South Korea’s largest private gas provider SK E&S is facing legal action from a climate activist group alleging that it falsely advertised the green credentials of the Santos-led (ASX:STO) Barossa liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Australia.
Jadestone Energy, an oil and gas production company focused on the Asia Pacific region said yesterday that its chief financial officer (CFO) Dan Young, had decided to leave the UK-listed company.
The Covid-19 pandemic has marked the end of an era for Southeast Asia’s combined oil and gas production, pushing the region’s output in 2021 to below 5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) for the first time since 1998. Significantly, this threshold is not likely to be exceeded again in the future, despite new project start-ups in coming years, the latest analysis from Rystad Energy shows.
The Valaris JU-107 jack-up drilling rig is mobilising to drill the highly anticipated Buffalo-10 well offshore East Timor that if successful could unlock more than 30 million barrels of oil. Operator Carnarvon Energy said yesterday that drilling will start within a week and is expected to take 35 days to complete.
Malaysia’s Petronas has awarded six of the 13 offshore exploration blocks offered in the recently concluded Malaysia Bid Round (MBR) 2021.
The Indonesian government estimates that $187 billion needs to be invested in its upstream sector to meet its 2030 oil and gas production targets of 1 million barrels per day of oil and 12 billion cubic feet per day of gas. However, this target seems ambitious with major investors seeking to exit Indonesia's oil and gas sector, unless the government can attract local conglomerates.
The government of India is offering eight upstream blocks in its latest licensing round as it seeks to boost domestic production and reduce its reliance on imports.
Australian company Timor Resources has completed the first of three exploration wells onshore East Timor. The company said it hit oil and gas in its contract area, although it remains to be seen if the discovery is commercial.
After two years of mediocre activity levels brought on by budget cuts and pandemic-related restrictions there will be an uptick in 2022 as operators work their way through the backlog in Asia Pacific.
Spain’s Repsol (BME:REP) is again delaying the drilling of the much anticipated Rencong-1X deep-water wildcat exploration well in the Andaman III Block in the North Sumatra basin offshore Indonesia.
Harbour Energy (LON:HBR) is targeting final investment approval to develop its Tuna Block offshore Indonesia in 1H 2023 with first production planned in 2026 following successful appraisal drilling in the Natuna Sea.
UK-listed Harbour Energy (LON:HBR) said it is on track to probe the deep waters of Indonesia’s North Sumatra basin in its Andaman II production-sharing contract (PSC) with drilling set to start around March-April 2022. Significantly, the company has already identified potential commercialisation paths with first gas eyed by 2026, as well as options for carbon capture and storage (CCS).
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) will exit Indonesia after agreeing to sell its assets in the country to local independent Medco Energi (IDX:MEDC) for $1.355 billion. The move could be a blow to Indonesia’s image in the longer run as the nation tries to attract foreign investment, but analysts generally see the deal as positive.
UK-based Harbour Energy (LON:HBR) is driving forward with plans to commercialise discoveries at its Tuna Block offshore Indonesia following a successful appraisal drilling campaign after good flow rates were recorded.
PTT Exploration & Production (BKK:PTTEP) will expand its investment in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by acquiring a 25% stake in Area C onshore block from Italy’s Eni. The state-backed Thai upstream player said the investment fits with its strategic focus on prolific petroleum areas in the Middle East.
The government of Sri Lanka is seeking to attract “top international” investors and revive exploration in the country’s under-explored deep waters as it seeks to shift the island towards a gas-based economy. Significantly, it is looking for help appraising and developing two potentially large gas discoveries.
Thailand’s PTT Exploration & Production (PTTEP) (BKK:PTTEP) has struck a second gas discovery in Baram province in Block SK417 in shallow waters about 180 kms off the coast of the Malaysian state of Sarawak.
PetroChina, which is owned by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), has secured an extension of its contract for the Jabung Block in Indonesia for an additional 20 years through to 2043.
BP (LON: BP) today signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with upstream regulator SKK Migas for Indonesia’s first enhanced gas recovery (EGR) and carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) development. The EGR and CCUS scheme will be implemented at BP’s Tangguh liquefied natural gas (LNG) project.
Malaysia’s state-owned energy company Petronas is preparing to take a final investment decision (FID) on its third multi-billion dollar floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) unit after awarding front-end engineering and design (FEED) contracts. The new-build floater project, dubbed ZLNG, will help solve challenges commercialising gas offshore Sabah in Malaysia.
Next month Italy’s Eni (BIT:ENI) will attempt to fix technical glitches that have forced a partial shutdown of its Merakes deep-water field offshore Indonesia.
Fast-moving plans for a Santos-led carbon capture and storage (CCS) project at the Bayu Undan field offshore East Timor, that would see the nation import Australia’s waste, have been described as “carbon colonialism” by independent thinktank La'o Hamutuk.
With domestic supply in decline, Asia urgently needs to address its growing gas and energy needs. In the past few months, multiple energy crunches across the globe highlights that a flexible and reliable supply of energy is critical to keep markets and prices stable. In Asia, a growing gap between booming gas demand and falling supply is cause for significant concern.
Harbour Energy (LON:HBR) and its Russian partner Zarubezhneft have successfully completed their appraisal drilling campaign at the Tuna Block in the Natuna Sea offshore Indonesia with positive results at both wells.
Chevron (NYSE:CVX) has suspended production from Train 1 at its giant Gorgon liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant in Australia since 16 November following the detection of a minor gas leak.