INTERNATIONAL BRIEFS

REFINING

IMPERIAL OIL LTD. appealed a Federal Court of Canada ruling that the company violated a patent on a motor oil additive. The court said Imperial produced and sold oil containing an additive patented by Lubrizol Canada Ltd., a unit of Lubrizol Corp. (OGJ, Sept. 24, p. 62). Imperial said its product did not infringe the patent, and the patent itself is not legal.

A DIVISION of Suncor Inc., Toronto, plans to sell its refining division to its U.S. parent. Sunoco Group will sell the 70,000 b/cd Sarnia, Ont., refinery to Sun Refining & Marketing Co.

OLIOFIAT IBERICA SA, Spanish affiliate of Italy's Oliofiat SpA, started up a $15 million, 30,000 ton/year lube oil plant at Sagunto, Valencia, on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. About half the output will be exported, mainly to France, Portugal, the U.K., and North Africa.

PIPELINES

AMOCO (U.K.) EXPLORATION CO. let a contract worth about 120 million ($225 million) to McDermott-ETPM joint venture to lay a 410 km, 36 in, gas pipeline in the British North Sea. The Central Area Transmission System (CATS) will initially move gas from Everest and Lomond fields operated by Amoco in the Central Graben area, east of Aberdeen, to a planned terminal near Teesside, England. The main offshore work will begin in June 1991, aiming for completion in August 1992.

ACQUISITIONS

BAYER AG of West Germany received final regulatory approvals and expects soon to close a $1.28 billion (Canadian) purchase of the synthetic rubber division of Polysar Inc., Sarnia, Ont. Bayer intends to spend about $120 million (Canadian) on Polysar operations in Canada within the next 3 years.

PETROCHEMICALS

REPSOL SA and Petroleos Mexicanos SA will form a 51-49 joint venture to coordinate cooperation in the oil and gas derivatives field. The venture will focus on promoting joint projects in paraffins, lube oil, asphalt, liquefied gases, polyethylene, and polypropylene. The two state companies may also collaborate in refining and crude oil trading.

REPSOL and Japan's Idemitsu Petrochemical Co. and Sumitomo Corp. are negotiating to form a joint venture to produce and sell polystyrene in Spain. The new company, to be majority owned by Repsol, would build a 50,000 ton/year plant using Idemitsu technology. Start-up is targeted for mid-1992.

CHEVRON RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY CO. licensed its technology for manufacturing styrene acrylonitrile, crystal polystyrene, and high impact polystyrene to Daicel Chemical Industries Ltd. of Japan. Daicel plans to use the technology in its styrenic polymers and fabricated products businesses.

EXPLORATION

ASAMERA (OVERSEAS) LTD.'S 1 Gelam wildcat in South Sumatra, Indonesia, cut 210 ft net gas/condensate pay in Eocene Talang Akar sandstone and flowed 13.4 MMcfd and 61 b/d through a 36/64 in. choke with 1,550 psi flowing tubing pressure from pay at 5,555 ft. Combined flow rate of tested intervals was 24.8 MMcfd. The wildcat is in the Corridor production sharing contract area, 22 miles north of Asamera's Bentayan oil field.

ELF AQUITAINE will begin drilling the first of two wells in Block 6 off Qatar in October. Elf plans to use the Penrod 69 rig, which will be towed into Qatari waters from Fujairah after refitting.

NATIONAL OIL CO. OF TURKEY let a 3 year contract to Halliburton Geophysical Services's Istanbul regional center to process 20,000 km of land and offshore seismic data. Halliburton also signed a contract to process 6,000 km of seismic data to be acquired off Turkey in fourth quarter 1990 by Halliburton's Patrick E. Haggerty marine seismic vessel.

NEW ZEALAND OIL & GAS LTD. farmed out to Sun International Exploration & Production Co. Ltd. three exploration licenses off North Taranaki. Drilling of a wildcat on the Kahawai prospect, to begin in December about 40 km southwest of Kawhia Harbor, is expected to cost $10-15 million (New Zealand). Operator NZOG will hold 22.5% interest carried through two wells in each license, and Sun will fund costs but may opt out after each well is drilled.

DRILLING-PRODUCTION

SARAWAK SHELL let a $5 million design contract for development of the 60,000 b/d D-35 field, about 77 miles northwest of Bintulu, Sarawak, to Keminco, Kuala Lumpur. The Kvaerner group, Oslo, has a 49% interest in D-35. The development concept calls for quarters and drilling and production platforms to be installed in 154 ft of water. The field is due on stream in August 1992.

SAGA PETROLEUM AS, Oslo, let two contracts for development of Snorre field in the Norwegian North Sea using a tension legged platform. Rockwater AS will tow out the TLP and install it on Block 34/7 under a 140 million kroner ($23 million) contract. Aker Drilling holds a $33 million, 5 year contract to drill production and water injection wells from the platform. Saipem SpA's Scarabeo 5 semisubmersible spudded the first of the Snorre wells that will be predrilled for production.

ENCOR INC., Calgary, sold 2.1 million bbl, or 25%, of its 1991 Canadian crude and condensate production net of royalties to an undisclosed buyer for $27.1 7/bbl. Settlement of the 5,700 b/d purchase will be on a quarterly basis.

EXALL RESOURCES LTD., Toronto, and Canadian Hunter Exploration Ltd., Calgary, formed a joint venture to explore and develop 83,000 acres in West Central Alberta. The $16 million (Canadian) program's first phase will include drilling three development wells and recompleting two other wells. Exall has an option for two more phases and will earn a 50% interest when the program is complete.

PAN PACIFIC PETROLEUM INC.'S 3A Harimau well in South Sumatra flowed 2,474 b/d of 50 gravity oil and 52.9 MMcfd of gas. It is the fifth well completed on the Harimau prospect in the 280,000 acre Lematang block that Pan Pacific, San Francisco, operates in a 50-50 production sharing contract with state owned Pertamina.

EXPORTS-IMPORTS

CANADA'S National Energy Board will conduct a hearing Oct. 23 in Vancouver on applications by North Canadian Oils Ltd. and Poco Petroleums Ltd. for licenses to export gas to the U.S. starting Nov. 1. North Canadian wants to export as much as 38.3 bcf from Emerson, Man., to Ada, Mich., during a 15 year period. Poco plans to export as much as 56 bcf from Huntingdon, B.C., to the U.S. Northwest during 9 years.