EXPLORATION
REPSOL EXPLORACION EGIPTO SA'S 1XA Shams discovery opened Shams gas field on Egypt's Khalda concession. The strike, a reentry of an older well, was deepened to 1 3,500 ft where it cut Jurassic Ras Qattara sandstone. First tests produced as much as 24 MMcfd of gas and a small volume of condensate through a 1 in. choke at 1,250 psi. Operator Repsol holds 50% of the contractor interest in the concession, Phoenix Resource Corp. unit Phoenix Resources Co. of Egypt 40%, and Samsung Co. Ltd. 10%.
SPILLS
SINGAPORE'S Neptune Orient Lines agreed to pay $6.75 million in compensation stemming from an oil spill from one of its tankers at a port near Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam, last October (OGJ, Oct. 17, 1994, p. 36). Payment includes $4.2 million for environmental pollution and economic losses of individuals and $2.25 million for the port's business and material losses.
A BARGE owned by LeBeouf Bros., Houma, La., struck an underwater mooring device Dec. 22, 1994, in the Mississippi River, spilling as much as 500 bbl of crude. The oil spread 6 miles downriver and washed ashore at points as far as Meraux to Braithwaite, 10 miles south of New Orleans. Cleanup crews deployed containment booms, and the U.S. Coast Guard temporarily closed a heavily traveled part of the river.
A UNITED NATIONS group of specialists reports the 576,000 bbl oil spill from a Usinsk crude oil pipeline (OGJ, Oct. 31, 1994, p. 23) isn't hazardous to the environment outside Russia. However, the group called for unspecified protective measures to prevent the spill from spreading into the Barents Sea.
PIPELINES
NATURAL GAS deliveries to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan from Uzbekistan resumed Dec. 25, 1994, following a pipeline rupture 2 days before 60 miles outside Gazli, Uzbekistan. The pipeline links Gazli to the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek through Chimkent and Alma-Ata in Kazakhstan.
TRANSCO ENERGY CO. unit Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp., Houston, received a final permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for Transcontinental's 1995-96 Southeast U.S. expansion project. The first phase of the two phase project will add 115 MMcfd of firm capacity for the 1995-96 heating season, phase two 50 MMcfd for the 1996-97 heating season.
CNG TRANSMISSION CORP., Clarksburg, W.Va., built a measuring and regulating station and laid 225 ft of 16 in. pipeline off its main line in Coshocton County, Ohio, with capacity to provide interruptible transportation of as much as 117 MMcfd of gas to National Oil & Gas Corp., Newark, Ohio. National will move the gas to Columbus Southern Power Co., which will burn it in its Conesville, Ohio, power generating plant.
PETROLEUM AUTHORITY OF THAILAND, Bangkok, let an engineering and construction contract to a joint venture of Saipem SpA and European Marine Contractors for a 263 mile, 36 in. subsea pipeline to carry gas from Unocal's ERP platform in Erawan field in the Gulf of Thailand to an onshore terminal at Rayong, just south of Bangkok. The 1 Semac lay barge is to begin laying the line soon. The venture is owned 50-50 by Saipem and Brown & Root Inc. Project completion is scheduled for the third quarter.
MITCHELL ENERGY & DEVELOPMENT CORP., The Woodlands, Tex., and partner Union Pacific Resources Go., Fort Worth, plan to lay a $37 million, 44 mile gas gathering System in southern Grimes and Washington counties, Tex. The project will add 360 MMcfd of throughput capacity to their Ferguson-Burleson County, Tex., gathering system, more than doubling present 280 MMcfd capacity. Work will start at once, with completion scheduled for fall.
DRILLING-PRODUCTION
OTM INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT INC., Calgary, completed financing of $2.2 million (Canadian) through a private offer of special warrants of its stock to fund the first phase of an exploration/development program in Crimea (OGJ, Dec. 19,1994, p. 40). OTM expects to start drilling a confirmation well in Arktash field at once.
SANTA FE ENERGY RESOURCES JAVA LTD. and partners plan to spud two delineation wells soon on Indonesia's Tuban block in Java after their 2 Mudi delineation flowed 4,200 b/d of 350 gravity oil through a 1 in. choke with 455 psi flowing tubing pressure. The well cut a 400 ft oil column in Tuban limestone at 8,395-8,793 ft. Tests were limited by equipment capacity. More tests are planned after larger equipment is installed.
OKLAHOMA Gov. David Walters approved emergency rules that allow operators in the state an exemption from the gross production tax for as long as 28 months for enhanced production from producing wells, for new production from certain reactivated wells, and for production from new wells drilled to 15,000 ft or deeper. The rules took effect Jan. 1. Qualifying projects eligible for tax credit are those started after July 1, 1994, and before July 1, 1997.
ESSO NORWAY AS signed a letter of intent to hire Transocean Drilling AS's Vildkat Explorer semisubmersible rig to drill three wells on the Norwegian shelf off Norway. Work is expected to begin this spring and require a total of 150 days. Esso has an option on the rig to drill four more wells.
WESTERN CO. OF NORTH AMERICA, Houston, completed the sale of its Alaskan Star semisubmersible rig to Brazilian drilling contractor Queiroz Galvao Purfuracoes SA for $11.7 million. Western also agreed to sell its Western Pacesetter IV semisubmersible for $37.5 million to China National Machinery Import & Export Corp., a sale it expects to close this month.
TEXACO NORTH SEA U.K. CO. let a contract for more than $500 million to a joint venture group that includes ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd., a unit of the ABB Group, Zurich, to develop the U.K. North Sea's Captain oil field. The field is in Inner Moray Firth, 150 km north of Aberdeen. Production of as much as 60,000 b/d is to start by yearend 1996. Value of ABB's part of the contract is $170 million.
TEXACO NORTH SEA let a 580 million franc ($107.4 million) contract to Bouygues Offshore unit UIE Scotland Ltd. to build a drilling platform for Captain field. The platform will consist of a 5,500 metric ton jacket, 7,000 ton integrated bridge deck, and a rig. Work on the platform is to start this month, with delivery scheduled in July 1996.
SAGA PETROLEUM AS let a 320 million kroner ($48.5 million) contract to Aker AS, Oslo, for engineering and installation of a module on Snorre platform to process oil to be produced from Vigdis field. The module is to be installed in 1997. Saga also let a 1 00 million ($15 million), 3 year contract to Aker for maintenance and modifications on Snorre platform.
SAGA PETROLEUM let a 3 year contract to Sonsub Norway AS, Stavanger, Norway, for subsea support on the Snorre tension leg platform off Norway. A remotely operated vehicle (ROV) will be assigned to the platform under the contract. The ROV will be used for inspection and maintenance, including valve operation.
ENSIGN RESOURCES SERVICE GROUP INC., Calgary, acquired 11 drilling rigs and related assets from Veco Drilling Inc. The rigs will be operated by Caza Drilling, Denver, a unit of Ensign.
EQUITABLE RESOURCES INC., Pittsburgh, plans to increase oil and gas production by 12-14% in 1995 from a record 75 bcf equivalent it planned to achieve during 1994. Its goal is to reach 140 bcf equivalent by 1999.
UNION PACIFIC RESOURCES CO. agreed to sell leases in Black Owl, Daboval, El Campo, Menefees, and Shanghai gas/condensate fields in Wharton County, South Texas, and related gas gathering and processing assets for a combined $12.2 million in deals with Comstock Resources Inc. and SND Energy Co. Inc., both of Dallas, and Clayton Williams Energy Inc., Midland, Tex.
PETROCHEMICALS
CHINA'S Lanzhou Chemical Industrial Co. will expand its Lanzhou, Gansu province, China, chemical fertilizer plant with a 2.39 billion yuan ($282 million) project scheduled for completion in 1997. The plant will be able to produce 520,000 metric tons/year of urea and 300,000 tons/year of synthetic ammonia.
PT PUPUK SRIWIDJAJA (Pursi), Indonesia's state owned petrochemical company, dedicated a 1,350 metric ton/day ammonia plant at Palembang, South Sumatra. The $250 million Pursi 1 B plant features ammonia process technology and basic design of M.W. Kellogg Co. It includes a 1,725 metric ton/day urea unit. Tomen Corp., Toyo Engineering Corp., and Mitsui Ltd. arranged Japanese export credit financing for the project.
COMPANIES
APACHE CORP., Houston, agreed to supply Municipal Gas Authority of Georgia (MGAG) 43 bcf of gas during the next 6 years, with volumes averaging 20 MMcfd. Deliveries began Jan. 1. Terms call for Apache to receive an advance payment of $67.4 million from MGAG.
MURPHY OIL CORP., El Dorado, Ark., bought a 10.7% interest in Terra Nova oil field off Newfoundland from Gulf Canada Resources Inc., Calgary. The field is 19 miles southeast of Hibernia oil field, which is scheduled to start production in 1997.
EAGLE ENERGY CORP., Calgary, is negotiating with Chinese officials for the sale of five portable drilling rigs made by Eagle's Stratex Drill Systems Inc. subsidiary. The $250,000 deal could lead to the supply of more Stratex portable units to China. Eagle recently signed a drilling products manufacturing agreement with a Denver company, which has begun working on a set of 20 in. tools for a Hong Kong contractor.
ENTERPRISE OIL NORGE LTD. sold its 10% stake in Norwegian license PL134 to Den norske stats oljeselskap AS. The license includes part of Smorbukk field, but its holding would bring only a 1% share in Statoil's planned development of Smorbukk, South Smorbukk, and Midgard, which may start production this year.
SAMSON INVESTMENT CO. unit Samson Canada Ltd., Calgary, bought three lease packages in western Canada from Inuvialuit Co., also of Calgary, for more than $60 million (Canadian). The trade increases Samson's gas production by 170% to 35 MMcfd and oil production by 35% to 2,500 b/d. The company plans more acquisitions in Canada.
LNG
MALAYSIA LNG SDN. BHD. signed a 20 year contract to supply 2.1 million metric tons/year of liquefied natural gas to Japan, Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Tokyo, reported. Deliveries will begin in June to Tokyo Gas Co., Osaka Gas Co., Toho Gas Co., and Kansai Electric Power Co.
TAIWAN, which imports 1.7 million metric tons/year of LNG from Indonesia, plans to double that volume starting in 1998. The present volume was called for in a 20 year contract signed in 1984. Under a new deal, Indonesia will deliver another 1.7 million tons/year during 1998-99. A further agreement provides for delivery of 1.9 million tons/year for the next 17 years. Indonesia will build a $547 million, 2.3 million ton/year train at its Bontang LNG complex in East Kalimantan to meet the Tiwanese order.
GEOTHERMAL POWER
CALIFORNIA ENERGY CO. INC. unit Patuha Power and partner PT Enerindo Supra Abadi agreed to build a $1 billion power generating network in Patuha geothermal field in Indonesia. Terms call for a series of plants with combined output of as much as 400,000 kw. Commercial operation of the first unit is to start early in 1998.
MAGMA OPERATING CO., Brawley, Calif., let a 3 year contract to RMI Titanium Co., Niles, Ohio, to supply titanium pipe for its geothermal power plant in California's Salton Sea. First pipe deliveries, valued at $7 million, will be made early this year.
INDONESIA started operations at two geothermal power plants at Mount Salak, West Java. Their combined capacity is 110,000 kw. Indonesia estimates that by 1997 the Salak area will produce a combined 330,000 kw and become one of the world's largest geothermal fields.
REFINING
YUKONG LTD. will use a resid catalytic cracking process licensed by UOP, Des Plaines, Ill., in an expansion of its 529,000 b/cd refinery at Ulsan, South Korea. The 50,000 b/sd unit will convert heavy fuel oil components into gasoline and light olefins.
U.S. PATENT & TRADEMARK OFFICE granted a patent to Energy BioSystems Corp. (EBS), The Woodlands, Tex., covering rights to genetic sequences that create enzymes to desulfurize refined petroleum product streams and crude oil. The award increased to 11 the number of U.S. patents EBS has received for efforts to develop a commercial process for petroleum biocatalytic desulfurization.
OILSANDS
SYNCRUDE CANADA LTD., Edmonton, estimated its northern Alberta synthetic oil plant produced more than 66 million bbl of crude in 1994. Production fell short of a target of 72 million bbl because of damage to a coker at the Fort McMurray operation. Syncrude set a production target of 70 million bbl for 1995. The operation set a 1 day production record of 166,000 bbl last Dec. 18.
Copyright 1995 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.
