INTERNATIONAL BRIEFS

REFINING

AGIP PETROLI SPA acquired a license for a 35,000 b/d Unicracker from Unocal Corp. for the Millazzo, Italy, refinery operated by affiliate Raffineria Mediterranea SpA. Agip earlier licensed a Unicracker unit for its Sannazzaro, Italy, refinery, Both units are to start up in 1993.

DRILLING-PRODUCTION

JAPANESE COMPANIES C. Itoh & Co., Marubeni Corp., Japan Petroleum Exploration Co., and Overseas Petroleum Corp., formed Sakhalin Oil Development Corp. (Sodeco), a joint venture to conduct a feasibility study for oil and gas development around the U.S.S.R.'s Sakhalin Island (OGJ, Sept. 2, Newsletter). The venture is initially capitalized at 400 million yen and will participate in a bid on the project to be submitted early this month.

HIBERNIA MANAGEMENT & DEVELOPMENT LTD. let a construction contract for a $350 million (Canadian) wellhead module for Hibernia oil field off Newfoundland to a group of PLC Industrial Contractors, Edmonton, Aker Stord AS, Oslo, Steen Contractors, Toronto, and Becker Contractors, St. John's, Newf. Contracts for four more modules for the $5.2 billion project will be awarded early in 1992.

A JOINT VENTURE of Diamond Shamrock Inc. and Sol Petroleo SA, Buenos Aires, completed the purchase of Occidental Petroleum Corp.'s and CanOxy's jointly held exploration and production interests in Bolivia. Included is a 100% interest in Porvenir gas field in Southeast Bolivia with sales of 50 MMcfd of gas and 1,200 b/d of condensate and a 50% interest in the Madre de Dios block in northern Bolivia.

A PROPERTY EXCHANGE worth about $45 million (Canadian) is complete between Suncor Inc. and Shell Canada Ltd. Suncor gets 50% interest in Rosevear gas field in Alberta, bringing its working interest to 100% in North Rosevear and 56% in South Rosevear. Shell gets interests in Nipisi, East Harmatton, and Harmatton Elkton oil fields in Alberta and Midale, Weyburn, and Benson fields in Saskatchewan. Suncor will pay Shell more than $20 million plus the oil properties.

ELF GABON started up Coucal field 15 1/2 miles northeast of Gabon's on-shore Rabi Kounga field. Production from the 36.5 million bbl reservoir is expected to peak at 18,900 b/d. Oil will move through a spur into the main pipeline serving Rabi Kounga.

TANKERS

TAIWAN'S state owned Chinese Petroleum Corp. will order two 150,000 dwt tankers from China Shipbuilding Corp. (CSP), in addition to a 40,000 dwt tanker currently on order from CSP. Its current fleet of 13 tankers totaling 1.27 million dwt accounted for 37% of Taiwan's oil imports as of June 1991, down from 50% in 1985.

COMPANIES

NESTE FINANCE BY bought Chevron Corp.'s 35% interest in oil and gas exploration and producing acreage in Oman. The acreage, within the 2,856,700 gross acre Suneinah concession in Northwest Oman, includes Safah oil field, discovered in 1983.

EXPLORATION

MARATHON OIL CO.'S 1 Bir Drassen wildcat on the Cap Bon permit in Tunisia flowed 5 MMcfd from Eocene Bou Dabbous on a brief natural flow test. The well penetrated more than 250 ft of fractured limestone at about 2,700 ft and is drilling ahead for a second objective, Upper Cretaceous Abiod chalk, before reaching total depth near 4,400 ft. The discovery is about 8 miles northeast of Marathon's 1 Belli discovery well (OGJ, July 15, Newsletter).

MARATHON obtained a production sharing contract from Indonesia covering the Tiram block in the West Natuna Sea. The block is on trend with two Marathon operated fields on the adjacent Kakap block. Marathon holds a 100% interest in the 367,000 acre Tiram block, but Indonesian company PT Swinusa Arthamandiri holds an option to acquire a 10% interest.

INDONESIA'S Mines and Energy Ministry received applications from at least 33 oil companies for the right to bid for exploration rights in the Timor Gap between Australia and Indonesia's Timor Island (OGJ, July 22, Newsletter). Bids were invited for 14 contract areas in a 35,840 sq km area. Deadline for work program bids was Oct. 7, contract winners will be announced in December, and exploration could start in 1993.

CANADIAN OCCIDENTAL PETROLEUM LTD. said it does not have enough data to confirm a report by Yemen's president that the company discovered 490.7 million bbl of oil on the Masila block. CanOxy is conducting delineation drilling and exploration programs in Yemen (OGJ, July 15, p. 34).

A JOINT VENTURE of Trilogy Resource Corp., Calgary, and Teck Corp., Vancouver, signed an agreement with Canadian Hunter Exploration Ltd. covering exploration in Southeast and Central Saskatchewan. Trilogy and Teck will spend about $6 million (Canadian) for the first phase, including drilling six wells, seismic surveys, and leasing. Initially, Teck will hold 75% interest in the venture and Trilogy 25%. The first well is to spud in October.

AUSTRALIA will provide a grant of $2.14 million to Philippines for a 3 year marine seismic survey project, The joint project will be conducted by the Philippine Office on Energy Affairs and the Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology, and Geophysics.

SHELL PETROLEUM CO. of Nigeria let an $8 million contract to the Integrated Data Service subsidiary of Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. to acquire 1,500 line km of 2-D seismic data in the onshore area of the Niger Delta. Work is to be complete in 18 months.

CHINA NATIONAL PETROLEUM CORP. let contract to Bolt Technology Corp., Houston, to supply four air gun systems for transition zone seismic surveys. Each system consists of a clustered array of long life air guns and four auger type downhole air guns to be mounted on four amphibious vehicles manufactured by Watercraft Offshore Canada, Richmond, B.C.

LNG

JAPANESE GAS COMPANIES will increase imports of liquefied natural gas from Australia by 980,000 metric tons/year, Kyodo News Service reported. Accordingly, Australia will increase gas production in North Rankin and Angel Ocean fields off the country's west coast. Meantime, Tokyo Gas Co. agreed with Indonesia's Pertamina to import 170,000 tons/year of LNG from East Kalimantan production in 1992-93.

Copyright 1991 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.