INDUSTRY BRIEFS

PETROCHEMICALS

OMAN and India agreed to form a joint venture to build an $800 million petrochemical plant in Oman. The proposed plant is to have capacity of 1.4 million metric tons/year of urea and 315,000 tons/year of ammonia. It will be a partnership between Oman Oil Co., Rahstriya Chemicals & Fertilizers, and Frishak Bharati Cooperative Ltd. A feasibility study is expected to be complete by yearend. Construction and commissioning could take 4 years.

REFINING

MOBIL CORP.'S Luberef joint venture will build a 2 million bbl/year lubricant basestock refinery in Yanbu on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia with scheduled start-up in first quarter 1997. Luberef 11 will be owned and operated by the joint venture of Mobil 30% and state owned Petromin 70%. Luberef's other refinery in Jeddah has been continuously expanded to reach its 1.8 million bbl/year capacity. Saudi Arabia has been importing basestocks since the late 1980s.

CHEVRON CORP. is investigating the cause of an Aug. 2 three alarm fire at its 172,000 b/cd Philadelphia refinery. The fire started in the reforming unit, possibly due to an interruption in electricity.

YUKONG LTD., Seoul, let contract to Fluor Daniel Inc., Irvine, Calif., to provide engineering, procurement, and construction management services to modernize its 529,000 b/cd refinery and petrochemical complex in Ulsan, about 60 miles southeast of Pusan, South Korea. When the project is complete in mid-1996, the refinery will produce high octane gasoline and low sulfur fuel oil.

SANTA MARIA REFINING CO., a unit of Saba Petroleum Co., Irvine, Calif., completed the purchase of Conoco Inc.'s 9,500 b/cd refinery in the Santa Maria Valley of Santa Barbara County, Calif., for $1.7 million (OGJ, Apr. 25, p. 27). Santa Maria plans to start operations at the refinery by the end of September, expecting to process as much as 3,900 b/d in 1995.

TOSCO REFINING CO. saw first operation from a 25 Mmcfd hydrogen plant at its Avon refinery near Martinez, Calif. Air Products & Chemicals Inc., Allentown, Pa., owns and operates the hydrogen unit, completed in 22 months. Air Products said the plant will enable Tosco to reduce sulfur, olefins, and aromatics content of produced diesel fuel to meet California Air Resource Board and federal requirements.

FOSTER WHEELER POWER SYSTEMS INC., Clinton, N J., and BOC Group signed a joint marketing agreement to identify opportunities for third party hydrogen production units in Venezuela. The companies will work together exclusively to identify facilities with capacities of more than 1 0 Mmcfd that would serve Venezuelan oil refineries or other industrial users.

VIET NAM is seeking bids for a second refinery, London's Financial Times reported. Agence France Presse reported a group including Jopec Corp. of Oklahoma, Canada's St. Martino Inc., and Plant Processing Equipment. Houston, proposed to invest in the project and have been asked for a detailed plan for the 100.000-130,000 b/d refinery. The group is evaluating a site in Chu Lai, south of Danang. Demand for oil products is expected to outstrip supply by the time Viet Nam's first refinery, a $1.2 billion plant, goes on stream in 1999.

SULFUR

DELHI GAS PIPELINE CORP., Dallas, a unit of USX-Delhi Group, agreed to buy the Aker and Teas gas treating plants in Freestone County, Tex., from Texaco Exploration & Production Inc. The 36 MMcfd inlet capacity Aker plant can produce 190 long tons/day of sulfur, the 25 MMcfd Teas plant 175 long tons/day.

EXPLORATION

MAXUS ENERGY CORP., Dallas, and Venezuela's Lagoven started a $9 million, 300 sq km, 3D seismic survey on the Quiriquire block in eastern Venezuela, Maxus, which signed a 25 year operating agreement last November, originally held a 95% stake in the project but sold a 45% share to British Petroleum (OGJ, June 20, p. 24). Venezuela's Oteipi holds the remaining interest. Maxus hopes to start drilling on the block in fourth quarter 1995.

INDONESIA'S Pertamina last month issued invitations to international oil companies to bid for production sharing contracts on two large tracts in the Celebes Sea off northeastern East Kalimantan. Data for 4,982 sq km Sebawang 1 and 4,995 sq km Sebawang 11 blocks will be available until Oct. 21.

HUNGARY'S 1993 exploration concession round awards, originally scheduled to be disclosed in late June, were postponed again last week without explanation (OGJ, July 4, p. 21).

CANADA'S Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development called for bids on exploration licenses in the Fort Liard area of the southern Northwest Territories. Bidding, with a deadline of Nov. 30, is to cover eight parcels totaling 576 sq miles. A response to industry requests, it is the first time exploration rights are being made available in the area in about 25 years. Licenses are to be awarded in December.

SOCIETY OF EXPLORATION GEOPHYSICISTS, Tulsa, is considering whether to alter and expand its monthly census of U.S. seismic activity to better reflect industry diversity and technological progress. Proposed changes include distinguishing between 2D and 3D work, the number of recording channels or shot points used or traces provided by each recording system, and whether crews are operating onshore, offshore, or in transition zones, and the areas surveyed in each environment.

PIPELINES

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION proposed a rule requiring persons who operate and maintain or conduct emergency response for natural gas, hazardous liquid, and carbon dioxide pipelines to be evaluated and tested on their ability to perform such duties.

TRANSTEXAS GAS CORP., Houston, completed the final phase of an 88 1/2 mile expansion of a 30 in. pipeline and upgrade of its gas transmission system in the Hebronville area of South Texas, increasing its delivery capacity to about 1.2 bcfd from 570 MMcfd. TransTexas said as a result of the expansion and an accelerated drilling program, average gross production increased to about 600 MMcfd from 550 MMcfd. Additional line modifications are to be complete in September.

LIBERTY PIPELINE sponsors asked the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to postpone indefinitely its review of its pipeline project after withdrawal in early June of key shipper and partner Long Island Lighting Co. and withdrawal of another shipper, New York Power Authority. The 38 mile pipeline is planned to stretch from proposed receipt points near South Amboy, N.J., to near John F. Kennedy Airport on Long Island, N.Y. (OGJ, Oct. 5, 1992, p. 28). Remaining sponsors asked FERC to keep their application on tile so the project could be pursued.

U.S. NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD scheduled a workshop in Washington, D.C., Sept. 8-9 to identify ideas and approaches for preventing excavation-related damage to buried pipelines and telecommunication cables.

U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT and All American Pipeline Co. filed a consent decree in federal court that resolves allegations the pipeline company violated air quality rules in failing to obtain a preconstruction permit for work on the Cadiz pump station in southern California. The company will pay a civil penalty of $714,000, retrofit three gas turbines to burn a leaner mixture of gas, and replace three other injection pump engines at the station with more efficient engines.

OILSANDS

SYNCRUDE CANADA LTD., Edmonton, received regulatory approval to increase production at its northern Alberta oilsands plant to 217,000 b/d from 172,000 b/d. The Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board said the increase does not require major expansion of the plant in the Fort McMurray region and will not have a significant effect on the environment.

DRILLING-PRODUCTION

NOBLE OFFSHORE LTD. will supervise building and assembly of modules for drilling units and operate and maintain the units for the Hibernia oil field development project off Newfoundland under a $109 million (Canadian) contract. Hibernia field, 180 miles east of Newfoundland on the Grand Banks, is scheduled to start production in 1997.

MAXUS ENERGY CORP., Dallas, is averaging nearly 21,000 b/d of oil production from 12 wells in Tivacuno, Bogi, and Capiron fields in Ecuador. Seven wells in Tivacuno, four in Bogi, and one well in Capiron are on stream. Maxus' next objective is to develop Amo, Daimi, Ginta, and Iro fields in the southern part of Block 16. Maxus said while initial production rates are below expectations, ultimate production is still expected to reach forecast volumes.

SHELL OFFSHORE INC. by yearend expects to achieve peak design capacity of oil production from its Auger field tension leg platform in 2.860 ft of water on Garden Banks Block 426 in the Gulf of Mexico. Shell in April 1994 started production from the first of 10 predrilled Auger wells and by last month had boosted production to 19,000 b/d of oil and 66 MMcfd of gas from four wells.

ARCO WESTERN ENERGY will take over as operator of South Coles Levee Unit oil and gas field in Kern County, Calif., from Marathon Oil Co., marking the end of Marathon's 50 year management of the field. It was the last field Marathon operated in California. Marathon retains its 37.7% interest in the field, ARCO holds 36.5%. and Chevron U.S.A. Inc. holds the remainder. The field, discovered by Marathon in 1937, has 57 active oil and gas wells and produces about 1,000 b/d of oil and natural gas liquids and 16.5 MMcfd of gas.

PATTERSON ENERGY INC., Snyder. Tex., acquired nine drilling rigs. 16 trucks. a yard in Victoria, Tex., and related assets from Questor Drilling Corp., a unit of Phibro Energy Inc., in a deal valued at $6.375 million. The transaction boosts Patterson's land rig fleet by 70%. Patterson said if it had owned the assets throughout 1993. its revenues would have been 74% higher than the $24.7 million reported for the year.

ENSERCH EXPLORATION PARTNERS LTD., a unit of Enserch Corp., Dallas, let contract to the Baker/MO Services unit of Michael Baker Corp., Pittsburgh, for preparation of equipment data books and precommissioning, start-up, and operating manuals for Enserch's field development program on Garden Banks Blocks 344, 386. 387, and 388 in the Gulf of Mexico.

PARKER & PARSLEY PETROLEUM CO., Midland. Tex., completed the purchase from PG&E Resources Co., Dallas, of interests in 1.850 producing oil and gas wells and related development rights for $122 million (OGJ, June 13, p. 47). Parker & Parsley estimates total reserves acquired were 17 million bbl of oil and 58.2 bcf of gas as of last Dec. 31.

MOBIL NORTH SEA LTD. appraised U.K. North Sea Galahad field with sidetracks of its 48/12a-7 well that flowed at a combined rate of 65 MMcfd of gas through a 72/64 in. choke from Permian Rotliegendes. Mobil said the sidetracks showed Galahad is commercial.

COMPANIES

GPM GAS CORP., Houston, agreed to buy seven natural gas gathering systems, a gas treatment plant, and the 30 MMcfd Avalon gas processing plant in New Mexico from a unit of Williams Field Services Group, Tulsa, for an undisclosed sum. The properties and equipment, in Lea and Eddy counties. N.M., are the Southeast New Mexico part of assets Williams agreed to buy from Public Service Co. of New Mexico. The deal will add more than 375 miles of high pressure gathering pipeline to GPM's gathering systems in Southeast New Mexico.

MOBIL CORP. is changing its method of applying the lower of cost or market test for crude and product inventories, an accounting move that will reduce first quarter and year to date 1994 net income by $680 million after tax.

PETRO-CANADA, Calgary, increased its 1994 capital budget by $70 million (Canadian) to $690 million, with the bulk earmarked for exploration.

CANADIAN OCCIDENTAL PETROLEUM LTD. jumped its North American capital expenditure budget $30 million (Canadian) to take advantage of low risk exploration and development opportunities. The budget hike expands spending in Canada by $13 million to $50 million and in the U.S. by $17 million to $76 million.

LNG

TURKEY received its first shipment of Algerian liquefied natural gas last week. Unloaded at Turkey's new Marmara storage site, the shipment was the first under a deal providing for shipments of 2 billion cu m/year of Algerian LNG to Turkey for 20 years.

FERC approved Columbia LNG Corp.'s plan to transfer its Cove Point, Md., LNG terminal and related pipeline assets to Cove Point LNG, a joint venture with a unit of Potomac Electric Power Co., Washington, D.C., and gave preliminary approval to Cove Point LNG to build a gas liquefaction unit. Cove Point LNG wants to recommission certain terminal facilities as well to meet winter peak demand (OGJ, Nov. 29, 1993, p. 34).