve is operating from Limassol, Cyprus for an initial period of one month. The vessel is a multi-functional ROV…
McDermott to Construct Offshore Production Solutions in Saudi Arabia
McDermott International, Inc. announced plans to construct offshore production solutions in Saudi Arabia. McDermott signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Aramco for a long-term land lease at the new maritime facility at Ras Al Khair in Saudi Arabia, currently being developed by Saudi Aramco. With a long-term phased approach, McDermott plans to build a new fabrication and marine complex expected to use state-of-the-art facilities…
Winson Oil buys VLCC for Med Storage
Buys VLCC to store gasoil in Mediterranean. Hong Kong-based trader Winson Oil has bought a very large crude carrier (VLCC) to store oil in the Mediterranean as it pushes to expand its business in Europe, two company sources said. The step could boost Asian gasoil margins if the firm enters the spot market to make large purchases to fill the vessel, traders said. Winson bought the VLCC in July for $28 million and has renamed it Winson No.
