People
Cairn India has appointedIndrajit Banerjee to its board of directors as CFO. Banerjee started his career at PriceWaterhouse Coopers in Calcutta in 1979 and has held several senior posts throughout his career, including 17 years at Indian Aluminium Co. and two years in Lucent Technologies (India). His most recent position was president of finance and planning at Lupin Ltd. Banerjee replaced Jann Brown, who was interim CFO.
Gabriel
John Crane’s chief engineer,Ralph Gabriel, has been named the Hydraulic Institute Member of the Year. The award was presented to Gabriel at the Hydraulic Institute’s 90th annual meeting, recently held in San Antonio, Texas. Gabriel has led the Hydraulic Institute’s Seals Committee since its inception in 1998 and played a principal role in the development of the latest Institute publication, Mechanical Seals for Pumps: Application Guidelines. He devoted over four years to the project and served as the project leader as well as document manager.
Total has appointedJean-Jacques Guilbaud, president of human resources and corporate communications, to Total’s executive committee. Guilbaud has an undergraduate degree in Sociology and a post-graduate degree in public law. He joined Total in 1981 as a legal advisor specializing in labor law and was appointed head of labor relations in 1985. After serving as assistant manager of the Normandy refinery in 1994 and vice president of human resources in 1996, he became president of human resources and corporate communications and was appointed to membership of the group management committee for Total in April 1998, for TotalFina in 1999, for TotalFinaElf in 2000, and for Total in 2003.
The board of directors of Afren Plc. has accepted the resignation of Brian O’Cathain as chief executive and appointedOsman Shahenshah as his replacement. The board also appointed Evert Jan Mulder as executive director and COO and Didier Lechartier as head of new ventures. Mulder, with 25 years’ experience, has held positions at Addax Petroleum, Shell, Weatherford, and Halliburton. Mulder was most recently COO of Addax Petroleum. He spent more than 10 years with the Shell group holding various senior positions, including head of commercial planning in Nigeria and head of production technology for Shell Expro in the UK. Mulder was also the business development manager and the global manager of reservoir description for Halliburton. Lechartier, with 18 years of industry experience, has particular experience in Congo Brazzaville, where Afren recently acquired a stake in the onshore La Noumbi exploration permit. Lechartier was formerly business development director for Maurel et Prom where he was responsible for the production startup of the M’boundi field.
InterMoor Inc., an Acteon company, has appointedKeith Waldorf as sales representative. Waldorf has over 17 years of experience in sales and marketing, most recently as marketing manager for Seacor Marine LLC. While based in Singapore, he served as Seabulk Offshore Ltd. marketing manager for Southeast Asia. Waldorf is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a BS degree in economics. He is also a graduate of Naval Officer Candidate School, Newport, Rode Island; Engineering Officer of the Watch School; and Navy Primary Flight School, Corpus Christi, Texas. Based at InterMoor’s Houston office, Waldorf will call on oil and gas operators and drilling contractors in the GoM region.
Burns
The International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) and ReedHycalog have namedMark Burns the 2007 Contractor of the Year. Burns has served several leadership roles with IADC for more than 23 years, including chairman for the North Sea chapter in 2003-2004. He also has served on planning committees for the IADC/SPE drilling conference for several years, and has been a key driving factor behind this year’s IADC Mooring Workshop. Burns began his 23-year career at Noble Corp. as a driller and now is the vice president and division manager for the US Gulf of Mexico. Noble Corp. recently honored Burns for his years of service and accomplishments by naming a Levingston Class 111-C independent-leg cantilever jackup after him.
John C.S. Lau, president and CEO of Husky Energy Inc. has announced the appointment ofGeoff Barlow as VP and CFO of Husky Energy Inc. Prior to this appointment, Barlow was VP and controller of Husky Oil Operations Ltd.. Before joining Husky, Barlow held the position of controller for Renaissance Energy from 1994 to 2000. Barlow is a chartered accountant and holds a BS in Commerce from the University of Calgary.
Chevron Corp. has nominatedKevin W. Sharer for election to the company’s board of directors. Sharer is currently CEO and president of Amgen Inc., a biotechnology company. Sharer has been Amgen’s CEO and president since May 2000 and has been chairman of the company’s board of directors since Jan. 2001. From Octtober 1992 to May 2000, Sharer was Amgen’s president and COO. He has been a director of Amgen since Nov. 1992. Sharer also serves on the board of directors of Northrop Grumman Corp. and the US Naval Academy Foundation. He previously served on the board of 3M . Sharer will be part of the slate of board nominees to be considered for election to Chevron’s board at the company’s 2007 annual meeting of stockholders. If he is elected, the board will expand from 13 to 14 members.
Candax Energy Inc. has appointedJohn Willis as COO. Willis is a mechanical engineer with over 30 years of major project development and drilling experience with both international and independent oil and gas companies. Prior to joining Candax, Willis was director of the consulting firm TransMed International. He is treasurer of the Libyan British Business Council.
Hebert
Foster Marketing Communications has appointedMegan Hebert an account associate.
Hebert is a graduate of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (ULL) with a bachelor’s degree in public relations and was named Outstanding Graduate for the College of Liberal Arts. Prior to joining Foster Marketing, Hebert worked as an admissions counselor for ULL’s Department of Enrollment Services, where she recruited students from the New Orleans area. She has also worked for the ULL Alumni Association and as a public relations intern for the Realtor Association of Acadiana.
AGR Drilling Services has appointedBjarte Aldal as chief technical officer, and Stig Anderson as business development director. Aldal was formerly managing director of Bergen Engineering and prior to that worked for Prosafe Drilling Services. Andersen was formerly country manager for KCA Deutag Drilling Norge.
Oilfield services group RBG has promotedFraser Coull to the position of technical director. Coull, formerly director of specialist services, joined the company in February 2005 from Wood Group Engineering. Fred Chadwick, Coull’s replacement, worked with Baker Hughes ProductionQuest, Wood Group, and McDermott. His responsibilities at RBG will include the AquaDyne cleaning division, Mach-Ten mechanical services, electrical and HVAC services, and the Durastic flooring business.
Companies
Knowledge Reservoir says it is expanding its presence in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific with the opening of offices in Muscat, Oman, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Modern Petrotech LLC, a specialist service supplier to the Oman E&P sector, has been appointed in Muscat, Oman. In the Asia-Pacific region, Ian Lilly has joined the company as region manager, becoming the first employee of Knowledge Reservoir Geoscience & Engineering Sdn. Bhd., based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In addition to the two new offices, the company says, it has established a new relationship that will give the geoscience and engineering consulting firm a presence in Mumbai, India. Radix Technologies in Mumbai, India has been appointed to act as Knowledge Reservoir’s representative in country.
Petrobras and Russia’s Gazprom have signed a memorandum of understanding to identify cooperation opportunities for oil and gas projects. Three potential initiatives include cooperation possibilities in LNG, natural gas storage, and natural gas transportation system projects. Although the activity schedule will extend through next year, Petrobras and Gazprom expect to materialize actual partnerships, particularly in the LNG area, in 2007.
BHP Billiton has awarded Technip a contract for subsea work on the Shenzi field in the Green Canyon area in the Gulf of Mexico. The contract covers engineering, fabrication, and installation of a system comprising two infield flowlines and six flowlines welded to steel catenary risers and connecting three drill centers to the Shenzi TLP. Pipeline end termination (PLET) design is under way at Technip’s operations and engineering center in Houston, with PLET fabrication scheduled for the second half of this year. The flowlines and risers will be welded onshore at Technip’s spoolbase in Mobile, Alabama. Offshore installation will be carried out in 1Q 2008 by Technip’s deepwater pipelay vessel, Deep Blue. The vessel will use the reel lay process to reduce its required time in the field. The Shenzi field is operated by BHP Billiton with a 44% working interest. Partners include Repsol (28%) and Hess (28%).
Australian engineering groupClough Ltd. has finished work on the ONGC Panna field offshore India. Though this project has reached completion, the company says it expects the independent mediation process dealing with completion issues on the G1 contract to begin within the next two months. According to Clough, the company’s net debt increased to $84.96 million for the six months ending Dec. 31, 2006. The company says loss was primarily driven by cash outflows on the Panna and G1 contracts, legal costs related to the BassGas arbitration process, and financing of existing projects in the property business. Clough expects the arbitrator to deliver findings on the dispute with Origin Energy on the BassGas contract before the end of this year. Clough says it remains committed to achieving a resolution to this dispute and finding the best possible outcome for shareholders.
Petsec Energy Ltd. plans to make a final decision on the 6.12/6.12 South oil discovery development in China’s Beibu Gulf by the second half of this year, with the 6.12 South oil discovery having substantially increased the probability of success for the five adjacent oil field prospects. Petsec chairman Terry Fern says the acquisition of 33 Gulf of Mexico leases last August yielded four discoveries in Mobile Bay concessions within months. These discoveries substantially increased the company’s prospect inventory, which now stands at 290 bcf of gas and 30 MMbbl of oil in the US and 5-8 MMbbl in China. The company’s exploration program for this year includes 14 to 20 wells, targeting 60 bcf of oil equivalent net to Petsec in the US and China concessions. Petsec has proposed a capital expenditure of approximately $68 million for this year, supported by current working capital of $36 million. Anticipated operating cash flow for the year is $50 million from 9.8 bcf equivalent of production from existing reserves. The anticipated production increase for 2007 is up by 20% over 2006.
Maritima de Ecologia SA de CV has awarded Aberdeen-based Veripos a long-term contract to supply GNSS positioning services and equipment for the DP vessel Don Jaime, which is carrying out extensive internal pipeline corrosion inspection work in the Bay of Campeche on behalf of Pemex. Under the contract, continuous precision positioning is being provided via the Gulf of Mexico sector of Veripos’ proprietary Americas GNSS regional network covering north, south, and central America. Support equipment supplied for integration into Don Jaime’s own dynamic positioning system includes a Veripos LD3-G1 integrated mobile unit configured for reception of L1 single frequency GPS. The unit additionally incorporates an L-band satellite differential correction demodulator.
The US Department of the Interior’sMineralsManagement Service has awarded IMV Projects Atlantic a contract for a study titled “Arctic Offshore Technology Assessment of Exploration and Production Options for Cold Regions of the US Outer Continental Shelf.” The study has the objective of delivering an assessment of oil and gas technology that can be applied to cold regions of the US OCS; in particular the Beaufort, Chukchi, and Bering Seas.
US Liquids LP (ULL) has opened its new Pelican Island Transfer Station in Galveston, Texas. The facility is a full-service marine and truck transfer station for the disposal of oilfield drilling and production waste 24-hours a day, seven-days a week. It also provides barge and tank cleaning services.
SBM Offshore is combining two of its Houston-based groups, Atlantia Offshore Ltd. and SBM-Imodco Inc., to strengthen its floating production facility capabilities. The new company will be called, SBM Atlantia, and will be based in Houston.
Avantium Technologies BV has announced the expansion of its R&D facilities in Amsterdam to accommodate the growth of its high-throughput R&D business. Avantium will double its capacity with the addition of 2,500 sq m (27,000 sq ft) of laboratory and office space. The company expects to begin using the new facilities by 1Q 2008.
Petrobras has awarded Technip a $200-million contract for the four-year charter of the Sunrise 2000 flexible pipe laying vessel. The contract could be renewed for four years. The Sunrise 2000 is a dynamically positioned vessel designed to install flexible flowlines and umbilicals in water depths to 2,000 m (6,562 ft). The vessel can simultaneously lay three lines, either flowlines or umbilicals. A built-in carousel provides the vessel with a cargo capacity of 3,775 tons of products to facilitate three-line pipelaying. The Sunrise 2000 is also equipped with Technip’s patented vertical lay system, which allows the installation of flexible pipes up to a maximum dynamic load of 270 tons. The vessel, which has been under long-term contract with Petrobras since 1995, has installed subsea pipes for the Roncador, Albacora Leste, Marlim, and Marlim Sul fields.
Deep Sea Supply Plc. subsidiaryDESS Cyprus Ltd. has entered into an agreement with Java Marine Lines Pte. Ltd. for a one-year firm bareboat charter for an anchor handling tug supply vessel. The AHTS is to be commissioned and delivered by Jaya Shipbuilding & Engineering Pte. Ltd. in Singapore in September/October 2007. Deep Sea Supply PLC has secured a purchase option at the end of the one-year bareboat charter. Deep Sea Supply will operate the vessel in Asia, the Middle East, and West Africa.
