Saturday, December 23, 2017

SOCAR: Azerbaijan has large gas reserves to supply pipelines - APA


23.12.2017

The Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) project requires $44-45 billion. $25 billion has been spent so far, Khoshbakht Yusifzade, first vice-president of Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR, said Dec. 23.

He made the remarks at a conference titled “At the intersection of East and West: New energy and communication opportunities", organized by the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (YAP) in Baku, APA-Economics reported.

According to Yusifzade, most of these works have already been carried out.

“The TANAP project will be ready in 2018, the TAP project in 2019. Azerbaijan will supply gas to Europe through these pipelines. Azerbaijani President confirms that Azerbaijan has gas large reserves. The country's proven gas reserves are equal to 2.6 trillion cubic meters. Together with unconfirmed volumes, it is 6 trillion cubic meters. Russia and Iran can also join these pipelines in future,” he noted.
Touching upon the Shahdeniz field, Yusifzade said that there are 200 billion cubic meters of gas and 240 million tons of condensate in the Shahdeniz reserves which are sufficient to fill the pipelines.

Thursday, December 21, 2017

TransGlobe increases production from Egypt to 12.8k bpd - ENTERPRISE / TRANSGLOBE


Thursday, 21 December 2017

Canadian oil and gas producer TransGlobe said it produced 12.8 
Mbopd from Egypt in 4Q2017. It is currently finalizing its 2018 work plan and budget that will be announced in January, according to its 4Q2017 operational update. TransGlobe announced it lifted and sold 510k bbl of crude in Egypt in late November for estimated net proceeds of approximately USD 24.5 mn (inclusive of realized hedging loss and marketing costs).

Corporate production is expected to average ~15.4 MBoepd for 2017 (12.8 Mbopd from Egypt and 2.6 MBoepd from Canada) representing an increase of ~3.3 MBoepd or 27% over 2016 production of 12.1 MBoepd. Corporate production in 2017 was 93% weighted to oil and liquids (7% weighted to natural gas in Canada) providing excellent torque to strengthening oil prices.

Wednesday, December 20, 2017



20/DEC/2017 08:30

The field, with potential resources in excess of 30 Tcf of gas in place, started-up in less than two and a half years from the discovery: a record time for a field of this size in deep waters

Enhancing Leadership Potential - MINISTRY OF PETROLEUM EGYPT


TGS and Schlumberger Announce New 2D Multi-client Project in Egyptian Red Sea - TGS

20 December 2017

ASKER, NORWAY (20 December 2017) - TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company (TGS) and Schlumberger today announced a new 2D seismic project offshore Egypt.

The project will comprise acquisition of a 10,000 km 2D long-offset broadband multi-client seismic survey. Advanced new acquisition and imaging techniques will provide better illumination of complex subsalt structures. The project will integrate all legacy seismic and non-seismic data. Acquisition will commence mid-December and is expected to complete in late Q1 2018.

This project is part of an agreement entered with South Valley Egyptian Petroleum Holding Company (GANOPE) in which Schlumberger and TGS have a minimum 15-year period of exclusive multi-client rights in a ~70,000 km2 open area offshore the Egyptian Red Sea.

Egypt’s super-giant Zohr gas field begins production, completing BP’s major project start-ups for 2017 - BP

20 December 2017

BP today confirmed that production has started from the super-giant Zohr gas field, offshore Egypt. The field is operated by Eni, through its joint venture with The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), and is the largest natural gas discovery yet to be made in the Mediterranean Sea.

Delivery of first gas from Zohr completes BP’s programme of seven Upstream major project start-ups in 2017. Zohr follows the earlier start-ups of the Khazzan project in Oman, Persephone in Australia, Juniper and the Onshore Compression project in Trinidad, Quad 204 in the UK, and the first phase of the West Nile Delta project, also in Egypt.

Bob Dudley, BP group chief executive, said: “We are proud to have worked with Eni, Rosneft and the Egyptian government to deliver a project that is strategically important for Egypt and will help meet the country’s growing energy demand.

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Lebanon approves offshore awards for two blocks - OIL & GAS JOURNAL



HOUSTON, DEC/19/2017
Tayvis Dunnahoe


Lebanon’s Cabinet has approved the recently awarded licenses for Blocks 4 and 9 that lie in northern and southern areas offshore (OGJ Online, Oct. 23, 2017). Energy Minister Cesar Abi Khalil was quoted in The Daily Star saying drilling could begin as early as 2019.

Three companies are included in the consortium exploring both blocks: Total SA, Eni SPA, and OAO Novatek. Lebanon’s offshore is prospective for oil and gas, but the future of its development remains unknown (OGJ Online, July 7, 2017). Despite the announcement, the energy ministry has not released technical details of contracts nor has it disclosed the amount of the bids.

Why One Giant Gas Field Is a Big Deal for Egypt - BLOOMBERG

December 19, 2017, 11:00 PM
Salma El Wardany

The gas imports which once helped Egypt avert power blackouts may soon be a thing of the past. Eni SpA’s massive "Zohr" natural gas field, the Mediterranean Sea’s largest offshore field, started production earlier this month. Its huge reserves could prove a permanent remedy to the most populous Arab nation’s power needs and bring Egypt closer to its goal of energy self-sufficiency.

1. How giant is ‘Supergiant Zohr?’

Discovered in August 2015, Zohr is often described as a "supergiant" field because it has estimated reserves of about 30 trillion cubic feet, equal to the reserves of Israel and Oman combined, making it the largest gas discovery in the Mediterranean Sea. The field covers an area of about 100 square kilometers. On Dec. 16, gas from Zohr began to flow to a facility in Port Said city, with initial production of 350 million cubic feet per day. Daily output is expected to rise to about 1 billion cubic feet in June, and then to 2.7 billion by the end of 2019. President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has vowed to tackle the energy shortage as a priority. The project could also eventually enable Egypt to return to exporting gas.

Egypt to allow foreign companies to export gas in five years - ENTERPRISE

Tuesday, 19 December 2017

Egypt will allow foreign companies to “freely” export natural gas not needed for domestic use in five years, Oil Minister Tarek El Molla announced on Monday during Al Ahram’s energy conference, according to Reuters. New exploration contracts contains a clause that allows companies to export a part of their share of extracted gas abroad in the event it is not needed by Egypt, El Molla told a news conference. The move, which comes as part of Egypt’s strategy to become a regional hub for exporting gas next year, comes after the Zohr gas field began production on Saturday, raising Egypt’s production to 5.5 bcf/d by next year.

Shell in talks with Oil Ministry to increase its share of gas produced at Phase 9B - ENTERPRISE


Tuesday, 19 December 2017

Shell has apparently entered talks with the Oil Ministry to increase its share of gas produced to offset their investment costs from Phase 9B of the West Delta Deep Marine Concession, government sources tell Al Borsa

The company is looking to recoup the investment costs of developing the concession sooner, they added. 

The company plans to complete developing two test wells in Phase 9B in 1Q2018. BG Egypt, before being acquired by Shell, had suspended work on Phase 9A+ and 9B in March 2016 after the government rejected paying USD 7.00 per mmBtu for Phase 9B.

Egypt to stop importing gas by end-2018: EGAS - DAILY NEWS EGYPT

Tuesday December 19, 2017
Ahmed Ismail

According to Vice President of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) Magdy Galal, the company aims to stop importing liquefied natural gas from abroad by the end of next year.

According to Galal, the Ministry of Petroleum owns the bulk structure that qualifies Egypt to become a regional energy hub. It owns the Sumed pipeline which carries most of the Gulf’s oil to Europe, 9,500 km of crude oil and petroleum products transportation lines, eight refineries with a production capacity of 38m tonnes annually, and 15m tonnes of storage capacity for crude oil and products, in addition to 19 oil ports overlooking the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Suez.

The infrastructure of natural gas transportation includes a main network with a total of 7,000 km, a distribution network with a total of 31,000 km, as well as 29 gas processing plants, two natural gas liquefaction plants in Damietta and Idku, and two floating units to receive liquefied gas with a capacity of about 1,300m cubic feet per day, in addition to the huge natural gas plants that were discovered in the Mediterranean Sea.

Maersk sells its 50% stake in Egyptian Drilling Company to EGPC - ENTERPRISE

Tuesday, 19 December 2017

Maersk Drilling agreed to sell its 50% stake in Egyptian Drilling Company to the EGPC for USD 100 mn, Reuters reports. The cash transaction leaves the EGPC as the sole shareholder of Egyptian Drilling Company.



Dec 18 (Reuters) - MAERSK DRILLING, UNIT OF A. P. MOLLER-MAERSK, SAYS

* IT AND AND EGYPTIAN GENERAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION HAS SIGNED AN AGREEMENT WHEREBY EGPC WILL ACQUIRE A.P. MOLLER - MAERSK‘S 50 PERCENT SHAREHOLDING IN EGYPTIAN DRILLING COMPANY FOR 100 MILLION DOLLARS IN AN ALL-CASH TRANSACTION

* FOLLOWING THE TRANSACTION EGPC WILL BECOME SOLE OWNER OF EDC AND WILL AS PART OF THE AGREEMENT TAKE OVER THE ENTIRE PORTFOLIO, OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS Further company coverage: (Copenhagen newsroom)

Monday, December 18, 2017

Egypt Begins Production on Largest Undersea Gas Field in Mediterranean - VOA

December 18, 2017 3:00 PM
Edward Yeranian

CAIRO —

Egypt's economic prospects are looking brighter after the long-anticipated production of undersea gas from the al Zohr gas field began coming online in recent days.

Petroleum Minister Tareq al Molla tells Arab media the al Zohr field will be a major boon for the economy, saving $750 million to possibly several billion dollars a year in energy costs.

He says that the giant al Zohr gas field has a reserve of 30 trillion cubic feet and the first phase of production of 1.2 billion cubic feet per day is expected to be reached around mid 2018, with production being ramped up to 2.7 billion cubic feet per day by mid- to late 2019.

Italy's ENI petroleum company is heading production of the al Zohr field, while the BP company is overseeing production of another large undersea gas field off Egypt's Nile Delta region, known as al Nooros.

Turkey’s first drillship to arrive by end of December - HURRIYET DAILY NEWS

December 18 2017 12:39:00
ANKARA - Anadolu Agency

Turkey’s first drillship, the Deepsea Metro 2, is expected to arrive in Turkey by the end of December in preparation for exploratory offshore drilling in the Mediterranean Sea at the beginning of next year, shipping data showed on Dec. 18.

The data showed that the ship, which will be used by the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO), left Norway’s Hoylandsbygda port and is expected to arrive in Turkey on Dec. 31.

Turkey has already undertaken oil and gas exploration using two seismic ships, but the Deepsea Metro 2 will be the country’s first active drillship.

The South Korean merchant vessel was produced in 2011, has a length of 229 meters (751 feet), and is capable of drilling into a maximum depth of 40,000 feet.

Government to honor historical gas export contracts - ENTERPRISE

Monday, 18 December 2017

The Sisi administration plans to honor all export contracts Egypt signed before the nation became a net importer of gas back in 2012, said Oil Minister Tarek El Molla, Al Shorouk reports. The statement appears to signal that the government plans to use influx of gas from Zohr, which it hopes will help Egypt become a net gas exporter in 2018, to resolve outstanding contracts which has caused legal headaches for the government. Most significant of these is a ruling by a Swiss court which fined Egypt USD 2 bn in compensation to Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) for halting gas supplies to our eastern neighbor in 2012. The case had led to the government suspending any plans to importing gas from Israel as part of a region-wide collaboration to export gas from the East Mediterranean to Europe. Egypt and Israel have reportedly been holding talks behind closed doors to revive cooperation efforts.

Sunday, December 17, 2017

Gazprom’s exports to Turkey up by 18.8% in 2017 - TASS



December 17, 23:49 UTC+3

MOSCOW, December 17. /TASS/. Russia’s gas giant Gazprom said on Sunday is had exported a record-breaking volume of gas to Turkey in a period from January 1 to December 15, 2017, having increased supplies by 18.8% on the same period last year, to 27.6 billion cubic meters.

"In the eleven and a half months of 2017, Gazprom exported 27.6 billion cubic meters of gas to Turkey, its second largest foreign market. The 2014 gas exports record of 27.3 billion cubic meter has been broken," the company said in a press release.

Apart from that, gas exports to other countries that are to be covered by the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, which is now under construction, also increased, including by 10.1% to Greece, by 5.7% - to Bulgaria, by 22% - to Hungary, and by 23.5% - to Serbia.

Exclusive: Saudi Aramco has supplied 1 million barrels of crude to Egyptian refineries in November, December - minister - REUTERS

DECEMBER 17, 2017 / 8:39 AM
Reporting by Abdelrahman Adel; Writing by Nadine Awadalla; Editing by Stephen Coates

CAIRO (Reuters) - Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil producer, has supplied 1 million barrels of crude oil to Egyptian refineries, Egypt’s Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla told Reuters on Sunday.

Egypt and Saudi Arabia will be studying the economic feasibility of continuing to refine Saudi crude in Egyptian refineries by the start of 2018, El Molla said.

Saudi Arabia agreed in April last year to provide Egypt with 700,000 tonnes of refined oil products a month for five years.