Month: September 2017

 

Offshore Europe, the sector’s largest conference, is a four-day event attracting a global audience of engineers, technical specialists, industry leaders and experts.

Andrew Jones, the UK Government’s Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, will speak at the conference later today, 05 September.

At the event, he will highlight the opportunity to establish the North Sea as a global leader in the decommissioning sector.

The cleaning up and dismantling old oil rigs and pipelines must be carried out by all operators once they have finished extracting oil and gas in the UK. The North Sea is one of the first regions in the world to start decommissioning on such a large scale.

The Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) forecasts that UK oil and gas operators will spend almost £60 billion on decommissioning between now and the 2050s

Minister Jones said: “The UK oil and gas industry supports 300,000 jobs, and with up to 20 billion barrels of oil yet to recover, has many productive years ahead. As the need for decommissioning grows, we must seize the opportunity to cement the UK as a world-leader in this field and export this knowledge globally.

“Efficient decommissioning means big changes to the oil and gas industry – requiring new technology, skills and innovative approaches. This will ensure that decommissioning is safe and cost-effective while also protecting the environment.”

Chief Executive of The OGA, Andy Samuel, said: “Decommissioning presents great opportunities for innovation and the development of UK skills and capability.

“We are working closely with operators and service providers and are already seeing some great performance in cost efficient decommissioning, new collaborations and technology trials. This bodes well for the shared target of 35% cost reductions and the considerable domestic and export value that can be realised.”

Link

 

 

 

Eco Atlantic and Tullow Oil complete 2,500 km² 3D Seismic Survey Offshore Guyana

Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas Ltd. is pleased to announce that Eco Atlantic and its Operating Partner, Tullow Oil, have completed an approximate 2,500 km² 3D seismic survey on the Company’s Orinduik Block offshore the co-operative Republic of Guyana. The 3D Survey was conducted by Schlumberger Guyana Inc. (Western Geco) and has now been completed successfully and on schedule.

Eco Atlantic (Guyana) Inc, a subsidiary of Eco Atlantic, holds a 40% Working Interest in Orinduik, and Tullow, the Operator, holds the remaining 60%. The Orinduik Block is located up dip and just a few kilometers from Exxon’s recent Liza and Payara discoveries confirming, by Exxon’s estimates, between 2.25 and 2.75 billion barrels of recoverable oil. Prior to the 3D Survey the Company and Tullow completed the first phase of exploration, including evaluating all existing and regional 2D data. Following the results of this study and the ongoing regional success, both parties accelerated and significantly increased the originally proposed 1,000 km² 3D survey commitment on the block to circa 2,500 km², thus the 3D Survey covered the entire block area, fully overlapping current prospective 2D leads and downdip trends. The Company and Tullow will now begin the processing and interpretation of the data. As part of its agreement with Tullow, Tullow carries the Company’s share of the originally proposed 1,000 km² of the survey, at a cap of US$1.25 million, with the balance of the program funded by both parties on a pro-rata basis.

Colin Kinley, Chief Operating Officer and co-founder of Eco Atlantic commented: “I am happy to announce the successful completion of this 3D Survey with essentially no technical down time or weather standby, we have had stable seas throughout the survey and full serviceability from the vessel providing us continuous acquisition of high resolution data. Our next immediate steps are to begin processing the data which we will do this fall and the parallel interpretation. Our goal is to evaluate and de-risk our existing leads to better define the reservoir characteristics and define potential drilling targets”.

The survey was undertaken by the Geco Eagle and two supporting vessels, and was expected to be completed within 50 days. Estimated duration 41 days, so several days ahead of plan.

More     Link

 

	APAC	Expect tensions to escalate, further provocative actions by North Korea in coming week
🇨🇴	Colombia	Bogota, other cities: Expect heightened security, travel disruption during papal visit on 6-10 September
🇨🇮	Cote D’Ivoire	Abidjan: Anticipate disruption, heightened security during ruling political party congress on 9-10 September
🇪🇹	Ethiopia	Oromia region: Exercise caution following fatal ethnic violence near border with Somali region
🇬🇷	Greece	Thessaloniki: Avoid protest marches on 8-9 September over socio-economic grievances
🇬🇹	Guatemala	Further demonstrations likely over controversial presidential order; avoid all gatherings
🇰🇪	Kenya	Political tensions to remain elevated following annulment of presidential election; avoid all gatherings
🇱🇾	Libya	Fresh clashes near Sirte underscore persistent terrorism threat, need to defer all travel
🇲🇱	Mali	Monitor developments during miners’ strikes until 10 September; avoid related gatherings
🇵🇰	Pakistan	Anticipate protests against national census results by opposition parties
🇵🇰	Pakistan	Lahore: Cricket tournament on 12-15 September will mean heightened security, road travel disruption
🇷🇺	Russia	Moscow: Arrest of terror suspects not indicative of imminent threat; observe normal security precautions
🇸🇦	Saudi Arabia	Continue to anticipate travel disruption following end of Hajj pilgrimage
🇪🇸	Spain	Barcelona: Expect significant disruption on 11 September due to rally marking Catalonia Day
🇹🇬	Togo	Lome, urban centres: Avoid opposition protests on 6-7 September due to potential for unrest
🇹🇷	Turkey	Eastern, south-eastern provinces: Security operations highlight continued threat posed by Kurdish militancy
🇺🇦	Ukraine	Kyiv: Disruption likely on 6 September in city centre during protest over vehicle plate regulation
🇺🇸	United States	Texas, Louisiana states: Continue to defer non-essential travel to disaster zones following cyclone’s passage
🇻🇪	Venezuela	Minimise movement, exercise heightened awareness during opposition primaries on 10 September

 

Indian Ocean not another South China Sea?

There was a hive of activity this week in Colombo with a variety of international think tanks, strategists, analysts and senior military officers, Foreign Ministers and Ministers exchanging views and taking up positions – the focus being on the Indian Ocean and its surroundings.
Starting with the Defence Conference on Monday, the week concluded with the Indian Ocean conference. The Sri Lanka Navy, the US Embassy in Colombo and the India Foundation took the lead in these brain storming talkathons.

For Sri Lanka, it is a recognition that important players on the world stage and especially in and around the Indian Ocean, are interested parties to these dialogues. Had Prime Minister Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s Indian Ocean Peace Zone (IOPZ) proposal to the UN General Assembly in 1971 aimed at stopping the proliferation of military bases and imposing ‘rules of the road’ for states been taken seriously, things might have been different today as these seas witness an escalation of tension and competing national interests.

India was not keen then, wanting an IOPZ regime that eliminated only ‘foreign’ (US and others)bases. Even though the Non Aligned Movement supported the proposal, the IOPZ was led to a slow painless death. Today, with the emergence of a Blue water Chinese Navy, everyone else is getting excited over the rights for all parties to have safe trade, air and sea navigation over the Indian Ocean.

The other positive factor is that by this engagement, as far as Sri Lanka is concerned, there is a marked shift away from yesteryear’s pre-occupation on allegations of human rights violations. This was what dominated the foreign policy agenda of the US and West. With the US State Department now being sidelined by the new dispensation in Washington, the Department’s holier-than-thou approach selectively picking on some countries and not others, has been thrown out of the window, and Sri Lanka can now look more to the future than the past.

Clearly, the US is left to rue this foreign policy miscalculation viz-a-viz Sri Lanka as China made quick inroads into the Sri Lankan economy in the meantime, and advanced its own geo-strategist game plan getting a firm foot hold in this country through the Colombo Port City and the Hambantota harbor projects. With the US State Department downgraded and itsDefence Department given the upper hand under the Trump Administration, it does not necessarily follow that it is good tidings for Sri Lanka and that the world is going to be a better place. No doubt, the US Navy’s Pacific Command based in Hawaii is renewing old contacts and cultivating new ones with its counterparts in Sri Lanka in a bid to counter growing Chinese influence. The super powers are making their moves on the global chess-board.

While India sent a high-level External Affairs Minister for the Indian Ocean conference, she had earlier sent a senior official from the ruling BJP on a quiet mission to meet the President and Prime Minister to express her concerns (to put it mildly) with developments surrounding the Hambantota harbour and Sri Lanka’s virtual capitulation to China on the issue.

The entire region is once again on the boil and the Indian Ocean must not become another hotspot like the South China Sea. Only a fortnight ago, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Independence of both, India and Pakistan we had mentioned how sans a solution to the seven decade long Jammu-Kashmir dispute between the two countries, they are getting drawn further apart andmore into the laps of US (India) and China (Pakistan). Non Alignment is seemingly irrelevant to both.

This week, Pakistan asked the US Acting Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs not to stop over in Islamabad on her way to Colombo for the Indian Ocean conference in retaliation to accusations by Washington that Pakistan was harbouring terrorists. India has just about resisted a push by China to bulldoze its way into building a highway through Bhutan having already planned one through Pakistan’s Baluchistan region to run rings round India.

In the midst of this, India is launching a South Asia Maritime and Logistics Forum next week in Mumbai, backed by the World Bank, to promote regional trade. Sri Lanka cannot take a “frog in the well’’ attitude in the fast moving external scenario unfolding, mindful as it ought to be, that there are currents and under-currents in the Indian Ocean and that its geo-political location is a ‘double-edged sword’. Sri Lanka cannot fall on its sword.

It is unfortunate that the contribution of local international relations think tanks to this week’s dialogue has been nil. Ad-hocism therefore still rules the roost, and without a national strategy, or plan, it only allows corrupt political leaders – past and present, to revel in this playing field at the expense of the future of the country.

Link

 

Global Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Market: Overview

Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) is also referred to as unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). It is mainly used to carry out underwater survey missions such as mapping and detection of underwater obstructions, rocks, wrecks, and underwater attacks that pose a threat to the recreational and commercial vehicles of the navigation sector.

Global Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Market: Growth Factors

The increasing demand for the autonomous underwater vehicle in the military and defense applications such as environmental assessment, monitoring of smuggling of the illegal products, mine countermeasures, border surveillance and security, and antisubmarine warfare is expected to boost the global autonomous underwater vehicles market. The rising offshore oil and gas production and vigorous research being carried out under large depths help escalate the growth of the global market. The deep underwater operating capability of large AUVs makes them suitable for applications such as search and recovery operations applications, oceanography, and environment research further attributes the global market growth. The stringent government policies regarding the AUVs flight and high maintenance cost hinder the global market growth.

Global Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Market: Segmentation

The global autonomous underwater vehicles market is bifurcated based on the technology, type, and application. The technology segment is divided into propulsion, imaging, navigation, sonar, communication, and collision avoidance. The propulsion subsegment is further categorized into propulsion motor, pump motor, fin control actuator, and linear electromechanical actuator. The navigation subsegment is classified into compass-based navigation solution and inertial navigation system. The type segment is divided into medium AUVs (depth of about 1000m), shallow AUVs (depth of about 100m), and large AUVs (depth of about 1000m above). The application segment is grouped into oil and gas, military and defense, environmental protection and monitoring, search and salvage operations, oceanography, and archeology and exploration. The oil and gas subsegment is further bifurcated into a geophysical survey, debris or clearance survey, pipeline survey, and baseline environmental assessment. The environmental protection and monitoring subsegment are categorized into fishery study, habitat research, water sampling, fishery study, and emergency response. The military and defense subsegment is grouped into environmental assessment, monitoring smuggling of illegal goods, border security and surveillance, antisubmarine warfare, and mine countermeasures.

Global Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Market: Regional Analysis

North America dominates the global autonomous underwater vehicles market due to the high demand for military and defense applications in order to reach large depths. The countries such as the U.S., France, China, India, and Canada have been utilizing autonomous underwater vehicles for the military and defense applications such as antisubmarine warfare, border security and surveillance, environmental assessment, mine countermeasures, and monitoring smuggling of illegal goods. The high demand for the autonomous underwater vehicles, high GDP growth rate, and energy needs propel the market in the Asia-Pacific region.

Global Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Market: Competitive Players

The major players that dominate the global autonomous underwater vehicles market include Kongsberg Maritime AS, Atlas Elektronik Group GmbH, Bluefin Robotics Corporation, Saab Group, International Submarine Engineering Ltd., ECA Group, Teledyne Gavia EFH., Boston Engineering Corporation, OceanServer Technology Inc., and Fugro N.V.

Link

 

 

 

Gulf of Mexico Fact Sheet: Energy Infrastructure with Real-time Storm Information

The Gulf of Mexico area, both onshore and offshore, is one of the most important regions for energy resources and infrastructure. Gulf of Mexico federal offshore oil production accounts for 17% of total U.S. crude oil production and federal offshore natural gas production in the Gulf accounts for 5% of total U.S. dry production. Over 45% of total U.S. petroleum refining capacity is located along the Gulf coast, as well as 51% of total U.S. natural gas processing plant capacity.

 

Link

 

 

 

 

Geophysical Society Houston – North Tech Breakfast, 5 Sep 17

Due to Harvey, Please check that this event will still go ahead.

At a GHS North Tech Breakfast Meeting, to be held September 5^th, Peter Wang, Paradigm Geophysical Technical Advisor, will present a paper,

A New Technique for Lithology and Fluid Content Prediction from Prestack Data: An Application to a Carbonate Reservoir.  

The paper, co-authored by Kamal Hami-Eddine, Bruno de Ribet (Paradigm), Pascal Klein (EISTI University, Pau, France), Loic Richard (TOTAL), and Maelle Grout (ENGIE), presents a new neural network-based methodology called Democratic Neural Network Association (DNNA).

Peter Wang is a Geophysical Technical Advisor with Paradigm. He has a BS in Geosciences from Brown University, and an MS in Geophysics and MBA from the University of Houston. He has a thirty-year history in the geophysical industry, having also served at Schlumberger as a Principal Geophysicist, Product Champion, and Workflow Champion, and Amoco Production Company (now BP) as a Senior Petroleum Geophysicist onshore USA Gulf Coast and Gabon

The talk is open to the general public, free of charge, and no registration is required

Link

 

 

 

Offshore Europe 2017

Where:	Aberdeen, United Kingdom
Venue:	AECC (Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre)
When:	5th – 8th September 2017
Website:	http://www.offshore-europe.co.uk/

• Driven by its purpose of safeguarding life, property and the environment, DNV GL enables organizations to advance the safety and sustainability of their business. We provide classification and technical assurance along with software and independent expert advisory services to the maritime, oil and gas and energy industries. We also provide certification services to customers across a wide range of industries. Operating in more than 100 countries, our 14,000 professionals are dedicated to helping our customers make the world safer, smarter and greener.

  The Software team will be showcasing our analytical solutions for FEA strength assessment (Sesam) and AIMS (Synergi Structure), supported by our unique Cloud based data visualisation tool (the Digital Twin Viewer). Register for this complimentary seminar Sesam and the digital twin.

Programme     More     Link

 

 

 

 

Energising Mozambique: upstream, midstream and downstream opportunities

A year ago Mozambique was floundering. April 2016 brought the bombshell revelation that state-owned companies had racked up close to USD 1.5bn in illegally-obtained debt. Never mind that public debt soared as a result to more than 100% of GDP, Mozambique’s development partners then suspended all their direct budgetary assistance. In the background, the opposition Mozambican National Resistance (RENAMO) insurgency continued its corrosive burn. In the foreground, President Filipe Nyusi appeared unable to take control of government policy. Investors lost faith. Foreign direct investment fell for a third consecutive year, contributing to the country’s slowest economic growth since 2000.

That was then. Mozambique still has huge challenges to overcome, but among the international investors flocking to the capital Maputo there is a palpable sense of optimism. Many of Control Risks’ clients view Mozambique as southern Africa’s most exciting investment destination, for a number of reasons. A ceasefire with RENAMO has held since the end of 2016. President Filipe Nyusi grows increasingly assertive and has assumed a pro-business posture. Early indicators in 2017 show improving economic growth and more prudent fiscal policy.

Each of these on its own is an important indicator. But one thing lies at the core of both Mozambique’s ills and its potential triumphs: natural gas.

Natural gas was even meant to head off the debt scandal. That mountain of hidden debt was accumulated on the assumption that vast increases in revenue from liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects would cover them before they attracted scrutiny. Final investment decisions on the two major LNG projects being developed by Italian international oil company (IOC) Eni and US IOC Anadarko, in fact, were expected to be made in 2013. Then came delays. As expectations were consistently pushed back, debts came due for repayment and investor confidence tanked. Even senior government officials privately voiced concerns that these decisions would be delayed until LNG prices improved, or that global oversupply could see companies prioritise Tanzanian hydrocarbon prospects while neglecting Mozambique.

Upstream potential

This is now: developments in 2017 have renewed confidence that natural gas will fuel rapid growth for Mozambique. ExxonMobil’s purchase of a 25% stake in Eni’s offshore interests and planned LNG developments in March was a much-needed display of confidence in the industry. Eni’s formal decision to move ahead with this project on 1 June has sparked a flurry of activity; contracts worth hundreds of millions of US dollars have already been signed for a range of services and equipment supply. Subcontractors are being chosen. Production is expected to start in 2022-2023.

Eni’s Coral South Floating LNG (FLNG) project may be the most advanced, but it is far from the only upstream opportunity in Mozambique. Andarko is expected to make its final investment decision in the first half of 2018, having announced on 31 July that it was waiting until “sales purchase agreements and financing are in place”. Sasol – for a long time the only natural gas producer in Mozambique – announced in February that it had discovered oil and gas in its offshore Blocks 16 and 19, on which it plans to start production within three years.

Alongside the estimated 100 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas already discovered, Mozambique still has substantial exploration potential; some studies estimate that less than half of the country’s total hydrocarbon resources have been discovered. French IOC Total has started to move forward with exploration after it replaced Malaysia’s Petronas as the operator of Areas 3 and 6 in June last year. Contracts for the blocks awarded in the fifth licencing round held in 2015 are still being negotiated – sources say that a number of issues remain disputed, including the proportion of revenue companies must hold in Mozambican meticais (MZN) – but are likely to be finalised soon. Russian state-owned oil and gas company Rosneft, which holds minority shares in two concessions, is said to be planning to open an office shortly. Meanwhile, a sixth licencing round is optimistically planned for later this year, but will more likely take place in 2018.

More     Link

 

 

 

Taking Aim at ION Geophysical Corporation (NYSE:IO) Shares

Stock volatility is a percentage that indicates whether a stock is a desirable purchase.  Investors look at the Volatility 12m to determine if a company has a low volatility percentage or not over the course of a year.  The Volatility 12m of ION Geophysical Corporation (NYSE:IO) is 54.428700.  This is calculated by taking weekly log normal returns and standard deviation of the share price over one year annualized.  The lower the number, a company is thought to have low volatility.  The Volatility 3m is a similar percentage determined by the daily log normal returns and standard deviation of the share price over 3 months.  The Volatility 3m of ION Geophysical Corporation (NYSE:IO) is 70.011200.  The Volatility 6m is the same, except measured over the course of six months.  The Volatility 6m is 62.972000.

Investors may be watching the ebb and flow of the current market environment and be wondering what the next few months have in store. They may be deciding whether now is a good time to sell off some first half winners or hold on for further gains. This can be one of the toughest decisions that an investor has to make. Just because a stock has been steadily heading higher for an extended period of time doesn’t necessarily mean that it will continue to do so. Building the confidence to make the tough portfolio decisions may take some time and a few good trades under the belt. New investors may be prone to get discouraged after a few sour trades in a row. Anyone who wants to succeed in the stock market knows that there is no substitute for research and hard work. Being able to bounce back and learn from mistakes may help the investor stay in the game and get back on the road to healthy profits.

IO: Why invest in? Video

More     Link