Tullow Oil plc's Mantra well, offshore Norway, is to be plugged and abandoned after being classified as water wet. Mantra, drilled with the 31/3-4 wildcat exploration well,was the first exploration well in the Tullow-operated 551 production license…
BP Norway has extended its contract for the jack-up Maersk Reacher by two years, from September 2014 to September 2016. BP Norway holds options to further extend the contract by up to additional four years, taking it out to September 2020…
Offshore projects, including oil spill response and observation systems, have been included in the European Union's€80 billion research and innovation program Horizon 2020. Horizon 2020 is a challege-based research and innovation program run by the European Research Council (ERC)…
Kosmos Energy Ltd. signed a one well rig share agreement with BP plc and Maersk Drilling for use of the rig Maersk Discoverer. The rig is expected to commence drilling operations on the FA-1 (formally Eagle-1) exploration well in the Foum Assaka offshore block in Morocco in 1H 2014…
New year, new focus. OE asked, “What are the main technology trends for your sector this year?” In 2014, we expect to see an emphasis on automation and control systems to enhance rig efficiency and safety. Multi…
Ophir Energy has said the Mlinzi Mbali-1 well offshore Tanzania has not found commercial hydrocarbons, but will offer 'crucial information' about Block 7, off the east African coast. The well was the first well drilled on Block 7. It…
Norwegian exploration firm Rocksource has agreed a farm-out deal with Atlantic Petroleum Norge and announced a deal for a European oil firm to buy electromagnetic data and use its software. The farm-out is an option deal with Atlantic Petroleum…
Statoil has made a gas discovery in the Askja West prospect and an oil discovery at the Askja East prospect in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. The exploration wells, 30/11-9-S and 30/11-9-A, were drilled using the Ocean Vanguard semisubmersible…
The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) has launched a new bid round for exploration licenses in the Gulf of Suez. Fifteen blocks, five in the Gulf of Suez and 10 in the Western Desert sedimentary basins, will be available, with licenses to be agreedon a production sharing model…
Petrobras' partners in the BC-10 development, also known as Parque das Conchas, have finalized a buyout worth approximately US$1.6 billion for the Brazilian national's 35% interest in the project. Shell will pay $1 billion for its additional 23% interest…
FMC Technologies, Inc. has signed an agreement with Statoil for the manufacture and supply of a workover system (WOS) to be installed on the Snorre B platform. The award has an approximate value of US$114 million. The new WOS will replace…
Preparations for Europe’s leading annual subsea conference and exhibition are well underway with up to 5000 delegates expected to attend from across the globe, reaffirming the world-leading status of the British subsea supply chain. Subsea…
Malaysia-based international offshore oilfield services provider, Bumi Armada Berhad has signed a bareboat charter contract with EnQuest for a floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) to be deployed at the Kraken field in the UK North Sea…
Astrakhan’s Krasnye Barrikady shipyard has started constructing the living quarter platform (LQP-2) for the second stage of Vladimir Filanovsky field developed by LUKOIL in the Russian sector of the Caspian Sea. The shipyard will construct two bearing blocks…
Wood Group ODL has won a five year, multi-million pound contract to provide document control and information management services to BP's North Sea business. The contract was awarded through a competitive tender process and is effective January 2014…