marți, 10 mai 2011

Sonangol approves Cobalt's offshore Angola plans

Sonangol has approved Cobalt International Energy’s drilling plans for the Cameia-1 and Bicuar-1 pre-salt exploratory wells on Block 21 offshore Angola.

Given the proximity of the well locations, Cobalt plans to drill the surface hole of Bicuar-1, move the rig to Cameia-1 to drill and evaluate the prospect, then return to Bicuar-1 to drill the well to total depth. The operator anticipates that exploratory drilling will commence in second quarter 2012. Cameia is located in a water depth of 5,577 feet (1,700 meters) and Bicuar lies in 5,085 feet (1,550 meters).

luni, 9 mai 2011

Treaty Energy selects Belize drilling locations

Treaty Energy Corp. on Tuesday issued substantial information on the Company's progress in Belize.

Andrew V. Reid, Treaty Energy's CEO, indicated, "The first of several items issued today is that Treaty Energy Corporation has engaged a law firm in Belize City, Belize, for the purpose of forming a Belizean corporation to be named Treaty Belize Energy, Ltd. All of our business activities in Belize will be handled through this wholly owned subsidiary. As of May 2nd Treaty was told by our Belizean law firm that all filings were done and we are waiting on the 'Certificate of Incorporation' which we expect from the registry promptly."

Reid also explained that Treaty has selected five 'AREAS' as the first of innumerable well sites and has identified the first eight drilling locations that are to be drilled on the land portion of the Princess/Treaty Concession.
• AREA #1: Elevation – 108'
• AREA #2: This very encouraging location is right off Monkey River Road, and shows promise for many wells. This location was staked with one well location approximately 20' back from the seal on the oil side. Due to lack of time on this formation further study will be done. The one well is expected to be 1200' deep to the top of the formation.The Company has been informed by the geoscience team identifying these drilling locations that we can expect multiple wells on this formation at about 600' intervals.
• AREA # 3: This third formation is located near the end of Monkey River Road. A well location has not been chosen on this location as of yet because it will require clearing certain areas to obtain access to specific drilling locations.j
• AREA # 4: This fourth formation was along Southern Highway toward Punta Gorda.The first well staked is close to Southern Highway inside a guarded area that will be easy to drill. The second well is located about 50' off a good dirt road.
• AREA #5: This fifth location is on Southern Highway in Medina Bank.

In conclusion, CEO Andrew Reid indicated, "We are now in the final process with regard to contracting a drilling company. We are currently evaluating a highly qualified company out of Guatemala City, but other companies are also being considered, some of which are based in the United States. It has been determined that an air drilling approach would be very successful in the areas that we will be exploring. Since air drilling can be faster and would likely create less contamination and/or damage to the oil bearing formations, all factors are being considered prior to issuing the contract for the first well."

Treaty is engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas. Treaty acquires and develops oil and gas leases which have "proven but undeveloped reserves" at the time of acquisition. These properties are not strategic to large exploration-oriented oil and gas companies. This strategy allows Treaty to develop and produce oil and natural gas with tremendously decreased risk, cost and time involved in traditional exploration.

sâmbătă, 7 mai 2011

NPD to conduct seismic acquisition near Jan Mayen

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) will carry out acquisition of 2D seismic data in the waters around Jan Mayen this summer. The acquisition activity will start around June 10 and will last up to three months.

Last fall, the Norwegian government resolved that an impact assessment would be made of the maritime zones off Jan Mayen, with a view to future petroleum activity. The NPD's acquisition of seismic data is part of this impact assessment. Seismic data acquisition around Jan Mayen is also planned for next summer.

The data acquisition will take place using the vessel R.V. Harrier Explorer operated by PGS, and with the aid of PGS' Geostreamer technology. This is a new technology for seismic acquisition, characterized in part by the fact that the streamer, which in this case is eight kilometres long, is towed somewhat deeper in the water than is the case in conventional seismic acquisition. This means that the streamer can withstand higher waves, thus making the acquisition activity less dependent on weather and consequently more efficient.

vineri, 6 mai 2011

Petrobras strikes oil in Campos basin's Albacora field

Petrobras has discovered a new oil accumulation in the Campos basin presalt through well 6-AB-119D-RJS. The well was drilled in the Albacora field.

Preliminary volume estimates indicate an economically recoverable volume potential of nearly 350 million barrels of good quality oil. Drilled in a water depth of 1,247 feet (380 meters) by the Ocean Concord, the well reached a total depth of 15,863 feet (4,835 meters). An oil column of 791 feet (241 meters) was found, of which 341 feet (104 meters) are from the carbonate reservoirs of the Macabu Formation, with a porosity of around 10%.

joi, 5 mai 2011

Eni, Sonatrach partner to develop shale gas in Algeria


Eni and Sonatrach have signed a cooperation agreement for the development of unconventional oil, with particular focus on shale gas reinforcing the close relationship between the two companies.

With extensive experience in exploration and production of unconventional oil, Eni and Sonatrach will jointly implement activities to assess the technical and commercial feasibility of exploration and operational initiatives in shale gas.

Based on previous assessments, Eni confirms the significant shale gas reserves in Algeria which Eni and Sonatrach wish to explore and develop. This will enable both companies to make important discoveries which will enhance the gas potential of the country.

Eni has been in Algeria since 1981. Eni's equity production is currently 75,000 barrels per day. In Algeria, Eni holds 24 licenses in production, 8 licenses under development and an ongoing exploration license.

miercuri, 4 mai 2011

Chesapeake halts fracking ops at several PA well sites after blowout


After a blowout at natural gas well in a Bradford County, PA last week, Chesapeake Energy will suspend all hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) operations at several of the company’s sites in Pennsylvania. The blowout occurred at the Atgas 2H well during a fracking operation, leading to spilling of thousands of gallons of drilling fluid and water.

According to the Associated Press, thousands of gallons of produced water flowed back out of the well, crossing farm fields and entering a stream. Chesapeake stopped the leak by using materials such as ground up tires and plastic at plug the well.

Chesapeake is working to permanently seal the well and investigate the cause of the blowout.

The company stated that it has suspended fracking operations on seven well sites in Pennsylvania.

UPDATE: Workers were able to replace the damaged wellhead on the well Monday night, April 25. According to Chesapeake, the malfunctioning wellhead was part of the cause of last week's accident.

marți, 3 mai 2011

COSL takes delivery of 12-streamer seismic vessel

China Oilfield Services Limited (COSL) has successfully delivered 12-Streamer Seismic Vessel COSL 720 in Shanghai Shipyard Co. Ltd. (Shanghai Shipyard), Chongming Island Base. The ceremony saw attendance of the representatives from COSL, Shanghai Shipyard and their parent companies.

COSL 720 is the first large-scale domestic deep-water seismic vessel invested and constructed by COSL. The vessel will be capable of towing 12 streamers each 8000m long to carry out seismic survey operation. The operational indicators have met the international standards with the capability to perform high-density seismic collection for 50-meter-distance streamer. The vessel can withstand the seismic pressure of 3000PSI (regular collection: 2000PSI), with the endurance of 75 days, designed speed of 16 knots and towing speed of 5 knots, which the speed improved by 30% from the Group's existing seismic vessels and will significantly reduce the mobilization and demobilization time and increase operation efficiency.

As the most advanced deep-water seismic survey vessel built in China so far, COSL 720 is designed to be a safe, highly efficient, environmental-friendly and energy-saving vessel with emphasis on its performance, collection capacity, the equipment stability, energy saving and emission reduction. COSL 720 is equipped with a new generation of seismic collection system, integrated navigation system and lateral control system. Meanwhile, the full set of remote operating system will increase operation efficiency and reduce labor intensity. The vessel is equipped with a complete diesel-electric propulsion system which is able to effectively reduce vessel fuel consumption, vibration and noise. The system also contributes to improve the quality of seismic collection and the comfort of working and living environment for the crew.

After delivery, COSL 720 will commence operation in South China Sea upon completing the collection test of geophysical equipment, the working volume of which is expected to reach 100% in 2011.

Mr. Li Yong, CEO and President of COSL, said, "Global crude oil price picked up from the bottom and hit USD100 per barrel. Oil companies are gradually increasing their demand for oil and gas exploration. This offers good opportunity for the recovery and development of oilfield services, particularly geophysical services, while bringing new requirements for high quality geophysical services in terms of performance of equipment, technical level and work efficiency.

Meanwhile, with China's progressive advancement of deep-water exploration, COSL will also further embark on its deep-water oilfield service. The successful delivery of COSL 720 enhances COSL's competitiveness and equipment for geophysical services, and also improves the company's capability of deep-water services. COSL will continually improve the relevant chains for this service, laying solid foundation for China's deep-water operation."

luni, 2 mai 2011

Ecopetrol announces new discovery in Huila

Ecopetrol informs that it has found the presence of hydrocarbons in the Nunda-1 well, located in the municipality of Tello in Huila province.

The well is part of the Cuisinde Exploration and Exploitation Agreement of 2006 between Ecopetrol and the National Hydrocarbons Agency, ANH in which the company holds a 100% stake.

Drilling at the well began on January 27, 2011, reaching a total depth of 7,371 feet three weeks later, the equivalent of 2.25 kilometers from the surface.

Preliminary testing on the Honda formation showed a flow volume of 318 barrels, with a 71% water cut, yielding an average of 92 barrels of oil per day. The quality of the crude is 30 degrees API.

Ecopetrol will begin appraising the find in the weeks ahead, with extensive tests planned in order to determine the production potential of the Honda formation and the volume of recoverable hydrocarbons.

The discovery opens up a new era for Ecopetrol by branching out to new types of exploration activities involving stratigraphic traps (those in which hydrocarbons accumulate due to variations in the deposit environment) in the Valle Superior del Magdalena and helps increase reserve inventories in this area of the country.