Islamic State militants in Libya seized a group of foreigners at the al-Ghani oilfield last week, a spokesman for the Austrian foreign ministry said today. "Secure information" revealed they were alive when taken, he added.
The US embassy in Riyadh said today it was aware of a possible plot to attack employees working with oil giant Chevron in Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil supplier. The embassy has “information stating that, as of early March, individuals associated with a terrorist organisation are targeting employees of Chevron in Saudi Arabia,” according to an e-mailed security message for American citizens over the weekend, which did not give further details.
China’s commodity trade slowed in February as the lunar new year holiday crimped imports of oil, iron ore, copper and soybeans while exports of aluminum and steel fell. Oil and iron ore imports slowed to the weakest in three months, according to customs data released Sunday in Beijing.
Aberdeen firm North Star Shipping has had its strong safety record recognised by one of the world’s leading health and safety bodies, the British Safety Council (BSC), in three separate areas. The international safety award was won for a 14th consecutive year and for a second year running with distinction as a result of its record for preventing workplace injuries and work-related ill health over the past year.
Apprenticeships in the UK nuclear sector have grown by 300% since 2008, and doubled since 2013, according to figures released to mark the start of National Apprenticeship Week. Nearly 1,600 new recruits were enrolled in schemes across the sector in 2014.
When emerging technologies and key trends are discussed there is a vast array of suggestions made and debated. They range from wearable technology, 3D printing, bio-computers, through to the "internet of things" and many more.
A 150million-year-old rock took centre stage during an oil and gas-related visit by Germany's economics minister, Sigmar Gabriel, to Abu Dabi today. The rock is the first piece of a drill core from the Shuwaihat natural gas and condensate field.
Victoria Oil and Gas (VOG) says wholly-owned subsidiary Gaz du Cameroun (GDC) has issued completion certificates to ENEO Cameroon, Cameroon's power utility company, for all pipeline construction work and pressure reduction and metering facilities at two power stations in the port-city of Douala. The work has been completed ahead of the scheduled March 15 target date and GDC is ready to connect to the gas-fired electricity generations sets that are being installed by equipment partner Altaaqa Alternative Solutions Projects.
BP Egypt announced today another important gas discovery in the North Damietta offshore concession in the east Nile Delta. The Atoll-1 deepwater exploration well, currently being drilled using the semi-submersible rig Maersk Discoverer, has reached 21,000 feet depth and penetrated about 164ft of gas pay in high quality Oligocene sandstones.
Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff has asked citizens for patience as the country deals with a flagging economy and a widening corruption probe involving the state-run oil company and dozens of top politicians. In a nationally televised address, Ms Rousseff said her government will move to fix a serious fiscal problem after posting a primary budget deficit for the first time in more than a decade.
Updating the market on its Indian assets, Australia's Oilex said the 2015/16 work programme for proof of concept well Cambay-77H had been approved by both its joint-venture and the government of India. Oilex has commenced work on schedule critical tendering activities and expects to take advantage of the recent decrease in global oil and gas activity to achieve a reduction in drilling and other costs.
Norwegian oil giant Statil has awarded a contract to Sentinel Marine to provide a new multi-role Emergency Response and Rescue Vessel (ERRV) to support operations on the Mariner field on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS). Sentinel Marine is an Aberdeen-based company, owning and operating offshore support vessels in the oil and gas marine industry.
Oslo-listed, east Africa-focused oil and gas company Wentworth reports a "further significant shift" in its operational status, with independent reserves attributed to its Mnazi Bay gas fields for the first time. Production in Tanzania is now imminent as Wentworth has a gas sales agreement in place and the facilities required to produce these reserves are nearing completion.
Service companies have experienced a marked fall in new business as a result of uncertainly in the oil and gas industry, according to new research. The latest Bank of Scotland PMI (purchasing managers index) report found that levels of incoming business in the sector declined for the first time in two-and-a-half years in February, with manufacturing also experiencing a fall in new orders for a second successive month.
Roxi, the Central Asian oil and gas company with a focus on Kazakhstan, has unveiled plans for the next stage of its flagship BNG asset. The BNG Contract Area is located in the west of Kazakhstan, near Tengiz on the edge of the Mangistau Oblast. Roxi has a 58.4% stake.
The global crude-oil market will return to balance in the second half of this year from an oversupply of 2million barrels a day that has caused prices to plummet, Opec Secretary-General Abdalla El-Badri has said. Speaking at a conference in Manama, Bahrain, Mr El-Badri said demand in 2014 was weaker than expected “at just below 1million barrels a day” and will rise by 1.2million barrels a day this year.
An energy service firm shrugged off the oil and gas industry downturn yesterday, reporting record annual results. The company posted an 8% rise in underlying pre-tax profits to £139.5million, while revenue was up by 7% at £910.6million. Hunting, which announced last month it would cut an unspecified number of jobs and realign business units to help counter a drop in drilling activity, said falling oil prices did not affect its business last year.
Energy Secretary Ed Davey has given Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman seven days to explain why he should be allowed to retain ownership of newly acquired oil and gas fields in the North Sea, or face being forced to sell them. Upping the ante in a standoff that could deter other Russians from investing in Britain, Mr Davey wrote to Mr Fridman saying he was considering forcing him to sell North Sea assets just acquired from German utility RWE. RWE finalised the sale of oil and gas production unit RWE Dea to Mr Fridman's investment vehicle, LetterOne, earlier this week, ending months of uncertainty over whether the £3.7billion deal would go ahead.
Subsea 7 refused to say yesterday if more jobs will go across its global operations after it revealed 1,000 were shed in 2014. The energy service giant also outlined plans to reduce its fleet capability by 10 vessels over a two-year period as it continues to look for ways to slash costs in the wake of the big drop in oil prices. Hefty losses for the firm in 2014 – more than £150million at pre-tax level – were the latest blow for company balance sheets right across the sector as it adjusts to a new trading climate. Subsea 7 said its latest figures were hit by a £774.4million writedown due to an expected downturn in activity, and without it net profits came in at £525.4million.
Energy service firm Petrofac plans to axe 16.5 full-time equivalent offshore roles supporting the UK North Sea operations of CNR International (CNRI). A spokeswoman confirmed the fewer-than-expected number last night after 37 possible redundancies was mentioned in a letter to Petrofac employees. It also said workers supplied to CNRI through its Aberdeen-based recruitment business, Atlantic Resourcing, were being “downmanned”.
James Fisher and Sons, the marine service group with a string of north-east subsidiaries, is eyeing growth opportunities in Africa after its latest acquisition.
German utility RWE yesterday closed the sale of oil and gas production arm RWE Dea to Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman, ending months of uncertainty over whether the £3.7billion deal would go ahead. But it causes embarrassment for the UK Government, which tried to block part of the transaction at the 11th hour, citing possible sanctions against the new owner. It remains to be seen how Westminster will respond to RWE Dea’s UK North Sea assets – now owned by new company L1 Energy – falling into Russian hands.
Near-to-market technologies and world-class research capabilities will be highlighted to the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen this week. The Oil and Gas Innovation Centre (OGIC) and Innovation Centre for Sensor and Imaging Systems (CENSIS) are to jointly host an innovation pavilion during the 2015 Technology Showcase conference and exhibition on Wednesday. OGIC chief executive Ian Phillips said: “The innovation centre pavilion will highlight the expertise and capabilities of Scotland’s academic and SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) technology communities which can address the showcase theme of making technology reduce cost and improve efficiency.
One of Russia’s richest men is expected to become the owner of a string of UK North Sea assets today, despite a last-minute move by the UK Government to block part of the £3.6billion deal. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) said Energy Secretary Ed Davey was worried about the effect “possible future sanctions” could have on the continued and safe operation of the assets. Billionaire Mickhail Fridman and business partners in the LetterOne investment fund are buying RWE Dea, the international exploration and production arm of German utility RWE, including operated stakes in the Breagh, Cavendish, Clipper South, Topaz and Windermere gas fields.
The four horsemen of the apocalypse are not about to show up in Aberdeen but Europe’s energy capital is facing a serious downturn” in its fortunes, an oil and gas expert said last night. Alan Kennedy, UK oilfield services lead partner in the Aberdeen office of professional services firm KPMG, was speaking in advance of an energy industry breakfast “summit” in the Granite City. The event will be hosted by trade body Oil and Gas UK (OGUK) and KPMG at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre, and will focus on the impact of lower oil prices on the north-east economy.
