Subsea 7 bags $50million contract with Petrobras
Subsea 7 has secured a $50million contract with Petrobras to provide remotely operated vehicle and underwater positioning services offshore Brazil through its I-Tech division.
‘Tax on third-party access should be cut’
Earlier this year, Endeavour International became the first operator to ask the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to rule on a UK North Sea pipeline access price disagreement. The target was Canadian group Nexen.
Westhill turbine facility a strategic step for Greenray
IN MAY this year, Greenray Turbines (Lincoln) Ltd opened a new industrial turbine maintenance facility at Westhill, on the outskirts of Aberdeen.
Aberdeen company nurses bold service-vessel ambition
TROUBLED Aberdeen company SeaEnergy has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with Norway's Ulstein Group to co-develop new service vessels for the offshore wind industry.
Turbine manufacturer takes strategic stake
German turbine manufacturer Siemens is to become a 49% stakeholder in the Danish offshore wind-turbine installation specialist, A2SEA, and is ploughing £93million (115million euro) into the deal via a new shares purchase.
Seadrill v Gazprom – the dangers of using contract forms in a different jurisdiction
A recent decision of the Court of Appeal provides a relatively rare and interesting insight into the approach of the English courts to the interpretation of oil&gas contracts, and also the dangers of taking a contract drafted for one jurisdiction and applying it in another without careful thought.
Seeding a global standard through consensus
IT HAS been a difficult and sensitive few months for the global oil&gas industry. While never an activity universally beloved by all parts of society, recent events have seen the sector come under increasing scrutiny, with inevitable questions raised over how we balance the global demand for energy with our ability to safely tap into increasingly remote hydrocarbon reserves.
Yemen in headlines for wrong reasons
Despite its history, cultural significance and geo-strategic importance, it would appear that Yemen has only been in the news for bad reasons this year.
Contribution major boost to college
A WINDFALL of C$1million (£625,000) is set to confirm Fife's Carnegie College as one of Scotland's leaders in developing the vocational skills needed to support the rapidly accelerating renewable-energy sector.
Graduate profile: Dave Maxwell
Dave Maxwell was among the group of promising high fliers rewarded late last year by Oil & Gas UK. He was then a technician, but today, he is operations production supervisor on the Forties Delta platform operated by Apache North Sea.
Keeping your cool in family cash-guzzler
Car air-conditioning systems do not run for free". In fact, in hot parts of the world, they can account for up to 30% of fuel consumption.
Tapping Mother Nature’s systems to power the future
EUROPEAN Union-financed researchers at Vienna University of Technology (TU Vienna) are using biological principles as the inspiration to develop a new bionic fuel cell.
Apache II out to capture business
One of the most famous ships in the annals of North Sea and international pipeline construction was the Apache.
Acergy-Subsea 7 betrothal makes sense
With the overwhelming press coverage still being afforded to BP, it's easy to lose sight of developments away from the Gulf of Mexico. But news that Acergy is to buy Subsea 7 is significant, both locally and internationally.
New fraccing technique shows great promise, says Schlumberger
Market leader Schlumberger has released details of a new flow-channel hydraulic fracturing technique that is capable of significantly enhancing output from reservoirs to which it is applied.
Working and living abroad
If you are considering working abroad for a year or more and taking your family with you, then you will be well aware that it's a major life decision. As the North Sea oil&gas supply chain increasingly internationalises, postings abroad are likely to become more prevalent than in years past.
The sun is shining and the bits are turning
JUST recently, the UK Government announced that a wide range of companies had applied for 356 blocks in the UKCS 26th Round, the largest number of block applications since the 1st Round in 1964.
Shell and PGS out to develop game-changer
SHELL and PGS have decided to team up to develop an ultra-high channel count fibre-optic seismic sensing system. Higher channel counts with high-quality sensors recover more seismic energy and help cancel noise. The resultant improved resolution and imaging should translate into better exploration decisions.
Arctic-class standby vessel for Goliat
DANISH shipping company Esvagt has ordered a standby/rescue vessel of the Ulstein SX123 design specifically equipped for the Eni-operated Goliat field located north of the Arctic Circle, off the coast of Finnmark.
Shoaling fish have the answer?
THE quest to derive energy from wind more efficiently may soon be getting some help from California Institute of Technology (Caltech) fluid-dynamics expert John Dabiri - and a shoal of fish.
BG Norge Mandarin wildcat a dead duck
BG'S Mandarin wildcat well in the southern part of the Norwegian sector of the North Sea has failed, the bit encountering water in the target formation.
CNOOC orders full-scale inspections
THE Deepwater Horizon debacle is starting to have a major impact around the world, one that even the Chinese are paying close attention to. Indeed, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has just started what is described as an intensive inspection programme on all its offshore projects.
IEA talks of five years of oversupply
OIL and natural gas markets are set to remain oversupplied until 2015, according to the International Energy Agency in its latest annual medium-term outlook.
Petrobras awards PGS contract for Jubarte
PETROBRAS has contracted PGS to instal a permanent seismic monitoring system in the Jubarte field in the North Campos Basin.
Investment – and inflation – on rise
A robust rebound in global exploration and production (E&P) activity is under way, with spending set to rise 8%, to $353billion, this year, according to analyst IHS Herold.