Pick your Poison: NOAA Study Finds Less Air Pollution brings more Hurricanes
A new study from NOAA finds that reducing air pollution in North America & Europe brings more hurricanes; increased pollution in Asia reduces tropical cyclonesA NOAA study published in the journal Science Advances about four decades of tropical cyclones reveals the surprising result that reducing particulate air pollution in Europe and North America has contributed to an increase in…
Ørsted, US Unis to Study Whales in OWP
Danish developer Orsted U.S. Offshore Wind has signed a research partnership with Rutgers University, the University of Rhode Island and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to support academic research activities related to offshore wind.The group is set to launch the Ecosystem and Passive Acoustic Monitoring (ECO-PAM) project.Ørsted signed an initial memorandum of understanding with…
Excelerate to Build FLNG Terminal in Philippines
Philippine authorities have given Excelerate Energy LP permission to proceed on plans to develop a floating natural gas import terminal to supply existing and new power generation.Texas-headquartered player in floating LNG regasification solutions, received a notice to proceed (NTP) from the Philippine Department of Energy (DOE) to develop Luzon LNG, which would be a floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) terminal in the Bay of Batangas.The project…
Offshore Wind: Regulatory “Takes” – Take a Close Look
On April 30 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) published a notice, requesting public comments, on a proposed “incidental harassment authorization” (IHA). An IHA is a legal and enforceable document presenting the terms and conditions with which a company must adhere in order to protect wildlife. In this case, the draft IHA was for Vineyard Wind, the wind energy company ready to start construction on an 800 MW offshore wind farm in the Atlantic…
Atlantic Offshore Wind: Favorable Winds for Maritime
Now that the United States finally can envision steady winds blowing from the Atlantic Seaboard due to a pipeline of offshore wind farms on the horizon, the maritime industry can finally step up and earn some of the benefits. This includes shipbuilding, port construction, and worker training. This article reviews the key developments and forecasts the growth in maritime jobs.The federal…
Excelerate FSRUs Hit Send-out Milestone
US-based LNG solutions company Excelerate Energy's Northeast Gateway Deepwater Terminal (Northeast Gateway), located offshore Boston, reached a peak send-out flow rate of over 800,000 MMBTU per day of natural gas on February 1, 2019, a first for the terminal.The operation was completed by two of Excelerate’s floating storage regasification units (FSRUs), Exemplar and Express discharging…
Hundreds of Oil Workers Strike in Norway
Hundreds of workers on Norwegian offshore oil and gas rigs went on strike on Tuesday after rejecting a proposed wage deal, leading to the shutdown of one Shell-operated field and helping send Brent crude prices higher.One union said hundreds more workers would join the strike on Sunday if an agreement over union demands for a wage increase and pension rights was not reached.Royal Dutch Shell said that due to the strike it was temporarily closing production at its Knarr field…
Hundreds of Norway Oil Workers Go On Strike
Hundreds of workers on Norwegian offshore oil and gas rigs went on strike on Tuesday after rejecting a proposed wage deal, leading to the shutdown of one Shell-operated field and helping send Brent crude prices higher.One union said hundreds more workers would join the strike on Sunday if an agreement over union demands for a wage increase and pension rights was not reached.Royal Dutch Shell said that due to the strike it was temporarily closing production at its Knarr field…
Valero Energy Profit Beats on Higher Refining Margins
Valero Energy Corp posted a better-than-expected first quarter profit as the independent U.S. refiner benefited from higher refining margins.Valero has a diverse set of refineries that allows it to take advantage of volatile crude price differentials and process lower-quality feedstock into high-value refined products such as gasoline and distillates."Our refineries are well-situated…
Greenpeace Boards Statoil Rig
Greenpeace activists have boarded a rig that was due to sail to the Arctic to drill prospects on behalf of oil firm Statoil, the environmental group said on Thursday. "We have two people on board and 10 on the water to ensure the rig does not leave port. Our activity started at 8am (0700 GMT) this morning," Truls Gulowsen, the head of Greenpeace in Norway, told Reuters. "We are prepared to stay as long as necessary," he added.
NOIA Comments Support Offshore Leasing Program
he National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) has submitted comments which strongly encourage the Secretary of the Interior to proceed with lease sale planning in all 25 planning areas proposed in the Draft Proposed Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2019-2024 (DPP). Specifically, NOIA supports the annual offering of all acreage in the Central and Western Gulf…
West Phoenix to Drill in UK and Norway
Statoil and its partners have contracted the West Phoenix rig for exploration drilling on the U.K. and Norwegian continental shelves from the summer of 2018. The contract is awarded to the two Seadrill companies North Atlantic Drilling UK Ltd. and North Atlantic Norway Ltd. The semi-submersible rig West Phoenix will first drill an exploration well for the Ragnfrid North license on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), followed by three wells on the U.K.
Statoil Contracts West Hercules Rig
The West Hercules semi-submersible rig has been contracted for drilling two exploration wells in the Barents Sea in 2018, and options to drill another five exploration wells. Statoil and the licence partners have signed a contract with North Atlantic Norway Ltd for use of the 6th generation West Hercules rig. The total estimated contract value is USD 15-20 million for the two permanent wells. Portrait - Geir TungesvikGeir Tungesvik, head of Drilling and Well in Statoil.
North Atlantic Drilling: No Recovery for Current Shareholders
Rig firm North Atlantic Drilling said in a statement: North Atlantic Drilling Ltd., a majority owned subsidiary of Seadrill Limited, announced holders of it common stock will receive no recovery in Chapter 11 process Seadrill earlier announced it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and expects current Seadrill shareholders to receive 2 pct of the post-restructured equity Related stories:Seadrill files for chapter 11 bankruptcy Sevan Drilling: No recovery for current
Canada Orders Seizure of Oil Tanker
The Federal Court of Canada has ordered the seizure of a 721,915-barrel cargo of crude from Kurdistan aboard the "Neverland" oil tanker on the request of the Iraq Oil Ministry, court documents show. The Iraq Oil Ministry has also filed a claim against commodity trading house Vitol S.A. and subsidiaries including Mansel Ltd, the charterer of the ship, and affiliate Finaval SpA di Navigazione, the owner of the ship, for $32.5 million.
Faroe Islands Looks to Restart Hunt for Oil and Gas
Oil companies are interested in restarting the hunt for oil and gas in the scarcely explored seas off the Faroe Islands neighbouring the more mature UK North Sea, the head of the Faroese Geological Survey said. No economically viable discoveries have been made on the Faroese shelf but the tiny nation hopes to entice energy firms to restart exploration as it shows them new geological data in London on Wednesday. "Oil firms have in many ways shown interest.
Poland has Natgas Exports 'understanding' with U.S.
Poland's desire to cut natural gas imports from Russia has led to an "understanding" with the United States to work toward a deal to export liquefied natural gas to its new Baltic Sea terminal, the country's deputy prime minister said on Wednesday. Mateusz Morawiecki, who is also the minister of economic development and finance, said in an interview that discussions with new U.S. "The word agreement is probably premature. Understanding?
Bibby Offshore wins Shell Contract
Bibby Offshore won a contract with Shell, due to commence in Q1 2017, that will see Bibby Offshore provide engineering and subsea construction activities in the Gannet G field in the Central North Sea. Bibby Offshore is contracted to use utilize its multipurpose dive support and offshore construction vessel - Bibby Polaris - and its integral 1000 ton basket carousel to lay flexible pipe systems in water depths of approximately 95m.
Bibby Offshore Wins Shell Subsea Deal
Bibby Offshore, the leading subsea services provider to the oil and gas industry, has this year been awarded two contracts from Shell to provide inspection services on assets in the Corrib Natural Gas field in the North Atlantic Ocean. The first contract, completed in June this year, saw Bibby Offshore’s construction support vessel Olympic Ares - equipped with Quantum Work Class and…
Statoil Cancels Contract for East Epsilon Rig
Statoil has canceled the final phase of the contract with North Atlantic Drilling for the East Epsilon jack-up rig. The rig has been on contract to Statoil since December 29, 2010, performing operations for the Sleipner, Gudrun and Huldra licences. West Epsilon is currently performing permanent well plugging operations on the Hulda field, the work program being completed ahead of schedule.
