‘Barmy army’ of Tory MPs will lock onshore windfarm plans, warns Labour MP
A “barmy army” of “Nimby” Tory MPs will stand in the way of even the most appropriate applications for new onshore windfarms, a Labour MP has warned.
onshore
Sound Energy strikes deal for stake in Meridja permit
Sound Energy has signed a binding agreement with Oil & Gas Investment Fund (OGIF) to allow the company to acquire a 55% interest in the Meridja permit, onshore Morocco.
UKOG triples resource base with 219million gain
UK Oil & Gas tripled its resource base overnight after Xodus pegged its Arreton prospects to contain 219 million barrels.
Transerv Energy work at Warro-6 delayed by metal object
Transerv Energy said four days of work was lost at its Warro-6 well after a metal object was accidently dropped down the hole.
Union Jack Oil kickstarts onshore drilling campaign
Union Jack Oil has commenced the drilling operations for its onshore Keddington-5 development well.
BHP hit with a $4.9b impairment, reduces onshore rig count
BHP Billiton said it expects to be hit with an impairment charge of $4.9billion post-tax against the carrying value of its onshore US assets. The company said the charge will be recognised as an exceptional item in the financial results for the half year ended December 31, 2015.
Chevron, Petrochina start production from delayed Luojiazhai field
Oil major Chevron and PetroChina started production from an onshore gas field at the end of 2015 after years of delays. The Luojiazhai field has an annual production capacity of three billion cubic metres of gas.
Bowleven wraps up extended flow onshore Cameroon
Bowleven said it has now wrapped up an extended flow testing programme at Moambe and Zingana. The Africa focused oil and gas explorer said the results continue to support plans for around five to six mmscfd of gas for power generation under a development scheme with Actis and Eneo in Cameroon.
Government curbs on renewables subsidies branded ‘irrational’
The Government has been accused of “irrational” curbs to renewables subsidies after official projections revealed lower than expected energy bills by 2020. Ministers have said cuts to support for technology such as onshore wind and solar are necessary to prevent rising costs to consumers and to curb the projected overspend on the £7.6 billion budget by 2020 for a raft of green measures paid for on bills. But emails obtained by climate change analysis website Carbon Brief under Freedom of Information rules reveal Government projections which show that, while the overspend will add £12 to average household bills by 2020, overall bills would be £97 lower.
INEOS to look for fracking opportunities in Cheshire and East Midlands
A number of wells could be drilled in locations across north-west England by 2017, according to reports. The Northwich Guardian said the move could pave the way by INEOS for fracking operations.
GCube strikes deal with Xcel Energy for onshore windfarm
GCube has signed a deal with Xcel Energy for a 200MW wind energy project in North Dakota. The company, which acts as an underwriter for renewable energy initiatives, will be providing insurance for all construction risks. The development in Courtenay, North Dakota, forms part of plans to expand its wind portfolio by around 40% and is expected to add a further 1.9GW of wind throughout their service territory over the next few years.
Opinion: Land rights in onshore oil and gas exploration
Securing appropriate sites in the early exploration phase is crucial to the growth of the shale industry in the UK, and it is important for a number of reasons. Unlike the United States, where population density leaves large open swathes of bare agricultural land available, the UK is constrained by more designations, EU-backed incentive and protection schemes and a chequered history of mining and industrial activities. In addition – when having to consider the geology, PEDL licence blocks and the financial reality of coming to terms with landowners – basic land availability is becoming an increasingly important issue.
Oil producers curb megaproject ambitions to focus on US shale
Big US oil companies are starting to think small. A stubborn 16-month crude rout with no end in sight is driving the largest US oil producers away from costly, high- risk megaprojects long touted as the industry’s future and toward safer shale operations that generate the cash needed to satisfy anxious investors. Exxon Mobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips and Hess Corp. have all either delayed or abandoned projects that range from the deep seas of the Gulf of Mexico to Canada’s oil sands and the US Arctic. At the same time, Exxon and Chevron both announced plans to substantially increase US crude production, largely as a result of their shale operations.
Trinity to sell Trinidad and Tobago onshore assets to Touchstone for $20.8m
Trinity Exploration & Production has struck a deal to sell a number of its onshore assets in Trinidad and Tobago to Touchstone Exploration in a $20.8million deal. The UK-listed company said the move comes after a strategic review was undertaken earlier this year.
UKOOG hails appointment of science educator
A pressure group for the unconventional oil and gas industry in the UK has hailed the appointment of a leading science educator to spearhead efforts to reassure communities that fracking is safe. Ukoog, which also represents the interests of other uncoventional onshore oil and gas plays, has appointed Professor Averil Macdonald as its chair. Professor Macdonald is Emeritus Professor of Science Engagement at the University of Reading and a board member of WISE (Women in Science and Engineering), consultant director of Highbury College, and was chair of the Expert Group for Women in Science until 2015.
MX Oil joins Mexico’s onshore drive
MX Oil threw its bidding hat into Mexico’s onshore licensing round.
Greenpeace warns government after new fracking licences awarded
The Government has been warned it has fired the starting gun on a fight for the countryside after 1,000 more square miles of England were opened up for fracking. Licences for 27 areas in northern England and the Midlands, including near Nottingham, Sheffield, Lincoln and Preston, have been awarded to companies to explore for oil and gas as the Government pushes forward with a shale industry in the UK. A further 132 areas, including parts of the West Country and the south coast as well the North East and North West, are set to be awarded subject to further environmental assessment and conditions to protect wildlife and habitats.
Egdon Resources offered new blocks in licensing round
Egdon Resources has been offered a total of seven blocks or part blocks in the first tranche of the 14th onshore oil and gas licensing round. More than two dozen new areas in northern England and the Midlands could face fracking after new licences were awarded for oil and gas exploration. Egdon said the blocks up for grabs were in the East Midlands petroleum province and could expand the company’s acreage and opportunity base within one of its core areas of activity.
Emergency summit for onshore windfarms attended by hundreds of people
An emergency summit convened in the wake of Westminster’s decision to scrap a subsidy scheme for onshore wind farms was attended by more than 200 people, the Scottish Government said. Energy Minister Fergus Ewing organised the talks after the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) announced it would end payments under the Renewables Obligation a year early. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and others in the Scottish Government have already spoken out against the decision, which industry leaders Scottish Renewables fears could put up to £3 billion of investment in Scotland at risk.
Rules change for onshore wind farms
Local communities will have the final say in bids to build large scale onshore wind farms under plans set out in the Queen’s Speech. The Government is introducing an Energy Bill which will change the law to remove the need for the Energy Secretary to approve large wind farms of more than 50 megawatts (MW), schemes which would typically involve dozens of wind turbines.
VIDEO: World’s most advanced oil spill combating simulator centre goes live
This footage shows how onshore and offshore personnel will be able to train and exercise for oil spills. The North Cape Maritime Training Centre in Honningsvåg in Norway now contains the world’s only oil spill simulator where onshore and offshore personnel isolated or together, can train in the tools and stages of oil spill combating operations. It has been created by Aptomar together with Transas in close cooperation with the North Cape Maritime Training Centre in Honningsvag.