McDermott signs agreement for spool base services in Gulf of Mexico

HOUSTON – McDermott International, Inc. says it has signed a 10-year frame agreement with Helix Subsea Construction, Inc. for spool base services in the Gulf of Mexico.

“This agreement allows McDermott, when contracting with Helix, to offer full-service, shore-based pipeline stalking and spooling services from Helix’s premier 120-acre Gulf of Mexico spool base at Ingleside, Texas, to pursue deepwater and ultra-deepwater installation projects,” explained Stephen M. Johnson, chairman of the board, president and CEO, McDermott.

“By combining Helix’s established spool base services with McDermott’s state-of-the-art welding technology to support our newest subsea construction vessels and expanding subsea engineering resources, we can further offer full-service engineering, procurement, construction and installation for deepwater and ultra-deepwater subsea projects for Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic customers.”

Through the cooperation agreement, McDermott would fabricate the required mile-long stalks at Ingleside, and employ its own in-house automatic welding equipment, technology and technicians. The company says that these facilities and personnel will enable it to meet the stringent welding criteria required for deepwater subsea pipelines. The spool base is also designed for fabrication of pipeline end terminations, pipeline end manifolds, subsea manifolds and jumpers.

McDermott’s subsea construction vessels North Ocean 102 (“NO102”) and new-build lay vessel North Ocean 105 (“LV105”), due to be completed later this summer, both have reel-lay capabilities. LV105 is designed to lay both flexible and rigid pipe up to 16-in. diameter, with tension and hang-off clamp capacities of 440 tons and 550 tons, respectively. NO102 offers flexible and umbilical installation and is equipped with a 330-ton low squeeze pressure single tensioner and high capacity carousel.

McDermott says it will employ strict welding procedures, advanced welding technology and technical experts to meet or exceed client welding criteria for deepwater subsea pipelines, from the Ingleside-based spool facility. Photo courtesy of Helix Subsea Construction, Inc.

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USA: Cal Dive Wins USD 25 Million Offshore Decommissioning Contract

Cal Dive International, Inc. announced today that it has been awarded a Field Abandonment and Decommissioning Contract from an operator in the Gulf of Mexico which includes the abandonment of sixteen wells, seven pipelines, and the removal of eight structures.

The contract is expected to generate total revenue of approximately $25 million and will utilize two of the Company’s key assets. Work on this project will commence in the first quarter of 2012 and is expected to be completed by the end of June 2012.

Quinn Hébert, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cal Dive, stated, “We are pleased to announce the award of our first decommissioning program in the Gulf of Mexico for 2012. We expect 2012 to be an active year for salvage work in the Gulf of Mexico as regulators encourage producers to remove idle iron. This project highlights Cal Dive’s ability to provide full service solutions to our clients.”

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USA: Anadarko Contracts ENSCO 8506 Semi

Ensco plc has entered into a contract for ENSCO 8506 semisubmersible drilling rig with Anadarko Petroleum Corporation. The initial contract term is for two and one-half years in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico at a day rate of $530,000, plus cost adjustments. The contract adds more than $480 million to revenue backlog.

Delivery of ENSCO 8506 from Keppel FELS Limited shipyard in Singapore is scheduled for third quarter 2012 followed by contract commencement in fourth quarter 2012 once mobilization, sea trials and acceptance testing have been completed.

Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Rabun was pleased with the contract, “We are very pleased that Anadarko has chosen to contract a third ENSCO 8500 Series® rig for its drilling programs. Anadarko was an early advocate of the ENSCO 8500 Series® design and contracted ENSCO 8500 back in 2005.”

ENSCO 8500 commenced operations in 2009, and soon thereafter, drilled Anadarko’s major Lucius Discovery in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. In October 2011, Anadarko contracted ENSCO 8505 as part of a rig sharing agreement with Apache and Noble Energy. ENSCO 8505 is scheduled to commence operations in the second quarter of this year.

Last of seven

ENSCO 8506 is the final of seven rigs in the ENSCO 8500 Series®. For the first three quarters of 2011, these rigs that have operated in Asia, North America and South America achieved 97% utilization. Ensco is ranked #1 in overall customer satisfaction and #1 in deepwater drilling by EnergyPoint, an independent survey firm.

The proprietary design of the ENSCO 8500 includes a 35,000’ nominal rated drilling depth, 2 million pounds of hoisting capacity, 8,000 tons of variable deck load and an open layout well suited for subsea completion activities. Improved visibility from the open deck configuration also enhances safety.

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USA: Deep Down Inc. Receives Subsea Equipment Orders

Deep Down, Inc. , an oilfield services company specializing in complex deepwater and ultra-deepwater oil production distribution system support services, today announced it has been awarded multiple contracts for subsea hardware and deployment equipment orders worth in excess of $2.6 million.

Two orders were placed by a major controls OEM and the third order placed by an international installation contractor.

Deep Down, Inc. will be manufacturing Umbilical Termination Assemblies (UTA), Flying Leads, Umbilical Termination Heads (UTH), Rapid Deployment Cartridges, Moray® and Flying Lead Deployment Frames; the majority of the work is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter 2012, with the remainder completed in the beginning of the second quarter 2012. The products and equipment will be used on three international projects in the Far East and Mediterranean and one project in the Gulf of Mexico.

The patent-pending Moray® Termination System contains a light-weight and compact termination head and very flexible steel tube bundle allowing for easy make up of the heads by the ROV on the ocean floor.

Ron Smith, Chief Executive Officer stated, “These awards continue to build upon Deep Down’s expansion into the international oil and gas market. Deep Down continues to gain recognition outside of the Gulf of Mexico as a solution provider. By working with our customers, we are able to provide them with innovative cost effective solutions for their offshore projects.”

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USA: Drilling at Eugene Island Starts Next Week, Says Leni

Leni Gas & Oil plc today announces the imminent arrival of the Ocean Columbia jack-up rig at the Eugene Island Field in the US Gulf of Mexico.

As previously announced in December 2011 the Company has approved additional drilling at the Eugene Island-184 leases operated by Marlin Energy LLC (“Marlin”) where LGO holds a 7.25% working interest.

Marlin has informed LGO that the rig is now being released by the previous operator and it is expected to be mobilized to the Eugene Island platform shortly. The rig move is weather dependent; however, the operator anticipates commencing drilling operations next week.

The first planned operation is the A-2ST01 well, a sidetrack of the existing A-2 well, which targets reserves in the Tex X2 sandstones. A total of 16 days have been budgeted for the drilling and evaluation. Further drilling and recompletions work at EI-184 is expected to follow the A-2ST01 well.

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USA: Discovery to Expand Pipeline System in Deepwater Gulf of Mexico

Williams Partners L.P. and DCP Midstream Partners, LP announced a planned expansion of the Discovery natural gas gathering pipeline system in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

Discovery intends to construct the Keathley Canyon Connector, a 20-inch diameter, 215-mile subsea natural gas gathering pipeline for production from the Keathley Canyon, Walker Ridge and Green Canyon areas in the central deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

Discovery has signed long-term agreements with the Lucius and Hadrian South owners for natural gas gathering and processing services for production from those fields.

The Keathley Canyon Connector will originate in the southeast portion of the Keathley Canyon area and terminate into Discovery’s 30-inch diameter mainline near South Timbalier Block 283. The pipeline will be capable of gathering more than 400 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) of natural gas.

“With the newly signed anchor customers, the Keathley Canyon Connector will provide us with significant growth opportunities for fee-based deepwater gathering volumes on the Discovery system,” said Rory Miller, president of Williams Partners’ midstream business.

“There is also opportunity for future growth, as it will run in close proximity to several known discoveries and numerous planned-to-be-drilled prospects. It will provide the industry with highly reliable and cost-effective deepwater gathering services and deliver those volumes to our onshore Larose gas processing plant and Paradis fractionator,” Miller said.

“This expansion project, supported by long-term agreements with experienced deepwater producers, facilitates the Discovery system’s ability to attract additional gathering and processing volumes in the future,” said Mark Borer, president and chief executive officer of DCP Midstream Partners, LP.

Construction on the project is expected to begin in 2013, with a mid-2014 expected in-service date. Total capital expenditures for the Keathley Canyon Connector are estimated to be approximately $600 million. Williams Partners’ portion of capital expenditures on this project was included in its 2012 forecast issued on Nov. 1, 2011.

In addition to the offshore gathering system, the Discovery system includes the Larose natural gas processing plant and Paradis fractionation facility. Williams Partners owns 60 percent of the Discovery system and operates it. DCP Midstream Partners, LP owns the other 40 percent of the Discovery system.

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Hercules sees more rigs in GOM

Hercules Offshore expects to end the year with more rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, as the top shallow-water driller in the region looks to cash in on higher day rates, a report said.

News wires  26 January 2012 05:42 GMT

Day rates could rise further as oil majors ramp up spending in the Gulf of Mexico after the government eased up restrictions on drilling permits that were imposed following the Macondo oil spill, chief executive John Rynd told Reuters in an interview.

“As we exit 2012, we may be running 19 or 20 rigs versus the current 18 (in the Gulf of Mexico),” said Rynd, who joined Hercules in 2005 after working with peers like Rowan Co and the drilling unit of Noble Corp.

A total of about 40 shallow-water rigs are active in the region and all of them are contracted, he added.

Houston-based Hercules has been commanding day rates of about $55,000 on average. The cost of renting a rig by the day has risen about $20,000 in the last one year.

“The rates are stable… we have a positive outlook for 2012,” Rynd said.

Activity in Gulf of Mexico is picking up after the 2010 oil spill brought drilling there to a standstill and higher oil prices are boosting exploration work in the region.

Oilfield services leader Schlumberger expects rig count in the Gulf of Mexico to top the level seen prior to the BP disaster, later in the year.

Rynd said Hercules is still in talks with Petroleos Mexicanos regarding its jack-up rigs. The Mexican state oil company did not renew contracts for two Hercules rigs following an accident in 2008.

The company, which is valued at about $618 million, caters to Chevron and Apache in the US Gulf and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) in India.

Hercules shares were trading up 2% at $4.57 on Wednesday afternoon on the Nasdaq.

The stock has gained nearly two-thirds of its value in the October-December quarter, outperforming the broader S&P Oil & Gas Drilling Sub-Industry Index, which has grown 21% during the period.

Published: 26 January 2012 05:42 GMT  | Last updated: 26 January 2012 05:45 GMT

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Gulf of Mexico Records Largest Demand for Specialised Offshore Vessels

Infield Systems have made a report on the offshore construction activity demand in order to recognize key regions and gauge supply developments stressing the possibility for activity increase due to the arrival of transcontinental pipelines and the deepwater tie-in of various satellite wells matched to an increased level of subsea installations. Demand is expected to reach its peak during 2015.

North America, particularly the Gulf of Mexico (GoM), has been recording the largest demand level mainly because of the availability of assets.

A considerable growth is expected in Asia and West Africa to 2016, supported by West African projects perceived as one of the key constituents of the emergent deepwater market and the region is seen as a key to a continued utilization of strategic assets. The Asian market features numerous countries including Malaysia, India, China and Indonesia, each reflecting differing dynamics, providing a slightly different opportunity for vessel operators who are keen to secure high utilization.

The global recession has affected all offshore developments and oil companies forcing them to restructure their capital cost commitments together with their offshore expansion plans.

Considerable confidence in Global financial markets has been regained. The declining oil price trend seen in Q2 2011 stabilized during Q3 2011. Greatly depending on whether the major economies return to recession, the global oil demand is anticipated to grow, although at a slower rate than expected.

Infield Systems strongly believe that the level of activity for specialist vessels will increase as E&P ventures expect to rise as a result of exploited reserves.

Vessel operators dealing with harsh and remote environments are most likely to be at the forefront of the expected growth. However, Infield Systems expects the global fleet to become more technologically advanced.

Infield Systems’ Global Perspective Specialist Vessels Market Report To 2016 is dedicated to the construction and construction support vessels that are employed in the development of offshore oil and gas fields. The third edition of this ground breaking report provides an in depth analysis of global and regional trends and the supply and demand dynamics for the period 2007 through to 2016.

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