As decommissioning begins in earnest in the UK North Sea, the real cost of decommissioning is starting to be seen. Elaine Maslin reports on a study conducted to assess the increasing costs. The…
According to the latest analysis from Wood Mackenzie capital and operating costs in the UK and Norway's upstream sectors will decrease steadily this year as operators respond to lower oil prices. Wood Mackenzie projects that the biggest reductions will come in drilling costs…
Inefficiency has been a key culprit in the increase in North Sea operating costs, executives at an exploration and development conference were told in Aberdeen. McKinsey's Dan Cole told the 2015 DEVEX Conference that at least a third…
Consideration is being given to new tax incentives to encourage enhanced oil recovery schemes in the UK North Sea. Elaine Maslin looks at an assessment of EOR economics. Professor Alex Kemp. As production declines…
The oil and gas industry is responding to the low oil price environment with exploration budget cuts in 2015 which will average 30%, leading to suggestions that exploration activity could be significantly curtailed. However in an effort to drive value…
Kuwait Petroleum Corp.'s (KPC) CEO today said the company would be increasing output, a move he says will put pressure on deepwater projects as well as the likes of onshore oil sands and expensive unconventional projects. Nizar Al-Adsani said the market…
Wood Group PSN (WGPSN) has said it is cutting the rates paid to its UK-based limited company offshore and onshore contract workers in response to 'cost efficiency challenges affecting the UK North Sea oil and gas sector.' In addition…
Statoil aims to shed a further 15% on the capital cost for the Johan Castberg development, offshore Norway, before it can move forward, its project manager said. The up to 600MMboe Barents Sea Johan Castberg project has been delayed twice…
Statoil has put its money where its mouth is and awarded engineering firm Kvaerner a concept study related to a standardized, unmanned dry tree wellhead platform for the Oseberg Future Development project. Having an unmanned dry tree…
Rising subsea development costs have led Statoil to set a target for 20-30% cost reduction on projects. Elaine Maslin reports from the Underwater Technology Conference. Subsea – facing new realities” was the slogan for this year’s Underwater Technology Conference (UTC) in Norway…
The urgent need to address the global cost competitiveness of Australia’s oil and gas industry has been highlighted by a new analysis that shows fewer exploration wells are being drilled offshore despite significantly higher expenditure. An…
Wood Group subsidiary Wood Group PSN has put its money where its mouth is and announced plans to address cost escalation in the North Sea by reducing rates paid to its UK-based onshore contract workers. The firm said the move was in response…
For the first time in 20 years, Norway's government is looking to include a new area in the Barents Sea in its next exploration licensing round. Blocks in the Barents Sea south-east have been included in consultation documents issued…
Austrian oil and gas firm OMV has agreed to farm in to a deepwater block offshore Gabon. Under the terms of the agreement, OMV will acquire 30% non-operated interests in the Manga and Gnondo blocks, from Ophir Energy. It will also…
High demand for goods and services helped push up building and operating costs for upstream oil & gas facilities over the six-month period covering 3Q 2011 to 1Q 2012, according to two IHS cost indexes. The IHS Upstream Capital Cost index rose 2…