Russia and Turkmenistan to Partner in Offshore O&G Exploration

- Russia and Turkmenistan to Partner in Offshore O&G Exploration

Friday, August 12, 2011
OilPrice.com
by Charles Kennedy

Russia's Itera and Zarubehzneft have signed a Caspian production sharing agreement with Turkmenistan for exploring the country's offshore Caspian sector for oil and natural gas.

Itera general director Vladimir Makeyev and Zarubezhneft CEO Nikolai Brunich signed a production-sharing agreement to develop jointly the 21st block of Turkmenistan's sector of the Caspian.

The production sharing agreement stipulates that Zarubezhneft is the project operator and is authorized to do all the oil-production work under the PSA on behalf of the contracting companies, The Moscow Times reported.

Initial estimates by Itera and Zarubehzneft put Block 21's recoverable oil resources at 219 million tons, associated gas at 92 billion cubic meters, and natural gas at 100 billion cubic meters, with eventual investment in the project being up to $6 billion.

According to the PSA, which follows on from a September 2009 agreement signed between Itera and Turkmenistan's presidential state agency a 51 percent stake in the project will be transferred to Zarubezhneft, with Itera retaining the remaining 49 percent.

The PSA build on a decade-long effort by Itera and Zarubezhneft, which in 2001 signed an agreement with the Turkmen government regarding their intent to participate in the development of Turkmenistan's oil and gas sector.

(Charles Kennedy is Deputy Editor of OilPrice.com. The original article appears here.)

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Aroway, Partner Conclude Acquisition Transaction

- Aroway, Partner Conclude Acquisition Transaction

Thursday, July 07, 2011
Aroway Energy Inc.

Aroway and its Joint Venture Partner have completed a transaction to acquire certain lands in its core area with a third party private oil and gas company. The particulars of the agreement are as follows:

• The Partnership will acquire 10 sections of land, typically, all rights, and
• The acquisition includes six (6) existing wellbores, typically drilled to the base of the Leduc, and
• The Partnership acquired the lands and wellbores in exchange for a variable gross overriding royalty ranging from 6% to 8%

As a result of the agreement, the Partnership will begin a recompletion program on the 6 acquired well bores in addition to 2 other wellbores that have become available under the Company's initial partnership deal. At least 2 additional wellbore opportunities will follow later in the year. Consistent with the Partnership's strategy, all the wellbores are multi-zone prospects for oil, gas and gas liquids. Each of the wellbores are covered by 3D seismic, and are in close vicinity to tie-in to the Joint Venture Partners gathering and plant infrastructure. The Company anticipates releasing recompletion results once the well bores have consistently produced at stabilized economic volumes.

Aroway's 3rd well of the 2011 exploration program will be tested and completed in the coming days, as operations were delayed by wet weather.

Chris Cooper, President and CEO, commented, "We are confident that the recompletion program will deliver economic material production at a substantially low cost per flowing boe from the existing well bores acquired. Success with this program along with our 2011 drill program will further contribute to Aroway achieving its year-end target of 600 boe/day."

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Searcher Seismic, Partner to Begin Seismic Acquisition in Bjornoya Basin

- Searcher Seismic, Partner to Begin Seismic Acquisition in Bjornoya Basin

Friday, June 10, 2011
Searcher Seismic Pty Ltd.

Searcher Seismic in conjunction with its project partner MAGE announced the commencement in acquisition of the Bjornoya Basin North (BBN11) 2D Non-Exclusive Seismic Survey in the Norwegian Barents Sea utilizing the seismic vessel the RV Professor Kurentsov. The survey is sponsored by Front Exploration, a "High North focused" exploration company based in Northern Norway.

The BBN11 2D Seismic Survey is a high resolution 2D seismic survey of 3,121 kms that in particular targets the shallow prospective sedimentary section along the Bjornoyrenna Fault Zone Complex. The survey provides a dense infill to the existing seismic data resulting in improved data coverage to a 1 x 1 km grid pattern. The BBN11 Survey will be seamlessly integrated with Searcher’s ongoing regional Havspurv 2D Seismic Survey utilizing similar high resolution acquisition parameters.

The BBN11 Survey provides a total coverage of 2100 sq.km located in the vacant area about 30 kilometers north of the recent giant Skrugard oil discovery (250-500MMbbl recoverable reserves).

The data is scheduled to be completed in processing during 4Q 2011.

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Iraq, Shell Resolve Last Obstacle to $12B Gas Deal -Official

Iraq, Shell Resolve Last Obstacle to $12B Gas Deal -Official

Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Dow Jones Newswires

by  Hassan Hafidh

 

The Iraqi Oil Ministry and Shell have removed the last obstacle preventing them from signing a long-awaited $12 billion joint-venture deal, a senior Iraqi oil official said Tuesday.

The main dispute was over the rights of export. Shell, along with its partner Japan's Mitsubishi, wanted to handle exports, while under current Iraqi hydrocarbon laws the Iraqi State Oil Marketing Organization should do so.

"The issue is nearly resolved," Ali H. Khudhier, head of the state-run South Gas Company told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview in his office in Zubair, south of Basra.

"Shell wanted to handle exports, but now it is agreed that SOMO would handle export," he said. Shell, however, has asked for further discussions as it needs to install an export mechanism, he said.

Last week, the energy committee at the Iraqi council of ministers asked the Oil Ministry to review the Shell draft deal which aims to capture and exploit millions of cubic feet a day of gas flared from four super-giant oil fields near Basra.

The gas project is crucial to Baghdad's ambitious oil expansion that will also boost much-needed power generation in Iraq.

"Once the energy committee approves the recent changes, we need to sit with Shell to adjust these changes in the draft contract," Khudhier said. He preferred not to give a specific date for signing the deal, but he said it could happen in a matter of weeks.

The joint venture--Basrah Gas Co, or BGC--will process associated gas produced from three supergiant Iraqi fields--Rumaila, West Qurna 1 and Zubair--all located in Basra. The three fields are being developed by international oil companies.

"We are expecting these three fields to produce up to 3 billion cubic feet a day in the coming six to seven years," Khudhier said.

In total, the three fields are currently producing some 1.05 billion cubic feet a day, but only 450 million cubic feet a day are utilized while the rest is flared, he said.

The project is vital to Shell's strategy of positioning itself as a leading gas supplier and producer in the Middle East. After domestic needs are met, an LNG terminal will be built in the Gulf to handle the export of 600 million cubic feet a day.

"The extra gas will be exported to East Asia and Gulf states including Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates," Khudhier said.
He also said Iraq could revive a disused pipeline to export gas to Kuwait. "If the Kuwaitis want to import gas from us, we are ready to supply them," he said. Iraq used to export an average of 200 million cubic feet a day gas to neighboring Kuwait, but sales were suspended when Iraq invaded its neighbor in 1990.

Iraq is home to 126 trillion cubic feet of gas, but produces only around 1.5 billion cubic feet a day--of which 700 million cubic feet a day are burned for lack of infrastructure.

Beach, JV Partner Commence Seismic Survey Offshore Albania

Beach, JV Partner Commence Seismic Survey Offshore Albania

Friday, March 25, 2011

by  SubseaIQ

Beach Energy Ltd.

Beach and its joint venture partner San Leon advised that they have commenced an 840 square kilometer 3D seismic survey in the Durresi Block, offshore Albania.

San Leon is Operator of the joint venture and, through a subsidiary, holds a 75% interest in the Durresi block with Beach holding the remaining 25%. Beach has agreed to pay 50% of the seismic program costs, rather than its 25% working interest requirement, in exchange for an option which, if exercised after review of the seismic data, will give Beach a 50% working interest in the license moving forward.

Petroleum Geo-Physical AS has been contracted to carry out the survey using the M/V Ramform Vanguard seismic vessel. The 3D seismic program will evaluate a number of prospective targets in the Durresi Block, including the A4-1X discovery, in preparation for drilling in 2012.

The A4-1X gas condensate field was discovered in 1993 and is located 30 km off the southern coast of Albania. San Leon estimates the discovery to contain approximately 38 million barrels of circa 51 API condensate and 150 billion cubic feet of gas. The joint venture is also exploring potentially significant oil and gas targets adjacent to A4-1X.

The Durresi block is situated on the proven Apulian Margin, which extends from Italy into Albania. Southern Albania contains a highly prolific petroleum system, including one of the largest onshore oil accumulations in Europe, the Patos-Marinza field, which is estimated to contain up to 5.7 billion barrels of original oil in place.