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Latest news - International

First oil still on track as BP spuds production well from brand-new platform off Azerbaijan

First oil still on track as BP spuds production well from brand-new platform off Azerbaijan   UK-headquartered energy giant BP has started drilling the first well from its operated Azeri Central East (ACE) platform in the Caspian Sea off the coast of Azerbaijan, inching closer to the first oil from the ACE project. As part of the Azeri-Chirag-Deepwater Gunashli (ACG) field development project, BP began drilling the first production well from the new Azeri Central East (ACE) platfor...

Vår Energi preparing to spud wildcat with Transocean rig

Vår Energi preparing to spud wildcat with Transocean rig   Norwegian oil and gas player Vår Energi has secured a drilling permit from the country’s authorities to spud a wildcat well in the Barents Sea, using one of Transocean’s semi-submersible rigs. The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) recently granted Vår Energi a drilling permit for the well 7219/6-1 in production license 1025, which was awarded on March 1, 2019, and is valid until March 1, 20...

Venezuela Orders “Immediate” Start of Oil Exploration in Disputed Territory

Venezuela Orders “Immediate” Start of Oil Exploration in Disputed Territory   Venezuela’s president, Nicolas Maduro, has ordered the immediate start of exploration and exploitation of oil reserves in the Essequibo region—the disputed territory that Venezuelans voted to annex. Per an AP report, President Maduro said that he is “to grant operating licenses for the exploration and exploitation of oil, gas and mines in the entire area of our Essequibo.&rdq...

MODEC hires Seatrium for Brazil-bound FPSO topside modules fabrication project

MODEC hires Seatrium for Brazil-bound FPSO topside modules fabrication project   BrasFELS Shipyard (BrasFELS), a member of the Singapore-headquartered Seatrium Limited, former Sembcorp Marine Ltd before the merger with Keppel Offshore & Marine Limited, has won a contract with Offshore Frontier Solutions Pte. Ltd, a MODEC Group company, to undertake parts of the topside modules fabrication of a floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) for an Equinor-operated pre-salt gas...

OKEA Postpones Close of Statfjord Acquisition from Equinor

OKEA Postpones Close of Statfjord Acquisition from Equinor   The closing of OKEA’s acquisition of a 28 percent working interest in PL037, or the Statfjord Area, from Equinor Energy AS for an initial fixed consideration of $220 million has been postponed from the original target completion date of November 30. OKEA said in a statement that it received updated information that indicated a reduction in 2P and 2C volumes of 10 to 15 percent over the lifetime of the acquired asse...

INEOS completes the acquisition of the Eastman Texas City Site.

INEOS completes the acquisition of the Eastman Texas City Site   The deal includes the 600kt Acetic Acid plant and all associated third party activities on the site. David Brooks, CEO INEOS Acetyls, comments "We are delighted to have completed this strategic acquisition which will help drive our global ambitions for our Acetyls business. INEOS has today announced it has completed the acquisition of the Eastman Texas City site, the 600kt Acetic Acid plant and all associa...

Brazil invited to join OPEC+ from next year

Brazil invited to join OPEC+ from next year   Major oil producer Brazil has been invited to join OPEC+ from next year, officials announced on Thursday, following a meeting of the cartel to further slash production. Brazil is among the world's top 10 producers and has been the largest oil producer in Latin America since 2016. Its crude production hit a record 3.7 million barrels per day in September, a near 17 percent increase from the same month last year and a 6.1 percent h...

Councils pilot net zero projects with £19 million government backing

Councils pilot net zero projects with £19 million government backing   Local Net Zero Accelerator pilots will help combined authorities deliver green initiatives such as retrofitting homes and installing solar panels  Greater Manchester and West Midlands selected to receive over £12 million to leverage private sector investment and meet climate goals York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority supported with further £2 million to secure a strategic busine...

Occidental in Talks to Buy Permian Driller

Occidental in Talks to Buy Permian Driller   Occidental Petroleum is in talks for the potential acquisition of fellow oil and gas producer CrownRock, active in the Permian, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the development. According to these sources, the deal could value CrownRock at over $10 billion, including debt, the report noted. CrownRock operates in the northern part of the Midland Basin and has some 80,000 net acres to its name....

ADX Energy set to drill Welchau gas prospect in Austria

ADX Energy set to drill Welchau gas prospect in Austria   ADX Energy has secured environmental clearance to drill the Welchau Gas Prospect in the ADX-AT-II licence in upper Austria. The approval from the Department of Nature Protection of the State Government of Upper Austria (Department) marks the last regulatory permit needed for the company to commence drilling work on the Welchau-1 prospect. The company plans to begin drill-site construction as soon as possible with Welchau-...

Orlen to Buy Kufpec’s Assets in Norway for $445 Million

Orlen to Buy Kufpec’s Assets in Norway for $445 Million   Poland’s largest refiner Orlen SA agreed to purchase oil and gas producing assets on the Norwegian continental shelf from Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Co. for $445 million as part of an effort to diversify shipments of natural gas to the eastern European country. The acquisition of stakes in five fields will help Orlen boost its gas production in Norway by a third to more than 4 billion cubic meters, the...

Rystad Energy’s Senior Vice President shares an oil market update

Rystad Energy’s Senior Vice President shares an oil market update   Rystad Energy’s Senior Vice President, Jorge Leon, has shared an oil market update: Oil markets are eagerly awaiting the OPEC+ meeting on 26 November, in anticipation of what kingpin Saudi Arabia decides over its voluntary crude oil production cuts of 1 million bpd. Regardless of the path they take, Saudi Arabia’s decision on the production cuts will ultimately shape the short-term future of gl...

ExxonMobil starts production from third Guyana FPSO

ExxonMobil starts production from third Guyana FPSO   US supermajor ExxonMobil has started production at Payara, Guyana’s third offshore oil development on the Stabroek Block. The Prosperity FPSO vessel is expected to reach initial production of approximately 220,000 barrels per day over the first half of next year as new wells come online. The startup brings the total production capacity in Guyana to approximately 620,000 barrels per day. This additional capacity will be...

Cop28 host UAE breaking its own ban on routine gas flaring, data shows

Cop28 host UAE breaking its own ban on routine gas flaring, data shows   State-run oil and gas fields in the United Arab Emirates have been flaring gas virtually daily despite having committed 20 years ago to a policy of zero routine flaring, the Guardian can reveal. The UAE is hosting the UN Cop28 summit, which starts on 30 November, and Sultan Al Jaber, the CEO of the state oil company Adnoc, will preside over the international negotiations to urgently tackle the climate crisis....

Odfjell Drilling semi-sub gets more time with Equinor

Odfjell Drilling semi-sub gets more time with Equinor   Norwegian energy major Equinor has exercised options for seven wells for Odfjell Drilling’s semi-submersible Deepsea Aberdeen for work on the Breidablikk field. The exercised options are planned to start in the mid-first quarter of 2025 in direct continuation of the current firm period and extend the firm backlog on the Deepsea Aberdeen to the end of the fourth quarter of 2025. The options have a value of approximate...

ANYmal Closes the Remote Inspection Loop with Aker BP and Cognite

ANYmal Closes the Remote Inspection Loop with Aker BP and Cognite   Aker BP, Cognite, and ANYbotics partner in pioneering offshore remote inspections with ANYmal X on the Valhall platform in the North Sea. ANYmal X, the only Ex-certified legged robot, was tested for integrated robotic inspections in offshore Ex-rated zones, showcasing the benefits of Cognite’s real-time digital twins and comprehensive AI-powered data platform. This is a significant step in Aker BP's aim to i...

Chinese Company Replaces Exxon At Major Iraqi Oil Field

Chinese Company Replaces Exxon At Major Iraqi Oil Field   PetroChina has replaced Exxon as the operator of the West Qurna 1 field in southern Iraq, holding the largest stake in the field. "We studied the settlement agreement and the oil ministry with the Basra Oil Company believe that the best option is for PetroChina to become the lead contractor of West Qurna 1," a deputy manager at Iraq’s Basra Oil Co. said, as quoted by Reuters. Exxon made public its plans to...

India’s ONGC Ready To Start Oil Production At $5-Billion Deepwater Project

India’s ONGC Ready To Start Oil Production At $5-Billion Deepwater Project   India's state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) could finally see first oil production from a $5-billion deepwater project in November, three years after the initial timeline. ONGC is ready to start pumping oil from a block in the Krishna Godavari basin in the Bay of Bengal this month, ONGC Director of Production, Pankaj Kumar, told Indian outlet PTI on Monday. "We plan to start...

UK firm lands multi-million North Sea deal with Neptune

UK firm lands multi-million North Sea deal with Neptune   UK-headquartered and AIM-listed oil and gas engineering services business Plexus Holdings has won a rental contract for exact adjustable wellhead equipment and centric mudline suspension equipment with Neptune Energy for a plug and abandonment (P&A) project in the UK sector of the North Sea. According to Plexus, this deal, worth more than £175,000, is for adjustable surface wellhead equipment and mudline tooling t...

Australia’s Red Sky cleared to start up Killanoola oil

Australia’s Red Sky cleared to start up Killanoola oil   Australian oil and gas explorer Red Sky Energy has received approval from the South Australian state government to start production at its DW-1 well, part of the Killanoola oil project in the onshore Otway basin. Red Sky signed an agreement with Australian refiner and fuel marketer Viva Energy in August for all crude produced from the oil field, subject to specifications. Killanoola was discovered in 1998 at a depth of...
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