US drillers reduce oil and gas rigs a second time in 3 weeks - Baker Hughes
Baker Hughes, a leading energy services company, said that U.S. firms have cut oil and gas rigs this week for the second time within three weeks. The number of oil and gas rigs, a good indicator of future production, dropped by two in the week ending August 16. Baker Hughes reported that the total number of rigs is down by 56 or 8.7% from this time last year. Baker Hughes reported that oil rigs dropped by two this week to 483 while gas rigs increased by one to 98. Oil and gas rig counts dropped by about 20% in the year 2023, after increasing by 33% and 67% respectively in 2022, 2021 and 2022.
Chevron achieves industry-first in ultra-high-pressure oil field
Chevron announced on Monday that it had achieved a breakthrough in technology by producing the first oil under extreme pressures from a U.S. Gulf of Mexico Field. The $5.7 billion project called Anchor ushers in a new era of deepwater production that was previously off limits due to the lack of equipment capable of coping with pressures up to 20,000 pounds square inch. Chevron, along with TotalEnergies, expects the Anchor project to be productive for at least 30 years. The floating platform can pump up to 75,000 bbls of oil per day and 28 million cu ft of natural gas. The field is located about 140 miles away (225 km) from the coast of Louisiana.
2023 Outlook: The Offshore Service Vessel Market
The market for offshore support vessels has been through a rather rough few years since offshore exploration and production activity took a nose-dive in 2015 following the oil price crash the year before.The newbuild order boom that came with the ever-greener pastures imagined in the industry ensured that not only was the supply- and demand balance off by an insurmountable degree in the years that followed, but at its peak, in 2017, the oversupply of anchor handling tug supply- and platform supply vessels was in excess…
Bardex Mooring Tensioning System Installed in GOM
BP’s latest floating production facility, ARGOS, has been successfully moored in the US Gulf of Mexico. The mooring tensioning system includes Bardex Corporation Chain Jacks used to haul in and tighten 12 lines of 171mm R4S top chain. Bardex mooring chain jacks were the first to be used for deep water floating production units since the early 1990s.
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, with 15MW turbines on the horizon and the possibility of GW-scale projects looming by the end of the decade.Much has been said about the different floating turbine concepts.
Brent Shoots Past $80 a Barrel
Oil markets climbed for a sixth day on Tuesday, boosted by a tighter supply and firm demand outlook, but power shortages in China which hit factory output tempered the rally.Brent crude futures gained 67 cents, or 0.8%, to $80.20 a barrel at 1016 GMT, after reaching their highest level since October 2018 at $80.75. Brent gained 1.8% on Monday.U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 79 cents, or 1%, to $76.24 a barrel, after hitting a session high of $76.67, its highest since early July. It jumped 2% the previous day.Hurricanes Ida and Nicholas, which swept through the U.S.
Report says BHP Mulls Oil & Gas Exit
Global miner BHP Group is considering getting out of oil and gas in a multibillion-dollar exit as it looks to speed up its retreat from fossil fuels, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.The world's biggest miner is reviewing its petroleum business and considering options including a trade sale, the report said, adding that the deliberations were still at an early stage and no final decision has been made."BHP does not comment on rumor or speculation," company spokesperson Judy Dane…
Biden to Target Drilling, Fossil Fuel Subsidies in New Climate Orders
President Joe Biden was set on Wednesday to sign executive actions to combat climate change, including pausing new oil and gas leases on federal land and cutting fossil fuel subsidies as he pursues green policies in stark contrast to those of his predecessor Donald Trump.The orders map out the direction for the Democratic president's climate change and environmental agenda and mark a reversal from Trump, a Republican businessman-turned-politician who sought to maximize U.S. oil, gas and coal output by removing regulations…
Diamond Offshore Files for Bankruptcy
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc filed for bankruptcy protection in Texas on Sunday, after the company recently skipped making an interest payment and said it had retained restructuring advisers.The Houston-based contract drilling company's filing, one of 15 of its group companies seeking protection under Chapter 11, said day rates and demand for its services had "worsened precipitously" this year amid a "price war" between OPEC and Russia and the steep drop in oil demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic.The company has significant operations in the Gulf of Mexico.The filing comes as the five biggest U.S.
Equinor Finds Oil at Monument Prospect in U.S. Gulf of Mexico
Norwegian oil firm Equinor, with partners Progress Resources and Repsol, has made an oil discovery in the Monument exploration well in the US Gulf of Mexico.The Monument exploration well found approximately 200 feet (c. 60 meters) of net oil pay with good reservoir characteristics in Paleogene sandstone. This provides an early indication of the productive reservoir interval at the well location, Equinor said Monday.The offshore well was drilled to a total depth of 33,348 feet (10,164 meters) using the Pacific Khamsin drillship.“We are pleased to have proved an accumulation of movable hydrocarbons in the Monument exploration well.
U.S. Offshore Oil Lease Sale Weakest Since 2016
A major sale of oil and gas leases in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday generated $93 million in high bids, the lowest total for any U.S. offshore auction since 2016, reflecting caution in the drilling industry amid a steep slide in oil prices.Firing up offshore drilling is a crucial part of U.S. President Donald Trump's "energy dominance" agenda to maximize domestic production of crude oil, natural gas, and coal. But the energy industry is in crisis as the coronavirus outbreak decimates world demand for fuel and crushes prices."While bidding did take a tough hit…
Oil Giants Set Health Checks, Work-from-home Rules
Major energy companies in the United States imposed work-from-home rules for office staff and began health checks for remote or critical workers as coronavirus spread and threatened an industry reeling from falling demand and profits.BP, Exxon Mobil, Kinder Morgan, Motiva Enterprises and Royal Dutch Shell told most office staff to work from home starting Monday. Federal regulators on Friday were pressed by companies to ease work rules for pipeline operators and to limit visits to some sites. Shell and Chevron began health checks of workers and visitors at some key U.S.
Offshore: OSV Market Report
The environment in oil patches onshore and offshore alike has been challenging throughout 2019; worries about an economic slowdown – whether cyclical or induced by a trade war – have weighed heavily on oil prices, even in the face of reduced production by the big producers. Though storm clouds persist, there appears a clearing on the horizon.The fate of Offshore Service Vessels (OSVs) is, naturally, closely tied to the price of oil. Seacor Marine’s John Gellert, in reviewing its Q2 results, said: “Activity levels in the U.S.
GoM Oil Output Set for Record Year
The U.S. Gulf of Mexico is positioned for another year of record oil production in 2020, despite massive cuts in investment.According to Rystad Energy, most of this growth coming from deep water projects.“2020 is expected to be another record year with average production above 1.9 million barrels per day,” says Joachim Milling Gregersen, an analyst on Rystad Energy’s upstream team.Oil production in the Gulf of Mexico has grown every year since 2013, with an average of 104,000 barrels per day added annually. An essential contribution has come from infill drilling in legacy producing fields such as Mars…
Oil Majors to Raise $27Bln in Selling Spree
Global giants of the oil and gas industry – the so-called supermajors – are looking to sell assets that could fetch a total of $27.5 billion, according to Rystad Energy’s latest assessment.These companies are actively shedding mature assets on a massive scale in a bid to finance higher-yielding investments elsewhere, with the added benefit of pleasing shareholders who are calling for stricter capital discipline.“The expected transactions mean some of the majors are poised to exit certain regions, giving regional players…
BP Profits Fall 40%
BP's profits fell sharply in the third quarter, hurt by lower oil prices, but strong refining operations helped the company beat expectations even after taking a one-off $2.6 billion charge linked to asset sales.BP, like other big energy companies, has been hit by a sharp drop in oil prices as trade tensions between the United States and China have impacted global oil demand.The British oil company made its first net loss in more than three years in the quarter due to the one-off charge, but Chief Executive Bob Dudley, who will step down next year after a decade at the helm…
BP Spurs $10 Bln Divestment Target
BP will take charges of $2 to $3 billion in the third quarter, the British energy firm said on Friday, as it looks to reach divestments worth $10 billion by the end of 2019, a year ahead of schedule.In a statement, London-based BP said it expects to agree asset sales of $10 billion by end-year after its $5.6 billion sale of its Alaskan business to Hilcorp and divestments in U.S. shale gas.BP shares were down 1.1% by 0948 GMT compared with a 1.3% gain in the broader European energy index.The non-cash, non-operating, after-tax charge will impact the company's headline profit figure but not its underlying cashflow, a spokesman said.
Enterprise Products to Build GoM Crude Terminal
Enterprise Products Partners LP said on Wednesday it expects to take about two years to construct its oil export project called Sea Port Oil Terminal, or SPOT, in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.Permitting for the terminal was expected to reach the final stages by the end of the first quarter of 2020 and final approval was expected during the second quarter, a company executive said on its second quarter earnings call.Enterprise Products signed long-term agreements with Chevron Corp to support the development of SPOT, which will…
Anadarko Shareholders to Vote on Oxy Deal
Anadarko Petroleum Corp shareholders will vote Aug. 8 on the oil and gas producer's planned $38 billion sale to Occidental Petroleum Corp - the biggest oil and gas deal of the year.Occidental avoided its own shareholder vote on the deal by securing a controversial $10 billion financing agreement with Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, which allowed it to raise the cash portion of its offer.While an Anadarko holders' vote for the proposed deal is very likely, the price has angered several Occidental investors, including billionaire activist Carl Icahn…
Light Sweet Crude Exports Jump at LOOP
The Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP) exported a record 283,333 barrels per day of light sweet crude last month, according to trade sources, as prices weakened against global Brent.LOOP, which exports mostly medium sour grades produced in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, last month exported more than twice the amount of light sweet from the prior month. Overall exports of U.S. crude hit a record 3.77 million barrels per day (bpd) one week in June, U.S. government data showed.A decline in oil imports at the facility, stemming from record U.S.
