Sat, 26 May 2012 19:03:07 +0000WeeblyThu, 14 Jul 2011 13:11:42 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/07/bp-plans-re-development-of-oil-fields-west-of-shetland-islands.htmlBP has announced an agreement to progress a major re-development of the Schiehallion and Loyal oil fields to the west of the Shetland Islands.

According to BP, Schiehallion and Loyal have produced nearly 400 million barrels of oil since production started in 1998 and an estimated 450 million barrels of resource is still available.

The investment of approximately £3bn in the re-development of the fields will take production to 2035 and possibly beyond.

The Quad 204 project involves replacing the existing Schiehallion floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel with a new FPSO vessel, which is scheduled to be installed in 2015.

The new vessel will be 270m long by 52m wide and able to process and export up to 130,000 barrels a day of oil, as well as storing in excess of one million barrels.

BP said in a statement that there will also be a major investment in the upgrade and replacement of the subsea facilities to enable the full development of the reserves.

‘We are committed to growing and maintaining a material, high-quality business there for the long term,’ said Bob Dudley, group chief executive of BP. ‘We are pursuing a number of additional growth opportunities to support this strategy. For us, a key to this strategy is the need to maintain the integrity of our existing infrastructure; to look after our reservoirs and maximise recovery; and to deploy and develop the necessary capability.’

The new facilities are scheduled to commence production in 2016.

BP will have a 36.3 per cent ownership interest in the new FPSO vessel, with Shell, Hess, Statoil, OMV (UK) and Murphy Petroleum also taking stakes.

http://www.theengineer.co.uk/sectors/energy-and-environment/news/bp-plans-re-development-of-oil-fields-west-of-shetland-islands/1009392.article
]]>Wed, 06 Jul 2011 16:15:29 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/07/oil-gas-uk-responds-to-treasury-announcement.htmlOil & Gas Uk has responded to a recent announcement from the Treasury in the UK.

Mike Tholen, Oil & Gas UK’s Economics Director, said: “Oil & Gas UK considers HM Treasury’s announcement of an extension to the ‘Ring Fence Expenditure Supplement’ to be a constructive  move.

"Whilst the change to the allowance will not redress the damage caused by the recent tax increase, it will help new investors to the UKCS who are otherwise disadvantaged compared to more established players.
 
"In making these changes, the government appears to acknowledge that the increase in supplementary corporation tax announced in this years Budget has made the UK less competitive. 

"Oil & Gas UK is working closely with industry to establish the most effective means of encouraging investments which have been knocked back by the recent and unheralded tax increase. 

"We anticipate that further measures, including extension of the existing field allowance structure to sustain investment in both existing fields as well as in new fields will be required. Oil & Gas UK  are continuing to engage with HM Treasury on that basis.

"Oil & Gas UK is also working with the Treasury to find ways to achieve certainty regarding companies’ access to tax relief for decommissioning, which will encourage late life investment and liberate the transfer of assets to those companies best suited to maximise investment and lengthen the lives of mature fields. Here also, we hope to see matters resolved by Budget 2012."

Malcolm Webb Oil & Gas UK's Chief Executive said: "This is a first step in the right direction. We made it clear after the Budget that Government actions and not just words would be required to begin to rebuild trust and restore the confidence of investors. This will help some new players but much more action is needed including on other reliefs and on the important decommissioning problem in the light of the Budget. However this has to be seen as an encouraging first sign of some real progress."

From http://www.oilpubs.com/oso/article.asp?v1=10955 ]]>Tue, 14 Jun 2011 08:57:00 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/subsea-7-sa-awarded-surf-contract-award-valued-at-50-million.htmlSubsea 7 announced a contract award win to the the value of $50 million.  The SURF contract was handed out by Dana Petroleum (E&P) at the Triton Field in the Greater Guillemot Area of the North Sea.

Engineering, fabrication and installation will be started on a 10 " 25KM water injection pipeline along with the installation of a 16km static umbilical and umbilical riser base. The work will also cover tie-ins, testing and pre-commissioning.

http://oilandgasrecruiting.com/article_192.html
]]>Mon, 13 Jun 2011 14:07:06 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/gigawatt-milestone-for-scottish-power-wind-farms.htmlTwo new wind farms in South Ayrshire, which are operated by Scottish Power, have entered production.

The move has increased the company's total capacity from wind power to one gigawatt, making it the first in the UK to reach this milestone.

Scottish Power Renewables has now expanded its operation to 24 wind farms.

According to the company's figures, it has the potential to power 600,000 homes from wind.

The new wind farms near Barrhill were officially opened by First Minister Alex Salmond and Ignacio Galan, the chairman of Scottish Power's parent company, Iberdrola.

Low carbon economy The larger of the two, at Arecleoch, has 60 turbines. Neighbouring Mark Hill has 24 turbines.

The sites operated in Scotland by Scottish Power Renewables include Whitelee near Glasgow, the largest onshore wind farm in Europe.

Continue reading the main story “Start Quote This clearly shows our commitment to clean energy and sustainable development in Scotland”

End Quote Ignacio Galan Iberdrola Speaking at the opening of the new wind farms, Mr Salmond said: "The opening of the Arecleoch and Mark Hill wind farms here in South Ayrshire is a significant milestone for Scottish Power Renewables.

"It also underlines both the rapid progress Scotland has made in clean energy generation and our industry's leading role in the wider development of a genuinely low carbon economy across Europe."

Ignacio Galan, the chairman of Iberdrola, said: "For Scottish Power Renewables, today is an especially satisfying day.

"This clearly shows our commitment to clean energy and sustainable development in Scotland."

The Scottish government has set as a target that the equivalent of 100% of the country's electricity should come from renewable sources by 2020.

]]>Fri, 10 Jun 2011 09:09:19 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/experts-say-nz-sittting-on-an-oil-bonanza.htmlNew Zealand's exclusive economic zone covers six million square kilometres and experts claim a quarter of that is capable of producing oil and gas.

The off-shore zone around the country is being described as the North Sea of the southern hemisphere.

While some want greater protection of NZ's coastal waters, oil and gas industry leaders say deep underneath lies the world's next big oil and gas bonanza.

"If they are productive then we've got a resource out there that's about the size of the North Sea," Chris Uruski from GNS Science said.

Uruski has been studying NZ's surrounding waters for the past decade and says there's 1.7 million square kilometres of potential oil - seven times the size of the country.

"Taranaki has produced two billion barrels of oil equivalent so far and I reckon it's about 10 times that," said Uruski.

American Jeff Oslund, who represents Andarco Petroleum, is attending an international conference in New Plymouth and said Andarco expects to find the equivalent of 700 million barrels of oil in exploration off New Zealand.

Andarco is one of the world's biggest independent oil and gas exploration and production companies and the convention was told the company will begin deep sea drilling either in the Canterbury Basin or off shore Taranaki within the year.

Advertisement The company has drilled 150 deep-sea wells and has a clean track record but it's also a shareholder in the Gulf of Mexico well which exploded causing a huge oil spill last year.

"It's a tragic event that no one wants to happen," Oslund said.

And Uruski said "everybody is going to be extremely careful" after the Gulf of Mexico disaster.

Stuart Trundle from Venture Taranaki is welcoming the venture.

"When we look at employment growth and indeed GDP growth this has to be the sweet spot of the New Zealand economy," said Trundle.

Oil and gas is already the country's fourth-largest industry, but another flow-on effect could be more protests.

http://tvnz.co.nz/business-news/experts-say-nz-sittting-oil-bonanza-4220855
]]>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 15:57:22 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/providence-begins-3d-seismic-survey-of-celtic-sea-oil-prospect.htmlOil and gas exploration firm Providence Resources has embarked on a 3D seismic survey of its Barryroe oil discovery in the north Celtic Sea.

The company controls 50pc of the prospect, with San Leon Energy holding 30pc and Lansdowne Oil and Gas the other 20pc.

It is expected the survey will take two weeks to complete and it will be used to assist in the pre-development drilling programme, according to Providence. Drilling is slated to start toward the end of the summer.

A semi-submersible rig has already been contracted for the drilling programme.

Providence said the new 3D seismic data combined with modern well technology and high oil prices would be "key components" to unlocking value at Barryroe.

Providence reckons Barryroe could contain as much as 60 million barrels of oil.

Providence has previously stated that studies have indicated the complex reservoir architecture together with the waxy nature of the Barryroe crude could pose a challenge to commercial development.

However, the company believes the current environment, better technology and seismic data could help it overcome such challenges.

"The drilling campaign will cover six basins and represents the largest drilling campaign ever carried out offshore Ireland," said chief executive Tony O'Reilly.

The company boosted its holding in the Barryroe discovery from 30pc to 50pc last December as part of an asset swap with Lansdowne.

- John Mulligan

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/providence-begins-3d-seismic-survey-of-celtic-sea-oil-prospect-2670002.html ]]>Wed, 08 Jun 2011 15:52:32 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/spring-growth-for-wind-turbines.htmlA series of new, larger turbines with longer blades have been launched into the market recently as manufacturers strive to deliver the lowest cost of energy with the next generation of designs

London, UK A trend towards larger capacity turbines with longer blades and larger rotor diameters has been long established, with OEMs continuing to offer existing machines with a range of rotor diameters. But now, a new generation of still larger machines has been unveiled.

Among those companies unveiling new models REpower Systems AG, introduced its 3.2M114. Optimised for low-wind locations, the 3.2 MW turbine has a 143 metre hub height and a 114 metre rotor.

A hybrid tower made of concrete and steel is to be used. At the end of 2010, two 3 MW turbines were erected on 128 metre hybrid towers in Germany. A second 3.2M114 prototype, with a hub height of 93 metres and a steel tube tower is due to be erected late 2011.

Matthias Schubert, REpower Chief Technology Officer (CTO) says: "Especially in the European market, greater hub heights allow new sites to be developed. In southern Germany, for example, significant unexploited potential still exists in hilly terrain and forested areas."

REpower majority-owners Suzlon, meanwhile, has also launched a low-wind version of an existing platform recently with its new S9X suite of machines.

An evolution of Suzlon's platform, the upgrade is built around doubly fed induction generator-based technology. New blade designs with rotor diameters of 95 and 97 metres offer power production from moderate to low wind speeds, the company says, and tower heights of 90 or 100 metres are available for the 2 MW machine.

Serial production of the S95 turbine is scheduled to begin in Q2 of the 2011-2012 financial year, followed by the S97 in Q4.

Similarly, Alstom has revealed an upgrade to its existing 3 MW ECO 100 platform to specifically address low wind speed sites with a new (IEC Class III-A) turbine, the ECO 11X, with a larger rotor diameter. The exact rotor diameter, in the range of 115-125 metres, will be released in the second half of 2011, when the turbine will be offered for deliveries starting in 2013.

Earlier the company had announced a new partnership with French generator manufacturer Converteam in a move that will bring the company's direct drive permanent magnet generator to Alstom's under-development 6 MW offshore wind turbine.

Under the terms of the alliance, Converteam will supply Alstom with its Advanced High Density (AHD) direct drive PMG. Pierre Bastid, CEO of Converteam, commented: "The generator will have the largest torque of any PMG built to date, and with this project, we are making a big step in commercialising very large direct drive wind generators."

The first two turbines are scheduled for installation off the coast of Belgium during the winter of 2011-2012 in collaboration with developers Belwind as part of a roughly 40 MW demonstrator project

Full commercialisation and series production of the turbine is anticipated in 2014. In January Alstom and EDF Energies Nouvelles (EDF-EN) announced that they would jointly bid using the 6 MW machine for projects under the recently launched French offshore wind tender for 6 GW by 2020.                                            

Converteam itself has recently been the subject of an acquisition by GE, which at the end of March announced that it had entered into a roughly US$3.2 billion agreement to acquire some 90% of the equity in Converteam from a controlling shareholder group.

GE's announcement followed a similar move from American Superconductor Corporation (AMSC), which has signed an agreement to acquire Finland-based The Switch Engineering Oy.

Revealing the €190 million ($265 million) acquisition, AMSC said it expects The Switch's background in advanced synchronous generators to help commercialise superconductor generators for its direct drive 10 MW SeaTitan turbine.

Direct Drive Systems

A number of new direct drive and hybrid systems have also been launched onto the market recently. For example, GE has introduced its 4.1-113 wind turbine, a 4 MW-class machine which it says is optimised for offshore use.

The company has signed a contract to supply one of the machines to Göteborg Energi for installation in Gothenburg harbour, Sweden, in the second half of 2011. The project is supported by the Swedish Energy Agency through its technology programme.

Earlier, in June 2010, GE revealed plans to install up to five offshore demonstration wind turbines through separate partnerships with Norwegian firms Statoil and Lyse and featuring a 4 MW machine with a 110 metre rotor diameter. Subject to successful completion of feasibility studies and the appropriate investment and funding decisions, the installation of the wind turbines is due to start in 2012.

This new machine builds on the 3.5 MW direct-drive design which GE obtained through its September 2009 acquisition of Norwegian firm ScanWind and which has been operating since 2005 on a coastal site in Norway.

Siemens has also revealed its new direct drive gearless wind turbine for low to moderate wind speeds. The core features of the new SWT-2.3-113 wind turbine are its permanent magnet generator and a rotor diameter of 113 metres when fitted with the new Siemens B55 Quantum Blades. This new blade design is lighter than previous models but retains the strength of earlier generations, Siemens says. Each blade is 55 metres long and features a redesigned tip and root section. Meanwhile, the blade tip has also been redesigned to minimise loads and reduce noise levels to a claimed 105 dB, which Siemens says makes it one of the quietest on the market. The top head mass of the new machine is estimated at 114 tonnes, with the rotor comprising some 66,700 kg of that.

With a prototype of the new machine installed in the Netherlands in March, the SWT-2.3-113 is the second gearless wind turbine launched by Siemens following on from the SWT-3.0-101, the 3 MW direct drive wind turbine it launched in April 2010.

To date, Siemens has installed and commissioned a total of five direct drive SWT-3.0-101 wind turbines in Denmark and Norway with further projects planned in the US, Denmark and Germany.

"The first prototypes of our SWT-3.0-101 have been running for more than a year and fulfilling all expectations in terms of reliability and performance," said Henrik Stiesdal, CTO of the Siemens Wind Power Business Unit.

"This year we'll launch our 6 MW direct drive wind turbine, which will be particularly suitable for large offshore wind power plants," he added.

Meanwhile, Northern Power Systems Inc has announced the introduction of a 2.3 MW permanent magnet direct drive wind turbine designed for the onshore market.

At the same time, the company said it had installed and commissioned its first prototype machine, owned by Heritage Sustainable Energy at the Stoney Corners wind farm in McBain, Michigan, in the US.

The prototype turbine, shipped from the new Northern Power factory in Saginaw, Michigan, is the largest such direct drive machine currently in commercial operation in North America, the company claims, adding that the Northern Power 2.3, features a superior power curve and a lower cut in speed than competing wind turbines.

New Entrants, New Technologies

A new entrant to the offshore sector, Doosan Power Systems, part of the Korean industrial conglomerate Doosan Heavy, has unveiled plans to develop a 6 MW offshore specific turbine. It plans to develop the turbine in order to enter the European market, where the company says it has identified a significant opportunity by 2020.

Furthermore, the company says that its clients have expressed an interest in seeing new competitive entrants to the offshore wind arena. It currently offers a geared 3 MW wind turbine product, first developed in 2004 and commercially launched towards the end of 2010, although currently this is mainly for its domestic market. In September 2009, Doosan installed a prototype machine in Gimnyeong, Jeju Island.

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction also recently announced that it had acquired type certification for its 3 MW offshore wind turbine from DEWI-OCC in Germany.

Doosan says it has decided to aggressively step up its campaign to industrialise its wind power business. The company also says it plans to co-develop core parts, including blades, with local small and medium-sized enterprises.

While the conceptual specification of the new 6 MW machine is complete, Doosan says it is currently finalising both the technical details of the system as well as options for manufacturing and assembly — Scotland is one option being favourably considered with groundbreaking anticipated in 2012. Technical specifications — rotor diameter, and whether it is geared, hybrid or gearless — are due to be released as Wind Technology goes to press with the company still working with its design partners.

An on-site pilot prototype is due to be installed by the end of 2013 and this will be followed in 2014 by prototype and demonstration units offshore, likely comprising three to four machines. Currently, the company foresees commercial series production in 2015. However, it is also in discussion with its partners with a view to exploring an option to accelerate the development programme by a full year. In addition, it is open to the concept of jointly developing pilot schemes with utility partners, it says.

In a related move, the company has also said it expects to invest up to £170 million (around $255 million) in wind power in Scotland over the next decade.

Following positive discussions, Doosan and Scottish Enterprise have agreed to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will likely see the company locate its R&D Centre of Excellence for Renewables at its current site at Westway in Renfrew, near Glasgow. A second phase will advance a further proposal for the establishment of assembly and manufacturing facilities in Scotland - now the company's favoured location for wind turbine prototype-build and manufacturing.

Jean-Michel Aubertin, Doosan Power Systems' CEO, said: "We hope to develop cutting-edge wind power technology that will enhance the role of renewables in the energy mix. This also is great news for Scotland's economy in terms of jobs and inward investment. Doosan's current wind power portfolio and position with the industry will continue to grow strongly over the coming years."

Elsewhere, Germany's Winergy presented a new 3 MW drive train concept in April 2011, the so-called 'HybridDrive', which combines the gearbox and generator in a single compact drive train concept. Winergy says that the HybridDrive uses only 20% of the quantity of rare earth elements required for direct driven wind turbines.

The new HybridDrive combines a two-stage gearbox with a permanent-magnet generator in a design that allows for a significant reduction of the nacelle size and minimisation of the overall weight, Winergy says. Direct connection of the gearbox to the generator enables the length of the drive train to be shortened by about 35%. Furthermore, Winergy says, its compact dimensions present various advantages for the design of a wind turbine.

For example, if the HybridDrive is used to replace an existing wind turbine design, it is possible to utilise the space that has been saved for the converter and transformer, instead of locating these in the tower. This choice of location for the transformers reduces the low-voltage cable losses, which subsequently improves efficiency, it says.

A modular design that allows assembly/disassembly of single elements through the internal service crane also represents an advantage over other existing integrated solutions, Winergy claims.

The company offers the HybridDrive optionally with journal bearings or conventional bearings for the planetary bearings. According to Winergy, the product distinguishes itself through its small product dimensions and the highest power density in the industry. Furthermore, the company adds, the concept can be easily implemented for the 6 to 7 MW power range of turbines.

Offshore Entries

Germany's Nordex SE has revealed its new platform, the N150/6000, which has been developed specially for offshore. With a 150 metre rotor diameter, it has a nominal output of 6 MW and is a direct drive machine with a permanent magnet generator and a full power converter, a move the company says has enabled it to keep the, undisclosed, top head mass low. Nordex says it is currently engineering this drive train design in conjunction with its suppliers.

Explaining the move, Thomas Karst, CEO of the Offshore division, said: "Out at sea in particular, we must do everything we can to optimise the technical reliability of the turbine. With cost structures differing to those in the onshore market, we are able to implement a more complex drive system, namely a direct drive."

Nordex has participated in a reference project in the German part of the Baltic Sea and says that up to 70 machines are to be installed in Germany from 2014-2015 onwards.

"Our strategy is being driven by the development of a competitive product. For this purpose, we are acting on the trend towards third-generation wind turbines, which are characterised by a substantially greater nominal output and lower specific weights," said Thomas Richterich, Nordex CEO.

Nordex also recently launched its onshore 2.4 MW N117/2400 machine. The so-called Gamma Generation turbine has been specially developed for inland locations with a 117 metre rotor diameter and is the highest-yielding IEC III turbine in its class, with a capacity factor of 40%, its manufacturer claims. The N117/2400 is scheduled to enter series production in July 2012.

Nordex says it has also implemented a second efficiency package, which boosts the yield of its 2.5 MW series of turbines by 2.6% with its Nordex AP control module, which measures wind speed, direction and air density. Using this, the management system adjusts the generator to optimum effect, resulting in greater yields at low and medium wind speeds.

Vestas has also marked a new move back into offshore with a 7 MW machine boasting a massive 164 metre rotor diameter.

This new geared machine, at 7 MW, is significantly larger than previously announced plans for a 6 MW machine. The V164-7.0 MW features a swept area of more than 21,000 m².

Finn Strom Madsen, president of Vestas Technology R&D, explained the philosophy behind this particular design choice, saying: "We actually kept all options open from the start, running two separate parallel RD development tracks: one focusing on direct drive and one on a geared solution. It soon became clear that if we wanted to meet the customers' expectations about lowest possible cost of energy and high business case certainty, we needed a perfect combination of innovation and proven technology and so the choice could only be to go for a medium-speed drive-train solution."

Construction of the first V164-7.0 MW prototypes is expected in Q4 2012. Serial production is set to begin in Q1 2015, provided, Vestas says, a firm order backlog is in place to justify the substantial investment needed to pave the way for the V164-7.0 MW.

Commenting on the expected deployment of the machine, Anders See-Jensen, President of Vestas Offshore, said: "We expect the major part of offshore wind development to happen in the northern part of Europe, where the conditions at sea are particularly rough… we have specifically designed the V164-7.0 MW to provide the highest energy capture and the highest reliability in this rough and challenging environment." Based on the potential market size, the business case for the machine is based on Europe and primarily the Northern European markets, Vestas says, though its adds that in due course it would take the machine to other regions, given demand.

DONG Energy and Vestas subsequently announced the signing of a letter of intent regarding testing of the new turbine. According to the letter of intent, DONG Energy will perform a design review of the V164-7.0 MW. Additionally, it is the intention that one or more could be installed at one of DONG Energy's test sites for research and demonstration purposes. The companies are investigating the possibility of Vestas supplying a number of machines for DONG Energy's Danish onshore Kappel test site, for example. The move could enable DONG to be one of the first to acquire this next generation turbine for a future commercial offshore project.

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/06/spring-growth-for-wind-turbines ]]>Wed, 08 Jun 2011 09:10:34 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/national-carbon-capture-center-launches-post-combustion-test-center.htmlThe recent successful commissioning of an Alabama-based test facility is another step forward in research that will speed deployment of innovative post-combustion carbon dioxide (CO2) capture technologies for coal-based power plants, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Technologies tested at the Post-Combustion Carbon Capture Center (or PC4) are an important component of Carbon Capture and Storage, whose commercial deployment is considered by many experts as essential for helping to reduce human-generated CO2 emissions that contribute to potential climate change.

The PC4 facility is part of the larger NCCC, a testing and evaluation center established by the U.S. Department of Energy in 2009 and operated and managed by Southern Company. The NCCC works collaboratively with technology developers worldwide to test and evaluate both pre- and post-combustion carbon capture technologies under realistic conditions, accelerating development of cost-effective CO2 capture technologies and ensuring continued use of coal for power generation.

The PC4 is located at the Alabama Power Gaston power plant Unit 5, an 880 MW supercritical pulverized coal unit. Initial testing at the PC4 began recently when researchers used a solvent called monoethanolamine (MEA) to capture CO2 from a slipstream of flue gas from the plant. To date, the MEA solvent has exceeded the expected 90 percent CO2 capture, and the unit is now in steady operation capturing about 10 tons of CO2 per day. Data from these initial tests will be used as a baseline to evaluate the performance of emerging CO2 capture technologies.

To-date, the NCCC has entered into testing agreements with Aker Clean Carbon AS and Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group Inc. for evaluation of their advanced CO2 capture processes at PC4. Both companies plan to conduct testing of their respective technologies at the NCCC later this year.

In addition to DOE and Southern Company, participants in the NCCC include American Electric Power, Arch Coal, EPRI, Luminant, NRG Energy, Peabody Energy, and RioTinto. For more information about the center, please visit the NCCC website:
http://www.nationalcarboncapturecenter.com/index.html

http://www.renewablesbiz.com/article/11/06/national-carbon-capture-center-launches-post-combustion-test-center

]]>Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:18:51 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/ithaca-energy-shares-up-as-it-completes-last-well-on-athena-field.htmlOil and gas firm Ithaca Energy Inc (LON:IAE, CVE:IAE) has completed the last well on the Athena field in the UK North Sea, it said.

Development drilling is now over and the project is on track to start in the fourth quarter this year - at around 22,000 barrels of oil per day, approx 5,000 barrels of oil per day net to Ithaca.

The company's shares were up 3.31 percent in early deals today - changing hands at 144.25 pence - as investors chered the news.

Athena field development well 14/18b-A2Z hit 515 feet of net reservoir in the well bore which was drilled to a total measured depth of 15,497 feet, said the company.

The drill-rig Sedco 704 will now perforate the well and the three existing suspended production wells and the water injection well.

Electric logs acquired across the entire reservoir section of interbedded Scapa age sandstones and shales have confirmed a series of reservoir sands with porosities up to 20percent.

Two of the thickest, high porosity sandstone units were dicovered close to the top of the reservoir section and the company expects that these these will contribute to strong flow rates when this well comes into production.

Ithaca Energy and its wholly owned subsidiary Ithaca Energy (UK) Limited is an oil and gas exploration, development and production company active in the UK's Continental Shelf.

Athena JV partners are Ithaca (operator, 22.5 percent), Dyas UK Ltd (47.5 percent), EWE Aktiengesellschaft (20 percent) and Zeus Petroleum Limited (10 percent).

http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/29020/
]]>Mon, 06 Jun 2011 08:23:21 +0000http://www.nuparcenergyjobs.com/1/post/2011/06/encore-eyes-further-cladhan-drilling-in-2012.htmlUK oil explorer EnCore Oil (EO.) is planning further appraisal drilling at its Cladhan discovery in the North Sea during the first half of 2012, having completed its current four-well programme.

The AIM-listed group's fourth and final Cladhan appraisal well, 210/30a-4x, was drilled as a side-track to evaluate a channel to the south of the current Cladhan discovery.

The well, which reached a total depth of 10,614 feet, encountered an Upper Jurassic reservoir with a gross true vertical thickness (TVT) of 171 feet and 105 feet of net sand, as well as excellent reservoir quality.

EnCore, which has seen its shares jump 263% over the past year, said pressure data indicated that an uppermost sandstone unit of five feet TVT is hydrocarbon bearing with an "Oil Down To" at 10,177 feet true vertical depth Sub Sea.

Below this oil bearing sand, a further 100 net feet of water-wet sands were encountered.

And while this latest sidetrack has not added further resource to the original discovery, EnCore said pressure data revealed the sands to be over pressured in this well, similar to the pressure trend encountered in the Central Channel drilled by the 210/30a-4y well and therefore in a separate pressure regime from the main Cladhan accumulation.

Chief executive Alan Booth said: "Although the well results to date have been somewhat mixed, we have accomplished our main aim of identifying and delimiting the areal extent of the Cladhan field, or perhaps this should now be fields."

The company said initial analysis appeared to suggest that the original Cladhan discovery is confined to the Northern Channel Belt immediately north of this current well, where it has now established a hydrocarbon column of greater than 1,200 feet.

EnCore added that this latest well appears to have intersected the edge of an oil column and a potential Oil Water Contact some way down dip from the crest in a separate channel system.

"A significant amount of work still lies ahead in integrating and calibrating the extensive well and core information into the seismic data... further appraisal drilling, likely in the first half of 2012, will be required to understand the up dip potential in both these two new channel systems," he added.

The well will now be suspended for potential reuse in the development of the Cladhan area.

The next well to be drilled will be the EnCore-operated Tudor Rose discovery in the UK Central North Sea Block 14/30a, which should get underway in September.

Peter Bassett, oil and gas analyst at Westhouse Securities, said: "Overall, we view today's announcement as positive. Although this latest sidetrack on Cladhan has not added further resource to the original discovery, we are not reducing our estimate either, having already cut our estimate following the previous sidetrack (210/30a-4y).

"On a more positive note, this well and the 210/30a-4y well indicate the potential for other accumulations on Block, which will be the subject of appraisal drilling early next year. As such, we are maintaining our 'buy' recommendation and current target price of 127p."

http://www.iii.co.uk/articles/15752/encore-eyes-further-cladhan-drilling-2012

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