Eastern Canadian provinces replace controversial Churchill Falls Hydropower deal
On Thursday, the Canadian province Newfoundland and Labrador signed a Memorandum of Understanding with its neighboring Quebec to create a deal for hydroelectric generation in Labrador. This agreement is expected to generate revenue of approximately C$200 billion (US$140.97 billion). The agreement will replace the contentious 1969 contract for the export of power from Upper Churchill Falls Hydroelectric Facility in Labrador…
Floating Offshore Wind: Attention Turns Subsea for Power Transport
From being an ugly duckling, floating offshore wind is now the Cinderella of the offshore renewables world. Attention is now being paid to floating and even subsea substation concepts to help bring this power to shore. Over the past year, expectations around the growth in the floating offshore wind development have grown, significantly. Many are piling into the market, seeing that it could give them a chance to ramp up renewables capacity quickly…
Shell to Shut Its Convent, La. Refinery Amid Pandemic
Royal Dutch Shell said on Thursday it will shut down its refinery in Convent, Louisiana, the largest U.S. facility to close since the coronavirus pandemic first hit and devastated economic demand worldwide.The shutdown, to occur this month, comes after Shell failed to find a buyer.The refinery is the ninth in North America either to announce a shutdown or to be idled since the pandemic, which has delivered a heavy blow to fuel demand globally.
Husky Restarts White Rose
Husky Energy said that it has received approval for the limited restart of oil and gas production from White Rose field offshore Newfoundland and Labrador.SeaRose FPSO project was shut down after a spill of about 250,000 litres after a heavy wind storm a couple of months ago.“We have worked with our certifying authority to satisfy ourselves the SeaRose FPSO and associated equipment is ready to safely operate the Central Drill Centre (CDC).
SeaRose FPSO Production Remains On Hold
Oil production continues to be suspended at the SeaRose FPSO, about 350 kilometers east of St. John’s for the last 50 days. There’s no information on when production will resume.Production was suspended and shutdown began on November 16 after two spills - an estimated 250,000-liter spill - following a storm.Efforts were underway to resume production after the storm when a failed flowline connector…
Fugro Goes Seep Hunting off Eastern Canada
A geophysical acquisition portion of a 2018 Carson Basin seep hunting program offshore eastern Canada recently completed by Fugro covered an area of 18,875 square kilometers in water depths from 300 to 3,300 meters in this frontier region offshore Newfoundland. From its deepwater survey vessel, Fugro Searcher, Fugro acquired multibeam echosounder data (bathymetry, backscatter intensity and water…
Equinor Eyes Investment Decision on Bay du Nord Project in 2020
Norway's oil and gas firm Equinor expects to make the final investment decision on deepwater Bay du Nord project offshore Canada in 2020, the company and Canada's Newfoundland and Labrador province said on Thursday.The province's government said in a statement it has finalised a framework agreement with Equinor and its Canadian partner Husky Energy on the development some 500 kilometres off its coast.The project…
Fugro Sells Seep Data Before Canadian Offshore Bidding
Fugro and partner Amplified Geochemical Imaging (AGI) have reported recent success selling licenses for data from a frontier region offshore Canada. The data were acquired during a hydrocarbon seep survey, heat flow and geochemical coring campaign in the large Orphan Basin, situated on the continental margin of Newfoundland.The comprehensive data package is being licensed from both Fugro and AGI and includes multibeam echo sounder data (bathymetry…
UTEC Develops Bespoke FPSO Virtual Management Tool
UTEC has delivered a bespoke Virtual Asset Management tool to an offshore Operator in Eastern Canada to allow its team to remotely access its floating, production storage and offloading unit (FPSO) from their desktop. The field, located offshore approximately 350 kilometers southeast of Newfoundland and Labrador contains one of the largest FPSO vessels ever built. At approximately the size of three football fields laid end to end the FPSO is over 290 meters long…
Exxon Selling Stake in Terra Nova Oil Project
Exxon Mobil Corp is selling its entire stake in the Terra Nova oil project off the eastern coast of Canada, though the world's largest publicly traded oil producer said it was committed to remaining an investor in the region. The project, located about 217 miles (350 km) off Newfoundland and Labrador, produced about 5,000 barrels of oil per day in 2016. Exxon is selling all of its 19 percent stake in the project and initial bids are due March 30…
ExxonMobil's Canada Offshore Project Produces First Oil
The Hebron oil project off the coast of eastern Canada has produced its first oil, operator Exxon Mobil said on Tuesday, in a boost to Atlantic Canada's output after years of weak crude prices. At its peak Hebron will produce up to 150,000 barrels per day (bpd), Exxon said. It will help Atlantic Canada offshore production climb 44 percent to 307,000 bpd by 2024, according to estimates from the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.
Fugro, AGI to Supply Seep Data to Canada
Fugro said it has teamed up with Amplified Geochemical Imaging (AGI) to acquire offshore hydrocarbon seep data in advance of Canada’s 2018 east coast bid round. Bathymetry, backscatter and water column anomaly data will be collected to pull together a comprehensive picture of surficial geological features. These data will be used to identify and precisely target the best locations for geochemical sampling, enabling clients to improve and de-risk their exploration programs.
TechnipFMC Wins West White Rose Contract
TechnipFMC has been awarded an Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Installation (EPCI) contract from Husky Energy for the West White Rose Project in Eastern Canada. The contract covers the supply and installation of subsea equipment including tie-in manifolds, flexible flowlines, and control umbilicals, which will connect the recently announced West White Rose Platform to the existing SeaRose FPSO (Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading) vessel.
Statoil Scales Down 2017 Exploration Plans
Norway's Statoil has reduced its exploration ambitions for 2017 and will drill around 30 wells, down from previous plans for as many as 35, its chief financial officer said on Thursday. The company has revised its exploration spending guidance for 2017 to $1.3 billion from $1.5 billion, citing "strict prioritisation and efficient drilling operations" in a statement accompanying its second-quarter earnings.
Statoil Completes Two-well Exploration Drilling Campaign Off Newfoundland
Statoil, along with its partner, Husky Energy, has finalized a two-well exploration drilling program in the Flemish Pass Basin offshore Newfoundland. Both wells were drilled safely and efficiently by the Seadrill West Aquarius in the Flemish Pass Basin, located approximately 500 kilometres east of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. The two wells, located within tie-back vicinity to Statoil’s 2013 Bay du Nord discovery, did not result in the discovery of hydrocarbons.
Colossal Hebron Platform Topsides Installed
The Hebron oil field is located offshore Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada in the Jeanne d'Arc Basin. The field has undergone significant development using stand-alone concrete gravity based structure that will withstand harsh local conditions. First oil from this new expansion is scheduled for late 2017. Fagioli, the Italian based experts in heavy cargo transportation and lifting, were contracted to provide support for the lifting and installation of the huge topsides for the platform.
Energy East Pipeline woes Worry Canada's Atlantic Coast
For years, heavy equipment operator Ashley Underhill has tried to defy the notion that one could only make a good living in Canada's poorer east coast by spending most of the time away from the family in the nation's western oil patch. One reason Underhill had battled on, working on small private contracts, including snow clearing and wood cutting, was Energy East, a planned 4,600-km (2860-mile)…
Low Prices May Hobble Potentially Massive New Canada Oilfield
A deepwater oilfield off the coast of eastern Canada could hold 25.5 billion barrels of crude, according to a new seismic report by the Newfoundland and Labrador government, potentially making it the country's largest offshore resource. But the West Orphan Basin, 300 km (186 miles) northeast of Newfoundland, may still struggle to attract exploration bids in a November land sale due to persistently low crude prices.
Canada May Ask Far-offshore Drillers to Pay Extra
Canada may ask oil companies to contribute to the hundreds of millions of dollars or more the country has to pay to an international body if they drill far offshore, according to an internal government memo. If that happens, it could make the operations more expensive and strain talks that companies will have with provincial governments, which already require them to pay royalties. A United Nations convention…
Statoil Completes Exploration Drilling Off Newfoundland
Statoil, along with its partners, has finalized a 19-month exploration drilling program offshore Newfoundland. The purpose of the drilling program was to increase the robustness of the Bay du Nord project and to test new areas of the Flemish Pass Basin. Nine wells were drilled safely and efficiently by the Seadrill West Hercules in the Flemish Pass Basin, located approximately 500 kilometres east of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.
