Daily Archives: October 4, 2012
Shell Starts Exploratory Drilling in Beaufort Sea, Alaska
Shell has kicked off exploratory drilling at its prospect in the Beaufort Sea, offshore Alaska, the company yesterday announced on its website.
On October 3, 2012, at approximately 2:45PM AKDT, the Kulluk began drilling at Shell’s Sivulliq prospect. Shell has noted that the occasion is historic in that it’s the first time two rigs have been drilling simultaneously offshore Alaska in over two decades. The Noble Discoverer has been drilling at Shell’s Burger prospect in the Chukchi Sea since September.
“In the weeks ahead we look forward to operating safely and responsibly, putting Americans to work and adding to Shell’s long, successful history of drilling offshore Alaska,” said Pete Slaiby, VP Alaska.
Bought by Shell in 2005, the Kulluk was specifically designed and constructed for extended season drilling operations in Arctic waters.
Shell Starts Exploratory Drilling in Beaufort Sea, Alaska| Offshore Energy Today.
- Shell starts exploratory drilling in Beaufort Sea (fuelfix.com)
- Shell begins second drilling operation in Alaska’s Arctic seas (fuelfix.com)
- Shell prepares for Beaufort Sea drilling (fuelfix.com)
Exxon, Conoco, BP and TransCanada Make Progress on Alaska LNG Project
Executives for ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, BP, and TransCanada submitted a letter to the Parnell administration describing their companies’ progress in advancing an Alaska liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project.
“I’m encouraged that the companies have made significant progress in advancing a project and an associated schedule for commercializing North Slope gas,” Governor Parnell said. “Clearly, they have fully shifted their efforts to an Alaska LNG project.”
The companies’ letter addresses a critical benchmark that Governor Parnell laid out in his January State of the State address, calling on the companies to harden the numbers on an LNG project and identify a project timeline by the end of the third quarter.
The letter also addresses an additional third-quarter benchmark that Governor Parnell laid out in his address, calling on the companies to complete their discussions with the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation (AGDC) on the potential to consolidate their work. In the letter, the companies said they have established a cooperative framework with AGDC to share information.
“I am also encouraged to see the significant work between AGDC, which is advancing an in-state gas project, and the Alaska Pipeline Project (APP), which is advancing an LNG export project. Deeper cooperation between these two state-backed efforts is strongly in the state’s interest,” Governor Parnell said.
Prior to the announcement, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips and BP had met two earlier benchmarks laid out in Governor Parnell’s State of the State address. On March 29, the state and the companies resolved the Point Thomson litigation. The following day, the companies announced their alignment “on a structured, stewardable and transparent approach with the aim to commercialize North Slope natural gas within the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act (AGIA) framework.”
Letter from the producers and TransCanada provide details on the team they have assembled and the team’s activities in developing a project, building on their previous work to commercialize North Slope gas. The documents include a project timeline and a cost range covering various stages in the project development schedule and work plan. The documents also provide new details regarding the components of an Alaska LNG project, including a liquefaction facility, gas production and storage, a large-diameter pipeline, and a gas treatment plant.
Over the past six months, more than 200 employees from the four companies have been working on managerial, technical, and commercial aspects during this phase of the project schedule, according to the letter.
Given the massive size of the North Slope conventional gas resource (35 trillion cubic feet of reserves and more than 200 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, technically recoverable resources) and the scope of the project as described by the companies, an Alaska LNG project will be one of the largest in the world.
While the companies have been developing their LNG project design, the Parnell administration has undertaken significant outreach to Pacific Rim markets to highlight the comparative advantages of Alaska LNG exports, and to other key stakeholders, including U.S. government officials in charge of export licensing.
The most recent of these efforts was Governor Parnell’s trade mission in September to South Korea and Japan, where he discussed Alaska LNG exports with leading government and industry officials.
Exxon, Conoco, BP and TransCanada Make Progress on Alaska LNG Project LNG World News.
- Alaska gas line project could cost $65B or more (jsonline.com)
- Parnell in Asia, touting Alaska natural gas (juneauempire.com)
- Alaska Sees Asia Driving Annual $20 Billion Via Pipeline – Bloomberg (bloomberg.com)
- Alaska cozies to Asia for natural gas (upi.com)
Corpus Christi, TX: Tamar Platform En Route to Israel
Tamar production platform has left the Keiwit Shipyards in Corpus Christi, Texas, USA, and is now on the way to its location offshore Israel, according to Globes, the Israeli financial newspaper.
It took 18 months for the 280 m platform to be completed, and the project has been described as “the largest infrastructure project in Israeli history.”
Noble Energy, operator of the Tamar field, did not immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment.
The Tamar platform will be located in approximately 800 feet of water and will be able to process 1.2 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day. The Tamar field is estimated to contain 8.4 trillion cubic feet of gas and will be produced through several subsea wells connected to the platform by 150 km long flow lines. The single-lift topsides facility has four deck levels and weighs nearly 10,000 tons.
Globes further reports that the platform is expected to reach its destination during the fourth quarter this year. First production is scheduled for March 2013.
Noble Energy operates Tamar with a 36 percent working interest. Other owners are Isramco Negev 2 with 28.75 percent, Delek Drilling with 15.625 percent, Avner Oil Exploration with 15.625 percent, and Dor Gas Exploration with the remaining four percent.
Continents of the World
Mb50's "Liquid Mud" Rant 