WATCHING THE WORLD LAYERED CLUES TO CHRISTMAS ACTIVITY

This year my New Year's resolution is an old favorite: to operate a clear desk policy.

When I returned from a long Christmas break Jan. 3, there was a pile of unopened mail and newspapers on my desk, as expected.

Like geological formations, the paper layers provided a record of activity during my absence. Luckily, the paper symbols were easier to interpret. Here are the most exciting revelations:

Elf Exploration U.K. plc confirmed viability of North Sea Elgin and Franklin fields. Elf has begun studies with Shell U.K. Exploration & Production, operator of Shear-water and Puffin discoveries, and Texaco Ltd., operator of Erskine discovery, to evaluate development of the five fields using a single, central platform.

Den norske stats oljeselskap AS told Norway's Gas Supply Committee a planned gas export pipeline to Dunkirk, France, should take precedence over another to Emden, Germany. Statoil is pushing to submit a development plan to government in February (OGJ, Dec. 12, 1994, p. 32).

E. EUROPEAN PLANS

Dow Chemical Co. plans to sign a privatization agreement early this year with Treuhandanstalt, the German privatization agency, for purchase of an interest in the Buna, Leuna, and Bohlen chemical plants in the former East Germany.

Middle East Economic Survey reported that Sergi Lavroy, Russia's ambassador to the United Nations, told reporters Dec. 21 that Russia wants oil sanctions against Iraq to be lifted in the spring if Baghdad continues cooperating with UN nuclear arms checks.

Russia will scrap oil export quotas effective Jan. 1, according to Reuters reports quoted in London's Financial Times. Instead, producers reportedly will have to supply as much as 65% of their production to domestic refineries in first quarter 1995.

BRITISH GAS MEMO

British Gas again drew press flak Dec. 29, only weeks after its chief executive's pay raise caused a ruckus (OGJ, Dec. 12, 1994, p. 26). This time a memo leaked to Labour party officials reportedly told of a planned cut in spending on routine pipeline checks to El million ($1.5 million)/year from 9 million ($13.5 million)/year.

Vladimir Polevanov, Russia's new head of the State Property Committee, was said by the Financial Times to be preparing a law to renationalize enterprises in Russia's oil and other industries. Moscow's Privatization Center chief Maxim Boiko reportedly said Polevanov's ideas ran counter to reforms but argued he was "...new in the job."

Finally, 16 crew members were airlifted from the Santa Fe Britannia jack up rig after heavy seas caused one of its legs to shift. The rig was drilling Sean field development wells in U.K. Block 49/25 for Shell.

With the column filed and source material stored, I have achieved a clear desk and a clean conscience for at least I day of 1995. Removal of the paper mound also revealed my telephone. Now I can ring round and see if things really have been as quiet as the paper layers suggest.