The offshore industry briefing
The latest news, trends, and data you need to know about this month
News in Numbers
$15.5bn
Saudi Aramco has entered into a $15.5bn lease and leaseback deal for its gas pipeline network, further advancing its asset optimisation programme.
20%
Chevron plans to invest $15bn in new oil and gas projects in 2022, an increase of over 20% from the levels anticipated last year.
1,540km²
Petronas and the PTT Exploration and Production Public Company have made a gas discovery at Block SK417, 1,540km² off the Malaysian coast.
$435.7m
Eni has agreed to sell a 49.9% stake of its subsidiaries that operate the gas pipelines between Algeria and Italy to energy infrastructure firm Snam for $435.7m.
3.5 trillion
Equinor expects to generate over 3.5 trillion cubic feet of gas by 2040 from its latest investment in the Oseberg field in the North Sea.
Project updates
Drilling-rig operator Maersk Drilling has secured a new contract from OMV to drill a high pressure, high temperature exploration well in the Norwegian North Sea. The company will use the low-emission jack-up rig Maersk Intrepid to drill the exploration well in Block 30/5C of the North Sea basin.
TotalEnergies has started production on phase two of the Clov project in Block 17 off the coast of Angola. Located approximately 150km off the Angolan coast, in waters between 1,100m and 1,400m deep, the field is expected to reach a production capacity of 40,000 barrels of oil per day.
Venture Global LNG is planning to build a liquefied natural gas exporting facility in Louisiana, US, with an investment of more than $10bn. The firm is now seeking authorisation to site, construct and operate the CP2 LNG facility and the CP express pipeline from the US federal energy regulatory commission.
Equinor has signed a deal to sell its stake in the Corrib gas project in Ireland to its partner Vermilion Energy for $434m. Vermilion said that the stake acquisition in the Corrib field will ‘add approximately 23 million barrels of oil equivalent of 2P reserves’.
Further Reading
US to release 50 million barrels of oil in bid to ease prices
Last Month, US President Joe Biden announced that 50 million barrels of oil will be made available from the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve, in a coordinated effort to ease pressure on oil prices that is also being undertaken by China, India, the UK, Japan and South Korea.
In a statement to the press, Biden said market volatility following the pandemic meant demand has continued to outpace supply, calling for the need to tap into reserves.
“This coordinated action will help us deal with the lack of supply, which in turn helps ease prices,” he said. “Today, we’re launching a major effort to moderate the price of oil, an effort that will span the globe in its reach and ultimately reach your corner gas station, God willing … Before long, you should see the price of gas drop.”
Read more: Offshore-Technology
