INDUSTRY BRIEFS

ALTERNATE FUELS

SANTA CLARA, CALIF., on behalf of five California utilities, Electric Power Research Institute, and National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, let a $27,179,265 contract to Energy Research Corp. unit Fuel Cell Engineering Corp. to engineer, build, and test a utility scale carbonate fuel cell demonstration power plant. The 2.000 kw power plant in the $46 million project will be built in Santa Clara. Energy Research's direct fuel cell will be used as the power supply.

EXPLORATION

BRABANT PETROLEUM LTD., Tonbridge, U.K., received a license to explore an area bordering its EXL 239 concession on the Isle of Wight off England's southern coast. U.K. Department of Trade & Industry said the license is valid for 6 years. It allows seismic surveying but does not allow drilling without government permission.

WOODSIDE PETROLEUM PTY. LTD. West Dixon discovery well on the Northwest Shelf off Western Australia flowed 2,240 b/ d of 32 gravity oil from 3,559-66 ft and as much as 1 MMcfd of gas from 3,720-24 ft. The well, on WA-28-P permit, is close to Woodside's Cossack/Wanaea oil discoveries, currently slated for development (OGJ, Oct. 11, p. 31).

PAPUA NEW GUINEA'S Department of Minerals & Petroleum approved a petroleum prospecting grant of 331/3% interest in onshore Papua New Guinea License 163 to Kerr-McGee Corp. unit Kerr-McGee Papua New Guinea Ltd. The 1.9 million acre license area is 310 miles northwest of Port Moresby. Other interest holders are operator Phillips Petroleum Co. Niugini 56.2%, Mosaic Oil Niugini Pty. Ltd. 7.5%, and Pagini Oil & Gas NL 3%.

CHEVRON OVERSEAS EXPLORATION LTD. and State Oil Co. of Azerbaijan (Socar) signed a joint study agreement for the southern Caspian Sea off Azerbaijan. The study will examine parts of the area to evaluate its exploration potential for possible exploration joint ventures between Chevron and Azerbaijan and is to help transfer technology to Socar.

DRILLING-PRODUCTION

AMERADA HESS LTD. tested hydrocarbons at its 15/21b-50 U.K. North Sea well 4 km north of Ivanhoe and Rob Roy fields and 7 km south of the Scott field platform. The well was drilled to 9,560 ft, flowing 5,724 b/d of 28.5 gravity oil through a 74/64 in. choke, with a 250 cu ft/bbl GOR.

CODA ENERGY INC., Dallas, paid $17.4 million for all outstanding capital stock of MJM Oil & Gas Inc., Dallas, including interests in 147 wells in Texas and Oklahoma netting production of 550 b/d of oil and 2.1 MMcfd of gas. MJM was operator of 95 wells included in the transaction. The deal increases Coda's net production by almost 20%.

AMERADA HESS started production from U.K. Block 15/22 Scott field last month. Peak oil production will be 180,000 b/d (OGJ, Sept. 13, p. 39). Scoff output makes Amerada Hess the third largest operator of oil production in the U.K., the company said

CABINDA GULF OIL CO. let contracts worth a combined $100 million to AMEC Process & Energy Ltd., London, to build two platforms for North N'Dola and South Sanha fields off Angola. They will be built at Durban for completion in August 1995. They will be the first platforms built in South Africa for export. North N'Dola platform will have a 2,200 short ton topsides and 1,700 short ton jacket, while South Sanha will have a 2,400 short ton topsides and 1,500 short ton jacket.

BOW VALLEY PETROLEUM (U.K.) LTD. completed the 16/6a-4z appraisal well on U.K. North Sea Block 16/6a Sedgwick reservoir as part of a farmout. Short term drill stem tests flowed more than 9,000 b/d of oil. When the farmout is completed after an extended test in early 1994, partners will be operator Enterprise Oil plc 40%, BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd. 20%, Conoco (U.K.) Ltd. 20%, and Bow Valley 20%.

PHILLIPS PETROLEUM CO. U.K. LTD. started production Oct. 2 from Ann gas field in U.K. North Sea Block 49/6a. Gas is exported 25 miles via pipeline to Theddlethorpe gas terminal in Lincolnshire. Ann is an underwater development project controlled from Audrey B platform 11 miles away. Contract output from Ann is 60 MMcfd. Customers are independent gas suppliers Alliance Gas Ltd. and Kinetica Ltd.

ENSERCH EXPLORATION PARTNERS LTD., Dallas, let a $46 million contract to McDermott Inc., New Orleans, for fabrication, construction, and installation of a floating production system (FPS) for Enserch's Garden Banks Block 388 development in 2,190 ft of water in the Gulf of Mexico. McDermott is to transport and install a 24 slot drilling and production template, connect the template to the FPS via 2,000 ft free standing production riser, and lay two 54 mile, 12 in. gathering pipelines from the FPS to a four pile processing platform in 250 ft of water on Eugene Island Block 315. McDermott also is to fabricate, transport, and install the Block 315 platform. Production is to start in mid-1995.

TEXACO OVERSEAS (NIGERIA) PETROLEUM CO. UNLIMITED hired Offshore Pipelines Inc., Houston, to engineer, fabricate, transport, install, and commission two offshore structures and three pipelines in North Apoi and Okubie fields off Nigeria. In December, OPI will begin fabrication of the North Apoi J three pile well protector platform and the Okubie A four pile platform to be installed in 42-50 ft of water. The three associated pipelines include 0.9 and 8 miles of 6 in. size and an 8 mile, 10 in. line.

HAMILTON OIL CO. LTD., London, let a 10 million ($15 million) contract to Stena Offshore Ltd., Aberdeen, for work in Johnston field on U.K. North Sea Block 43/27. The contract covers pipelaying and tie-in next spring and fabrication of a subsea wellhead manifold. Johnston will be tied back to Ravenspurn North Central platform 7.5 km southwest.

PIPELINES

COMMONWEALTH GAS SERVICES, a unit of Columbia Gas System Inc., will provide gas transportation for Gordonsville Energy Ltd. Partnership's 256,000 kw cogeneration power plant being built near Gordonsville, Va. Commonwealth Gas will move as much as 50 MMcfd of gas through two planned 2 mile, 12 in. pipelines from lines owned by Columbia Gas Transmission Corp. and Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp.

CANADA'S National Energy Board (NEB) received an application from Alberta Energy Co. Ltd. unit Express Pipeline Ltd. to lay and operate a crude pipeline to the U.S. border near Wild Horse, Alta., from Hardisty, Alta. The Express Pipeline calls for 775 miles of 24 in. pipeline, of which 267 miles are in Canada. In the U.S., the line will continue to a hub at Casper, Wyo. The pipeline will move at least 180,000 b/d. Cost of the Canada section is $169.5 million (Canadian). Construction is to begin in third quarter 1994, with line start-up in January 1995.

INTERPROVINCIAL PIPE LINE SYSTEM INC., Edmonton, applied to NEB to lay a $258 million (Canadian) expansion of its Edmonton to Chicago crude line. The project will increase capacity by 125,000 b/d with an option for further expansion to increase capacity by 190.000 b/d. Start-up is scheduled by yearend 1994.

NEB approved construction of a 1/4 mile gas pipeline to link Saskatchewan and North Dakota. The WBI Canadian line will be operated by a unit of Williston Basin Interstate Pipeline Co., Bismarck, N.D. It will deliver gas from TransGas Ltd., Regina, Sask.

KAWASAKI STEEL CORP., Tokyo, will supply about 13,000 metric tons of pipe, or 38% of the estimated 35,000 metric ton requirement, for a 250 km natural gas pipeline in northern Japan. The line links Niigata and Sendai.

PANHANDLE EASTERN CORP. unit Texas Eastern Transmission Corp. will provide 100 MMcfd of firm gas transportation service to CNG Transmission Corp. Pending Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approval, Texas Eastern will provide service from receipt at Crayne Farm meter station in Greene County, Pa., to the requested delivery point at Chambersburg, Pa. From there CNG will deliver gas to Washington Gas Light Co., Virginia Natural Gas Co., and Public Service Co. of North Carolina. Terms of the 20 year agreement call for Texas Eastern to build $39 million worth of compressor and pipeline facilities, with work to start in summer 1995 to meet service start-up Nov. 1, 1995.

REFINING

TESORO PETROLEUM CORP., San Antonio, will upgrade its 72,000 b/cd Kenai, Alas., refinery by adding a $4.6 million, 5,000 b/d capacity deisobutanizer tower. The plant's first major upgrade since 1986, it will help improve plant efficiency by converting output previously used as refinery fuel gas into salable products that include gasoline blend stock and propane.

A SPENT ACID STORAGE TANK at Shell Oil Co.'s 146,500 b/cd Martinez, Calif., refinery exploded and caught fire Oct. 8. Foam was used to put out the fire. No one was injured, and plant operations are not affected. Cause of the explosion is unknown.

VENEZUELA'S Petroleos de Venezuela SA unit Maraven SA plans a $1.8 billion upgrade of its 286,000 b/cd Cardon refinery in Falcon state. The project calls for maximizing heavy crude refining capacity to reduce dependence on high sulfur resids. When completed in 1996, plant output will be 84% gasoline and distillates, 16% resids.

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY SIGNED a consent agreement and final order with Unocal Corp. under which Unocal will pay a civil penalty of $200,000 to settle eight counts of hazardous waste violations at its Wilmington, Calif., refinery. As part of the agreement, Unocal removed from service a crude processing unit that generated benzene contaminated water.

MOBIL CORP., Akzo Chemicals BY, and M.W. Kellogg Co. teamed to offer new MAK hydrocracking process technology. The Kellogg licensed process provides flexibility to produce distillate fuels and gasoline from a range of feedstocks.

CHEVRON U.S.A. PRODUCTS CO. seeks buyers for its asphalt businesses in the U.S. Pacific Northwest and East Coast. Facilities for sale include a 15,000 b/d refinery in Portland, Ore., a 5,500 b/d refinery near Seattle, and their related marketing assets. East Coast terminals and assets offered are in Troy, N.Y.; Portland, Conn.; Salisbury, N.C.; Baltimore, and Tampa. Chevron seeks to sell those East Coast operations to a buyer who will agree to a processing arrangement with the company's 80,000 b/d asphalt refinery at Perth Amboy, N.J., which will be retained. The company also will retain its Hawaii and U.S. Southwest asphalt operations.

GAS PROCESSING

LOUISIANA LAND & EXPLORATION CO., New Orleans, started work on its $80 million, 50 MMcfd capacity Lost Cabin gas plant project in Madden field of Fremont County, Wyo. It let a turnkey engineering, procurement, and construction contract to Raytheon Engineers & Constructors, Denver. Plant start-up is scheduled for early spring 1995.

LNG

QATAR LIQUEFIED GAS CO. will use five Japanese shipping companies to supply 4 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas to Japan's Chubu Electric Power Co. starting in January 1997. The shippers are Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., Nippon Yusen K.K., Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., Showa Line Ltd., and lino Kaiun Kaisha Ltd. Those five shippers asked Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., and Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. to build seven 135,000 cu m capacity tankers to move the LNG. Cost of the vessels is undisclosed.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES'S Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction Co. agreed to double LNG exports to Japan's Tokyo Electric Power Co. Additional supplies will begin in 1994 when the $1 billion Das Island liquefied gas plant expansion project is completed. Exports to Japan currently are estimated at 2.5 million metric tons/year. Length of the agreement is 25 years.

COMPANIES

KENNECOTT CORP. completed its $510 million sale of two Nerco Inc. units. It sold Nerco Oil & Gas Inc. for $353.7 million to Louisiana Land & Exploration (OGJ, Oct. 4, p. 38). Black Lake Pipeline Co. was sold for $156 million to Western Gas Resources Inc. The sales establish Nerco mainly as a coal company.

COGENERATION

PACIFICORP., Portland, Ore., agreed to buy electricity from a 474,000 kw gas fired cogeneration power plant to be built in Hermiston, Ore., by U.S. Generating Co. At full production, the plant will use 85 MMcfd. Canadian suppliers will provide the gas. Steam will be used by Lamb-Weston in its potato processing facility next to the proposed power plant. Umatilla Electric Cooperative will deliver power from the generating plant to the Bonneville Power Administration.

TANKERS

OMI CORP.'S empty OMI Charger gasoline tanker exploded, burned, and partially sank Oct. 9 off Galveston Island, Tex., killing three crew members and injuring eight others. There was no spill of engine fuel oil, the U.S. Coast Guard said, but protective booms were deployed around the vessel to guard marshlands. Smit Americas Inc., Houston, last week emptied 365,000 gal of bunker fuel from the tanker, ending the threat of pollution. The ship was under long term contract to move 300,000 bbl of gasoline to Amoco Corp. product terminals along the Florida Gulf Coast from its 433,000 b/cd Texas City, Tex., refinery. Amoco refinery operations weren't affected. Cause of the accident was unknown at presstime.