BUSINESS BRIEFS
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Aker Qserv has appointedIan Pittman as well services manager to lead its operations in the east of England. Based in Great Yarmouth, Pittman will provide operational management support for a range of Aker QServ clients including E.ON Ruhrgas and Scottish and Southern Energy. He will also develop new business opportunities within the well stimulation, coiled tubing, wireline, pipeline, and process services in the North Sea.
The Artificial Lift Co. has promotedDr. Hassan Mansir to VP of engineering and technology. Mansir joined ALC in 2009 as design manager.
Multi-Chem has promotedDr. Zubin Patel to director of capital expenditure and flow assurance. Based in Houston, Patel will develop and execute strategies for the deepwater flow assurance market for both existing assets and future capex projects.
Drillsearch Energy has appointedDavid Evans as CTO, effective in March. He will oversee and manage all technical aspects of the company’s exploration, development, and production activities.
Schlumberger has appointedPaal Kibsgaard as COO. Kibsgaard will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the company’s worldwide operations as well as its technology organization including engineering, manufacturing, and product development.
Geotrace has appointedMark Robinson as area manager for the Far East. Robinson will be responsible for seismic processing and reservoir services in the region.
S3 ID has appointedDoug Woodbridge as head of group sales and marketing. Woodbridge previously served as sales and marketing director for Cetix Salem Automation.
Ashtead Technology has appointedMark Derry as MD of the company’s offshore division. Derry previously served as MD of SBS Marine.
Pan Asia has appointedDomenic Martino as chairman of the company’s board of directors.
Chariot Oil & Gas has appointedMartin Richards as chief reservoir engineer and Alex Green as commercial manager.
Seismic Micro Technology (SMT) has appointedTengBeng Koid as president of its international team. Koid will oversee sales and operations in Asia, Europe, Middle East, Australia, and Africa.
IBC Advanced Alloys Corp. has appointedDouglas Veitch as VP of business development. Veitch will work with the company’s sales and marketing departments to expand and support IBC’s global growth initiatives.
Oil & Gas UK has appointedBrian Kinkead as supply chain director.
Reservoir Group has appointedMalcolm Greener as MD of its XDT downhole drilling tools and services division.
The Department of the Interior’s MMS has appointedMary Katherine Ishee as deputy director.
Petroresurs has appointedDaniil Schedrov as general director.
Company news
Nord Stream AG has received the Finnish “Water Permit,” the last permit required to start constructing its 1,223 km (760 mi) natural gas pipeline through the Baltic Sea. The consortium plans to start construction in April.
Shell has appointed Emerson Process Management as a main automation contractor on future capital projects globally under a five-year contract.
BP is to collaborate with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the UK’s University of Manchester on materials and corrosion research for oilfield applications. The early focus will be on materials and corrosion science, encompassing corrosion and corrosion-fatigue modeling, environmental cracking, novel coatings, and new monitoring technology. Research will extend over time to other mechanical integrity and reliability issues.
TheShtokman Development AG partners Gazprom, Total, and Statoil plan to commit to a final investment decision (FID) on the gas export pipeline in March 2011 and to an FID on LNG facilities before the end of 2011. This should lead to start-up of the pipeline in 2016 and LNG in 2017.
Subsea Services International has established a new subsidiary, PT Subsea Services Indonesia. The company, which will operate from a new facility in Batam, will support customers in Asia, Australia, India, and the Middle East.
Expro is constructing a new facility in Takoradi, Ghana. The 8,000-sq m (86,111-sq ft) facility will include a workshop and office space upon completion.
Petrobras, YPF, and Petrogal (Galp Energia) have signed an agreement with Ancap, the Uruguayan national oil company, for oil and natural gas exploration and production on the Uruguayan continental shelf. The companies have four years to evaluate seismic data and to make a decision on drilling. In the tender, the companies committed to 2D seismic acquisition and existing data reprocessing.
Helix Energy Solutions Group and Clough have formed a joint venture to provide a subsea services to offshore operators in the Asia-Pacific region.
DOF Subsea has established PT DOF Subsea Indonesia, an integrated subsea services provider based in Jakarta.
Jurong Shipyard is building a new shipyard in Brazil. The company has acquired land in the municipality of Aracruz, close to the offshore Espirito Santo basin. The shipyard will offer drillship and semisubmersible construction, FPSO integration, topside module fabrication, PSV construction, as well as drilling rig repairs, ship repairs, and modification works.
Huisman has opened its latest production hall in China. The new hall is the company’s largest to date, measuring 205 m (672 ft) long, 54 m (177 ft) wide, and 62 m (203 ft) high. This height, and the 2,000-metric ton (2,204-ton) internal hoisting capacity, allows the facility to assemble products vertically, allowing it to handle a wide range of products.
GE has realigned its Oilfield Technology business from GE Energy Services to GE Oil & Gas. The company says the move strengthens and expands GE Oil & Gas’ drilling and production portfolio, extending the business reach with directional drilling, formation evaluation systems, and wireline solutions for the exploration and production of oil and gas.
GE Sensing & Inspection Technologies is expanding its Odelzhausen, Germany, facility which designs and manufactures Rheonik coriolis flow meters. The $1-million expansion includes a flow meter calibration center to test and calibrate ultrasonic and coriolis flow meters. The center will be operational in the fourth quarter.
CNOOC’s capex budget this year will be $7.93 billion, an increase of 29.5% over the estimated total for 2009. This comprises $1.47 billion for exploration, $4.81 billion for development, and $1.5 billion for production.
Foster Wheeler has agreed to form a jointly owned Saudi Arabian entity with A. Al-Saihati, A. Fattani, and O. Al-Othman Consulting Engineering Co. (SOFCON) . The new entity, Foster Wheeler SOFCON Consulting Engineering Co. , will be based in Al-Khobar in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
AMEC has acquired Currie & Brown (Australia), an Australian cost and commercial management consultancy, for $32 million.
Peritus International has entered the global subsea and floating systems oil and gas engineering market. Focusing on subsea and floating systems design, the company will use an international network of regional engineering centers initially based in Perth, Australia; Woking, UK; and Houston.
Saudi Aramco has opened a new branch of Aramco Overseas Co. in India. The operation will focus on the companies involved in manufacturing and contracting materials for Saudi Aramco.
TAM International North Sea has expanded its offices in Aberdeen, Scotland. The recently acquired building, next to the existing TAM facility, will provide 5,800 sq ft (625 sq m) of offices as well as additional warehouse space for customer demonstrations and storage.