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...]
UK North Sea’s Biggest Oil and Gas Pipeline Could Be Shut for ‘Weeks’
By Ron Bousso, Amanda Cooper and Alex Lawler LONDON, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Britain's biggest pipeline from its North Sea oil and gas fields is likely to be shut for several weeks for repairs, its operator said on Tuesday, disrupting gas flows and sending international crude prices to their highest since mid-2015. The closure has struck during a winter freeze in Britain, … [Read more...]
A BP North Sea Field to Test U.S. Policy on Iran
By Ron Bousso LONDON, Nov 24 (Reuters) - A small gas field on the edge of the British North Sea could become a litmus test for U.S. policy towards Iran. London-based BP this week agreed to sell to North Sea producer Serica Energy three fields in the aging offshore basin, including the Rhum field which is co-owned by a subsidiary of Iran's national oil company. For Serica, … [Read more...]