The 18,000 tonne topside of the BorWin gamma High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) platform has been installed on its jacket foundation in the German sector of the North Sea, where will soon be used to supply green power to more than one million German households. The giant converter arrived on board the heavy lift vessel Xiang He Kou which was used in the float-over … [Read more...]
Chevron Quits Norway as Wider Retreat Looms From Aging North Sea
By Mikael Holter (Bloomberg) -- Chevron Corp. is selling its last remaining oil exploration license in Norway, putting it one step closer to a full retreat from the aging North Sea basin as the U.S. major seeks higher returns elsewhere. Chevron’s activity off Norway has been limited for years, but the company’s decision to relinquish its last asset in the country again shows … [Read more...]
Shell Greenlights Another Project in the North Sea After Lowering Costs
By Kelly Gilblom (Bloomberg) -- Royal Dutch Shell Plc approved its second North Sea project in six months, greenlighting a natural gas field that it considered uneconomical to produce from six years ago. The Anglo-Dutch major, along with partner Exxon Mobil Corp., plans to produce from two wells in the Fram field in the central North Sea by 2020. Deep cost cuts following … [Read more...]
Faroe Petroleum’s Hunt for North Sea Oil Deals Could See It Double Size in Hot Market
By Mikael Holter (Bloomberg) -- Faroe Petroleum Plc is hunting for offshore oil and gas assets in Norway and the U.K., with an appetite that could equal the current size of the company itself -- about $550 million. “It doesn’t terrify us and it would definitely be possible,” Chief Executive Officer Graham Stewart said in a phone interview on Tuesday after the company … [Read more...]
North Sea Pipeline Crack Stress Tests World’s Most Important Oil Benchmark
By Laura Hurst (Bloomberg) -- When a vital North Sea oil pipeline cracked earlier this month, it did more than halt the flow of barrels: it stress tested the world’s most important physical crude-price benchmark for producers, traders and consumers. The 40-year old Forties Pipeline System was shut down on Dec. 11 after a hairline crack was discovered near Aberdeen, … [Read more...]