Australia
announces 2012 offshore acreage release and updates
The Minister announced that 27 areas in nine offshore basins
covering a total of approx. 200,000 sq kms would be available
for petroleum exploration in Commonwealth waters off the Northern
Territory, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria and
Tasmania.
Middle-East:
Qatar buys major stake in oil giant Shell
Qatar is continuing its overseas buying spree, snapping up a
stake in Royal Dutch Shell and reportedly also eyeing a chunk
of Italian oil major ENI. A Shell spokeswoman confirmed that
Qatar had bought a stake but declined to say how large. MEES
had also reported the SWF was negotiating a stake in ENI. The
Milan-based company declined to comment.
Shell
and Chevron awarded the exploration rights for two shale gas
fields in Ukraine
The total investment for the project is projected to be around
$170 million for the Oleske field and $200 million for Yuzivske,
totaling $370 million. Oleske field that spans over 2,316.6
square miles is estimated to hold about 3 trillion cubic meters
of conventional and unconventional, as well as condensed gas
deposits. The other field Yuzivske is likely to have a reserve
of 4 trillion cubic meters of gas.
Canada
- Statoil secures rig for drilling offshore Newfoundland
Statoil has reached an agreement to use Seadrill’s West
Aquarius deepwater drilling rig for Statoil’s 2012-2013
exploration activities offshore Newfoundland, Canada. “We
have ambitious exploration targets offshore Newfoundland, and
securing rig capacity is essential for reaching those targets,”
says Geir Richardsen, head of Exploration for Statoil in Canada.
Argentina's
Santa Cruz province to return fields to nationalized YPF
The governor of Argentina's Santa Cruz province signed a decree
that key oil fields stripped from energy company YPF should
be returned now that it is no longer controlled by Spain's Repsol,
local media reported on Sunday. The Argentine Congress approved
the nationalization of 51 percent of YPF shares earlier this
month, angering the country's biggest trade partners but drawing
broad popular support for the measure in South America's No.
2 economy.
Afren
announces successful Ebok North Fault Block exploration well
result
Afrenhas announced that the Ebok North Fault Block exploration
well, offshore south east Nigeria, has encountered 370 ft true
vertical thickness (TVT) of net oil pay in excellent quality
reservoir sands. The Ebok North Fault Block ('Ebok NFB') exploration
well was spudded on 12 April 2012 by Afren and Oriental Energy
Resources, and reached a total vertical (and measured) depth
of 4,320 ft, with the Transocean Adriatic lX jack-up drilling
rig.
Imperial
Petroleum reports on its oil sands joint venture prospects
Imperial Petroleum provide the following update on its oil sands
joint venture and business prospects: Under the terms of the
previously announced joint venture for the Company's oil sands
operations in Kentucky, Peak has begun funding the operating
subsidiary, MidAmerica Oil Sands, LLC.
Cairn
Energy reports completion of acquisition
Cairn has received all required approvals and completed the
acquisition of Agora Oil & Gas AS ('Agora'). Agora is now
part of the Cairn group of companies. Agora is a Norwegian company
with non-operated exploration, appraisal and development assets
in the UK and Norwegian North Sea. Agora's portfolio is made
up of interests in 11 licenses in the North Sea basin, with
an active drilling programme in 2012.
Norway-
Milestones set for offshore oil find
The licensees of Norway’s Johan Sverdrup discovery will
select a development concept in the fourth quarter of 2013,
and aim to start production in the last three months of 2018.
With a forecast producing life of more than 30 years, the production
time frame for this North Sea find extends to 2050.
UK:
Oil and gas contractors drive optimism in Q1 2012 business confidence
index
Oil & Gas UK’s Q1 2012 business confidence index published
Thursday (10 May) reveals that the confidence of the upstream
oil and gas industry across Britain has risen to 64 points on
a 100 point scale - the highest since the survey was launched
in Q1 2009.
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