OPEC may cut 2013 oil demand growth forecast .
Wednesday, 22 August 2012 00:00 Editor Business Services - Energy Report

THE Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) may have to reduce its forecast for growth in world oil demand in 2013 by 20 per cent, the exporter group said, citing a vague and turbulent outlook for the global economy.

According to the latest OPEC monthly report, the cartel left its forecast unchanged from its estimate last month. However, it expected demand to expand by 810,000 barrels per day (bpd) next year, although it noted that the odds suggest oil use could undershoot that figure.

“The downward risk potential has greater probability in the forecast than the upward risk one. Therefore, the gloomy picture could reduce the world oil demand growth forecast by 20 per cent next year,” it stated.

OPEC, source of more than a third of the world’s oil, expects world economic growth to slow to 3.2 per cent next year from 3.3 per cent in 2012, hindered by a slightly slower expansion in the United States and China, the world’s two largest oil consumers, and weakness in the euro zone.

OPEC’s demand outlook is, as usual, more cautious than that of the U.S. government, which on Tuesday raised its forecast for 2013 growth in oil consumption. The last of this month’s trio of major oil reports is expected to be released by the International Energy Agency.

For this year, OPEC left its forecast for the growth in world oil use virtually unchanged at 900,000 bpd and said the outlook had flattened out.

“Demand has overcome earlier expectations of a declining momentum and moved to a more stabilised trend, supported by the summer driving season, the summer heat and the continued shutdown of most of Japan’s nuclear capacity.”

OPEC trimmed the forecast of demand for its own oil this year and in 2013 by 80,000 bpd and 100,000 bpd, respectively, due to higher supply from producers outside the 12-member group.

The United States, Canada and South Sudan are among the non-OPEC producers expected to provide more oil than previously expected this year. South Sudan said this week it hoped to resume production in September after ending a dispute with Sudan.

OPEC now expects demand for its crude to average 29.9 million bpd in 2012 - significantly less than it is pumping at present even after a drop in output last month due to sanctions on Iran and a cutback by Saudi Arabia.

Citing secondary sources, OPEC said its production fell by 160,000 bpd to 31.19 million bpd in July, led by Iran, whose oil became subject to a European Union embargo from July 1 over its disputed nuclear program.

Output also declined in OPEC’s top producer, Saudi Arabia, which told OPEC it had trimmed supply by 300,000 bpd to 9.8 million bpd in July. Industry sources told Reuters last month Riyadh reduced supply because of lower demand from some customers.

Analysts at Barclays Capital pointed out that the drop in Saudi output, as reported by Saudi Arabia itself, was larger than estimated by other assessors.

“The Saudi output that was brought on to help compensate for the constriction of Iranian exports is being scaled back,” Barclays Capital oil analyst Miswin Mahesh said in a report.

U.S. and European sanctions have pushed Iran from its traditional position as OPEC’s second-largest producer to rank third behind Iraq, which has pushed output above 3 million bpd in July, ahead of Iran at 2.82 million bpd.

Exxon, Qatar plan to export LNG from US
21 Aug 2012 19:52 GMT

Houston, 21 August (Argus) — ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum are proposing to expand their Golden Pass LNG import terminal on the Texas coast to add natural gas-export capabilities.

The $10bn project will give the plant capacity to ship out 15.6mn t/yr of LNG, utilizing existing tanks, pipelines and other infrastructure at Golden Pass, the joint venture said. New facilities would treat and liquefy gas for export around the world by tankers, giving the companies the flexibility to ship or receive fuel cargoes based on market conditions.

Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil built the Golden Pass terminal in a 70:30 partnership to receive LNG from their giant liquefaction trains in Qatar. But the plant took five years to build, and by the time it was commissioned in 2010, the North American shale boom had created a gas glut on the continent.

The Golden Pass expansion project is among more than a dozen proposed LNG export developments in the US and Canada. Cheniere Energy is furthest along in the process, having already received government approvals to export LNG, even to nations that do not have free-trade agreements with the US. Like the Golden Pass partners, Cheniere plans to add export capabilities to an existing export terminal at Sabine Pass, on the Texas-Louisiana border.

ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum face a multiyear process to get regulatory approvals, as well as the long process of actually building liquefaction facilities. They at least have the cost advantage of expanding an existing terminal, rather than starting from scratch.

“It's a question of what's going to be most competitive,” ExxonMobil chief executive Rex Tillerson said after the company's annual shareholders' meeting in June. “We think there are going to be a few projects that are most competitive. Not all of them will be.”

Competitiveness will start with being one of the projects that get government approval and financing. US regulators will not likely approve all the liquefaction plants that have been proposed because they will consider energy security and price implications, and exporting too much fuel would drive up domestic gas prices.

Wood Mackenzie: 100 Tcf of Gas Found in Mozambique and Tanzania to Date

Wood Mackenzie estimates that 100 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas has been discovered in Mozambique and Tanzania to date, ranking the Rovuma Basin as one of the most prolific conventional gas plays in the world.

However, there are significant technical and commercial challenges to be overcome in order to bring the gas to market by the end of this decade. These include: addressing issues around infrastructure, government capacity, financing and reaching a positive outcome to unitisation negotiations in Mozambique.

Recent discoveries and high profile M&A activity in Mozambique and Tanzania are attracting attention and Martin Kelly, Wood Mackenzie’s Head of Sub-Sahara Upstream Research, says the interest is justified: “100 tcf of gas has been discovered to date in East Africa and we estimate yet-to-find reserves could be as much as 80 tcf in Mozambique and 15 tcf in Tanzania. There is clearly plenty of gas to supply the likely commercialisation route of LNG – theoretically enough to support up to 16 LNG trains.

“The Rovuma basin is the most prolific in the region, and one of the hottest conventional gas plays in the world, with 85 tcf discovered so far. Globally in 2011, it yielded the third most hydrocarbons, and we expect it to top the list in 2012 if the first half of the year is anything to go by,” Kelly continues.

In neighbouring Tanzania, the targets are the northern extension of the Rovuma Basin and the Mafia Basin. Kelly says: “Tanzania has enjoyed considerable exploration success as well, but hasn’t discovered the same scale of reserves. The average discovery size is much smaller at around 2 tcf, compared to Mozambique which is over 7 tcf. Discoveries in Tanzania are also more spread out, so developing them will be more expensive than those in Mozambique because additional infrastructure will be required.”

One of the most immediate challenges for Mozambique, is the unitisation discussions which Wood Mackenzie understands have already begun. Kelly explains; “Of the 85 tcf of gas discovered to date in Mozambique, around half of it is thought to be one enormous field which is in communication across the block. Under Mozambican law, a unitisation agreement between the operating parties will be required.”

Although there is a risk that unitisation discussions could delay Final Investment Decision (FID) – the crucial last step before commercial development – and therefore LNG production, there are other discoveries which are wholly contained in Area 1 and Area 4 and therefore gas could come from these first.

Giles Farrer, Senior LNG research analyst for Wood Mackenzie comments: “Many challenges will need to be overcome prior to LNG project sanction. The region’s remoteness and lack of development present serious technical obstacles. There is virtually no existing skilled workforce and both Mozambique and Tanzania will have to build and establish deepwater ports capable of servicing the needs of the petroleum sector. On the commercial side, there is the question of government capacity – whether there is sufficient impetus and capability within the governments and national oil companies to advance the huge legislative, bureaucratic, customs and financial challenges that such a development would bring.

“The major outstanding milestone for Mozambique is the conclusion of a commercial framework agreement, which is in the process of being negotiated. It will determine how the LNG facility or facilities will be structured for the purpose of taxation and whether the Joint Ventures (JVs) will co-operate in the construction of a single, mega LNG facility, or pursue individual developments. One crucial advantage that the Tanzanian projects enjoy is that they have already negotiated commercial terms, prior to the announcement of their projects.”

Farrer continues: “Lastly there is the question of finance, we estimate that a two train greenfield development in the region is going to cost at least US$25 billion, and for some of the players involved financing their share of this sort of development cost will certainly prove challenging and could delay development,” Farrer concludes.

The joint analysis by Wood Mackenzie’s upstream and LNG research teams stresses that these challenges are not insurmountable. “They have been encountered and overcome in several countries before. The risk is that delays could lengthen development schedules and add to costs,” Farrer says in closing

Italian Eni signs MoU to develop, commercialise offshore gas in Ghana for domestic market

Italian oil company, Eni together with Swiss-based Vitol, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Ghana to develop and commercialise the country’s discovered gas resources offshore.

In a statement today August 21, 2012, Eni said the pact was signed with Ghana’s Energy Minister and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) for the “development and commercialization of discovered gas resources in the Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) Block located in the Tano Basin of Ghana.”

The MoU focuses particularly on the domestic gas market in which Eni said together with its joint venture partners “wish to play a prominent role”.

It also set out the key principles for future development of the discoveries and commercialization of the gas within the contract area.

The OCTP Block is operated by Eni with a 47.222% stake, in partnership with Vitol (37.778%) and the GNPC (15%).

Eni entered Ghana’s oil industry in 2009 and currently operates the two exploration blocks of OCTP (Offshore Cape Three Points) and Offshore Keta.

Australia's LNG Skilled Labor Concerns Mount

The world is entering a "golden age of gas" with Australia set to be a key contributor to it.

With seven world-scale liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in the country currently under construction, it is clear that Australia is positioning itself to emerge as the leading player in the global LNG market.

Four of the projects draw from gas fields in Western Australia (Gorgon, Prelude, Wheatstone and Ichthys) and three are in Queensland (Queensland Curtis LNG, Gladstone LNG and Australia Pacific LNG).

Gorgon will have three trains producing 15 million tones per annum (mtpa) of LNG from 2014. Wheatstone will produce an initial 8.9-mtpa from 2016. Prelude will produce 3.5-mtpa, starting from 2016 to 2017. Ichthys will pipe Western Australian (WA) gas to a liquefaction plant near Darwin. It will produce 8.4-mtpa of LNG and is expected to start production in late 2016.

In Queensland, the three projects – Queensland Curtis LNG, Gladstone LNG and Australia Pacific LNG - have each made final investment decision for two production trains. Queensland Curtis will produce around 8.4-mtpa of LNG with the first train to start production in 2014. Gladstone LNG will produce up to 7.8-mtpa and Australia Pacific LNG will produce up to 9-mtpa; both of these projects are targeting first production in 2015.

A report released by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) last week stated that "Australia could even displace Qatar as the number one LNG exporter by 2020." The report went on to add that "at the very least, Australia will surpass major LNG exporters such as Indonesia and Malaysia in terms of total liquefaction capacity."

Despite Australia's ascendancy in the global LNG sector, concerns about the country's ability to attract and retain a skilled and capable workforce have started surfacing.
Why Retaining Talent for Australia's New LNG Projects is Difficult

While Australia is blessed with prolific LNG resources, most of these resources are located in extremely remote locations, which means that exploration and development works are both difficult and costly.

Peter Kiernan, lead analyst of the energy team in the EIU, sheds light on the labor challenges that Australia's new LNG projects have to grapple with in an exclusive interview with Rigzone.

"Many of the LNG fields, especially those sited in Western Australia (WA), are in locations so remote that accommodation and facilities for the employees have to actually be built from scratch," Kiernan said. "For the offshore LNG projects, the companies have to spend massive amounts on transporting their employees onto and off the production platforms," Kiernan remarked.

Kiernan added that the remoteness of the LNG projects also means that operators find it fairly tough to retain employees for a long stretch of time. The labor shortage is so acute that the EIU actually pointed it out as a risk factor that could delay the timing of several of these projects.
Process Operators, Engineers and Geoscientists Needed!

For the Australian LNG sector – among the deck of skilled labor required – process operators, engineers and geoscientists appear to be high priorities in hiring.

In the case of process operators, the supply lag at present appears to be at a critical level. According to a presentation made by Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency board member Keith Spence in July this year, 2012 to 2015 is the crucial period for most of the LNG projects as they are moving into the construction phase. Spence's data shows that Australia needs to beef up the number of its current 180 to 200 process operators to 1,500 by 2017 to 2018.
Australia's LNG Skilled Labor Concerns Mount

Oil Basins Director and CEO Neil Doyle, a veteran in the oil and gas industry, agrees with Spence's opinion.

"It is very difficult to find skilled process operators in WA. And for a mammoth new LNG project, having highly experienced process operators is a must," Doyle told Rigzone in a telephone interview on Thursday.

Doyle went on to explain that skilled process operators are essential as having the right people makes all the difference between having an incident-free startup, or one fraught with accidents. Doyle's opinion is based on having worked with oil majors for several decades.

Shoring up on the number of process operators required will be no easy task for the LNG projects, considering the fact that the sector will experience labor competition of the same talent pool from the mining and infrastructure sectors, which are also expanding at equally robust rates.

Meanwhile, the country is also facing a shortfall of 1,700 engineers and 3,000 geoscientists over the next five years, data from a paper presented by GE Australia and New Zealand's industry Skills Development Leader Stuart Manifold in July this year showed. Manifold's paper stated that Australia is not producing enough engineering graduates to keep pace with the expansion of its energy resources projects.

Manifold had said that Australia needs to step up on its efforts to retain its engineering graduates as the engineering skills shortage issue is a global one. This means that emerging regions, such as Africa and Southeast Asia, which are embarking on new LNG and mining projects, will also be eying Australia's engineering talent.

But it is not just the emerging economies that are showing an interest in poaching Australia's engineers. Graying economies, such as Japan, are also on the lookout for young engineering talent, KPMG's Migration Services Partner Jason Berry said in a presented paper in July earlier this year.

Doyle was quick to caution on the tendency of industry watchers to over-emphasize the labor shortage situation plaguing Australia's LNG industry.

"When we speak of a labor shortage, we are referring to manpower with specialized skills. Generalist skills – such as commercial managers – are relatively easy to come by," Doyle said.
The Short-term Solution

In the near-term, Australia is bridging the demand and supply gap by flying in employees for the LNG projects. A paper presented by GE Oil & Gas' Regional Executive David Leslie in July showed that employer-sponsored (457) visas have leapt up from 2,260 in 2003-2004 to 7,940 in 2010-2011. The figure is set to rise, Leslie stated.

Increasing wages and poaching a small pool of experienced operations personnel is also a commonplace short-term approach that LNG project operators are taking, Spence's presented paper showed.

While neither of the solutions are sustainable in the long-term, Kiernan is of the view that these approaches are inevitable.

"The LNG projects pretty much reached the final investment decision stage in the 2009 to 2012 period, which is pretty much all at the same time. When that much capacity is scheduled to be built at the same time, labor bottlenecks are bound to happen," Kiernan said.
Government and Industry-led Initiatives

Australia has started to implement long-term solutions to address the labor crunch in its LNG industry.

The Western Australia (WA) Government has provided seed funding to Engineers Australia and the Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers Australia (APESMA) to engage in early identification of potential work packages for the local industry.

In addition, the WA Government has also started a "dollar-for-dollar" financial assistance to local companies to help improve their ability to compete for work on major resource projects. The initiative – known as the Industry Facilitation and Support Program (IFSP) – has seen 73 companies receiving a total of $1.5 million from the WA Government in 2011. The second round of IFSP applications will start in the fourth quarter of this year.

Moving beyond government-led initiatives, Spence suggested that LNG industry players should band together to address the manpower shortage issue. He noted that companies involved in similar new projects could get together and set up a kind of informal collaboration in terms of addressing their hiring needs.

Leslie's presented paper showed that GE Oil & Gas is actively looking to increase it skilled workforce through three avenues – graduates, women and Australia's indigenous population. To attract graduates to pursue a career in the LNG industry, GE Oil & Gas has started working with schools to provide summer internships. The company also provides scholarships for indigenous Australians. In terms of talent retention, GE Oil & Gas has launched a program entitled "GE ANZ Woman's Network Group" to allow women in the organization to meet and form their own support groups. Leslie also mentioned that GE Oil & Gas has started to look into flexible work practices to cater to its women employees.
The Long-Term Sustainable Solution

Australia's industry players have started partnering with technology institutes to offer practical training programs geared specifically towards training a skilled LNG workforce.

The Australian Centre for Energy and Process Training (ACEPT) is an example of a pioneer institution that was formed in 2007 through a public-private partnership with the industry to train and groom a sustainable talent pool for the LNG sector. The institution trains its students using a hands-on approach, where its students work on an actual operational process plant and methanol distillation tower on the campus. Its students are schooled in the Honeywell, Yokogawa and Emerson process operations.

"ACEPT's process plant and distillation tower designed out of transparent material, so that our students can see the actual internal process of how a plant works," ACEPT's School of Applied Engineering Greg Guppy described in a paper he presented in July this year.

Oil and gas companies that are in partnership with ACEPT include Woodside, Shell, Conoco Phillips, Honeywell, BP, Aker Solutions, Vermillion Oil & Gas, Clough AMEC and Apache.

Citing Woodside as a case study, Guppy said that the company sends around 180 of its employees each year to ACEPT to receive technical, apprentice and skills recognition training. Woodside also sends its employees on ACEPT's graduate training programs.
Australia's Road Ahead

The looming manpower concerns would likely hobble Australia's ambitions to become the global LNG powerhouse by the end of this decade. Education and training, targeted immigration and work policies, employee retention initiatives must converge in a multi-prong approach to the problem.

In a speech made by WA's Minister for Finance, Commence, Small Business Simon O'Brien in July, he summed up the country's sentiment as such, "Australia is on course to overtake Qatar as the world's top exporter by the decade and to supply one-fifth of global LNG supply by 2020. It is an amazing growth story and an exciting time for us."

Nigeria: Divestment of International Oil Companies' Assets Unsettles Stakeholders

[Daily Trust]Lagos -The frequency of divestment of equity by some multinational oil companies in the midst of the nation's drive to reform its petroleum industry has raised concerns on whether Nigeria will get the sector on track...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/nigeria-divestment-of-international-oil-companies-assets-unsettles-stakeholders

Nigeria: Oil Search in the North

[Leadership]Recently, the Northern Economic Summit (NES) announced that the Federal Government provided the sum of $100 million in 2013 for the hydrocarbon exploration in the Lake Chad basin and other Northern hydrocarbon basins. The group, which comprised of all the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja also said that government had provided a total sum of $140 million for 2011 and 2012 respectively, for the same purpose...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/nigeria-oil-search-in-the-north

Iran, Tajikistan to Cooperate on Energy Projects

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi has revealed plans for Iran and Tajikistan to cooperate on energy projects. Speaking at a press briefing following a meeting with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon in Dushanbe, Salehi said cooperation in the transportation of oil, gas and their derivatives, construction of rail and road, transit of commodities between Iran, [...]...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/iran-tajikistan-to-cooperate-on-energy-projects

Icahn pushes for changes at Transocean

APRIL 4, 2013—Billionaire investor Carl C. Icahn would like to see some drastic changes at the world’s largest offshore drilling company, beginning with voting in three new board members. Icahn has sent an open letter to Transocean shareholders urging them to replace three of the company’s board members and increase the company’s per share dividend. Transocean’s annual general meeting will be held on May 17.

In his open letter, Icahn says: “We believe that shareholders have the opportunity to increase shareholder value by supporting our proposals and replacing Michael Talbert, Thomas...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/icahn-pushes-for-changes-at-transocean

Fiscal regime in PIB still globally competitive

Author(s): Olusola BelloThe Federal Government has insisted that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) is for the benefit of all the stakeholders and that it was not meant to hurt any business concern in the country especially the oil and gas companies.

It said that fiscal regime in the bill still remained competitive globally and that it is nothing to fear. According to Abiye Membere, group executive director. Exploration and Production of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the key objectives of the bill have been clearly spelt out for the benefit of..

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/fiscal-regime-in-pib-still-globally-competitive

AccuGas introduces new model to handle domestic gas infrastructure

Author(s): Olusola BelloA new innovation has been introduced into the art of financing gas projects in the country as AccuGas Limited, a subsidiary of Seven Energy has decided to come to the rescue of oil and gas companies that have difficulties in adding value to their gas resource or monitising it.

The new business model is structured in such a way that that it takes off the responsibility of financing gas infrastructure projects from oil companies after entering a joint venture arrangement with the operators of the oil fields.

Most companies have complained of...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/accugas-introduces-new-model-to-handle-domestic-gas-infrastructure

Iraq Launches World’s Largest Flare Reduction Project

South Gas Company, Shell and Mitsubishi today officially announced the commencement of operations of Basrah Gas Company, which will be the largest gas project in Iraq’s history and the world’s largest flares reduction project. Basrah Gas Company is a 25-year incorporated Joint Venture between Iraq’s South Gas Company holding 51% of its shares, Shell 44% [...]...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/iraq-launches-worlds-largest-flare-reduction-project

Saudis Dare U.S. to Play Oil Ball

The latest assessment of the estimated oil reserves in the Bakken and Three Forks formation in the northern U.S. plains states was about twice as much as previously thought. Those plays, spread out over North Dakota, South Dakota and Montana, could bring the United States one step closer to energy independence, the U.S. interior secretary said. New technologies used to get at the oil locked in those shale formations has redefined the geopolitics associated with the global energy sector. The latest government figures suggest the United States ...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/saudis-dare-us-to-play-oil-ball

Afren to extend drilling horizons offshore Nigeria

Afren is preparing to drill two exploration wells offshore Nigeria.

Offshore lease OML 115, which the company operates in partnership with Oriental Energy Resources, surrounds the Ebok and Okwok development area, and is close to the Zafiro complex in Equatorial Guinea.

The GSF Monitor is likely to spud the first well this spring on the Ufon structure, which is structurally and geologically analogous to the nearby Ebok and Okwok fields but with deeper exploration potential.

Offshore lease OPL 310, operated by Optimum Petroleum Development, is next to the Aje field, which has been...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/afren-to-extend-drilling-horizons-offshore-nigeria

Why investment in gas should be improved, by stakeholders

Nigeria needs to improve the incentives for investment in gas development as a vehicle to enhance its industrial capacity which contribute significantly to the economy. This is the rallying point of stakeholders who spoke to BusinessDay.

They stressed the need for government to remove the bottlenecks threatening the implementation of the Nigerian Gas Master Plan (NGMP) which was unveiled five years ago. This they believe would increase investments in gas and impact positively on the nation’s economy.

Nigeria is said to have the largest gas reserves in Africa, ranking seventh in the

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/why-investment-in-gas-should-be-improved-by-stakeholders

Nigeria: Declining Crude Production May Affect Nigeria's Economy - Finance Experts

[Premium Times]Nigeria's oil sector, which provides about 83.5 per cent of its export earnings, has continued to be trailed with negative incidents, with oil production steadily declining due to widespread oil theft and pipeline vandalisation

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/nigeria-declining-crude-production-may-affect-nigerias-economy-finance-experts

Nigeria In Trouble; Oil Exports Fall To Lowest In 4 Years

Nigeria’s oil exports will fall to a four-year low as a result of crude oil theft and resultant facility closures by some oil companies, news...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/nigeria-in-trouble-oil-exports-fall-to-lowest-in-4-years

Iran to Triple Gas Condensate Exports in Two Years

Iran, which sits on the world's second largest natural gas reserves after Russia, has been trying to enhance its gas production by increasing foreign and domestic investments, especially in its South Pars gas field," Press TV reports.The managing director of Iranian Oil Terminals Company (IOTC) says the country will roughly triple its gas condensate exports in less than two years. Language

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/iran-to-triple-gas-condensate-exports-in-two-years

Freeport-McMoRan’s $6.9 billion Plains bid called inadequate

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.’s $6.9 billion bid for Plains Exploration & Production Co. is inadequate and should be blocked, an investor’s lawyer told a Delaware judge, who delayed a decision....

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/freeportmcmorans-69-billion-plains-bid-called-inadequate

Gas supply to be delayed

Resumption of gas supply by the West Africa Pipeline Company (WAPCo) may be delayed as the company might need additional time to completely dry the pipeline to prevent corrosion, authorities of the gas company have told the B&FT. The General Manager, Corporate Affairs, of the West Africa Gas Pipeline Company (WAPCo), Mrs. Harriet Wereko-Brobby, in [...]...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/gas-supply-to-be-delayed

Canadian judge dismisses lawsuit against Chevron

An attempt by Ecuadorian villagers to have a Canadian court enforce a $19 billion judgment against multinational oil giant Chevron Corp has been dismissed by the Ontario Superior Court....

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/canadian-judge-dismisses-lawsuit-against-chevron

Heritage Oil keen to grow in Nigeria, hunts for more acquisitions

Heritage Oil is looking for further acquisitions in Nigeria, months after switching its main focus to the problematic Niger Delta region where performance of its field has to date been erratic.

In 2012, Jersey-based FTSE 250 company Heritage bought into a Nigerian oilfield which had been owned by oil major Shell in a $850 million deal, and sold out of a gas field it found in Kurdistan.



"We are looking to expand the footprint in Nigeria without question. We are in discussions with parties," Chief financial officer Paul Atherton said in an..

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/heritage-oil-keen-to-grow-in-nigeria-hunts-for-more-acquisitions

Shell reopens Nigeria pipeline amid spill claims

Anglo-Dutch supermajor Shell has reopened the Trans Niger Pipeline after repairing a valve point and removing oil theft connections, it said on Friday, but a local environmental NGO said 6000 barrels of oil had been spilt, according to reports.

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/shell-reopens-nigeria-pipeline-amid-spill-claims

Lagos offshore oil holds prospects, may encourage more companies

Last week the media was agog with the information about the discovery of oil offshore Lagos by Lekoil Limited. Of course this is not the first discovery of hydrocarbon resources in the region as there has been exploratory activities in the area. Aje field, a major discovery in that axis has been in the process of development over the years. Even though it is gas which requires a huge fund to develop.

The good thing about the latest development according industry sources is that it may encourage other companies to move...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/lagos-offshore-oil-holds-prospects-may-encourage-more-companies

Petronas Seeks LNG Export License for BC Project

Petronas has submitted an export application with Canada's National Energy Board to export LNG from northern British Columbia.

Pacific NorthWest LNG, which is 90% owned by the Malaysian firm has applied for a license to export up to 19.68 million tonnes of LNG per year for 25 years beginning in......

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/petronas-seeks-lng-export-license-for-bc-project

Shell closes on Repsol LNG asset acquisition

Royal Dutch Shell PLC reported the completion of its acquisition of Repsol SA’s LNG portfolio outside North America for a reduced net cash purchase price of $3.8 billion. The deal was first reported in February 2013....

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/shell-closes-on-repsol-lng-asset-acquisition

Euronav Announces Fleet Acquisition Valued Nearly $1 Billion

Euronav officially announced today a signed contract to acquire fifteen Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) from Maersk Tankers Singapore Pte Ltd for a total acquisition price of USD $980 million,...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/euronav-announces-fleet-acquisition-valued-nearly-1-billion

South Africa: Are Merchant Shippers Hiring Pirates To Kill Pirates?

The proliferation of the Private Maritime Security Company (PMSC) in the merchant maritime domain has been succeeded by substantial measures toward greater regulation, providing detailed provisions regulating the operation of PMSCs and deployment of Privately Contracted Armed Security Personnel (PCASP) on board merchant ships transiting the Gulf of Aden....

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/south-africa-are-merchant-shippers-hiring-pirates-to-kill-pirates

World oil demand to grow in 2014: OPEC

With global economic growth in 2014 projected to increase to 3.5 per cent from 2.9 per cent in 2013, world oil demand is forecast to rise by one million barrels per day, according...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/world-oil-demand-to-grow-in-2014-opec

Anxiety as Kenya awaits commercial viability of oil find

A clearer picture of the oil resources in Kenya is expected in the course of this year. This is as oil exploration and production intensify activities as well as...

http://africanoilandgasnews.com/news/anxiety-as-kenya-awaits-commercial-viability-of-oil-find