Month: June 2017

Five offshore workers have reportedly been injured after a seismic vessel crashed into an offshore platform in the Caspian Sea.

ABC.AZ, citing Socar, Azerbaijan’s national oil company, said the incident happened on Wednesday afternoon with a vessel named Arya 141 involved.

According to the company, the vessel owned by Caspian Shipping Company was conducting seismic survey in the Narimanov area when it lost control and crashed into offshore platform #34.

Five of seven crew members were injured and 1 person was hospitalized. Socar is investigating the case.

Offshore Energy Today has reached out to Caspian Shipping Company, seeking more info on the accident and on the vessel itself, as we’ve been unable to find any info on “Arya 141.”

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BP says it will take a ~$750M writeoff in Q2 related to exploration blocks it relinquished in Angola.

BP says it is giving up its 50% interest in an offshore block where a discovery that partner Sonangol once called Angola’s largest ever gas find now has been declared non-commercial.

In its report on Q2 exploration highlights, BP says it continues to make progress in shifting its exploration portfolio toward natural gas and advantaged oil.

BP expects the Savannah and Macadamia gas discoveries in Trinidad together will unlock ~2T cf of gas in place and to support further development in the country.

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Turkey’s second seismic research vessel, the MTA Oruc Reis, has been delivered to General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration.

The vessel joins Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO)’s 8-streamer seismic vessel Barbaros Hayreddin Pasa, which was acquired from Polarcus in 2013.

Built by Istanbul Shipyard, for a working lifespan of 30 years, the MTA Oruc Reis is designed to perform 2D/3D seismic research and sampling for hydrograpghic, hydroacustic, geologic studies. The 86 meters long and 22 meters wide vessel is fitted with 4×4 streamer systems, with system infrastructure ready for 8×8.

The vessel is equipped with one remote operated vehicle (ROV) for oceanographic sampling and measuring. It can accommodate up to 55 personnel and stay at sea for 35 days.

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Royal Dutch Shell’s Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility left the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in Geoje, South Korea this morning, marking a significant milestone for the project.

The facility, constructed by Technip Samsung Consortium, is being towed to North West Australia, where the next phase of the project will begin.

On arrival at the Prelude offshore gas field, 475 kilometres (295 miles) north-north east of Broome, Western Australia, pre-installed mooring chains will be lifted from the seabed and secured to the facility. Once secure, the hook-up and commissioning process will begin.

Prelude FLNG is an important project in Shell’s portfolio. It will provide liquefied natural gas for customers around the world and generate cash flow that will help drive the performance of Shell’s Integrated Gas business. The safe and reliable start-up of Prelude’s operations will be the project team’s focus throughout the next phase. Cash flow from the project is expected in 2018.

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PGS has entered into a data sharing agreement with the Institute of Marine Research in Norway for use of surplus data to improve understanding of the oceans.

In late March 2017 PGS announced its intention to open the Company’s surplus database for research on the ocean. The database has been built since the inception of the Company in 1991. Data recordings like temperatures and salinity through the water column, currents and weather observations are collected as a part of the seismic acquisition process in order to improve seismic imaging. This activity has created an extensive MultiClient data library with corresponding surplus data.

“As a responsible company we are fully committed to minimize the impact on the environment from our own operations”, says Jon Erik Reinhardsen, President & CEO of PGS. “We will contribute where we can to increase our collective understanding and knowledge of the oceanic environment. I am therefore pleased to enter into this agreement with the Institute of Marine Research in Norway for use of our surplus database.”

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The Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) has published a report which provides a new cost estimate for offshore oil and gas decommissioning in the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS).

With a shared objective of both industry and government to reduce decommissioning costs, the OGA has set industry a target to reduce costs by at least 35%. This report has been produced to provide greater certainty of the cost of decommissioning all of the UK’s current and future offshore facilities, pipelines, development wells, suspended open water exploration wells and appraisal wells and onshore terminals.

The OGA’s approach has been to develop a probabilistic cost estimate, which takes into account the broad range of uncertainties and uses data submitted by oil and gas operators as part of its 2016 UKCS Stewardship Survey. Using this approach, the OGA has produced a decommissioning cost estimate (P50) value of £59.7 billion in 2016 prices. Taking into account the shared goal of a minimum of 35% cost reduction, this results in a target of less than £39 billion.

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CGG (UK) require a Supply Chain Coordinator

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Floatseis: Aims to obtain precise and reliable velocity model regardless of complexity of geological environment is the task which can be failed by CDP reflection towed streamer surveys only. Therefore, an alternative source of information on velocities should be used such as long-offset refracted wave data.

​The objective depth of exploration surveys usually limited by depth accessible for wells drilling and doesn’t exceed 5-7 km. Thus, refracted wave recorded offsets range up to 35-40 km will be enough to achieve desirable survey depth. To record this offset range simultaneously with towed streamer CDP reflected wave survey, a FloatSeis™ field party and an additional support vessel with an opportunity to mount onboard 20’ standard dry container are required.

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Statement Accompanying the Preliminary Results:  Petrel is an oil explorer focused on offshore Ireland and offshore Ghana with legacy interests in Iraq.

 After a fallow period there is renewed interest and activity in the Irish Atlantic – particularly the Porcupine Basin.  For the first time in recent years a well will be drilled.  It is scheduled for July 2017.  The past year has seen a number of 3D seismic acquisition programmes including one by our joint venture partner, Woodside Energy of Australia.

 The Irish Government in 2015 ran a very successful bid round for new licences.  Some 46 were applied for by 17 companies.  Petrel was awarded two licences covering 924 km² in the Porcupine Basin.

 Why has this happened at a time of relatively low oil prices?  The boom preceding the crash of 2008 had resulted in massive cost increases in offshore exploration.  Wells were costing up to $200 million each.  Rig rates were millions of dollars a day.  The economic crash and subsequent financial crisis in many overleveraged oil companies led to a shuddering halt.  Atlantic Ireland is frontier exploration.  Deep water, harsh conditions, few wells drilled with no commercial oil discovered.  The subsequent two thirds oil price collapse exacerbated the gloom.

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