GLOBAL E&P

In the Bulgarian sector, GSP Offshore’s construction vesselBigfoot has completed installation of subsea facilities linking wells on the Kavarna and Kaliakra gas satellites to Melrose Resources’ Galata platform.

North America

Shell Offshore has applied for a permit to drill an exploratory well in the Beaufort Sea off Alaska next summer. The target structure is in a shallow water area in Camden Bay. Although activities offshore Alaska have been suspended following the Macondo well incident, Shell is hopeful the embargo will be lifted. It has also committed to engineering an oil spill containment system for its program that would capture hydrocarbons at source in the event of a shallow water blow-out.

Bahamas Petroleum Co. hopes to raise funds for a new round of seismic acquisition off the Bahamas, starting later this year or early in 2011. The company’s initial survey revealed several large structures with hydrocarbon indicators, which require further 2D and 3D analysis. The company aims to drill one of these prospects next year, which extend over water depths of 400-500 m (1,312-1,640 ft). To allay local concerns over a repeat performance of Macondo, it has been working with the Bahamian government to ensure that appropriate regulations and safety procedures are in place prior to drilling.

South America

Petrobras has notched its eighth successful well in the pre-salt Tupi field in block BM-S11 offshore Brazil. The Iracema Norte well was drilled in 2,247 m water depth (7,372 ft), 6 km (3.7 mi) northeast of Tupi’s Iracema well, but in a lower structural position. It flowed 29°API oil, also confirming the oil-water contact. Petrobras maintains its estimate of resources from the Tupi area of 5-8 Bbboe of light oil and gas. The company could issue a declaration of marketability for the field next month.

Brazil’s other active indigenous company, OGX Petroleo e Gas, continues its focus on shallow water exploration. Its latest successes have come in the Santos basin block BM-S-58, where the Santonian section of the Aracaju well encountered a 145-m (475-ft) oil column; and in Campos bbasin block BM-C-41, 85 km (53 mi) off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, where well OGX-20 has found oil in the Maastrichtian and Albian sections.

Finally, Repsol, the country’s most active foreign participant, has agreed to jointly develop its projects with Sinopec under a new company, Repsol Brasil. Repsol claims to be Brazil’s third-largest oil producer and largest foreign owner of exploration acreage, with interests in major discoveries in the Guara and Carioca pre-salt basins.

Peru’s government turned down BPZ Resources’ request to resume testing of the CX11-19D well on the offshore Corvina field, which has been shut in since mid-June. However, BPZ still plans to start production through the CX-11 platform on Nov. 30, following the installation of gas and water re-injection facilities. On the Albacora field, the company has decided to suspend operations following a dry hole on its latest well, A-17D. It wants to complete a 3D seismic acquisition campaign to improve its understanding of the field’s geology – in parallel, it will install production kit on the Albacora platform.

The semisubmersibleOcean Guardian was due to return recently to Desire Petroleum for its latest exploration well offshore the Falkland Islands. Desire’s priority is the Rachel prospect, in the same play fairway as Rockhopper’s Sea Lion oil discovery. Desire also hopes to start a new seismic survey shortly via a vessel time-share with other operators in the region. One of these, Falklands Oil & Gas (FOGL), is set to re-assume operatorship of its northerly licenses in the East Falklands basin, following partner BHP’s decision to drop out after this summer’s dry hole on the Toroa structure. And FOGL is looking for a deeper water rig to resume drilling of its prospects in the area.

West Africa

ENI has discovered further oil in block 15/06 off Angola. The Cabaca South East-2 well, drilled 100 km (62 mi) offshore in a water depth of 470 m (1,542 ft), flowed 34° API oil at a rate of 7,000 b/d. According to partner Statoil, the appraisal exercise has increased the estimate of oil in place at the discovery by 30%, and this should encourage development of a second production hub in the north-east part of the block.

Hyperdynamics and partner Dana Petroleum have agreed a two-year program of exploration off Republic of Guinea. This will include drilling of up to three wells, starting late-2011, followed by a possible 4,000-sq km (1,544-sq mi) 3D survey over the concession’s ultra-deepwater section.

Dana has also resumed deepwater drilling in Block 7 off Mauritania to the north. TheMaersk Deliverer is drilling the Cormoran-1 prospect, 2 km (1.2 mi) south-east of the Pelican discovery, in 1,632 m (5,354 ft) water depth. Dana is targeting reserves in three zones, with combined potential resources of 400-780 MMboe.

Northern Europe

RWE Dea Norge has discovered gas in the Zidane prospect in the Norwegian Sea. The well, drilled by the semisubmersibleBredofrd Dolphin in 344 m (1,128 ft) water depth, northwest of the Heidrun field, proved gas in Fangst group Mid-Jurassic reservoir rocks. The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate estimates reserves in the range 5-18 bcm recoverable.

Asia-Pacific

Gazprom has discovered a new gas field in its Kirinsky block offshore Sakhalin Island. Kirinsky is in the Sakhalin III concession, which also includes the Kirinskoye gas field. Gaprom estimates its total discovered gas resources at 1.4 tcm, and these will be exported through the new Sakhalin-Khabarovsk-Vladivostok pipeline.

In the Sakhalin-1 concession, ExxonMobil has started production from the Odoptu field. The company drilled seven long-reach wells horizontally under the Sea of Okhotsk from an onshore pad to the offshore reservoir. Development included a flowline connection to the Chayvo onshore processing terminal.

Total has brought Petronas Carigali and Murphy Oil subsidiary Canam Brunei into the consortium for Brunei’s deepwater block CA-1 (ex-Brunei block J). The permit, which Total has operated since 2003, is 100 km (62 mi) northwest of the coast of Brunei Darussalem. Drilling should get under way shortly.

Total has brought in new partners to its Block CA-1 PSC offshore Brunei.

In Indonesia’s Kalimantan offshore region, Total has agreed to take 15% of the Pearl Oil-operated shallow water Sebuku license, which includes the Ruby gas discovery. Indonesia’s government approved a development plan for Ruby in 2008, which should now come on stream in 2013, building to a target rate of 100 MMcf/d. The concession is near Total’s Mahakam and South East Mahakam licenses.

Off southern Vietnam, Total E&P Vietnam is a partner in the recent Lac Da Vang oil discovery, in 48 m (157 ft) of water, 125 km (77.7 mi) east of the port of Vung Tau. The well tested at up to 3,500 b/d – this was the second find in the block in less than a year.

Deepwater seabed cores extracted from the SC 58 permit off the Philippines indicate liquid hydrocarbons, says Nido Petroleum. The 14 cores revealed hydrocarbons similar to known NW Palawan source rocks and to other producing areas in the basin. In the central area surveyed, seeps were identified that corresponded to the Gutanding, Balyena and Balyena East prospects. Nido estimates SC 58 could hold unrisked in-place oil of over 5 Bbbl.

Mediterranean Sea

Jacka Resources has farmed into 15% of the Bargou permit offshore/onshore Tunisia. In exchange, Jacka will pay operator Cooper Energy certain costs associated with two planned wells, the second of which will likely be an appraisal of the Hammamet West oil discovery. A recent 3D seismic review suggests the structure may be 50% larger than mapped on vintage 2D data.

Noble Energy has started development of the deepwater Tamar gas field on the Matan license in the Levantine basin. The first-phase program involves drilling five subsea wells, each producing up to 200-250 MMcf/d, with production gathered at a field center and tied back via flowlines to a new platform off southern Israel, next to the Mari B complex. That platform’s gas will tie into an existing pipeline to an onshore reception terminal at Ashdod. Among the latest Tamar contract awards, Aker Solutions will supply a further 105 km (65 mi) of steel tube umbilicals, to be manufactured at its plant in Mobile, Alabama.

Caspian Sea

SOCAR and BP have concluded a 30-year production-sharing agreement for a deepwater block in the Azeri block that has not previously seen action. BP Exploration Caspian Sea will operate the 1,100-sq km (425-sq mi) permit, where water depths range from 650-800 m (2,132-2,624 ft). The main exploration/development target is the Shafag-Asiman structure.

Middle East

Khafji Joint Operations, a venture between Aramco Gulf Operations and Kuwait Gulf Oil Co., has awarded Technip a near $400-million contract for further development of the Khafji field in the offshore Neutral Zone between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The scope includes installation of two integrated wellhead jackets, two power distribution platforms and a living quarters platform, and refurbishment of existing facilities. Fabrication, transportation, and installation have all been subcontracted to Chinese company COOEC.

Also off Saudi Arabia, Aramco has contracted McDermott International to install infield flow lines, flexible laterals, power and control cables, and intra-field pipelines linking the Abu Safah, Safaniya, and Berri fields. Work should be underway, using the vesselsDB27 and Thebaud Sea.

RAK Petroleum is taking a 100% operating interest in the Saleh gas-condensate field development off Ras Al Khaimah. The field was first developed in the early 1980s using five platforms, linked via a 45-km (28-mi) pipeline to processing facilities onshore. Production has since tailed off, but RAK plans to revive operations in 2011, initially by deepening an existing well to the Thamama gas reservoir.

East Africa

Afren has acquired Black Marlin Energy Holdings, a holder of licenses in prospective basins from Ethiopia to Madagascar. The assets include two exploration blocks (L17 and L18) in the Lamu coastal basin offshore southern Kenya, and interests in three shallow-water permits north and south of the Seychelles. Afren plans to drill multiple wells and continue technical studies throughout its new territories through to end-2012.

Australasia

Vetco Gray Australia has contracted McDermott International for subsea structures and spools for Chevron’s Gorgon Upstream project. McDermott will fabricate facilities with a total weight of 12,000 metric tons (13,228 tons) at its yard in Batam, Indonesia, including various drilling manifolds, pipeline end terminations, and subsea pig launchers. The project is designed to develop the deepwater Gorgon and Janz fields off northwest Australia.

Nexus Energy has completed installation of facilities to remove mercury from gas at the Longtom project in the Gippsland basin offshore Victoria. The facilities were designed and implemented under the supervision of Santos, operator of the onshore Orbost gas plant – Nexus developed the Longtom gas field via two horizontal subsea wells tied back to this facility, achieving first production in October 2009.