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Great Yarmouth, UK, member of the Acteon group, appointed Richard Jenkins vice-president of operations to integrate Claxton Engineering's technical project procurement and commercial teams to support the company's strategic growth plans. Jenkins has worked in the oil and gas industry more than 20 years. He studied mechanical engineering at Southampton University, UK, and held project management and business development posts at various companies including Hamworthy Compressors, Baker Hughes, and Seaweld Engineering. Most recently, he worked for AMEC, where he moved from business development via regional director for Africa AMEC Oil and Gas, to operations director for West Africa AMEC Natural Resources.

Senergy Group Ltd.,

Edinburgh, relocated 16 staff members to its new center close to the Grassmarket in Scotland's capital. Company officials expect to more than double that workforce, including at least 10 new positions over the next 24 months. Its new facilities will accommodate as many as 40 employees. Senergy has appointed 50 staff members to new roles across the business over the past 12 months and expects to recruit around 100 new employees in the coming year as part of its rapid global expansion. The Edinburgh relocation positions the company closer to a growing client base in the capital and also provides access to a diverse and increasing number of technically skilled professionals, officials said.

Helmerich & Payne Inc.,

Tulsa, named John W. Lindsay president and chief operating officer and appointed him to its board. Lindsay joined the company in 1987 as a drilling engineer and has served in various positions including operations manager for the company's Mid-Continent region and vice-president of US land operations for Helmerich & Payne International Drilling Co. In 2006, he became executive vice-president of US and international operations for that subsidiary. In 2010, he became executive vice president and chief operating officer of the company. He graduated in 1986 from the University of Tulsa with a petroleum engineering undergraduate degree.

Swire Oilfield Services,

Aberdeen, named Richard Sell as chief operating officer and Peter Ellington as chief technical officer. Sell moved from Swire Group sister company, China Navigation Co. Pte. Ltd. in Singapore, succeeding Rupert Bray who took on a new role as marine service director for another sister company Swire Pacific Offshore in Singapore.

Ellington will be responsible for procurement and engineering functions. He previously was with Expro in Aberdeen. He has an undergraduate mechanical engineering degree and a graduate business degree. He also held positions in design engineering and project management in various companies, including Baker Oil Tools and Weatherford.

Kværner ASA,

Oslo, said an option was exercised in the Edvard Grieg topside contract from Lundin Norway AS for Kvaerner to perform offshore hook-up and commissioning assistance at an estimated value of 525 million Norwegian krone (NOK).

The original 8 billion NOK contract was awarded to Kvaerner in May for engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) of the topside. The topside weighs 21,000 tonnes and consists of a main module, a combined living quarters and utility module, a process module, and a flare tower. Delivery is scheduled for April 2015. Contract partner for the topside is Kvaerner subsidiary Kværner Stord AS.

Kvaerner also will deliver the steel jacket for the platform under a separate EPC contract announced in January. The 14,500-tonne jacket is to be delivered from Kvaerner's yard in Verdal in the spring of 2014. First production from the Edvard Grieg oil field in the North Sea is expected in late 2015, with a forecast gross peak production of approximately 90,000 b/d. The crude will be processed and transported in a new pipeline to the Grane area and then moved via the Grane oil pipeline to the Sture terminal for offloading. Lundin Norway AS is operator of the field with 50% working interest. Wintershall AG and RWE Dea AG hold 30% and 20% interests, respectively.

Kvaerner reported Nina Udnes Tronstad stepped down from her position as executive vice-president for its jackets business and as president of Kværner Verdal A/S. Senior Vice-President Sverre Myklebust was named to assume both positions until a successor is recruited. Kværner executives described the change as "part of the development of the jackets business towards operational excellence." President and Chief Executive Jan Arve Haugan said Udnes Tronstad "and her team have since 2007 further developed the yard at Verdal and secured several new contracts. Today, the yard runs at full capacity and is fully booked throughout 2013. There have been operational challenges over the last year related to the on-going Nordsee Ost offshore wind jacket project and unsatisfactory HSE performance. We have agreed that it is time to further strengthen our internal operational focus to fully ensure that our project objectives are met." Udnes Tronstad will continue to work for Kvaerner in the new role as senior vice-president of procurement, mandated to build a global procurement hub out of Kvaerner's London office.

Myklebust previously was responsible for subcontracting and procurement in Kvaerner's North Sea business area. He joined Aker Stord in 1977 and has more than 30 years' experience from the oil and gas industry. He has held various management and project director positions for a range of major offshore oil and gas projects.

EMAS AMC,

Houston regional headquartered subsea division of EMAS, a Singapore-based offshore contractor, was awarded a contract by ABB ( formerly Asea Brown Boveri) for the installation of subsea power cables under ABB's second contract with Statoil ASA to supply its registered HVDC Light transmission system to the Troll A platform in the North Sea.

EMAS AMC is to install one HVAC subsea cable and two circuits of HVDC subsea cables from Troll A to the Kollsnes land station. The increased power will run two compressor drive systems to improve production capacity and extend the life of the platform. Cable installation is scheduled in the second quarter of 2014 by EMAS AMC's Lewek Connector, the world's largest cable installation vessel. The vessel is a newly-built, ultra-deepwater, multipurpose, flex-lay subsea construction and umbilical installation vessel with a unique pay load capacity of 9,000 tonnes. It has bundle-lay capability, allowing it to lay several cables simultaneously. EMAS AMC has a long-term agreement with ABB for the vessel. The 473 m concrete Troll A structure is the world's largest natural gas production platform, weighing 1.2 million tons, and the tallest structure ever to be moved. It has a daily production capacity of 120 million cu m of gas. The field is estimated to contain 40% of the gas reserves on the Norwegian continental shelf.

Churchill Drilling Tools Ltd.,

Aberdeen, said it is deploying Its trademarked DAV MX dart activated valve system works in "technically challenging" high-angle sections in wells on the on the Norwegian continental shelf. Its MX Smart Darts provided the most suitable option over the traditional extruding ball process because of the high velocity activation required for horizontal sections, company officials said. They reported deployment of the darts, with hardened landing shoulders and dual sheer points, are proving to be a significantly faster and more robust solution. Churchill Drilling Tools is a specialist engineering company focused on delivering innovative systems for the drilling and completion sectors.

Chemtex Group,

Tortona, Italy, the global engineering and technology division of Gruppo Mossi & Ghisolf, teamed with Black & Veatch Holding Co.'s patented PRICO LNG technology, was awarded a lump-sum engineering, procurement, and construction contract by Jilin Qianyuan Energy Development for a 500,000 normal cu m/d liquefied natural gas facility to be completed in late 2013 in northeast China. The facility will produce LNG as an alternative fuel for trucks and other vehicles. In addition to PRICO technology, the plant integrates a nitrogen-stripping process to contend with high nitrogen levels in the pipeline feed gas. A special boil-off gas reliquefaction system also will be installed to prevent fuel loss and increase the efficiency of the plant. Demand for LNG is gaining momentum in China, officials said. This is the 14th LNG contract in China for the Chemtex-Black & Veatch team since the partnership began in 2005.

TMK IPSCO,

Downers Grove, Ill., the North American division of global pipe manufacturer OAO TMK, will move its corporate headquarters to Houston over the next several months as part of its long-term strategy is to drive growth in the oil and gas markets. "Houston is the hub of the global oil and gas industry; it's important for the company to be positioned there in order to facilitate relationships with key customers, attract and retain energy-industry talent, and demonstrate our commitment to the industry," said Piotr Galitzine, chairman of TMK IPSCO. "Most importantly, this transition will enable us to be a better, more efficient, and more service-oriented company." The move is expected to be completed by the summer of 2013, with most employees working in the company's state-of-the-art, newly-built research and development center at 10120 Houston Oaks Drive in Houston. TMK IPSCO plans to build a new corporate headquarters facility in the next 2 years. Company officials said customers can expect uninterrupted service and delivery during the transition.

The Prolamsa Group,

Houston, plans to build a state-of-the-art plant in the southeastern US to manufacture pipe and tubular products for the oil and natural gas industry, part of the company's plan to expand its presence in the Americas. Several possible sites are being evaluated. Company officials expect the investment to exceed $150 million with an annual production capacity of 300,000 tons. Operations are expected to begin in 2014. The Prolamsa Group was established in 1954 and operates major mills and distribution centers in Mexico and Texas.

Jensen Maritime Consultants,

Seattle-based subsidiary of Crowley Maritime Corp., is opening an office in New Orleans to expand its presence to the US Gulf Coast. The strategic new location places Jensen in close proximity to many important customers and shipyards on the Gulf Coast as well as Crowley's Houston-based solutions group. The company's full services—including design, naval architecture, marine and mechanical engineering, ship structures, electrical engineering, production engineering, and construction management—will be available through the New Orleans office. Customers who will benefit from Jensen's Gulf Coast presence include regional shipyards and local operators as well as clients in the offshore oil and gas, energy, fishing, workboat, and "brown-water" industries, officials said. The New Orleans office is under the direction of General Manager Sergio Fifi who joined Jensen in 2004 as naval architect and marine engineer with responsibilities for vessel refurbishment and new designs. In 2010, he transitioned to the parent Crowley as the manager of fleet engineering in Valdez, Alas. Earlier Fifi worked for GE Fanuc Automation NA in a technical leadership program and earned a graduate degree in engineering from the University of Michigan, as well as an undergraduate degree in marine engineering from Massachusetts Maritime Academy.

Dril-Quip Inc.,

Houston, signed a $650 million 4-year contract with Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) for supply of subsea wellhead systems for deepwater wells off Brazil. Although no orders have yet been placed, wellhead deliveries are expected to begin by the second half of 2013.The latest agreement follows a 3-year $180 million contract with Petrobras that expired in the second quarter. Analysts at Barclays Capital Inc. said, "The prior Petrobras contract was front-end loaded with $80 million (44%) in orders placed right away, but we expect orders to be fairly even across the contract this time around. With an average lead time of 9-12 months, wellheads should start exiting Dril-Quip's backlog in the second half of 2013 with deliveries over the next 4½ to 5 years. We believe gross margins under this contract will be in-line with Dril-Quip's historical margins in Brazil." They said, "We continue to believe Dril-Quip will benefit from the ongoing new deepwater rig delivery cycle and the growth in the subsea business that we expect to continue for the next decade. The company is well positioned given its recent capacity additions in Brazil and Singapore. Gulf of Mexico subsea wellhead orders are picking up, and we expect demand for new wellheads to continue to ramp into 2013."

Santrol,

Sugar Land, Tex., a Fairmount Minerals company, has expanded to five rail terminals with the capacity to ship more than 1 million tons of proppants to the Eagle Ford shale play in Texas. The terminals are supplying Santrol's Northern White frac sand and high-performance resin-coated proppants for hydraulic fracturing. Included are two rail terminals in Alice, Tex., capable of handling bulk material and 4,000 lb bulk bags, serving the Eagle Ford formation's southern end. A rail terminal at Gardendale, Tex., supplies the western end of the formation. Other terminals are located at San Antonio and Gonzales, Tex. All terminals operate around the clock 7 days a week with logistical, laboratory, and analytical support at each location.

Western Energy Alliance,

Denver, announced Ursula K. Rick joined its staff as regulatory affairs analyst on air and water quality issues and scientific research to guide energy development policy on federal lands in the West. She formerly served as a Congressional Fellow in the office of Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.), drafting energy legislation and advising the senator on energy issues. She holds an undergraduate degree in material science and metallurgical engineering, a graduate degree in engineering sciences from Dartmouth College, and a doctorate in atmospheric and oceanic sciences from the University of Colorado.