New Energy in Depth website consolidates shale information

Posted on 26 June 2013

A new Energy in Depth (EID) website has been launched that brings together EID’s various state and regional programs.

A new Energy in Depth (EID) website has been launched that brings together EID’s various state and regional programs and leverages social and digital media tools to engage and educate various stakeholders. ?“Back when we first launched EID, most reporters thought ‘hydraulic fracturing’ was an injury you got while water skiing, and I don’t even want to tell you what they thought ‘fracking’ was,” said Jeff Eshelman, VP of public affairs and communications for IPAA and executive VP of EID. “EID today is viewed by journalists, policymakers, the public and our industry colleagues as a critical, credible and timely source of news, views and research on all things shale. It’s our hope that the launch of this new online platform strengthens that reputation moving forward.”

With the launch of EID’s new web portal, several state and regional efforts are being consolidated into one program, and readers can filter and access content according to specific needs, broken down by state or region. The new EID site hosts state-specific tabs for Ohio, California, Illinois, Michigan and Texas, as well as regional pages for the Marcellus (Pennsylvania, New York and West Virginia) and the Mountain States (Colorado, Nevada, Montana and Utah). Additional tabs are expected in the coming months.

A new web-video series has also been launched to address and correct common and pervasive myths impacting the debate over the development of oil and natural gas from shale. The first video explains the truth behind the myth of high radon content in the Marcellus Shale, a talking point that opponents of a pipeline project in New York frequently cite as a reason to stop development. Additional videos in a similar format will be released on the website every couple weeks.

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New representatives to enhance IADC presence in Europe

By Amy Rose, director of external relations

John Atkinson will serve as regional director – North Sea, based in Aberdeen.

John Boogaerdt will serve as regional director – Europe, based in The Netherlands.

To more effectively represent members in Europe and the North Sea, IADC recently appointed John Boogaerdt and John Atkinson as regional representatives. Mr Boogaerdt will serve as regional director – Europe, based in The Netherlands, and Mr Atkinson will serve as regional director – North Sea, based in Aberdeen; they join IADC’s Denmark-based representative Jens Hoffmark, regional vice president – European operations.

“At the heart of everything that IADC does is a commitment to enhancing operational integrity and championing better regulation. Our regional representatives are based in the same areas across the globe that our members are, allowing IADC to truly represent industry interests internationally,” said Stephen Colville, IADC president and CEO.  “IADC regional representatives, who have deep knowledge and understanding of the regulatory and legislative environment in their assigned area, are invaluable to achieving those goals.”

Besides its three Europe-based representatives, IADC also has a team of regional representatives in Australia, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

With more than 35 years of experience with Shell, OMV, Parker Drilling and Schlumberger Business Consulting, Mr Boogaerdt is a senior oil industry professional. His experience encompasses a wide range of E&P subjects, with specific expertise in management of major oil and gas projects. In 2005, he became senior vice president of production at OMV. In 2009, he was named managing director at Parker. From 2011, he served as wells committee manager at the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers.

He has worked and lived in the UK, Austria, Norway, Malaysia, Egypt, Oman, China and the Netherlands.

Mr Atkinson has more than 40 years of experience in the industry. He previously served as vice chairman and chairman of the IADC Australasia Chapter and as vice chairman of the IADC North Sea Chapter. He began his career with Ben Line Group before joining Ben Odeco and later Atlantic Drilling. He joined Diamond Offshore Drilling UK in 1992 as technical services and safety case manager. Over the next 18 years, Mr Atkinson held various positions within Diamond across the world, including Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and Scotland.

“John Boogaerdt and John Atkinson bring with them valuable experience with which to positively impact industry interests in Europe and the North Sea, and I am proud to welcome them to our team,” Mr Colville said.

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Maersk Drilling: Angola and Nigeria are focal points in strong West African market

By Astrid Wynne, contributing editor

The Maersk Deliverer deepwater semi is contracted to Chevron in Angola into 2014. Angola and Nigeria are two of Maersk’s biggest target areas, where the company sees robust growth continuing for the coming years.

Significant development campaigns, particularly in Angola and Nigeria, continue to drive aggressive growth in West Africa, and Maersk Drilling sees the region as a market that could overtake the two other Golden Triangle markets over the next few years. “If we look at the last six months, Brazil is on a downward trend, with rigs being released, and the US GOM hasn’t really picked up on activity yet, although it remains a very strong market. West Africa has had by far the most activity,” Michael Reimer Mortensen, director of the deepwater team, commercial department at Maersk Drilling, told Drilling Contractor. “We’re seeing more exploration work by both the big oil majors and smaller independents.”

“If we look in our crystal ball towards 2025 to 2030, Angola and Nigeria have the biggest acreage that is known to be developed by the oil companies. They are in the middle of a massive increase in rig activity and development activity,” Mr Mortensen continued. To illustrate his point, he noted that Total has an outstanding tender for two new floaters in Nigeria and two in Angola. ExxonMobil in Nigeria is also carrying out an evaluation on tenders for two semis for two-year contracts. Then there are the extensions on existing contracts. In Angola, Cobalt International has an outlook for longer-term contracts, and other oil companies are carrying out surveys on rig availability and indicative pricing and pre-qualifications on fields slated for development in the next year or two, Mr Mortensen added. “Our focus is linked to our customers’ focus, and our customers are targeting Angola and Nigeria. Other markets have great potential, though exploration activity is higher than development activity. We’re seeing Ghana with some huge discoveries and some big developments.”

As testament to Ghana’s up and coming status, Hess announced in February its seventh successive exploratory well on the Deepwater Tano/Cape Three Points Block with the Pecan North 1 well. Just a month earlier, Eni had reported the successful drilling of the first oil delineation well in the Sankofa East oil discovery. They estimated the discovery has approximately 450 million barrels of oil in place, with recoverable resources of up to 150 million barrels.

The other side of the continent, East Africa is also one to watch. Several discoveries have taken place in the region over the past year, such as Statoil’s third discovery in Block 2 offshore Tanzania of 4-6 trillion cu ft, announced in March. Mr Mortensen said East Africa is an area that is often brought up in client meetings and conferences; however, he sees no “hard focus” on the part of oil companies in the near term. This is more likely a result of companies prioritizing resources in a heated market rather than a lack of attractive opportunities, he explained.

Maersk Drilling currently has two floaters in Africa. The Maersk Deliverer semi is contracted to Chevron in Angola until Q3 2014 with a 12-month option. Another semi, the Maersk Discoverer, is contracted to BP in Egypt until Q3 2016. The company also has two uncontracted newbuild drillships that could find their way to Africa upon delivery – the Deepwater Advanced III and IV are due out of Samsung’s yard in Q2 and Q3 2014, respectively. No contracts are finalized at this point, but Mr Mortensen said he sees an extended presence in West Africa for the company’s deepwater arm.

“We have a definite strategy to reach 30 rigs (total) by 2018. Short term, in the next five years, I would like to see four or more of these rigs added to our West Africa operations,” he said. “We feel it’s an exciting place to work, and we think that our way of doing business is well suited to the area.”

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Rig briefs: Atwood orders new drillship, KCA Deutag wins new contracts

Atwood orders ultra-deepwater drillship for 2015 delivery

The newly ordered Atwood Archer will be identical in design to the Atwood Achiever (rendering pictured). DSME is scheduled to deliver the Atwood Achiever ultra-deepwater drillship by 31 December 2015.

An Atwood Oceanics subsidiary has entered into a turnkey construction contract with Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) to construct a fourth ultra-deepwater drillship to be named the Atwood Archer. Delivery is anticipated by 31 December 2015 at a total cost of $635 million. The rig will feature two blowout preventers and will be identical in design to the previously ordered Atwood Advantage, Atwood Achiever and Atwood Admiral. All four drillships are DP-3 with dual derricks and will be rated to operate in water depths up to 12,000 ft and drill wells to 40,000 ft.

Upon delivery, the Atwood Archer will become the company’s 17th mobile offshore drilling unit.

Further, the company has secured an option to construct a fifth ultra-deepwater drillship at a similar cost to the Atwood Archer and with an expected delivery in September 2016. This option must be exercised by 31 March 2014.

KCA Deutag secures work in Myanmar, Gabon

KCA Deutag has been awarded two offshore contracts for work in Southeast Asia and Gabon. The first is a two-year operating and maintenance drilling services contract for the Shwe Platform based in Myanmar with Daewoo International. The second contract, with Tullow Oil Gabon, is for the provision of KCA Deutag’s Ben Rinnes jackup. The contract scope is for two wells, and there is an option for an additional well. Work will commence in July, operating for 80 days.

“The West African market continues to be a major hub of activity for the oil and gas industry and one where we have an established presence. Establishing new relationships in countries such as Gabon demonstrates how vibrant this area continues to be,” Rune Lorentzen, president of offshore at KCA Deutag, said.

“This contract with Daewoo International Corporation is our second contract in Myanmar and strengthens our position in the region. With existing projects under way and a number of further opportunities identified, we are in a good position to continue to develop KCA Deutag in an emerging market which offers extensive oil and gas potential,” he continued.

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EIA report: North American growth helps boost global oil production to record levels

This animated map shows how world crude oil and lease condensate production, measured in millions of bbl/day, has changed since 1980 in key oil-producing regions. Growth in North American crude oil production and recovery in African and Asian markets contributed to a record global production of 75.6 million barrels bbl/day in 2012, according to an agency brief.  Source: US Energy Information AdministrationBy Katie Mazerov, contributing editor

The Middle East still ranked as the world’s No. 1 crude oil producer in 2012, but growth in North American crude oil production and recovery in African and Asian markets, specifically China, contributed to a record global production of 75.6 million bbl/day, according to a brief released on 17 June by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Eclipsing the Middle East, it was the strength of the North American, African and Asian markets that drove an overall 2% increase over 2011 levels in global crude oil production, including lease condensate, the brief stated.

In 2012, the Middle East produced 24.1 million bbl/day of crude oil, a basically flat number over 2011 production. Gains in several Middle Eastern nations were offset by declines in Syria and Qatar. Sanctions also contributed to a 17% decline in Iranian production.

This EIA chart shows how crude oil and condensate production has changed year on year since 2007.

The EIA report synthesized recent figures with historical data on regional production trends between 1980 and 2010, EIA analyst Stacy MacIntyre, who compiled the statistics, explained. The data came from the agency’s International Energy Statistics database, with additional trend information compiled from EIA country analysis briefs or other energy briefs published by the EIA, she said.

The former Soviet Union ranked second in global production, with 12.7 million bbl/day, followed by North America, Africa, Asia and Oceania, Central and South America and Europe. Russia, the world’s second-largest crude oil and lease condensate producer, has seen production gains since 2009 due to development of eastern Siberian oilfields, use of advanced technologies and improved recovery techniques in mature fields in western Siberia, and development of a new export infrastructure, the report stated.

In North America, average annual production rose to 12.2 million bbl/day, a reflection of increasing production in unconventional oil plays in the US and rising bitumen and synthetic crude oil production in the Canadian oil sands. North American production had dropped to 10.4 million bbl/day in 2008.

Trends in other global markets reported by the EIA include:

Africa: Recovery of Libyan production was the main driver behind a 6% increase in African production in 2012, to 9.1 million bbl/day. New production in some non-OPEC countries, such as Ghana, also has boosted oil production in the region since 2010. Ms MacIntyre also cited Niger, a landlocked nation in West Africa, as having gone from zero production in 2010 to 20,000 bbl/day in 2012.Asia and Oceania: A 2% decline in oil production in most of the region in 2011 has not recovered, with production remaining at 7.6 million bbl/day. Offsetting that, China, the region’s largest producer, saw production rise after the Peng Lai field in the Bohai Bay was brought back online. It is China’s largest offshore crude oilfield and had been shut down following a spill in 2011. “China’s production declined 0.5% 2011 and grew 1.7% in 2012,” Ms MacIntyre said. “China accounts for 57% of Asia’s production and 54% of Asia & Oceania combined.” Prior to shut-in, production rates at Penglai 19-3 had peaked at roughly 130,000 bbl/day, according to an EIA Country Analysis Brief for China, revised in April.Central and South America: Market contractions throughout the region, notably Brazil and Argentina, contributed to a 1% decline in 2012, following an increase of 3% in 2011. Production in 2012 was 6.6 million bbl/day.Europe: Continued declining production in the North Sea is the primary reason for a downward trend in Europe. Production declines averaged 9% in both 2011 and 2012, in part due to unplanned outages in the UK and a 12% tax rate increase implemented in 2011 by the British government.

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