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Tym, którzy chcą z nami współpracować przy gazie łupkowym i z nami zarobić, deklaruję rzetelność, stabilność i uczciwe podejście do pracy - mówił w środę premier Donald Tusk podczas naukowej konferencji w Warszawie nt. wydobycia gazu łupkowego.
Premier zadeklarował wszystkim, którzy chcą współpracować z Polską przy "tym wielkim przedsięwzięciu energetycznym, że prace jego rządu mają na celu budowę trwałych fundamentów stabilności gospodarczej i finansowej na dziesięciolecia".
"Poziom inwestycji, jaki musimy uzyskać, aby móc powiedzieć, że na gazie łupkowym zarabiają ci, którzy ten gaz wydobywają i korzystają ci, którzy w Polsce mieszkają (...) to dziesiątki miliardów złotych. Mówimy o inwestycjach liczonych na długie lata" - powiedział premier. Dodał, że system gazociągów dedykowanych do przesyłu gazu łupkowego będzie kosztował nawet do 8 mld zł.
Premier podkreślał, że nikt nie będzie inwestował w tak ryzykowny biznes jak gaz łupkowy, wymagający nowych technologii i dużych inwestycji, bez gwarancji ciągłości interesu. "Nikt nie będzie ryzykował swoich dużych pieniędzy w takim miejscu na świecie, które nie będzie gwarantować ciągłości interesu" - dodał.
Donald Tusk mówił, że pojawiają się coraz bardziej zdecydowane apele, aby ustanowić system prawny dotyczący wydobycia gazu łupkowego. "System podatkowy dotyczący tego bogactwa, system prawny, który będzie opłacalny dla naszego państwa, ale także przyjazny dla tych, którzy będą z nami współpracowali w tym przedsięwzięciu" - powiedział.
Premier podkreślił, że chodzi o taki system, który umożliwi przewidywanie kosztów i zysków na dziesiątki lat. "My rozmawiamy dzisiaj o otwarciu nowej epoki energetycznej, której istotną częścią jest gaz łupkowy" - ocenił.
"Kiedy dzisiaj rozmawiamy, mamy poczucie, że stabilność jest towarem najbardziej deficytowym i, co zaskakujące dla świata, ta stabilność zaczyna być najbardziej deficytowa w dotychczas najbardziej stabilnej części świata, jaką jest Unia Europejska" - podkreślił premier.
Tusk dodał, że na naszych oczach upada reputacja krajów, które do niedawna były traktowane, jako oazy szczęśliwości. "Dzisiaj widać szczególnie mocno w Unii Europejskiej, że sama obecność na kontynencie europejskim, sama obecność w Unii Europejskiej nie jest automatycznym gwarantem stabilności, dobrobytu ani politycznej odpowiedzialności" - powiedział.
Dlatego - jak mówił szef rządu - z satysfakcją słucha opinii na temat Polski w tych krajach, z którymi rozmawia o możliwości współpracy przy wykorzystywaniu naszych zasobów. "Kiedy rozmawiamy, słyszymy niezmienne taką samą opinię dotyczącą stabilności politycznej i finansowej. Wiarygodność i odpowiedzialność państwa jest taką wartością porównywalną do tego, co jest w ziemi" - podkreślał.
"Kiedy dzisiaj patrzymy na to, co dzieje się na rynkach finansowych (), na niestabilność kursów walut, to widzimy jak ważną rzeczą, jeśli myślimy na serio o wielomiliardowych inwestycjach w nasze przedsięwzięcie, jak ważne jest, aby Polska utrzymała i wzmocniła wizerunek państwa. Dziś unikatowego, jeśli chodzi o stabilność gospodarczą, stabilność wzrostu i stabilność finansową" - powiedział premier.
"Jestem przekonany, że jesteśmy szczęściarzami. U nas w Polsce najbliższe wybory parlamentarne odbędą się za grupo ponad trzy lata. Ta stabilność polityczna () niech to także będzie znakiem nadziei dla tych wszystkich, którzy chcą z nami inwestować w te przedsięwzięcia - mówił Donald Tusk. - Przeminą ekipy polityczne, za dwadzieścia lat ktoś inny będzie premierem, ale za dwadzieścia lat, kiedy będziemy chcieli już w pełni korzystać z naszych zasobów naturalnych, w pełni budować bezpieczeństwo i samodzielność energetyczną Polski, to kluczowym warunkiem będzie także równowaga finansów publicznych, stała tendencja wzrostowa w gospodarce, a to możemy i musimy zbudować dzisiaj".
Oferta publiczna spółki PGNiG Poszukiwania obejmie zarówno akcje sprzedawane przez PGNiG, jak i papiery nowej emisji - powiedział wiceprezes firmy Sławomir Hinc.
Jak przyznał Hinc obecnie robiona jest wycena podmiotów, które zostaną wniesione do PGNiG Poszukiwania. Już teraz zakłada się, że struktura debiutu giełdowego PGNiG Poszukiwania będzie polegała na sprzedaży przez PGNiG części akcji. Kolejna część to podwyższenie kapitału, za sprawą nowej emisji.
Przedstawiciele PGNiG oceniają, że najbardziej prawdopodobnym terminem oferty publicznej spółki jest początek przyszłego roku.
Akcjonariusze PGNiG zdecydują na walnym zgromadzeniu zwołanym na 6 czerwca o powołaniu spółki PGNiG Poszukiwania.
Do nowego podmiotu mają zostać wniesione spółki poszukiwawcze i serwisowe grupy PGNiG: Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Jasło, Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Kraków, Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Nafta, Poszukiwania Naftowe Diament i Zakład Robót Górniczych Krosno. Zakładana kapitalizacja PGNiG Poszukiwania wyniesie do dwóch mld zł.
Po co jednak PGNiG w ogóle taka spółka? Eksperci twierdzą, że scentralizowanie kompetencji spółek zależnych w jednym podmiocie, będzie bardzo korzystne. Po pierwsze nowa spółka będzie dysponowała znacznie większymi zasobami finansowymi niż spółki składowe. To zaś oznacza możliwość uczestnictwa w dużych projektach. W przeszłości bywało, że spółki zależne były zbyt słabe finansowo, by móc to robić. Drugim argumentem przemawiającym za tym jest to, że dzięki wejściu na giełdę część pieniędzy dadzą zewnętrzni inwestorzy.
WARSAW May 11 (Reuters) - Poland's gas monopoly PGNiG wants to merge its five exploration and servicing units and float them on the stock market partly to raise money to help the company's efforts in shale gas exploration, it said on Friday.
"The growing scale of exploration for unconventional gas may increase the amount of drilling and maintenance services and thus intensify competition on this market in Poland," PGNiG said in a statement.
"In this way it would be possible to privatise the companies by way of IPOs (initial public offering) and raise additional financing."
Foreign companies, that include global majors like Chevron and Exxon Mobil, have lately become active in Poland, which is keen to develop a shale gas market that would allow it to curb reliance on costly supplies from Russia.
The plan from PGNiG's management board will need the approval of shareholders due to meet on June 6.
(Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska. Editing by Jane Merriman)
Autor: | 11-05-2012 19:48
Akcjonariusze PGNiG zdecydują na walnym zgromadzeniu, zwołanym na 6 czerwca o powołaniu spółki PGNiG Poszukiwania. Do nowego podmiotu mają zostać wniesione spółki poszukiwawcze i serwisowe GK PGNiG - poinformowało PGNiG w komunikacie.
PGNiG chce następnie "szybko" sprywatyzować PGNiG Poszukiwania, a zakładaną obecnie formą prywatyzacji jest oferta publiczna - podano.
W projekcie uchwały na WZ podano, że po ewentualnym powołaniu PGNiG Poszukiwania GK PGNiG przeniesie do spółki udziały w spółkach: Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Jasło, Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Kraków, Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Nafta, Poszukiwania Naftowe Diament i Zakład Robót Górniczych Krosno.
Zakładana kapitalizacja PGNiG Poszukiwania wyniesie do 2 mld zł.
W uzasadnieniu uchwały dodano, że obecnie trwa proces przekształcenia spółek Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Kraków oraz Poszukiwania Nafty i Gazu Nafta w spółki akcyjne.
"Proces ten powinien się zakończyć na przełomie maja/czerwca 2012 roku" - napisano w uzasadnieniu do projektu uchwały.
Zarządu PGNiG zarekomendował w uzasadnieniu uchwały podjęcie "szybkich działań zmierzających do wykorzystania dobrego momentu do prywatyzacji i dużego zainteresowania potencjalnych inwestorów oraz uprzedzenia możliwych niekorzystnych zmian na rynku".
W uzasadnieniu podano również, że obecnie zakładaną opcją prywatyzacji skonsolidowanych podmiotów jest ofertę publiczną.
"Z uwagi na powyższe, zarząd PGNiG proponuje zawiązanie spółki akcyjnej o charakterze spółki holdingowej, do której zostaną wniesienie udziały/akcje spółek poszukiwawczych i serwisowych wchodzących w skład GK PGNiG. Powyższe umożliwi podjęcie działań prywatyzacyjnych IPO oraz pozyskanie dodatkowego źródła finansowania, zachowując tym samym, w ramach GK PGNiG, kompetencje w zakresie prowadzonych przez te spółki działalności" - napisano.
Wydając komunikat o mianowaniu dotychczasowego wiceprezesa PGNiG Marka Karabuły na stanowisko prezesa zarządu PGNiG Libia, spółka nie poinformowała, co stało się z dotychczasowym szefem libijskiego oddziału naszego gazowego potentata - Waldemarem Wójcikiem. Według naszych informacji nadal będzie on pracował w PGNiG.
Marek Karabuła, wiceprezes zarządu PGNiG ds. górnictwa naftowego od 12 maja 2012 roku obejmie funkcję prezesa zarządu POGC Libya B.V. Czytaj więcej: Marek Karabuła odchodzi z zarządu PGNiG
Nie wiadomo natomiast, co dalej z dotychczasowym prezesem PGNiG Libia, Waldemarem Wójcikiem, jakie stanowisko będzie zajmował w spółce? Na razie mnożą się spekulacje. Według naszych rozmówców z branży Wójcik powinien zostać wykorzystany przy pracach poszukiwawczo-wydobywczych. Będąc wiceprezesem zarządu odpowiadał właśnie z te kwestie.
Co więcej, zanim objął posadę wiceprezesa, Wójcik kierował oddziałem PGNiG SA w Sanoku. Tam ceniony był za znajomość kwestii poszukiwań i wydobycia węglowodorów. Do tego dochodzi kierowanie oddziałem w Libii. Mało który menedżer w gazowym potentacie może więc równać się z Wójcikiem pod względem doświadczenia w eksploatacji węglowodorów.
Rezygnacja wiceprezesa Marka Karabuły oznacza, że w kierownictwie gazowego potentata pozostały zaledwie cztery osoby. A przecież niedawno wszystko wskazywało, że zarząd PGNiG będzie aż siedmioosobowy.
Odejście Karabuły oznacza, ze konieczne będzie jednak znalezienie nowego wiceprezesa spółki. Obecnie zarząd jest czteroosobowy. Prezesem jest wybrana niedawno w konkursie Grażyna Piotrowska-Oliwa. W kierownictwie spółki są również odpowiedzialny za politykę handlową wiceprezes Radosław Dudziński, nadzorujący finanse Sławomir Hinc i Mirosław Szkałuba bierze m.in. czynny udział w negocjacjach ze związkowcami.
Zgodnie z wcześniejszymi decyzjami sprawy korporacyjne pozostają w gestii prezes Grażyny Piotrowskiej-Oliwy
Tymczasem jeszcze niedawno wydawało się, że PGNiG otrzyma dwóch kolejnych wiceprezesów. Konkurs na te stanowiska został ogłoszony 12 stycznia i nie został rozstrzygnięty.
Być może teraz trzeba będzie jednak ogłosić nowy konkurs. Karabuła odpowiadał za sprawy górnictwa naftowego. W jego gestii pozostawała także cała kwestia gazu łupkowego. Trudno wyobrazić sobie aby PGNiG nie miał nikogo w zarządzie zajmującego się sprawami górniczymi. Przecież porównywalny pod względem wielkości PKN Orlen, ale nie posiadający wydobycia na taką jak PGNiG skalę (w kraju i poza granicami) ma zarząd pięcioosobowy.
Marek Karabuła, wiceprezes zarządu PGNiG ds. górnictwa naftowego od 12 maja 2012 roku obejmie funkcję prezesa zarządu POGC Libya B.V. W związku z tym 11 maja br. złożył rezygnację z dotychczas pełnionej funkcji w zarządzie PGNiG.
Karabuła zrezygnował także ze stanowiska przewodniczącego rady nadzorczej POGC Libya B.V. Natomiast nadal będzie pełnił funkcję członka rady radzorczej PGNiG Norway AS.
Objęcie funkcji prezesa zarządu POGC Libya B.V. jest związane ze wznowieniem działalności na koncesji Murzuq w zachodniej Libii i przygotowaniami do prac wiertniczych.
Do początku 2011 roku, spółka przeprowadziła badania geofizyczne 3D na obszarze 1,5 tys. kilometrów kwadratowych. Zostały też sfinalizowane badania geofizyczne 2D. Obejmowały one 2,5 tys. kilometrów profili.
Po ponad roku od zawieszenia działalności przez POGC Libya, w związku z niestabilną sytuacją polityczną, prace związane z poszukiwaniem gazu będą wznowione.
Marek Karabuła, któremu powierzono kierowanie pracami zarządu PGNiG po rezygnacji M. Szubskiego jest wymieniany jako kandydat na przyszłego prezesa spółki.
Michał Szubski odejdzie z zarządu PGNiG 31 grudnia 2011 tego roku. O swojej decyzji poinformował w poniedziałek 19 grudnia.
Zgodnie z decyzją rady nadzorczej Marek Karabuła będzie p.o. prezesa od 1 stycznia 2012 roku do czasu rozstrzygnięcia postępowania kwalifikacyjnego na stanowisko prezesa spółki.
Nieoficjalnie już mówi się, że właśnie obecny wiceprezes PGNiG może być głównym kandydatem na stanowisko prezesa. ? Za takim rozwiązaniem przemawia fakt, że Karabuła dobrze zna spółkę i można byłoby kontynuować dotychczasowe działania firmy. Uspokojono by także atmosferę wokół niej - mówi nam osoba związana z gazowy potentatem.
Kiedy poznamy nowego prezesa PGNiG? Najpierw musi zostać ogłoszony konkurs na to stanowisko. Później odbędą się przesłuchania kandydatów. Realny termin to luty przyszłego roku.
Odpowiadający za wydobycie węglowodorów Karabuła uważany jest za zwolennika poszukiwań i eksploatacji gazu łupkowego. Ten temat jest także bliski nowemu ministrowi skarbu Mikołajowi Budzanowskiemu.
Total to spend $300 million on Uganda exploration activities
BY NICHOLAS BARIYO
KAMPALA, Uganda -- Total Exploration and Production Uganda Ltd., a unit of Total SA is planning to spend at least $300 million on exploration and appraisal activities in its two exploration areas in Uganda this year, a company executive said Friday.
In a presentation to a Ugandan parliamentary panel, Loic Laurandel, the Total E&P Uganda general manager said that the funds would be invested in drilling at least seven oil wells in one of its blocks, Exploration area one.
"A very intensive appraisal program is being carried out in order to maximize the potential of the block," he said.
In February, Total completed the long-delayed deal to acquire one-third interest in Blocks 1, 2 and 3A in Uganda's Lake Albertine Rift basin, previously held by London-listed Tullow Oil PLC (TLW.LN), for $1.46 billion. These blocks have since been divided to create five blocks among which is Exploration area one.
Laurandel told Ugandan lawmakers that the company has now stepped up efforts to develop the country's oil fields, through partnership with Tullow and China's Cnooc Ltd.
"Total and its partners are working on an ambitious development program on the five blocks," he said. "The investment costs of such global development should exceed $10 billion for the upstream part only, most of this amount being spent by 2017."
The company will also appraise at least three oil fields in Exploration area one before the commencement of oil production, which is slated to start later this year, in a phased manner reaching full-scale output by 2017.
Cnooc operates block 3A and the kingfisher oil fields, located at the Southern tip of Lake Albert while Tullow is now operating block 2 which straddles Uganda's Hoima and Bulisa districts.
At least 1.5 billion barrels of oil have so far been confirmed in the explored area and geologists estimate that this could rise to as much as 6 billion barrels with more exploration activities.
Dow Jones Newswires
04/13/2012
World Oil News Center
Tullow finds more than 100 meters of net oil in Kenyan well
BY MAX COLCHESTER
LONDON -- Tullow Oil said Monday that it has encountered in excess of 100 meters of net oil pay, or thickness, at its Kenyan well.
The discovery was across several reservoir zones and came as Tullow deepens its Ngamia-1 well.
"The net pay encountered so far in Ngamia-1 is more than double that encountered in any of our East African exploration wells to date," said Angus McCoss, exploration director at Tullow. "We now look forward to the drilling and evaluation of the deeper potential of this well and the acceleration of our seismic and drilling campaigns in the region."
Ngamia-1 will be drilled to a depth of 2,700 meters, the company said.
In March the London-listed explorer said it found oil at a well in the north-western region of Turkana, where it was assessing the commercial viability of crude prospects in the Ngamia geological structure. The discovery follows major finds in Ghana, Uganda and French Guiana.
Tullow has a 50% operated interest in seven onshore licenses in the Kenya & Ethiopia Rift Basins covering in excess of 100,000 square kilometers.
Dow Jones Newswires
05/07/2012
Turkey begins exploratory oil and gas drilling in North Cyprus
April 30, 2012
Turkey recently started exploratory drilling for oil and gas in the Turkish north of Cyprus, further fueling the debate over which country can exploit the potential resources of the Mediterranean Island.
The Associated Press reports the move by Turkey follows recent action by Greek Cypriots to begin a gas search off the island's shore. At the inauguration of the drilling activity by Turkish petroleum company TPAO, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said that it was a symbolic beginning.
"We may not extract oil or gas from this well, but drilling is part of a wider package," Yildiz said. "This work has strategic significance and we attribute great importance to it."
Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu added that the start of the drilling was a "historic moment," according to the AP.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the drilling was launched at the 3,000-meter-deep Turkyurdu-1 well, which is near the Greek Cypriot border.
Tullow to begin next phase of exploration in Uganda
Tullow announced that the Jobi-East-1 and Mpyo-3 wells, in Exploration Area 1 (EA1) onshore Uganda, have both successfully encountered oil in line with pre-drill expectations.
The Jobi-East-1 and Mpyo-3 wells, in Exploration Area 1 (EA1) onshore Uganda, have both successfully encountered oil in line with pre-drill expectations. These wells have successfully calibrated large seismic and gravity data anomalies, which have now been proven as oil accumulations.
Jobi-East-1 has discovered 20 meters of net hydrocarbon bearing reservoir in a fault block adjacent to the giant Jobi-Rii oil field. The well was drilled 4.4 kilometers east of the Jobi-1 discovery well in a down-dip location. Successful logging and sampling operations have confirmed the presence of oil in two zones of high quality reservoir totaling 15 meters of net pay. In addition, gas has also been logged and sampled within sands totaling 5 meters of net pay.
The well was drilled by the OGEC RR600 and reached a total depth of 563 meters.It has been suspended allowing for future re-entry to conduct production testing operations. An accelerated drilling campaign comprising up to four Jobi-East appraisal wells is planned for the second half of 2011 to assess the full extent of this important new oil accumulation.
The Mpyo-3 well has intersected 21 meters of oil bearing reservoir sands at a depth of 340 meters. The well was drilled 1.6 kilometers southeast of Mpyo-1 in a down-dip location within a fault block adjacent to the Mpyo-1 discovery.
Successful logging operations confirmed the sands to be of good quality and that they contain highly viscous oil similar to that encountered in Mpyo-1.
The well was drilled by the OGEC IRI-750 to a total depth of 513 meters and was suspended allowing for future re-entry to conduct production testing operations.
Subject to completion of the farm-down, Tullow will have a 33.33% interest in the EA1 license and its partners will be Total 33.33% and CNOOC 33.33%. Tullow is currently acting as interim operator for the license until Sept 2011.
Commenting on Jobi-East-1 and Mpyo-3, Angus McCoss, Exploration Director, said, "The Jobi-East-1 and Mpyo-3 well results mark an excellent start to this next phase of our exploration and appraisal campaign in the Lake Albert Rift Basin. We look forward to many more exciting wells as we endeavor to determine the total oil resource base which will underpin the basin-wide development preparations currently in progress."
06/07/2011
Rosyjskie firmy naftowe obawiają się upadku Kadafiego w Libii
(IN) - 24-03-2011 10:30
Rosyjskie koncerny naftowe już liczą straty, jakie poniosą, jeśli upadnie reżim Muammara Kadafiego w Libii.
Firma Tatnieft z rosyjskiego Tatarstanu alarmuje, że jeśli upadnie reżim Muammara Kadafiego, może ona stracić nawet 260 mln dolarów. Taką sumę Tatnieft zainwestował w cztery złoża ropy naftowej w tym kraju. Tatnieft działa w Libii od sześciu lat.
"Jeżeli on (Kadafi - przyp. red.) ostanie u władzy, wtedy będą obowiązywały podpisane uowy. W przypadku zmiany władzy, tracimy wszelki wpływ na te umowy" - ostrzega Rustam Minnihanow, prezydent Tatarstanu i przedstawiciel rady dyrektorów Tatniefty.
W związku z wybuchem walk w Libii w trudnej sytuacji znalazł się też Gazprom Nieft. W połowie lutego br. porozumieją się on z włoskim koncernem Eni w sprawie kupna połowy udziałów w złożu Elephant w Libii. Wartość transakcji miała wynieść 163 mln dolarów. Jednak obecnie nikt nie potrafi określić statusu tej transakcji i czy dojdzie ona do skutku.
Spośród rosyjskich firm naftowych, przedstawicielstwa w Libii miały też Strojtransgaz i Łukoil.
Czy PGNiG będzie musiał utworzyć rezerwę na libijskie inwestycje?
(Dariusz Malinowski) - 22-03-2011 11:28
Wojna w Libii spowodowała wstrzymanie prac na tamtejszych polach naftowych i gazowych. W najgorszym wypadku może się okazać, że firmy które tam zainwestowały będą musiały utworzyć rezerwy na powstałe w wyniku konfliktu straty. Jedną z firm, które zaznaczyły tam obecność jest nasz PGNiG.
Tylko w tym roku w związku z intensyfikacją działań poszukiwawczych w Egipcie i Libii, PGNiG planowało przeznaczyć na te cele ok. 70 mln dol. Teraz te wydatki są pod znakiem zapytania. Jednak kilka milionów dolarów zostało wydanych. Także w ubiegłym roku nasz potentat poniósł kilkumilionowe nakłady.
Czy w związku z tym nie należy na poniesione nakłady utworzyć rezerwy?
- Na tym etapie nie wiadomo, czy utworzyć rezerwy na aktywa w Libii i Egipcie - mówi wiceprezes PGNiG Sławomir Hinc. Jak dodaje PGNiG nie planuje na obecnym etapie korekt związanych z 2010.
Jak przyznają analitycy polska spółka miała szczęście, że jej zaangażowanie nie weszło jeszcze w fazę np. wydobycia. Pomimo tego z Libii nie należy rezygnować. Po konflikcie surowce nadal będzie można bowiem eksploatować.
Przypomnijmy, że PGNIG, poprzez swoją spółkę POGC Libya, prowadzi poszukiwania gazu ziemnego w ramach pięcioletniej licencji w Murzuq na zachodzie kraju.
Zakończyły się już badania geofizyczne 3D na obszarze 1,5 tys. kilometrów kwadratowych. Spółka sfinalizowała też dwuwymiarowe badania. Obejmowały one 2,5 tys. kilometrów kwadratowych. Obecnie trwa interpretacja wyników. Ich wstępna analiza potwierdza wcześniejsze szacunki mówiące o zasobach ok. 140-150 mld m sześc. gazu na tym obszarze.
Licencja Murzuq pokrywa obszar 5494 km kwadratowych. PGNiG planuje wykonanie czterech pierwszych odwiertów poszukiwawczych na koncesji w Libii w 2011 r. Pierwszego wydobycia na skalę przemysłową można się spodziewać w latach 2015-2016. Tylko w tym roku nasza spółka na prace poszukiwawcze w tym kraju miała przeznaczyć ponad 50 mln dolarów.
Jubilee has infrastructure development on fast-track for Tullow Ghana
October 25th, 2010
To accommodate its rapid in-country growth ? Tullow went from having just six employees in Ghana in 2007 to 200-plus today ? the company built a seven-story building in the capital, Accra.
Since its discovery in June 2007, the Jubilee oil field in the Republic of Ghana has created a sense of euphoria among residents of this West African country. It is a classic West African deepwater discovery and subsea scheme.
Tullow Ghana Ltd (TGL) drilled 17 wells in the initial phase of its strategic approach to Jubilee, nine of which are producing; first oil is targeted for Q4 2010. Such a rapid production target has forced TGL to act quickly in order to develop the necessary infrastructure to accommodate ongoing operational activities. Speaking at the 2010 IADC Drilling Africa Conference, 20-21 October in London, TGL?s in-country well engineering manager Alan Dowokpor said the goal was to ?get the drilling started while keeping an eye on the future.?
TGL has gone from just six employees in Ghana in 2007 to 230 individuals today. To accommodate such growth, the company established a purpose-built seven-floor building in Ghana?s capital, Accra, totaling 3,500 sq m of real estate. The facility meets all of Ghana?s earthquake building codes and features state-of-the-art IT facilities, emergency response, etc. TGL?s shore-base facility is located at Takoradi, approximately 180 km southwest of Accra.
To support their facilities at Takoradi, TGL constructed new access roads totaling 600 m of paved surface. They also constructed a 7,000-sq-m storage facility for tubular goods. In doing so, TGL excavated 70,000 tons ? 4,038 truck loads ? of unsuitable material from the site. The company then backfilled the area with 52,000 tons of material and 6,700 tons of concrete. This work was completed without injury, all while supporting the drilling activities of two deepwater rigs.
TGL?s commercial port features high-capacity water tanks and marine offices. Dedicated fuel lines are also in place.
The company?s contingency port is the Sekondi port, where drastic improvements to roads and water lines have been made and a flowline ?jumper? yard established.
In addition to improving its infrastructure on land, TGL also developed an aviation strategy to improve safety and efficiency when transporting employees from Accra to Takoradi and from Takoradi to the Jubilee field. ?Helicopter operations continued to experience accident rates that were far too high,? Mr Dowokpor said.
The company upgraded all of its rotary and fixed wing aircraft to mid- to new-generation models, which resulted in significant improvements in transportation capacity, safety and efficiency. They also upgraded the runway, taxiway and aprons and installed gas cannons to help reduce the risk of bird strikes.
?We have gone from having absolutely nothing in place or in-country,? Mr Dowokpor said, ?to establishing a very robust infrastructure that is built and in place. We have been able to do that on budget and without hurting anyone.?
Polska spółka przyczynia się do naftowego sukcesu w Ugandzie
(Marcin Szczepański) - 20-08-2010 10:45
Z udowodnioną już rezerwą o wielkości dwóch miliardów baryłek ropy naftowej, to państwo leżące we wschodniej Afryce może wkrótce stać się ważnym eksporterem ropy, przyciągając w ten sposób największych zagranicznych inwestorów. Do tego sukcesu przyczyniła się polska spółka PNiG Kraków, która od dwóch lat prowadzi poszukiwania w tym kraju na zlecenie brytyjskiej firmy Tullow Oil.
To właśnie brytyjczycy z Tullow Oil są największym międzynarodowym graczem w Ugandzie. Firma podpisała kontrakt z tym krajem na inwestycje warte setki milionów dolarów. Pierwszą partię ropy z ugandyjskich złóż ma zostać wydobyta przed końcem 2011 roku.
Ten potencjał podejrzewano już dawno temu, bo w latach 1930-tych, ale dopiero niedawno Tullow i inni odkryli tak duże rezerwy, znajdujące się głównie w dolinie Albertine na pograniczu z Demokratyczną Republiką Kongo.
Krakowska spółka zamierza z Ugandy uczynić przyczółek do rozwijania swojej działalności w Afryce. W maju PNiG wygrał kontrakt na kolejne prace wiertnicze w Ugandzie, zlecone przez angielską firmę Dominion Petroleum Uganda. W Ugandzie na trzech urządzeniach wiertniczych pracuje teraz 47 polskich pracowników i 36 miejscowych.
Tullow completes acquisition of Heritage assets in Uganda
Eric Watkins, OGJ Oil Diplomacy Editor
LOS ANGELES, July 27 -- Tullow Oil PLC, following approval by the Uganda government, completed its planned acquisition of 50% interest in Blocks 1 and 3A from Heritage Oil & Gas Ltd. for $1.35 billion, with a further contractual settlement amount of $100 million.
Tullow now plans to enter into transactions with China National Offshore Oil Corp. and Total SA to farmout two thirds of its interests in Blocks 1, 2, and 3A in the Lake Albert Rift basin in an accelerated basin-wide development plan that is expected to deliver production well in excess of 200,000 b/d from the basin.
Blocks 1, 2, and 3A are thought to contain combined reserves of more than 2 billion bbl of oil, and initial production from them is expected in late 2011. Tullow anticipates reaching peak output of more than 200,000 b/d in 2014-15.
The sale, however, has been dogged for months by a dispute between Uganda and Heritage over taxes. On July 7, Heritage said Kampala had approved the agreement, pending its ?demonstrating to government that it will pay any taxes on demand, which may arise from the disposal of the assets.?
At the time, though, Heritage was not expecting to pay any taxes on the sale as it had been advised by experts in the UK and North America that disposal of the assets is not taxable in Uganda.
The two sides continue to disagree on the tax issue, but the acquisition proceeded anyway following a compromise under which Heritage deposited $121.5 million with the Uganda Revenue Authority. The sum represents 30% of the disputed tax assessment of $404.9 million by the URA.
?Heritage continues to work with government to agree a way forward for the tax dispute to be resolved,? the firm said, adding that the balance of $283.4 million on the assessment has been retained in escrow pending resolution of the dispute.
HOUSTON, July 28 -- An appraisal well in the Butiaba region of Uganda Block 1 encountered more than 40 m of net oil-bearing reservoir, the thickest oil pay encountered in the Butiaba sector, said Tullow Oil PLC.
The Ngiri-2 appraisal well found the 40 m of net pay in two zones in a 131-m gross oil-bearing interval. The well went to 892 m 1.7 km north of the Ngiri-1 discovery well on the Warthog prospect (see map, OGJ, Feb. 16, 2009, p. 34).
Tullow Oil noted that after 32 successes in 33 wells the Lake Albert Rift basin still delivers from the upside potential. The company said it has discovered more than 950 million bbl of oil and estimates the yet-to-find prospective resource at 1.5 billion bbl.
Logging and sampling operations at Ngiri-2 confirmed the presence of movable oil in both zones. The lower zone encountered an oil-water contact, and pressure data from the upper zone indicate the possibility of a deeper contact than expected.
Reservoir quality is excellent, akin to Kasamene field in Block 2, where a production rate of 3,500 b/d of oil was achieved during testing in 2009.
Ngiri-2 is the first of a multiwell appraisal program planned to further evaluate the extent and recovery potential of Ngiri field. Tullow plans to drill the Ngiri-3 and Ngiri-4 downdip appraisal wells designed to establish oil- water contacts and reservoir distribution.
Tullow suspended Ngiri-2 and is moving the rig to the Mpyo-1 wildcat location. Tullow operates its 100% interests in Blocks 1, 2, and 3A.
Tullow said, ?This continued success supports our planning for the accelerated basinwide development with our future new partners Total and China National Offshore Oil Corp.?
Sasol, Statoil, Chesapeake form JV to explore Karoo Shale
Tuesday, 20 July 2010 13:29 Scandinavian Oil and Gas
Eastern Cape. Sasol reported the successful award of a joint application with Statoil and Chesapeake for an onshore petroleum Technical Cooperation Permit (TCP) in South Africa.
The TCP covers an area of approximately 88,000 km2, primarily located in the Free State and also covering areas in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.
The permit awards the applicants the exclusive right to study the prospectivity for shale gas in the Karoo Basin for a period of up to 12 months, but does not include any surface activity or drilling. The joint venture partners plan to evaluate existing and available geological information within the area to determine the potential for shale gas. The study work will include the sampling and analysis of existing geological cores that were drilled by Soekor in the 1970's and 1980's during their search for shale oil. The same shale formations are now being assessed for potential gas production. This concept follows recent global developments in shale gas, where technology advancement in drilling and extraction technologies have allowed for economic development of significant shale gas resources.
If the geological evaluation proves successful, the partners will consider committing to a more extensive exploration program in the Karoo Basin. The Karoo Basin in South Africa has unproved shale gas potential and significant exploration efforts are required to assess and quantify this prospective resource.
"A discovery of large recoverable shale gas reserves in the Karoo Basin will be a game changer in the broader South African energy market context and will likely constitute a major step to further develop gas transmission and distribution infrastructure in the country," said Ebbie Haan, Managing Director of SPI.
London. Heritage Oil has obtained the necessary permit from the government of Uganda to sell its entire stakes in blocks 1 and 3a to Tullow Oil for up to US $1.50 Billion. "The transaction is expected to complete within five working days following finalisation with Government of a mechanism, including arbitration, for dealing with any taxes lawfully payable from the disposal of the Assets," Heritage said today.
On completion of the deal Tullow is due to receive $1.35 Bn plus another $150 million deferred consideration in cash.
But there appears to be some wrangling over relates tax issues over the deal, with Heritage saying it has been advised that there is no tax payable on the deal in Uganda, while the one of the Ugandan government ministers is suggesting tax is payable on $404.925 m,
Heritage said the permission for the deal to its subsidiary Heritage Oil and Gas Limited (HOGL) is conditional on paying any taxes on demand which may arise from the disposal of the assets.
But the company goes on: "In a separate letter Mr. Kabagambe-Kaliisa, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Energy & Mineral Development, advised that if HOGL was to resolve the tax matter by arbitration in London, then such arbitration would be on the basis that HOGL deposit approximately US$121.5 million, representing 30% of the disputed amount of US$404,925,000 with the Uganda Revenue Authority and provide a bank guarantee for the balance. "
Heritage previously said on 17 June that it proposed to the Ugandan Government the option of arbitration in London.
"Heritage's position, based on comprehensive advice from leading tax experts in Uganda, the United Kingdom and North America, is that the disposal of the assets is not taxable in Uganda. Heritage is considering Government's response and will update the market in due course," the company said.
Congo president cancels block agreements with Tullow
Eric Watkins
OGJ Oil Diplomacy Editor
LOS ANGELES, June 25 -- Congo (former Zaire) President Joseph Kabila has cancelled an agreement with Tullow Oil Ltd. for two exploration blocks, awarding them instead to companies owned by a relative of South Africa's president.
Drilling rights for Blocks 1 and 2 on the Congolese side of Lake Albert, bordering Uganda, were granted to Caprikat and Foxwhelp, two firms that are registered in the British Virgin Islands and owned by Khulubuse Zuma, a nephew of South African President Jacob Zuma.
?We are geared up to partner with the [Congo] government in order to fast-track the development of these highly prospective gas and oil concessions,? Zuma said, adding, ?The contract should be viewed in the context of a developing strategic alliance between [Congo] and South Africa and is an important first step in the establishment of a wider industrial partnership between the two countries in the oil and gas sector.?
The Congo?s Ministry of Mines, which confirmed the awards, is seeking a $6 million signature bonus from the two BVI companies, while Tullow Oil registered its displeasure at the unexpected turn of events.
?We are reviewing our options but have no doubt about the legal validity of our claims to these blocks,? a Tullow spokesman said. ?The award of these licenses to an unknown [BVI]-registered company does nothing to help Africa build any sort of reputation for transparency,? he added.
?The last few weeks have shown the world the effect on the environment of an oil industry-related accident so to award exploration licenses in a very sensitive environmental area to a company with no oil and gas experience is absurd,? the spokesman said.
?Furthermore, no legitimate company will farm in to blocks with unknown BVI companies so I fail to see how these blocks are going to be developed for the benefit of the people? of Congo, he said.
Analyst BMI agreed with that assessment, saying that the award ?raises serious questions? over the Congo government's motivations and the future prospects of its underdeveloped oil and gas industry.
?Moreover,? BMI said, the award ?further highlights the above-ground political risks faced by companies operating in the country in spite of the potential for significant hydrocarbon reserves.?
In 2006, Tullow signed a contract to explore Blocks 1 and 2, paying a signing bonus of $500,000 for 48.5% stakes in each block. Tullow Oil had been hoping to integrate work on the two Congo blocks with its operations in neighboring Uganda where it has begun drilling appraisal wells and expects production to start next year.
However, Kabila declined to approve the agreement with Tullow and he also declined to approve another agreement made in 2008 when South Africa's Divine Inspiration Group (DIG) paid $2.5 million for the rights to Block 1.
In addition to the two new agreements made this week, the Congo also awarded Block 3 to South Africa?s SacOil, a 50/50 joint venture of the Encha Group and DIG.
SacOil Director Andrea Brown said her firm plans to start work immediately and is looking to invest a total of $100 million over the next 4 years.
Block 5 went to a consortium comprised of Soco International 38.25%, Dominion Petroleum 46.75%, and Cohydro 15%, while Polar Petroleum DRC, which registered in Congo in April, is seeking a memorandum of understanding for Block 4.
HOUSTON, June 22 ? Dominion Petroleum Ltd., Hamilton, Bermuda, said its Uganda unit has spud the Ngaji-1 exploratory well, first well in the Lake Edward basin in southwestern Uganda.
The well is projected to 2,000 m on Exploration Area 4B at a location the company deemed best to test the basin?s geology and identify elements of a working petroleum system.
The block adjoins the border with Congo (former Zaire), in which the majority of the basin and its potential reside. Block interests are Dominion 95% and Alpha Oil 5%.
Uganda. Italy-based Eni Spa has applied to the Ugandan government to be allowed to re-enter the country's oil sector in order to offer more investment opportunities in the upcoming oil sector, officials said Wednesday.
Officials at the ministry of energy and minerals development said Eni wrote to the government early this month asking for an opportunity to be allowed back.
"Eni says that it has already spent $15 million to prepare an oil development plan for Uganda's oil sector, they want to be given a second chance," an official said. Eni couldn't comment immediately.
Eni announced that it had quit the country's oil sector in February after UK-based Tullow Oil PLC pre-empted its $1.5 billion deal with Heritage Oil PLC for half stakes in blocks 1 and 3A in the Lake Albert basin.
However, Claudio Descalzi, Eni's chief operations officer, wrote to Uganda's minister of energy earlier this month saying the company had committed enormous financial and human resources to Uganda's oil sector in the last six months and should be allowed back.
"We are prepared to reconsider our position as long as Eni is offered an opportunity to play a role in the Ugandan oil industry which is compatible," he wrote in a letter seen by Dow Jones Newswires.
Since last month, Eni executives have been in the country, trying to lobby government officials.
Government sources said talks with Tullow and its proposed partners, Cnooc Ltd. and France-based Total SA, are at an advanced stage on developing oil assets but the government hasn't yet formally approved Tullow's proposed takeover of Heritage interests.
Tullow and Heritage have discovered around 1 billion barrels in three exploration areas in the Lake Albert basin.
Tullow finds more oil in Uganda; confirms earlier findings
Eric Watkins
OGJ Oil Diplomacy Editor
LOS ANGELES, Apr. 13 -- Tullow Oil PLC said its Kasamene-3 and Kasamene-3A wells in the Butiaba region of Uganda Block 2 have successfully delineated the extent of oil in the Kasamene field, and it discovered oil in the Wahrindi North fault block.
"These Kasamene and Wahrindi North exploratory appraisal results have successfully delineated the upside potential in this immediate area,? said Angus McCoss, Tullow?s exploration director. ?This takes us a significant step towards first oil in Uganda, which is expected from the Kasamene field in 2011,? he said.
Tullow said the Kasamene-3 well was drilled down-dip and 2.2 km to the southwest of the Kasamene-1 discovery well. It said the ?deviated well? was drilled to a total depth of 1,109 m and results of logging confirmed 10 m of oil pay within a 35 m thick reservoir section of the Kasamene field.
?Pressure data confirmed this pay to be in communication with the up-dip Kasamene-1 well, successfully extending the column height of these reservoirs to over 100 m,? Tullow said.
The UK-listed firm said ?high-quality? reservoirs 25 m thick were encountered on prognosis below the oil-water contact. ?This successful outcome proves the viability of this location as a future water injection point to support up-dip oil production,? it said.
Meanwhile, Tullow said a second well to explore the Wahrindi North fault block was drilled utilizing the top-hole section of Kasamene-3. This well, called Kasamene-3A, was drilled to a total depth of 988 m into a separate fault compartment 300 m to the southwest and encountered more than 15 m of oil pay.
Tullow said the rig will now move to the Kaiso-Tonya area to drill the Nzizi-3 appraisal well in support of the accelerated Nzizi gas development project.
Tullow has interests in three licenses in the Lake Albert Rift Basin in Uganda. It operates Block 2 with a 100% interest and has a 50% interest in Blocks 1 and 3A, which are operated by Heritage Oil with a 50% stake in each.
Tullow has applied for approval by the Ugandan government to purchase Heritage?s stakes in the two blocks and to make farmout arrangements regarding them with Total SA and China National Offshore Oil Co.
According to analyst BMI, ?The entry of major industry players into its projects will allow Tullow to fast-track the development of its blocks and the necessary related infrastructure.?
However, the Ugandan government has not been in a hurry to make the approvals, saying in March it would defer its decision for a month.
"Our expectation is that by April we will have finished our evaluation and that the government will give the go-ahead for the transactions to proceed," said Kabagambe Kaliisa, the energy ministry's permanent secretary (OGJ, Mar. 22, 2010).
While awaiting that decision, McCoss said Tullow continues ?to work closely with the government of Uganda on plans for accelerating our exploration and appraisal activities in the region and look forward to commencing a multiwell program with a second rig in Block 1 next month.?
HOUSTON, Apr. 14 -- OMV AG has suspended for future production the sixth successive well to encounter hydrocarbons in a development play 700 km south of Tunis, Tunisia (OGJ Online, Feb. 16, 2009).
The Ahlem-2 appraisal well, drilled to 4,060 m TD on the Nawara production concession, flowed at a maximum stabilized rate of 3,300 boe/d of gas condensate from two condensate-bearing sandstone reservoirs. The condensate/gas ratio was 8 bbl/MMcf measured.
OMV (Tunesien) Exploration GMBH and its 50-50 partner in the concession, state-owned ETAP, have spudded another exploration well, Ritma-1.
Libya.Gazprom announced on Monday it had agreed terms with Italy's energy company Eni on joining the Elephant oilfield in Libya in an asset-swap deal.
The terms were agreed after a meeting between Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller and Eni head Paolo Scaroni. "The parties will prepare a corresponding agreement in the coming days and submit it to the Libyan government for approval," Gazprom said in a statement.
Under the deal, Gazprom is to take half of Eni's stake in the deposit with recoverable reserves of around 700 million barrels or a total of 33% in the project in exchange for Eni taking part in projects to develop northwest Siberian assets owned by the Arctic Gas company.
The Elephant oilfield, also known as the El Feel oilfield, is located onshore in Libya's Murzuq Basin. It was discovered in 1997 and produced about 125,000 barrels a day in 2006.
Uganda. Chinese firm CNOOC has outbid ONGC in the race to buy an Ugandan oil block.
The setback for ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas arm of the state-owned explorer, comes within weeks of acquiring a major crude oil block in Venezuala where it was the sole bidder.
ONGC?s failure could add weight to the oil ministry?s proposal of setting up a sovereign fund to compete with China in acquiring global oil and gas assets. Officials said, ?The failure in Uganda indicates the urgent need to set up a sovereign fund as the country?s energy demands are expected to increase and acquisitions abroad are the only way to ensure energy security.?
?We should encourage acquisition of overseas oil, natural gas and coal assets, including by the private sector,? the Planning Commission has said in its mid-term appraisal of the Eleventh Five Year plan.
Two years back, ONGC had bought Imperial Energy for about $2.2 billion to gain access to fields in Russia.
OVL was keen on Heritage Oil Plc?s 50 per cent share in Block 1 and 3a in the Lake Albert Rift Basin of Uganda. Heritage, however, decided to sell its stake to ENI Spa, Italy?s biggest energy producer, for about $1.5 billion. The deal couldn?t go through as the UK?s Tullow, which held the remaining stake in the Uganda blocks, exercised its right of pre-emption to block ENI.
OVL and Cairn later teamed up to make an offer to Tullow, but Cairn backed out once the Chinese entered the scene.
Cairn was replaced by Oil India and IOC, and the offer was about $2.1 billion. The China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC), however, emerged winner with its $2.5-billion offer.
Istnieje potrzeba zwiększenia krajowego wydobycia ropy naftowej ? powiedział w Sejmie minister skarbu Mikołaj Budzanowski. Jego zdaniem nadzieję na zrealizowanie tego celu dają zarówno złoża konwencjonalne jak również potencjał zasobów łupkowych.
W tej chwili niemal całość przerabianej w polskich rafineriach ropy (około 24 mln ton rocznie) pochodzi z importu, w około 90 proc. z Rosji. Wielkość dostaw ropy naftowej wydobywanej ze złóż krajowych stanowiła mniej niż 2,5 proc. zaopatrzenia rafinerii, co przekłada się na jedynie około 9 dni
przerobu.
- W tym roku wielkość krajowego wydobycia ropy powinna się istotnie zwiększyć w efekcie uruchomienia przez PGNiG produkcji ze złoża Lubiatów-Międzychód-Grotów. Wciąż jednak będą to ilości zbyt małe by mówić o uniezależnieniu się od dostaw zewnętrznych ? powiedział minister Budzanowski.
Większą szansą są jego zdaniem złoża niekonwencjonalne. ? Dane Państwowego Instytutu Geologicznego pokazują, że jest szansa na znaczące zwiększenie wydobycia ropy w naszym kraju ? stwierdził Budzanowski.
Raport PIG na temat zasobów węglowodorów w skałach łupkowych wskazuje na możliwość wydobycia od 215,4 do 267,8 mln ton. Dawałoby to możliwość zaspokojenia krajowego zapotrzebowania na 10-12 lat. Niestety zdecydowana większość tych zasobów znajduje się pod dnem Bałtyku. ? Jeśli brać pod uwagę wyłącznie zasoby lądowe to szacujemy je na 50-101 mln ton ? mówił Jerzy Nawrocki, dyrektor PIG.
Nie są to więc szacunki rzucające na kolana, choć PIG zastrzega, że są to szacunki na podstawie archiwalnych danych i to ujęte dość konserwatywnie. Jeśli miałoby dojść do ich przeszacowania to raczej w górę niż w dół.
Israel May Hold the World?s Third Largest Reserve of Shale Oil
Israel and Jordan Shale Oil Deposits and Occurences
Last summer huge deposits of natural gas were found along Israel's northern coastline.
As with almost everything having to do with that
controversial country, both Israelis and others found this "revelation"
a mixed blessing, to say the least. On the one hand, it certainly eases
concerns about Israel's energy viability, with enough not just for its
own needs, but sufficient quantities to become a major exporter as well.
At the same time, many Israelis feared the
effect such "easy money" would have on the country's already significant
elite corruption problem, and its proximity to Lebanese territorial
waters raised once again the question of the wisdom of Israel's 2006
invasion, which alienated many previously pro-Israeli elements in
Lebanon, and seemed sure to fuel a national consensus to contest any
easy access for which Israelis might be hoping.
Hmmmm ... sounds a bit like BP and their Arctic drilling problems in Russia ... ;-) ...
Now, it turns out, even more fuel is being added
to Israel's energy fire -- so to speak -- with the equally stunning
news that the country may hold the world's third largest quantities of
shale oil - behind the US and China, both of whom would consume almost
all of their own production - meaning Israel could indeed become the
world's largest exporter of shale oil -- hence the comparison to Saudi
Arabia.
Israel a global super power in energy ??? The mind boggles.
But the same sort of technological revolution
that has made previously inaccessible on-shore natural gas suddenly
available - via a process of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, an
environmentally destructive process whose impact on the global natural
gas scene we discussed last week - is now apparently transforming the
extraction of shale oil as well - and in so doing, shaking up the energy
dynamics of the entire world, including Israel.
How did all this come to be ???
The most recent developments in this story start
with Dr Harold Vinegar, the former chief scientist of Royal Dutch
Shell, who is at the center of an ambitious project to turn Israel into
one of the world's leading oil producers. Israel Energy Initiatives, or
IEI, where Vinegar is chief scientist, is working on projects to
extract oil and natural gas from oil shale from a 238sq km area of the
Shfela Basin, to the south and west of Jerusalem.
Oil shale mining is often frowned upon by
environmentalists for many of the same reasons as fracking: it's a dirty
process that is both energy and water-intensive.
IEI, which is owned by the American telecom
group IDT Corp, believes its technique will be cleaner than that of
other operators because the oil will be separated from the shale rock up
to 300m beneath the ground.
Water will be a by-product of the process,
rather than being consumed by it in large volumes. Vinegar says Israel
has the third-biggest oil shale deposits in the world, outside the US
and China:
"We
estimate there is the equivalent of 250 billion barrels of oil here. To
put that in context, there are proven reserves of 260 billion barrels
of oil in Saudi Arabia."
And not to upset too many people, but we also
ran an item earlier this year about Arab scientists working for ARAMCO
who argue that the Saudis have, in fact, systematically OVER-estimated
their proven reserves.
IEI estimates the marginal cost of production will be between $US35 - 40 per barrel.
This, Vinegar points out, is cheaper than the
$US60 or so per barrel that it costs to extract crude from inhospitable
locations such as the Arctic - wow, if BP CEO Dudley isn't gnashing his
teeth when he reads this ;-) - and compares with $US30 - 40 per barrel
in some of the deepwater oilfields off the coast of Brazil.
"These Israeli deposits have been known about,
but have never been listed before. It was previously assumed there was
not the technology to deal with it."
IEI hopes to begin production on a commercial
basis by the end of the decade, with a view to producing 50,000 barrels
per day at the outset. This would be a fraction of the 270,000bpd
consumed daily by Israel, but would be a significant step towards making
the country energy-independent. With one barrel of oil comprising 42
gallons, Vinegar estimates each ton of oil shale contains approximately
25 gallons.
The
extraction process involves heating the rock underground, using
electric heaters, to approximately 325C, the level at which the
carbon-carbon bonds in the rock start to "crack".
Wow,
this really DOES sound like the shale oil equivalent of "fracking". The
oil produced by the process is light and easily refined to a range of
products, including naphtha, jet fuel and diesel.
This is significant, since light oil -- like
that produced in Libya -- is considered "sweet" and much less costly to
refine than the heavier crude found in Saudi Arabia.
Given the importance of political receptivity to
outside investors in the energy business, it's not surprising the
project is attracting serious interest from outside investors. In
November, 2010, an 11% stake in Genie Oil & Gas, the division of IDC
that is the parent company of IEI, was acquired for $US11m by Jacob
Rothschild, the banker, and Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corporation
and promoter of right-wing lunacy throughout the English-speaking
world.
Genie's advisory board includes impressive
figures such as Michael Steinhardt, the hedge fund investor, and more
frightening ones, like Dick Cheney, former US vice-president, and
co-founder of the Shiite Islamic Republic of Iraq, along with his
running buddy George W Bush.
An appraisal is now under way that would be
followed by an 18-month pilot stage, according to Vinegar. Among the
issues this will address will be concerns raised by environmental
groups, including an examination of IEI's claims that the process does
not require excessive use of water or energy.
Reassurance will also be sought that a local
aquifer, which is several hundred metres below the shale deposits, will
not be contaminated by the work. This is key, because, while the Middle
East may have an abundance of fossil-fuel energy, it has a decided
shortage of water, so any process that is a major net consumer of water
may not be cost-effective from an overall point of view.
Assuming these early stages are completed
successfully, a demonstration phase would then take place over three to
four years, during which the work completed in the pilot phase would be
continued on a larger scale. Only then would the commercial operations
begin.
By that time, up to 1000 people would be
employed on the project, many of them specialist engineers from outside
Israel, says Vinegar, who adds:
"Funding is not needed for the pilot and
demonstration, although once we get to 50,000 barrels per day, we would
want to have a partner. We have been approached by all the majors."
Not surprisingly, the project still faced a number of significant issues, as Vinegar points out:
"There is a geological risk:
- Is the resource there?
- What is the risk to the aquifer?
- We have no doubts here, in particular that the resource is there and is of good quality,
- but the pilot can prove these things.
"Then there is the technological risk:
- Can we drill long horizontal wells?
- Can the heaters be placed in them?
- And can they last?
"And finally there is the economic risk, what
the price of oil does. But I think the price is going to continue
rising, to the extent that, by 2030, we will be at around $US200 per
barrel."
And while this seems to have escaped Vinegar's
attention, which is not a great sign, there is a fourth potential risk
for the project: whether it is capable of sufficiently overcoming
substantive objections from environmentalists to win popular support -
perhaps the most important challenge facing him and his colleagues.
If they are successful, though, it will probably
mean an end to one of the most humorous stories in Jewish culture about
fossil-fuel energy: During a crowded Passover service, a rabbi telling
the story of the Exodus from Egypt was interrupted by an old man, who
kept shouting, "Moses was a schmuck, Moses was a schmuck."
Of course, the congregation was shocked, and the
stunned rabbi finally asked the old man why he was criticizing the
great hero of Judaism / Christianity / Islam. The old man replied
without hesitation: "He said when they come out of Sinai, turn left. If
he had any brains, he should have told them, "Turn right.'"
| 16-05-2012 10:21 | aktualizacja: 16-05-2012 11:56
Tullow deepens its Ngamia-1 well.
(IN) - 24-03-2011 10:30 
China National Offshore Oil Corp. and Total SA to farmout two thirds of its interests in Blocks 1, 2, and 3A in the Lake Albert Rift basin in an accelerated basin-wide development plan that is expected to deliver production well in excess of 200,000 b/d from the basin.
has obtained the necessary permit from the government of Uganda to sell its entire stakes in blocks 1 and 3a to 
