INDUSTRY BRIEFS

PIPELINES

COLONIAL PIPELINE CO. plans to excavate 111 sites on its products pipeline route between Chantilly, Va., and Dorsey Junction, Md., where a pig survey showed pipe walls are too thin. The line ruptured in March near Reston, Va., spilling diesel fuel into a stream and threatening the Potomac River water supply for much of the Washington, D.C., area (OGJ, Apr. 5, p. 28).

TEXAS EASTERN TRANSMISSION CORP. (Tetco), Houston, asked the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for approval to lease 125 MMcfd of pipeline capacity for gas from Anadarko, Hugoton, and Rocky Mountain basins of the U.S. Midcontinent. Tetco plans to make that volume available to its customers on Transok Inc.'s Oklahoma pipeline system. The 20 year lease will provide options to shorten the term to 15 years and for expansion rights.

IRELAND'S state gas company Bord Gais Eireann (BGE) signed a 6 million punt ($8.3 million) contract with British Gas plc for 1 year gas supply beginning Oct. 1. Gas will move via the Interconnector pipeline being built from Moffat, West Scotland, to Ballough, north of Dublin (OGJ, May 10, Newsletter). The deal, which will enable BGE to receive as much as 140 MMcfd, is BGE's first gas purchase outside Ireland,

CANADA'S National Energy Board (NEB) will conduct hearings this fall on tolls for pipelines that move oil and gas to West Coast markets from Alberta. Hearings will open Oct, 18 for the natural gas pipeline system of Westcoast Energy Inc., Vancouver, B.C., and Nov. 29 for the crude oil pipeline operated by Trans Mountain Pipe Line Ltd., Edmonton. Both hearings will be held in Vancouver.

NEB will begin hearings Oct. 18 on a proposed pipeline hookup to natural gas from the U.S. into Ontario. The hearings in London, Ont., will consider an application by InterCoastal Pipe Line Inc. to convert a mothballed crude oil line to carry gas into the Toronto area through a pipeline link to U,S. suppliers.

COMPANIES

ZAPATA CORP., Houston, agreed to pay $90.9 million for the gas compression operations of Holt Cos. The purchase includes Energy industries Inc., Corpus Christi, and other affiliates of Holt's gas compression operations. Closing is scheduled Sept. 30. Zapata's Cimarron Gas Cos. Inc. unit in Tulsa also agreed to pay $16 million for the gas gathering and processing interests of Stellar Cos., Houston, most of which are in West Texas.

PRIDE INTERNATIONAL LTD., a unit of Pride Petroleum Services Inc., Houston, bought controlling interest in an Argentine drilling and well servicing company with 23 rigs and purchased a 100% interest in a Venezuelan drilling and well servicing company with 14 rigs. The Buenos Aires firm was acquired from Western Atlas International and renamed Pride Petrotech Sampic. Pride's acquisition of Perforaciones Western CA, Cuidad Ojeda, Venezuela, includes an option to buy an affiliated Colombian company.

BECFIELD DRILLING SERVICES CO., Houston, doubled its size by acquiring certain short, medium, and long radius directional drilling assets of the drilling and services division of Deutsche Tiefbor AG, Berkhopen, Germany. BecField plans to leave most of the assets in Germany to expand its operations in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East and move the rest to the U.S., Canada, and South America. BecField is owned 50-50 by Bechtel Energy Resources Corp., Houston, and Carbon Tech Inc., Calgary.

HOME OIL LTD., Calgary, plans to buy remaining interests in Scurry-Rainbow Ltd. for more than $42 million (Canadian). Home owns an 88.1% interest in Scurry and is offering $26.50/share for 1.6 million remaining common shares. Scurry has no employees of its own because they work under an agreement with Home.

MARUBENI CORP. teamed with China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) in a venture to produce and market oil, gas, and products, Tokyo's Nikkei Weekly reported. CNPC's first overseas project calls for it to join Marubeni in building a 100,000 b/d refinery in Uzbekistan, due for completion in 1996. The JV was said to be considering projects throughout Southeast Asia.

PETROCHEMICALS

UNION CARBIDE CORP.'S Montreal petrochemical plant operated by Petromont Inc. will be closed in October. It produces ethylene and glycol and uses about 65,000 metric tons/year of ethylene produced by Petromont. Petromont will spend $20 million (Canadian) to expand its plant adjacent to the operation to be closed. Capacity at the expanded plant, which will increase to 280,000 metric tons/year from 200,000 tons, will absorb ethylene used by Union Carbide. Union Carbide is a partner in Petromont with Quebec's Soc. General de Financement.

DRILLING-PRODUCTION

BRITISH GAS PLC agreed to sell its 14% interest in U.K. North Sea Block 16/17 to Louisiana Land & Exploration Co. for $232 million. The block contains Tiffany and Toni oil fields, due on stream this year with reserves totaling 164 million bbl, and two smaller potential developments. Combined gross production from Tiffany and Toni by early 1994 is expected to reach 95,000 b/d of liquids, including 13,300 b/d net to LL&E. The deal is subject to preemption rights of partners: operator Agip (U.K.) Ltd. 47.48%, Fina Exploration Ltd. 30%, and Murphy Petroleum Ltd. 8.52%.

EBCO U.S.A. INC., Oklahoma City, on behalf of Devon Energy Corp., also of Oklahoma City, will auction 250 oil and gas leases in Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Nebraska. New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and Wyoming. The sale is scheduled Sept. 16 in Dallas.

ARAN ENERGY CO., Houston, a unit of Aran Energy plc, expects by month's end to boost gas production to 30 MMcfd on South Pass Block 37 in the Gulf of Mexico when a third horizontal well goes on stream. Before Aran reworked four wells on the block and drilled three horizontal wells, South Pass 37 gas deliverability was 7 MMcfd. A-16, the latest horizontal well, flowed 7.5 MMcfd through a 1/4 in, choke with 840 psi flowing tubing pressure from an 1,100 ft horizontal section in Pleistocene strata at 3,000 ft true vertical depth. Operator Aran holds a 27.78% working interest in A-16.

ENRON OIL & GAS CO., Houston, expects to drill more than 30 wells during the next 5 years on the South East Coast Consortium Block off Trinidad in the Caribbean Sea during three phase development of Kiskadee, Ibis, and Oilbird fields. First phase Kiskadee drilling is under way, and gas production by yearend could reach 50 MMcfd. Enron since November 1992 has held 95% interest in the block, where production by 1995 is to peak at 150 MMcfd of gas and more than 10,000 b/d of oil and condensate.

PETRO-HUNT CORP. and unit William Herbert Hunt Trust Estate, both of Dallas. through Petro-Hunt Group started a program to acquire producing leases. It has bought or agreed to buy all working interests of Patrick Petroleum Corp., Sibling Corp., Wacker Oil, and Corexcal Inc. in Big Stick field in Billings County, N.D., and those of Unit Petroleum Co., Plaza Resources Co., and Martin Oil & Gas Investment in North Elkhorn Ranch field in Billings County.

UNOCAL CORP. unit Unocal Netherlands By started oil flow from Horizon field in the Netherlands North Sea. The field's first well is producing 3,800 b/d from Block P/9 in 1 00 ft of water 30 miles offshore. Production is expected to peak at 18,000 b/d early in 1994 when the first five horizontal wells are on stream.

ABB VETCO GRAY, Houston, is modifying a 3 in., 10,000 psi satellite subsea production tree for a mid-September delivery to Shell Oil Co., which will install the unit in 1 494 ft of water o its Tahoe prospect on Viosca Knoll Block 83 off Louisiana. Originally built for Placid Oil Co.'s deepwater project in the gulf's Green Canyon federal planning area, the modified dual bore subsea tree includes two chemical injection valves, a fixed orifice choke, and an electrohydraulic control pod.

Amoco Netherlands Petroleum Co. installed the 6,150 metric ton deck for its Block P15/P18 gas processing platform off Netherlands. The $500 million development is due on stream later this year at a rate of 500 MMcfd. The central processing platform will take gas from four satellite wellhead platforms and three subsea developments. This is the first Dutch development to process gas to sales specification offshore, Amoco said.

SHELL U.K. EXPLORATION & PRODUCTION'S Pelican field in North Sea Block 211/26a will be developed as a subsea tieback to the Cormorant Alpha platform on the same block. Wood Mackenzie Consultants Ltd., Edinburgh, estimates Pelican reserves at 65 million bbl of oil and 30 bcf of gas.

LASMO OIL PAKISTAN LTD. let contract to Foster Wheeler Petroleum Development Ltd., London, for engineering and construction supervision of Kadanwari gas field development in Sind province. The 700 bcf field will start up before the end of 1994, moving 150 MMcfd to Sui Southern Gas Co., which is developing a transmission pipeline. GEC Alsthom International won a $10 million contract to supply two emergency evacuation systems for the Hibernia oil production platform to be installed off Newfoundland. GEC, owned by British and French interests, will fabricate baskets that will carry rig crews to support ships from the platform in an emergency.

ARCO BRITISH LTD. was fined 2250,000 ($375,000) in connection with a blowout and fire on the Ocean Odyssey drilling rig in September 1988, during which a radio operator died. Aberdeen High Court heard ARCO plead guilty to a charge under the U. K.'s Health and Safety at Work Act. In pleading guilty to the charges, ARCO admitted that the conduct of its drilling operations on the Ocean Odyssey was not in accordance with best practice.

ORYX ENERGY CO., Dallas, is increasing gas production to a peak rate of 40 MMcfd, net of royalties, from three subsea wells in 1,355-2,088 ft of water on Mississippi Canyon 400 unit off Louisiana. Gas moves from two wells on Mississippi Canyon Block 401 and one well on Mississippi Canyon Block 445 through flexible flow lines to a platform on West Delta Block 152. Oryx holds a 100% interest in the Mississippi Canyon 400 unit, which includes Mississippi Canyon Blocks 356, 357, 400, 401, 444, and 455.

GOVERNMENT

INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GEOPHYSICAL CONTRACTORS, Houston, sought a waiver from Nevada regulations to allow plugging of seismic shot holes with coarse ground bentonite. Current state rule requires cement plugging, although one geophysical contractor was granted a variance to use bentonite. IAGC said Nevada resources officials are willing to ask the state legislature to approve using bentonite to plug shot holes on a permanent basis.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY seeks the public's help to frame guidelines for voluntary reporting of greenhouse gas emissions, their reductions, and carbon fixation. The reporting guidelines, required by the 1992 Energy Policy Act, will be issued in. draft form in spring 1994. DOE's program is explained in the July 27 Federal Register.

INDIA'S GOVERNMENT approved a venture of Balmer Lawrie/Indian Oil Corp. and France's NYCO to manufacture specialty lubricants. The government also approved a JV of Engineers India Ltd. and the U.K.'s AMEC Engineering International Ltd. to pursue turnkey contracts for consulting, engineering, and construction in the hydrocarbon sector. The latter JV will seek business in Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

EXPLORATION

HONDO MAGDALENA OIL & GAS LTD., a unit of Hondo Oil & Gas Co., Roswell, N.M., farmed out a 50% interest in the Opon association contract in Colombia to Amoco Colombia. Amoco is committed to spend $12 million on behalf of Hondo, which retains a 30% interest in the contract area. Amoco will at first pay Hondo $3 million and bear the cost to drill the 3 Opon confirmation of the 1 and 3 Opon wells drilled in 1965-66 by Cities Service. Parker Drilling Co., Tulsa, will drill the confirmation, scheduled to spud by Oct. 15.

RANGER OIL LTD., Calgary, 4/23-1 wildcat, 50 miles off Angola, tested 4,600 b/d of 28 gravity oil. The well, drilled to 3,677 m, is suspended pending further appraisal. A 400 km, 3D seismic survey is to be conducted this month on the acreage as well as adjacent prospects. Partners include operator Ranger 70%, Sonangol UEE 20%, and Heritage Oil & Gas Ltd. 10%.

DEN NORSKE STATS OLJESELSKAP AS, BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd., and Conoco Inc. pulled out of exploration in Equatorial Guinea, West Africa. Last fall they started work off Bioko Island on two blocks operated by United Meridian International Corp., Houston. The Statoil-BP team fulfilled its seismic survey commitment and declined to take part in exploratory drilling. Equatorial Guinea is opening all prospective acreage in its first licensing round (OGJ, June 28, p. 38).

GAS PROCESSING

AMOCO SHARJAH OIL CO. hired Creole Production Services Inc., Houston, to design, build, and operate a 30,000 hp electrical generator and gas compressor station in Sharjah, U.A.E. The work is part of Sajaa field gas plant expansion to 700 MMcfd from 440 MMcfd. The station will provide power to five electric motor driven natural gas compressors and provide supplemental electric power to Amoco Sharjah's Sajaa NGL facilities. The station is scheduled to begin operation by Feb. 1, 1994.