Premier Snaps Up Huntington Equity

Norwegian Energy Co. (Noreco) reports that its fully owned subsidiary Noreco Oil UK Ltd. has entered an agreement to transfer its 20% stake in the Huntington license offshore the U.K. with all rights and obligations to Premier Oil.

“The transaction will have an accounting effect of a net gain of NOK 225 million [US$26 million] to be reflected in the full year accounts,” Noreco said.

Statoil Completes Acquisition Of Byrding Interest

Statoil has completed its previously announced acquisition of Wintershall Norge’s 25% interest in the Byrding project on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), Statoil said Jan. 3.

As a result, Statoil’s operated interest in Byrding jumped from 45% to 70%.

The Byrding oil and gas discovery is located in the North Sea near the Troll/Fram area. The field is scheduled to come online in third-quarter 2017.

Schlumberger Lands Two Transocean Contracts For Riser, BOP Work

Cameron, a Schlumberger company, has signed two 10-year pressure control equipment management service contracts on behalf of Transocean valued at more than $350 million, according to a news release.

As part of the first contract, Schlumberger will manage Transocean’s Cameron risers in the Gulf of Mexico. The agreement includes storage, maintenance, inspection, repair, recertification and data-driven riser management on the rigs. Through the second contract, Schlumberger said it will provide solutions to maintain and service BOP systems and other pressure control equipment for nine of Transocean’s ultradeepwater and harsh environment drilling rigs.

The programs will help to reduce total cost of ownership for the offshore equipment and increase uptime associated with pressure control equipment, through integrated technical, operational and commercial solutions, Schlumberger said in the release.

BP Beefs Up Reserves With Kosmos Deal

BP Plc on Dec. 19 agreed to buy stakes in gas-heavy exploration areas off the coast of Mauritania and Senegal from Kosmos Energy Ltd.

The deal will add valuable oil and gas reserves to BP’s books that have seen resources shrink on the back of divestments it needed to make to pay for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. It followed BP’s purchase of a stake in Eni’s giant Zohr gas field offshore Egypt for $375 in November and comes at a time of rising oil prices.

BP said on Dec. 19 it had agreed to buy a 62% stake and operational control of Kosmos’ Mauritania exploration blocks, which include the Tortue discovery, estimated by Kosmos to contain more than 424 Bcm (15 Tcf) of gas. In comparison, Eni's Zohr Field, the largest discovery ever made in the Mediterranean, is estimated to contain 849.5 Bcm (30 Tcf).

Gas from the Tortue Field is set to be exported from a LNG facility, giving BP an opportunity to grow in a highly competitive sector in which rival Shell took the lead earlier this year with the $54 billion acquisition of BG Group.

BP also agreed to buy a 32.5% stake in Kosmos’ Senegal blocks, spending in total around $1 billion on the Kosmos deal.

“We believe the basin will become an important profit center for our upstream business,” said Bernard Looney, CEO of BP’s upstream business.

Halliburton Files With Russia’s FAS Regarding Potential Novomet Acquisition

Halliburton Co. filed with the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia (FAS) concerning the potential acquisition of an interest in Novomet Oil Services Holding Ltd., the company said Dec. 23.

Novomet is an international artificial lift company focused on electrical submersible pumps.

Halliburton could acquire 100% of Novomet, according to the press release. Halliburton said Novomet’s products, combined with Halliburton’s U.S. operations, would boost its global artificial lift business at lowest cost per barrel-equivalent of oil.

No agreement has been reached to date, the press release said, and any potential transaction requires regulatory approvals and other conditions including definitive documentation. There is no assurance Halliburton will enter a transaction.

Israel’s Delek Drilling, Avner Oil Approve Merger

Israeli conglomerate Delek Group's gas and oil exploration units, Delek Drilling and Avner Oil Exploration, approved a merger aimed at reducing costs and attracting new investors.

Delek Drilling said on Dec. 25 that shareholders of both companies approved the merger, which will see all assets and liabilities of Avner transferred to Delek Drilling and Avner will be dissolved.

The companies in April began the merger process.

Delek Group directly holds 6.6% of Delek Drilling and 8.9% of Avner, while its Delek Energy unit owns 63% of Delek Drilling and 47% of Avner.

Delek Drilling and Avner each hold 15.625% in the Tamar natural gas field off Israel’s Mediterranean coast and 22.7% each in the nearby Leviathan field, which is slated to start production in 2019 or 2020. Their main partner in both sites is Texas-based Noble Energy.

Mexico Delays Reporting Round Two Shallow-water Tender Winners

Mexico will delay until June 19 the announcement of winners for the next phase of its oil and gas sector opening, to allow more companies to take part and to incorporate modifications suggested by the industry, the country’s finance ministry said on Dec. 22.

“The adjustments meet Mexico’s interest to guarantee greater involvement of companies in this auction,” the ministry said in a statement. “The adjustments also include the recommendations of industry aimed at increasing competition and investment.”

Mexico planned to announce the winners of the first phase of the so-called Round Two tender, which includes 15 shallow-water areas in the Gulf of Mexico, on March 22.

In early December, Mexico auctioned off various deepwater oil fields to investors from around the world, part of its drive to bring private sector capital into the industry.

Jadestone Energy Appoints New CFO

Jadestone Energy Inc. has named Dan Young as its CFO, effective Jan. 18, according to a news release.

He is filling the position that will be vacated by Will Mathers, who is stepping down from the CFO role.

With more than 20 years of experience in oil and gas and natural resources investment banking as well as advisory and consulting roles, Young comes from Wood Mackenzie where he was senior vice president and head of APAC Consulting, the release said. Prior to that, he worked for 13 years in JP Morgan’s global energy investment banking coverage and mergers and acquisitions group.

Young is joining the Singapore-headquartered company as it works to increase its oil and gas assets. In November, Jadestone completed the acquisition of its first producing asset offshore Western Australia, the Stag oil field, according to the release. Currently, the company is working to complete the purchase of two gas fields, offshore Vietnam in the Nam Con Son Basin, in the next two months and bring them onstream in 2019.

National Oilwell Varco Completes Acquisition Of Fjords Processing

National Oilwell Varco Inc. completed its acquisition of Fjords Processing, which provides the upstream industry with processing technology, systems and services.

Fjords Processing, based in Oslo, Norway, has about 500 employees in 12 countries.

The acquisition creates a vertically integrated engineering design, manufacturing and support organization for processing modules and packages for onshore and offshore applications.

National Oilwell Varco reported the completed acquisition on Dec. 20.

Norway’s Oil Minister Tord Lien Will Step Down Before Election Year

Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg replaced the ministers for energy, EU affairs and justice in her right-wing government on Dec. 20 in a reshuffle nine months before the next general election.

The minority government of Solberg’s Conservatives and the anti-immigration Progress Party has lagged the center-left opposition in recent opinion polls.

Oil Minister Tord Lien of the right-wing Progress party will stand down in favor of Terje Soeviknes, a popular small-town mayor.

Lien “has been a driving force for a continued high tempo of oil and gas off Norway, at the same time as developing renewable energy,” Solberg said during a news conference.

Norway is Western Europe’s top producer of oil and natural gas, and the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy manages the government’s majority stake in Statoil ASA.

Justice Minister Anders Anundsen of the Progress Party was replaced by Per-Willy Amundsen, until now a junior minister. EU Affairs Minister Elisabeth Aspaker of the Conservative Party will be replaced by Frank Bakke-Jensen of the same party.

Solberg said that the three ministers quitting the Cabinet had wanted to leave for personal reasons.

Germany’s DEA Acquires Interest In Seven Norwegian Sea Licenses

By acquiring participating interest in seven licenses in the Norwegian Sea's Njord area, including 20% increased interest in Njord Field, from Engie E&P Norge AS, DEA strengthened its position in Norway, the Germany-based company said Dec. 23.

Hans-Hermann Andreae, managing director of DEA Norge AS, said that altogether, about 45 MMboe in reserves and contingent resources were added.

The agreement with Engie E&P Norge AS includes 20% in Njord Field (PL107 and PL132), 10% in Hyme Field (PL348), 10% in the Snilehorn discovery (PL348B), 15% in the Noatun discovery (PL107B and PL107D) and 20% in the North Flank discovery (PL107C).

The transaction will be effective from Jan. 1, 2017, subject to governmental approval.

After the transaction, DEA’s shares in the licences will be: PL 107 and PL 132 (Njord), 50%; PL 348 (Hyme), 27.5%; PL 348B (Snilehorn), 27.5%; PL 107B and PL 107D (Noatun), 45% and 20%; and PL 107C (North Flank), 50%.

ExxonMobil, Rex Tillerson To Cut All Ties

ExxonMobil Corp. and Rex Tillerson agreed to sever all ties to comply with conflict-of-interest requirements as the company's former chairman and CEO awaits confirmation as U.S. secretary of state.

If his appointment is confirmed, the value of more than 2 million deferred ExxonMobil shares (worth about $182 million at closing on Jan. 3) that Tillerson would have received over the next 10 years will be transferred to an independently managed trust, the company said in a statement.

The share awards will be canceled and Tillerson will also surrender entitlement to more than $4.1 million in cash bonuses, scheduled to pay out over the next three years, and other benefits, ExxonMobil said.

Separately, Tillerson also committed to the State Department that, if confirmed, he would sell the more than 600,000 ExxonMobil shares he currently owns, the company said.

ExxonMobil said last month its president, Darren Woods, will become CEO and chairman in January following the retirement of Tillerson.

Wison Launches Floating LNG Power Plant Solutions

Wison Offshore & Marine said Jan. 4 that it developed a range of practical solutions for floating power supply using W-FSRP series (Wison-Floating Storage Regasification and Power generation), which feature integrated functions of LNG loading and storage facilities, regasification and power generation.

The smallest unit starts at 10 megawatt (MW) capacity, while the largest accommodates an 800 MW power plant. LNG will be the fuel source, while alternative fuel options will be available. Storage, regasification and power generation will be available in a single unit.

Ying Cui, CEO of Wison, said that demand for floating LNG power solutions could increase in southeast Asia, West Africa, the Caribbean, India’s west coast, and elsewhere.

Wison is the turnkey service provider for the world’s first floating LNG and first China-made floating storage and regasification unit.

—Reuters & Staff Reports

Offshore