After many years of decline, production of petroleum and other liquids in the United Kingdom (UK) increased by about 100,000 b/d in 2015, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). The largest contribution to this…
Mid-March, the UK Government made a headline grabbing announcement – taxes would be halved for the ailing North Sea industry. Chancellor George Osborne said he would cut a supplementary charge on operators (a tax in addition to corporation tax) from 20% to 10%…
Italian major Eni has found what could be the biggest gas deposit in the Mediterranean and the company is eager to develop it. Jerry Lee reports. Egypt Nile Delta. The Zohr discovery, in the Shorouk block…
UK-based independent has now cut US$425 million off its North Sea Kraken heavy oil development budget as it looks to continue reining in costs. After initially shaving $300 million, or about 10%, off the project's original $3.2 billion costs…
Polarcus has announced the purchase of a complete marine seismic in-sea acquisition system (Streamer Package) from Dolphin Geophysical, for a price of US$11.5 million. The Streamer Package comprises 12 x 8100m active streamers and all peripheral in-sea equipment…
Amid Petróleo Brasileiro’s (Petrobras) largest net quarterly loss in its history of US$10.2 billion (36.9 billion BRL), the Brazilian giant also confirmed its biggest oil column discovery at its Libra field. Petrobras headquarters…
US supermajor Chevron is set to shave its budget by as much as 36% by next year, as the company approaches the finish line for global construction projects, and sets its sights on increasing production. Jack/St…
New Zealand is offering four offshore blocks in its 2016 block offer petroleum tender. 2016 block offer map, from New Zeland Petroleum & Minerals. The four offshore release areas have a total acreage of 525…
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted Wintershall a drilling permit for wildcat well 35/8-6 S, in block 35/8 of production license 248. Well 35/8-6 S will be drilled from the Borgland Dolphin drilling facility, a semisubmersible…
North Sea producers have been given a tax break in the UK Government's 2016 Budget, announced today. Amid falling oil prices, high costs and falling production, Chancellor George Osborne had already made some tax reductions and created…
Transocean will lay off about 80 jobs that were part of the Transocean Discoverer Americas ultra deepwater unit, which Statoil canceled in December. The Discoverer Americas, from Transocean. The 70-80 lay offs…
COSL Drilling Europe will cut to some 230 jobs from its workforce, as a direct result of Norwegian giant Statoil terminating its contract for the COSLInnovator semisubmersible contract earlier this month. The COSLInnovator…
Emerson Process Management has been awarded a contract to automate the Maersk Oil Culzean gas field development in the North Sea. Image of Culzean, from Maersk. Emerson will provide…
Douglas-Westwood (DW) forecasts deepwater expenditure to total US$137 billion from 2016-2020. This represents a 35% decline compared to DW’s previous edition of the deepwater forecast issued March 2015. The prolonged low oil price has impacted the deepwater market…
Malaysia’s Petronas is pumping the breaks on its Petronas floating LNG 2 (PFLNG 2) project after the company suffered lower revenue and profit last year due to the low oil price environment. Image of the PFLNG 1…