Showing posts with label Petrofac. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Petrofac. Show all posts
Friday, July 01, 2011
BP's Iraq contract leads way as Petrofac...
SpikeyDT
BP's Iraq contract leads way as Petrofac reveals £1.3bn deals
Published Date: 01 July 2011
By Dominic Jeff
http://business.scotsman.com/business/BP39s-Iraq-contract-leads-way.6793976.jpG
ENERGY services group Petrofac said it has gained $2.1 billion (£1.3bn) in orders in the first six months of the year, including a contract with BP in Iraq announced this week.
The London-listed firm - which has a large operations base in Aberdeen and a training centre in Montrose - said in a trading update yesterday that it had a backlog of work of about $11.4bn, which it predicted would remain stable for the rest of the year.
Chief executive Ayman Asfari said: "We continue to deliver good operational performance across our portfolio of projects, including on the South Yoloten project in Turkmenistan, and we are well on course to deliver like-for-like net profit growth in 2011 of at least 15 per cent, in line with our previous guidance."
Petrofac's new one-year deal with BP is its second in Iraq and marks a further expansion in the war-torn oil producer. The $90 million inspection, maintenance and repair contract for the Rumaila oil field in southern Iraq will be shared with a Chinese joint venture partner but will be led by Petrofac's offshore engineering and operations business and is worth $63m to the group.
Petrofac also announced that its long-standing chief financial officer, Keith Roberts, will retire from the group at the end of the year.
Roberts, 54, joined the firm in early 2002 and played a leading role in its 2005 flotation.
He will be replaced by Cable & Wireless Worldwide director Tim Weller.
Tony Shepard, analyst at Charles Stanley, said he was surprised by the change but added that Roberts was leaving the group in "excellent health".
"It has a strong order book which gives excellent revenue visibility and the balance sheet is strong," he said.
Despite being impressed by the figures, which suggest it could double its recurring 2010 earnings by 2015, Charles Stanley rated Petrofac a "hold" in the short term, noting that shares were already "up with events". Petrofac teams up with Schlumberger for big projects Thu, Jan 05 03:00 AM EST * Says tie-up will enable it to work on larger scale projects LONDON, JAN 5 - British energy services firm Petrofac said it will team up with Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield services company, to enable it to bid for bigger projects with national oil companies and other firms. ===================== Special Report: Iran’s Oil Smuggling Network in Iraq Posted on February 7, 2012 by dancingczars | Leave a comment 1 Votes Stratfor Global Intelligence http://dancingczars.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/special-report-irans-oil-smuggling-network-in-iraq/ Commentary by Jim Campbell Readers at this site will recall that I’ve mentioned on several occasions, Obama’s ill advise departure from Iraq would lead to Iran making a move on the Rumilia Oil fields. For the moment shall we say I was both right ans wrong. Never underestimate bribes, smuggling to and immediate solution to the problem. I have no doubt when Iran feels the time is right the will make their run on Iraq’s liquid gold. US and coalition forces work on while guarding Iraq’s Oil production What could stop them, more special operations sabotage, and continued assassinations. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it, I’m J.C. and I approve this message. Summary After years of war-induced economic stagnation, Iraq is showing the potential to dramatically increase its capacity to export oil in anticipation of higher oil production. With much of this oil and infrastructure development taking place in Iraq’s Shiite-concentrated south, the biggest external beneficiary of Iraq’s increased oil output would be Iran. Through a web of alliances including Iraqi politicians, unions, oil syndicates and militias, Iran is already well-positioned to extract oil revenues from southern Iraq via informal channels. This allows Iran to draw from a large stash of resources to maintain its regional influence while insulating itself against an intensifying sanctions campaign targeting Iranian oil exports. Analysis Over the past couple of years, oil production in Iraq’s Shiite-majority southern region has been steadily rising because of production in the Rumaila, West Qurna Stage 1 and Zubayr supergiant oil fields that were auctioned off to foreign companies in 2009. Sitting on 115 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, more than 80 percent of which is concentrated in the south, Iraq has the potential to rival Saudi Arabia’s production rate of roughly 10 million barrels per day (bpd) within the decade. Iran is especially interested in the prospect of increased oil production in southern Iraq. Tehran has built a complex oil smuggling network that allows it to bring in significant revenues from southern Iraq’s oil production. These funds enable Iran to maintain its influence in the region while preparing to defend itself against more stringent sanctions against its oil exports. SOUTHERN IRAQ’S OIL EXPANSION PLANS Most of Iraq’s oil lies in large and shallow oil fields very close to the coast on transit lines that do not cross population centers. This makes the oil relatively easy and inexpensive to extract and thus highly profitable. But years of sanctions, war and insurgency have dilapidated the country’s energy infrastructure. According to oil-pricing agency Platts, Iraqi oil production rose to an average 2.653 million bpd in 2011, a 12 percent increase from 2010′s average of 2.364 million bpd. Iraqi Oil Ministry data indicates that the country has a production capacity of around 2.9 million bpd, with ongoing efforts to meet a production target of 3.4 million bpd by year’s end. The problem is that Iraq has not completed the critical upgrades to its export and storage infrastructure necessary to cope with a significant rise in production. Southern Iraq’s oil production is thus largely limited to what it can export, which is roughly 1.89 million bpd. To alleviate this bottleneck, Iraq is planning an ambitious project to expand the export capacity of Basra’s oil terminals to about 4.8 million bpd by 2014. Four single-point mooring facilities, each expected to add another 850,000-900,000 bpd in export capacity, are to be completed by 2014. The project has encountered repeated delays: An inauguration ceremony for the first terminal scheduled for Jan. 25 has been postponed for a third time, though a member of Iraq’s southern export expansion team told Reuters that the terminal would be ready to receive crude vessels in February after pipeline connections and testing were completed. The second terminal is scheduled to be ready within six months, the third by the end of 2012 and the fourth by the end of 2013. IRAN’S STAKE IN IRAQ’S OIL Though it is unlikely that Iraq will be able to meet all its production targets and project deadlines, there is no doubt that it has a chance to significantly elevate its energy status in a relatively short time. Because much of this energy activity is taking place in Iraq’s mostly Shiite-populated south, in close proximity to the Persian Gulf, the country most focused on Iraq’s energy prospects is Iran. When the United States completed its military withdrawal from Iraq at the end of 2011, it left the door open for Iran to consolidate its influence in an energy-rich country at the heart of the Arab world. The influence of Iran, a predominantly Shiite state itself, is most entrenched in Iraq’s Shiite-majority south. Though many Shiite Iraqi politicians are opposed, Iran’s geopolitical ambition is to make southern Iraq an extension of itself, thereby allowing Iran to vastly, albeit indirectly, increase its share in the global energy market. With the U.S. sanctions campaign against Iran intensifying, this is an especially critical goal for Tehran. Iran is well-positioned to reap the benefits of increased Iraqi oil production. According to Stratfor sources, roughly 10 percent of Basra’s oil production is smuggled, most of which ends up in Iran for export. The market value of the oil that is stolen each day is roughly $20 million, providing a significant source of funds from which Iran can draw to protect itself against sanctions. THE IRAQ-IRAN SMUGGLING ROUTE The main smuggling route from Iraq to Iran begins at the Khor al-Zubayr oil terminal, where the bulk of Iraq’s southern oil converges. Smugglers will drill holes in the pipeline at the oil terminal and load containers of oil into small boats. The boats are manufactured locally in Basra and typically carry between 70 and 120 barrels of crude. From there, the boats take the crude down the Khor al-Zubayr waterway out to the Persian Gulf, where it is loaded onto tankers bound for Iran. Thefts also occur farther down the smuggling route near al-Faw Peninsula, where smugglers make holes in underground pipelines, using hydraulic perforation equipment to avoid fires. Much of the oil leaks into artificial lakes in the area, where tankers come and load it. From the al-Rasas island near al-Faw Peninsula, crude can travel by boat up the Bahmanshir River (a tributary of the Karun River) to the Abadan refinery in Iran for processing and export. Oil smuggling along the river known as the Shatt al-Arab also occurs, though it is much less common due to the hazardous nature of the waterway and increased monitoring along the route. High-speed Iraqi boats are used to travel along the Shatt al-Arab to Iranian territorial waters to unload their cargo, but the route is costly due to the number of bribes that need to be paid along the way. Rampant smuggling has long been a characteristic of Iraqi oil production, so it makes sense that current infrastructure and business practices in southern Iraq allow ample room for oil theft. Metering systems to gauge oil flow and detect disruptions are more prevalent in the Basra and Khor al-Zubayr ports but are largely absent along the rest of the oil transit route. Many of the meters are damaged and deliberately not repaired to facilitate smuggling. Moreover, Basra oil officials involved in the illicit oil trade are known to play a role in delaying repairs to holes in pipelines to give the smugglers more time to operate. IRAN’S OIL SMUGGLING NETWORK IN IRAQ Iran has an extensive network of politicians, oil unions and cartels, and militias that it uses to reap the benefits of Iraq’s southern oil production. The multiple players and complex ideologies that make up Iraq’s Shiite landscape require Iran to devote a lot of time and resources to managing the various stakeholders in Iraq’s southern oil industry. This variety also allows Iran to play the different sides off one another to preserve its control over the oil smuggling network. Political Groups Ideally, Iran would like to see southern Iraq evolve into a single, Shiite-dominated state within an Iraqi federation that would serve as an Iranian satellite. Theoretically, such a state would allow Iran to carve out a more defined sphere of influence among the Iraqi Shia to help manage important tasks such as distributing revenues from the oil smuggling network. Iran’s desire for a distinct Shiite state in Iraq may explain why Iran’s closest political ally, the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, has been the Iraqi parliament’s strongest proponent for establishing a single Shiite region in the south. However, the majority of the Shiite groups in the south, such as the Dawa Party, the Sadrite movement and the al-Fadhila party, have opposed the idea. These groups work closely with the Iranians but are more nationalist and still see a need to preserve political autonomy from Iran. Al-Fadhila is the most entrenched in Iraq’s oil smuggling business. Basra residents are even known to refer to al-Fadhila, which means “virtue” in Arabic, as the “Islamic Oil Party.” The party is firmly Iraqi nationalist and has been highly resistant to Baghdad’s attempts to bring more foreign energy expertise to the south for fear of seeing its regional clout undermined, but its leader, Sheikh Mohammad Yaqubi, is friendly with Iran. Al-Fadhila has a significant presence in the Southern Oil Company of Iraq and maintains a strong relationship with the trade union of workers in the Basra oil industry. The party will typically pay Southern Oil Company employees who collaborate with it in oil theft around $5,000-$10,000 per 1,000-barrel shipment. Al-Fadhila is also the leader in southern Iraq when it comes to using oil revenues to buy the allegiance of local political groups, gangs and the Basra police force. Militias Iran plays a significant role in managing the various militias involved in oil smuggling in southern Iraq. In return for protecting Iran’s energy interests and eliminating resistance to the Iranian-run oil smuggling networks, the militias get a significant cut of the profits. When one militia grows too powerful, Iran will typically find ways to dilute its strength by developing competing splinter groups and integrating militia members into the security apparatus and sometimes even the political process. Iran’s strategy of managing Iraq is to alter the key Shiite leaders it deals with, which ensures that no one becomes strong enough to consider abandoning or turning against Iran. This dynamic is illustrated in Iran’s handling of Iraqi nationalist Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mehdi Army, Asaib Ahl al Haq (which splintered from the Sadrites with Iranian backing) and the rise of the Hezbollah Brigades in the Iranian oil smuggling network. Al-Sadr and his following have traditionally been vehemently nationalist and have taken care to distance themselves from Iran. When Qais al-Khazali, who studied under al-Sadr’s father, Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr, split from the group in 2004 to form his own faction, Iran developed a tight relationship with Khazali’s group. Khazali eventually formed his own militia, Asaib al-Haq (League of the Righteous), with heavy Iranian financial and military assistance. In 2007, al-Sadr fled to Iran in the face of threats from the U.S. military and his own Shiite rivals. Al-Sadr announced that he was deactivating the Mehdi Army in 2008 in exchange for entry into the Iraqi government. The Sadrites now hold 40 seats, a majority of the ruling Shiite coalition’s seats in parliament, and control seven ministries, though al-Sadr remains under Iran’s influence. Whereas at the beginning of the decade, the Sadrite movement enjoyed more autonomy in southern Iraqi affairs, the Promised Day Brigade, which evolved out of the Mehdi Army, now sits well within the Iranian sphere of influence. While the clout of the Sadrites waned in the south and rose in the central government, Asaib Ahl al-Haq became the primary militia Iran would rely on to run its business in Basra. The militia has proved particularly effective in containing tribal resistance to Iran’s operations in Basra, most of which came from Sheikh Kazim al-Unayzan, who leads the south clan council and whose following is said to exceed 3 million Shia. An illustration of Asaib Ahl al-Haq’s utility to Iran was witnessed when tribal Sheikh Mohammad al-Bahadli, chief of the council of liberation and construction, formed his own militia called Asad Allah al Ghalib. This militia, according to a Stratfor source in the region, was quickly put down by Asaib Ahl al-Haq. Asaib Ahl al-Haq also has a reputation of liquidating Iran’s rivals in the south, including clan leaders, officials at Basra and Umm Qasr ports, and employees of the Southern Oil Company of Iraq who refuse to cooperate in Iran’s oil smuggling network. In line with previous tactics, Iran appears ready again to diversify its militia assets and has played a key role in pressuring the Iraqi central government to welcome Khazali and Asaib Ahl al-Haq into the political process. In early January, the Iraqi government announced that Asaib Ahl al-Haq has not turned in its weapons but that it has agreed to lay them down and plans to participate in the next parliamentary elections under a new name. With Asaib Ahl al-Haq entering the political arena, Iran has already prepped another key Shiite militant patron — the Hezbollah Brigades — to backfill Asaib Ahl al-Haq’s role in protecting the oil smuggling business. The Hezbollah Brigades have not expressed any interest in entering the political process and have stressed the need to play a leading militant role in the south. Marginal groups that have an Islamist orientation and that have politically accommodated themselves to Iran in exchange for oil dividends include Harakat Sayyid al Shuada, Hizb Tha’r Allah al Islami, Shuhada al Mihrab, and the March 17 Party of Sheikh Abdullah al Ishmain. Iran’s Oil Syndicate The main Iranian figure who manages the Basra oil syndicates is Gen. Qassem Suleimani, the commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Suleimani plays a key role in buying patronage in Basra and the rest of the south using the revenues from stolen oil. Most of the money is deposited in branches of IRGC-owned banks in Iraq. Suleimani’s network covers the tasks of arms smuggling, oil smuggling to Iran, the collection and dissemination of oil revenues, and the abduction (and sometimes assassination) of anti-Iranian figures in southern Iraq. TEHRAN’S LEVERAGE OVER BAGHDAD Iran’s control over oil smuggling in Basra is institutionalized and well beyond the ability of the central government in Baghdad to control. Though Iran is in the process of consolidating Shiite influence in Iraq, it has no desire to see a strong central authority in Baghdad that could try to undermine its already well-entrenched leverage in the south. As a result, Iran has quietly but firmly resisted Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s attempts to wield exclusive control over the government and his efforts to augment his military and political strength in the south. In fact, Iran’s most effective way of ensuring its influence over the political authorities in Baghdad is by maintaining a strong grip over its oil smuggling operations in the south. Iran uses its energy clout in Iraq to ensure that Iraqi government authorities, including al-Maliki, get a hefty share of monthly revenues from the oil theft — amounting to millions of dollars — giving Baghdad less inclination to protest Iranian interference in Iraqi affairs. Iran’s significant and growing influence over Iraq’s oil industry cuts to the heart of the U.S. challenge in trying to contain Iran in Iraq. When it comes to critical policy decisions on extending the U.S. troop presence in Iraq or in accepting major military assistance from the United States, Iran has ample financial might from the oil revenues it earns through smuggling to influence the minds of Iraqi decision-makers. Likewise, U.S.-led efforts to tighten sanctions and cut into Iran’s bottom line fail to take into account the millions of dollars Iran is able to bring in daily through its shadowy channels throughout Basra. ========================= Iraq picks Petrofac for $95 mln contract-source Mon, Jun 18 08:32 AM EDT * Petrofac to win service contract for offshore terminals * Selected for 12-month extendable contract BAGHDAD, June 18 (Reuters) - Iraq has picked British oil services firm Petrofac for a $95 million contract to carry out maintenance work for its new offshore terminals and sub-sea pipelines at the Gulf, an Iraqi oil official said on Monday. Under the contract, Petrofac should conduct maintenance work to ensure there are no leakages in the pipelines or any faults at the two new single point mooring (SPM) terminals that may delay the loading of crude, the official said. Three companies were short-listed by the state-run South Oil Company to bid for the project, including Italy's Saipem and Australian construction firm Leighton Holdings . "Petrofac's offer was picked up for the service contract and the one year extendable contract has been referred to the oil minister for final approval," the oil official, who declined to be named, said. Iraq has planned for four new SPM terminals which are being built by Leighton and are expected to help it in doubling crude output in the next few years. The opening of two SPM terminals this year has eased export constraints and boosted oil exports significantly. Baghdad has signed a series of contracts with foreign oil companies that target total oil production capacity of 12 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2017 - up from about 3 million bpd. Most analysts see 6 million to 7 million bpd as a more realistic goal. OPEC-member Iraq is expected to be a major source for future oil supplies. =====
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
WorleyParsons Wins Rumaila Oilfield Contract
Posted on 13 December 2010. Tags: Australia, BP, CNPC, Rumaila, South Oil Company, WorleyParsons
WorleyParsons Wins Rumaila Oilfield Contract
Australian engineering contractor WorleyParsons (WOR.AU) has won a contract to carry out engineering and design work at BP’s giant Rumaila oilfield in southern Iraq.
Sources familiar with the deal said the front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract was awarded to WorleyParsons by the consortium which includes Iraq’s state-run South Oil Company, BP and China National Petroleum, which jointly operate the Rumaila field.
WorleyParsons will carry out FEED work for the project, although the contract has yet to be approved officially by the Iraqi government, a sources told Dow Jones.
BP and CNPC, both of which signed a 20-year service contract in November last year with Baghdad to develop Rumaila, plan to increase production by 10 per cent this month from 1.06 million barrels a day.
The group has already started drilling at the field as they awarded earlier this year contracts worth up to $500 million to drill 49 wells. $15 billion is expected to be invested in the project over the 20-year duration of the contract.
The BP-led consortium has pledged to almost triple production at the field to 2.85 million barrels a day. BP holds a 38 per cent stake in the venture, while CNPC has 37 per cent and Iraq’s SOC holds the remaining 25 per cent.
The three contractors will receive a fixed fee of $US2 for each additional barrel of oil produced from Rumaila.
(Sources: Dow Jones, The Australian)
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Hermes Datacomms Wins BP Contract in Iraq
Posted on 28 June 2011. Tags: BP, Hermes
Hermes Datacommunications Middle East, a key specialist providing Wide Area Network communications to the upstream oil and gas industry has won a contract to continue providing VSAT communications to support BP’s operations in Iraq. Hermes will continue supporting degassing stations, rigs and static life support camps.
Included in this contract renewal is additional bandwidth to the South and North Rumaila sites to offer load sharing, whilst also providing full redundancy across the BP Iraq network. Hermes will be using a separate satellite provider, Yamal 200 to ensure complete independence from their existing link.
Kevin Thorley, CEO, Middle East says:
“We are delighted by the BP contract win. We believe this renewal demonstrates not only our ability to more than satisfy our customers’ needs but also highlights our strengths as a key player in Iraq, as well as the rest of the Middle East markets. We look forward to continuing a strong and fruitful relationship with BP.”
To facilitate this win, Hermes has further increased the Middle East team to include a dedicated Account Manager and technical team. This expansion includes the move of one of Hermes’ top Engineers from their Head office in the UK, Vincent Davies.
Davies says, “I am thrilled to join the emerging Middle East team and to contribute towards the continuing success of the BP account”.
Davies brings with him a wealth of international experience including three and a half years as Project Engineer, Algeria. He has worked on some very significant client accounts including Petrofac, KBR, BP and Weatherford.
BP's Iraq contract leads way as Petrofac reveals £1.3bn deals
Published Date: 01 July 2011
By Dominic Jeff
http://business.scotsman.com/business/BP39s-Iraq-contract-leads-way.6793976.jpg
ENERGY services group Petrofac said it has gained $2.1 billion (£1.3bn) in orders in the first six months of the year, including a contract with BP in Iraq announced this week.
The London-listed firm - which has a large operations base in Aberdeen and a training centre in Montrose - said in a trading update yesterday that it had a backlog of work of about $11.4bn, which it predicted would remain stable for the rest of the year.
Chief executive Ayman Asfari said: "We continue to deliver good operational performance across our portfolio of projects, including on the South Yoloten project in Turkmenistan, and we are well on course to deliver like-for-like net profit growth in 2011 of at least 15 per cent, in line with our previous guidance."
Petrofac's new one-year deal with BP is its second in Iraq and marks a further expansion in the war-torn oil producer. The $90 million inspection, maintenance and repair contract for the Rumaila oil field in southern Iraq will be shared with a Chinese joint venture partner but will be led by Petrofac's offshore engineering and operations business and is worth $63m to the group.
Petrofac also announced that its long-standing chief financial officer, Keith Roberts, will retire from the group at the end of the year.
Roberts, 54, joined the firm in early 2002 and played a leading role in its 2005 flotation.
He will be replaced by Cable & Wireless Worldwide director Tim Weller.
Tony Shepard, analyst at Charles Stanley, said he was surprised by the change but added that Roberts was leaving the group in "excellent health".
"It has a strong order book which gives excellent revenue visibility and the balance sheet is strong," he said.
Despite being impressed by the figures, which suggest it could double its recurring 2010 earnings by 2015, Charles Stanley rated Petrofac a "hold" in the short term, noting that shares were already "up with events".
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Two bombs hit Iraq Rumaila oil pipelines-official
07 Oct 2011 20:16
Source: Reuters // Reuters
BASRA, Iraq, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Two bombs hit pipeline networks transporting crude from Iraq's Rumaila oilfield, a senior Iraqi oil ministry official said on Friday.
The impact on production from Rumaila was not immediately clear, but firefighters were working to put out blazes caused by the blasts, two sources said. (Reporting by Aref Mohammed and Ahmed Rasheed; Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Jon Hemming)
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You are here: Home » Security » Energy Sector » Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Smoke billows from the Zubair tank farm June 5, 2011, after a bomb exploded on a storage tank. (Source: Olive Group incident report)
By ALI ABU IRAQ, BEN LANDO AND STAFF of Iraq Oil Report
Published October 8, 2011
At least two explosions rocked areas in southern and south of the Rumaila oil field late Friday, cutting crude and increasing concerns over security, in an attack seemingly timed with the visit by the oil minister.
There were few details as of press time, with officials difficult to reach late evening on Friday, the one traditional day off in Iraq, and a general reluctance to discuss security issues in the oil sector as the country opens up to foreign investors.
Thus, there were conflictin...
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You are here: Home » Security » Energy Sector » Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Smoke billows from the Zubair tank farm June 5, 2011, after a bomb exploded on a storage tank. (Source: Olive Group incident report)
By ALI ABU IRAQ, BEN LANDO AND STAFF of Iraq Oil Report
Published October 8, 2011
At least two explosions rocked areas in southern and south of the Rumaila oil field late Friday, cutting crude and increasing concerns over security, in an attack seemingly timed with the visit by the oil minister.
There were few details as of press time, with officials difficult to reach late evening on Friday, the one traditional day off in Iraq, and a general reluctance to discuss security issues in the oil sector as the country opens up to foreign investors.
Thus, there were conflictin...
===
Two bombs hit Iraq Rumaila oil pipelines-official
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BASRA, Iraq | Sat Oct 8, 2011 1:46am IST
Oct 7 (Reuters) - Two bombs hit pipeline networks transporting crude from Iraq's Rumaila oilfield, a senior Iraqi oil ministry official said on Friday.
The impact on production from Rumaila was not immediately clear, but firefighters were working to put out blazes caused by the blasts, two sources said. (Reporting by Aref Mohammed and Ahmed Rasheed; Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Jon Hemming)
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===============
UPDATE 1-Petrofac teams up with Schlumberger for big projects
Thu, Jan 05 03:00 AM EST
* Says tie-up will enable it to work on larger scale projects
LONDON, JAN 5 - British energy services firm Petrofac said it will team up with Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield services company, to enable it to bid for bigger projects with national oil companies and other firms.
DEALTALK-Under Fu, Sinopec M&A machine overtakes Exxon, BP
Thu, Jan 05 02:34 AM EST
* Sinopec has racked up deals worth $10.4 bln since June
* Most acquisitive energy major in past 6 years
==============
CORRECTED-BRIEF-Guide Exploration to buy certain natural gas properties
Wed, Jan 04 17:06 PM EST
- Jan 4 (Reuters) - Guide Exploration Ltd : * Announces agreement to purchase long life natural gas properties and $36.6 million bought deal equity financing * Deal for $61.5 million * The properties are currently producing approximately 20 mmcf/d of sweet natural gas (3,330 boe/d) * Says acquired properties are accretive on both a production and reserves per share basis * Acquisition will be funded by bought deal equity financing of $36.6 mln,co's credit facilities * Says acquired properties are expected to be accretive, on a cash flow per share basis, in 2012 * Says based on field production report estimates, 2011 exit production rate was approximately 12,000 boe/d * Says average 2012 production is expected to range from 15,800 to 16,600 boe/d
WorleyParsons Wins Rumaila Oilfield Contract
Australian engineering contractor WorleyParsons (WOR.AU) has won a contract to carry out engineering and design work at BP’s giant Rumaila oilfield in southern Iraq.
Sources familiar with the deal said the front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract was awarded to WorleyParsons by the consortium which includes Iraq’s state-run South Oil Company, BP and China National Petroleum, which jointly operate the Rumaila field.
WorleyParsons will carry out FEED work for the project, although the contract has yet to be approved officially by the Iraqi government, a sources told Dow Jones.
BP and CNPC, both of which signed a 20-year service contract in November last year with Baghdad to develop Rumaila, plan to increase production by 10 per cent this month from 1.06 million barrels a day.
The group has already started drilling at the field as they awarded earlier this year contracts worth up to $500 million to drill 49 wells. $15 billion is expected to be invested in the project over the 20-year duration of the contract.
The BP-led consortium has pledged to almost triple production at the field to 2.85 million barrels a day. BP holds a 38 per cent stake in the venture, while CNPC has 37 per cent and Iraq’s SOC holds the remaining 25 per cent.
The three contractors will receive a fixed fee of $US2 for each additional barrel of oil produced from Rumaila.
(Sources: Dow Jones, The Australian)
===
Hermes Datacomms Wins BP Contract in Iraq
Posted on 28 June 2011. Tags: BP, Hermes
Hermes Datacommunications Middle East, a key specialist providing Wide Area Network communications to the upstream oil and gas industry has won a contract to continue providing VSAT communications to support BP’s operations in Iraq. Hermes will continue supporting degassing stations, rigs and static life support camps.
Included in this contract renewal is additional bandwidth to the South and North Rumaila sites to offer load sharing, whilst also providing full redundancy across the BP Iraq network. Hermes will be using a separate satellite provider, Yamal 200 to ensure complete independence from their existing link.
Kevin Thorley, CEO, Middle East says:
“We are delighted by the BP contract win. We believe this renewal demonstrates not only our ability to more than satisfy our customers’ needs but also highlights our strengths as a key player in Iraq, as well as the rest of the Middle East markets. We look forward to continuing a strong and fruitful relationship with BP.”
To facilitate this win, Hermes has further increased the Middle East team to include a dedicated Account Manager and technical team. This expansion includes the move of one of Hermes’ top Engineers from their Head office in the UK, Vincent Davies.
Davies says, “I am thrilled to join the emerging Middle East team and to contribute towards the continuing success of the BP account”.
Davies brings with him a wealth of international experience including three and a half years as Project Engineer, Algeria. He has worked on some very significant client accounts including Petrofac, KBR, BP and Weatherford.
BP's Iraq contract leads way as Petrofac reveals £1.3bn deals
Published Date: 01 July 2011
By Dominic Jeff
http://business.scotsman.com/business/BP39s-Iraq-contract-leads-way.6793976.jpg
ENERGY services group Petrofac said it has gained $2.1 billion (£1.3bn) in orders in the first six months of the year, including a contract with BP in Iraq announced this week.
The London-listed firm - which has a large operations base in Aberdeen and a training centre in Montrose - said in a trading update yesterday that it had a backlog of work of about $11.4bn, which it predicted would remain stable for the rest of the year.
Chief executive Ayman Asfari said: "We continue to deliver good operational performance across our portfolio of projects, including on the South Yoloten project in Turkmenistan, and we are well on course to deliver like-for-like net profit growth in 2011 of at least 15 per cent, in line with our previous guidance."
Petrofac's new one-year deal with BP is its second in Iraq and marks a further expansion in the war-torn oil producer. The $90 million inspection, maintenance and repair contract for the Rumaila oil field in southern Iraq will be shared with a Chinese joint venture partner but will be led by Petrofac's offshore engineering and operations business and is worth $63m to the group.
Petrofac also announced that its long-standing chief financial officer, Keith Roberts, will retire from the group at the end of the year.
Roberts, 54, joined the firm in early 2002 and played a leading role in its 2005 flotation.
He will be replaced by Cable & Wireless Worldwide director Tim Weller.
Tony Shepard, analyst at Charles Stanley, said he was surprised by the change but added that Roberts was leaving the group in "excellent health".
"It has a strong order book which gives excellent revenue visibility and the balance sheet is strong," he said.
Despite being impressed by the figures, which suggest it could double its recurring 2010 earnings by 2015, Charles Stanley rated Petrofac a "hold" in the short term, noting that shares were already "up with events".
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Two bombs hit Iraq Rumaila oil pipelines-official
07 Oct 2011 20:16
Source: Reuters // Reuters
BASRA, Iraq, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Two bombs hit pipeline networks transporting crude from Iraq's Rumaila oilfield, a senior Iraqi oil ministry official said on Friday.
The impact on production from Rumaila was not immediately clear, but firefighters were working to put out blazes caused by the blasts, two sources said. (Reporting by Aref Mohammed and Ahmed Rasheed; Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Jon Hemming)
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You are here: Home » Security » Energy Sector » Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Smoke billows from the Zubair tank farm June 5, 2011, after a bomb exploded on a storage tank. (Source: Olive Group incident report)
By ALI ABU IRAQ, BEN LANDO AND STAFF of Iraq Oil Report
Published October 8, 2011
At least two explosions rocked areas in southern and south of the Rumaila oil field late Friday, cutting crude and increasing concerns over security, in an attack seemingly timed with the visit by the oil minister.
There were few details as of press time, with officials difficult to reach late evening on Friday, the one traditional day off in Iraq, and a general reluctance to discuss security issues in the oil sector as the country opens up to foreign investors.
Thus, there were conflictin...
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You are here: Home » Security » Energy Sector » Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Explosions considered terrorism in Basra oil field
Smoke billows from the Zubair tank farm June 5, 2011, after a bomb exploded on a storage tank. (Source: Olive Group incident report)
By ALI ABU IRAQ, BEN LANDO AND STAFF of Iraq Oil Report
Published October 8, 2011
At least two explosions rocked areas in southern and south of the Rumaila oil field late Friday, cutting crude and increasing concerns over security, in an attack seemingly timed with the visit by the oil minister.
There were few details as of press time, with officials difficult to reach late evening on Friday, the one traditional day off in Iraq, and a general reluctance to discuss security issues in the oil sector as the country opens up to foreign investors.
Thus, there were conflictin...
===
Two bombs hit Iraq Rumaila oil pipelines-official
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BASRA, Iraq | Sat Oct 8, 2011 1:46am IST
Oct 7 (Reuters) - Two bombs hit pipeline networks transporting crude from Iraq's Rumaila oilfield, a senior Iraqi oil ministry official said on Friday.
The impact on production from Rumaila was not immediately clear, but firefighters were working to put out blazes caused by the blasts, two sources said. (Reporting by Aref Mohammed and Ahmed Rasheed; Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Jon Hemming)
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Landmines hamper Iraq oil boom, delay investment
RUMAILA, Iraq |
(Reuters) - In Iraq's vast southern desert, red sandbags stretch along roadsides to warn of the danger from Saddam-era landmines that litter the prized Rumaila oilfield. White ones signal areas safe to walk or drive.
Now recovering from decades of conflict, Iraq may have 25 million landmines and millions of other unexploded bombs that are slowing development of some of the world's largest fields and one of Iraq's key cities, the southern oil hub Basra.
"Landmines and (unexploded) war remnants are the silent enemy," said Ali al-Maliki, head of the municipal security committee in Basra, where leftover ordnance is slowing the construction of bridges, homes and commercial districts.
The red- and white-painted sandbags seem a fragile safety barrier for the thousands of workers now striving to ramp up production from 17-billion-barrel supergiant Rumaila and the other massive fields surrounding Basra.
There was no protection for six de-miners killed recently when a pile of recovered mines and old ordnance exploded.
"The demining workers, along with Iraqi army officers, ignited a fuse to detonate a land mine pile close to Rumaila North, but nothing happened. When the team went back to check, the pile exploded," said a Basra oil police investigator.
The threat of landmines extends far beyond the small army of workers now trying to clear the southern oilfields. The United Nations Development Programme says mines caused 14,000 casualties in Iraq between 1991 and 2007. More than half died from their wounds.
MINES BY THE MILLIONS
The environment ministry estimates that 25 million landmines are scattered around Iraq, many along the border with Iran, a legacy of the 1980-88 war between neighbors that killed a million people. UNICEF puts the number of anti-personnel mines around 20 million, along with 50 million cluster bombs.
Mines can block developers from sinking new wells in promising areas and building pipelines and other infrastructure needed to fulfill Iraq's ambitious goal of ramping up capacity to 12 million barrels per day by 2017, a figure that would rival top global producer Saudi Arabia.
Iraq's current production is 2.9 million bpd.
Many of the mines are deeply buried in the sand after so many years in place, and removal efforts have delayed plans to sink wells, notably at 12.9-billion-barrel supergiant West Qurna Phase Two, being developed by Russia's LUKOIL and Norway's Statoil, said a report by the state-run South Oil Company.
"Landmines are buried to around three meters, and that makes it difficult to spot them," the report said. "Landmines and unexploded ordnance have cause a delay in developing some fields and the preparation of drilling pads, as at West Qurna 2 and other border fields like Fakka and Badra."
The international companies investing billions of dollars in Iraq's lucrative fields have hired demining companies to clear them, and under their service contracts with Baghdad, Iraq must repay firms for the considerable cost.
Arab Gulf Co. was hired to demine Rumaila, West Qurna, Zubair and Badra. Some of its workers are Saddam-era army officers with demining experience.
Most of the landmines around oil production facilities in the south were planted by Saddam's army in the 1980s to prevent Iranian attacks on key oil infrastructure.
"Until now we have managed to defuse around 8,900 landmines and unexploded ordnance from Rumaila North and South ... we have cleared around 45 million square meter of Rumaila," said Nawaf Abdulla, head of operations at Arab Gulf. "Our contract with BP covers 125 million square meters."
"Decades have passed and lifting landmines becomes nearly impossible. We have to detonate mines at the location as a last resort," he said.
DREAM OF BRIDGES, MALLS, HOMES
Under its economic development plan, Iraq aims to attract $86 billion in investment by 2014 as it tries to rebuild more than eight years after the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
Authorities in Basra, one of Iraq's largest cities and the hub of oil production and exports, say mines are hampering billions of dollars worth of development projects.
"We have ambitious plans to revive the eastern part of the city, building new bridges, residential complexes and markets, but landmines from the Iraq-Iran war are discouraging foreign investors from coming here," said Haider Ali, the Basra investment office spokesman.
Located about 420 km (260 miles) south of Baghdad, Basra has been relatively peaceful in recent years while many areas battle a stubborn Sunni insurgency and Shi'ite militias responsible for scores of bombings and other attacks each month.
But the city saw fierce fighting in 2008 when Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki ordered the Iraqi army to crush Shi'ite militias and criminal gangs. Now Basra is focused on reconstruction.
In the eastern Basra district of Shatt al-Arab, Mayor Haider al-Ibadi has been trying to lure investors to build housing and entertainment areas.
"Investors are not ready to risk billions of dollars in a land mine area," said Ibadi. "If we could overcome this issue, billions in investments could be secured for this area."
(Writing by Ahmed Rasheed; Editing by Jim Loney and Richard Balmforth)
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