Energy

Emirates leader signs law clearing way for nuclear power plant to be built with US help

The president of the energy-hungry United Arab Emirates has signed a law regulating the development of a civilian nuclear program, clearing the way for construction of a nuclear power plant with help from the United States. Washington has promoted its plan to help the Emirates' develop peaceful nuclear power as a model of the kind of co-operation it would like to achieve with Iran, which the U.S. and its allies suspect is using a civilian program as a cover to develop an atomic weapons capability. The United Arab Emirates, which is just across the Persian Gulf from Iran, is among those Arab nations wary of Iran's nuclear work. UAE President Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan signed into law the regulatory framework for building "a peaceful nuclear energy sector". The law complies with regulations of the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency.

BP gives CNPC bigger share in Iraqi oil-field project

UK oil company BP PLC is giving partner China National Petroleum Corp. a larger share of equity in a project to develop Rumailah, Iraq's largest producing oil field, a senior Iraqi oil official said. The change cuts BP's stake in Rumaila to 38 per cent from an initial 50 per cent, and raises CNPC's share to 37 per cent from 25 per cent. Iraq's South Oil Co. holds the rest, the official said. The BP-led group won the project to develop the southern Rumaila field in a bidding round at the end of June. "Discussions on finalizing the contract continue and details are confidential until the process is complete," said a BP spokesman. He added that BP believes it will continue to operate the project. CNPC wasn't immediately available to comment.

Two new oil fields found in Kurdistan

International oil companies operating in the region have recently discovered two new oil fields in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to a report published by The National, after explorations in the northern parts of Kurdistan Region, a British oil company discovered a large amount of oil reserves in the Shekhan oil field. The company announced that the reserve holds between 1.5 billion to 3 billion barrels. In another part of Kurdistan, the Canadian Heritage Oil Company and its Turkish partner, Genel Energy, who are exploring and producing oil in Kurdistan, found another oil field in May 2009 with a reserve amount of 3 billion barrels of crude oil.

Qatar and Turkey sign energy cooperation agreement

Qatar and Turkey have signed an energy cooperation agreement that could pave the way for liquefied natural gas shipments to Turkey. Specific terms were not provided in reports carried by both countries' state-run news agencies. The deal calls for the establishment of energy working groups to further negotiations. Qatar and its international partners are investing billions of dollars to boost the small gas-rich state's LNG export capacity to 77 million tons in the coming years. Turkey and some European Union countries are hoping to build a gas pipeline, called Nabucco that will link Central Asia and the Middle East with Europe.

KOGAS to build US$345m energy plant in Saudi Arabia

South Korea's state-run KOGAS will invest about 400 billion won (US$344.9 million) to build an energy plant in Saudi Arabia, the company said. Sources say that the company would sign a preliminary deal with the Saudi Arabian government on Nov. 2 for the plant in Jubail, which would have an annual capacity of 300,000 tons of dimethylether (DME) from 2013. DME is mainly made from the synthesized gas by cracking natural gas, coal and bio-mass, and is considered cheaper and cleaner than liquefied petroleum gas.

UAE's Dana, Crescent plan US$60bn gas city in Iraq

UAE firms Dana Gas and Crescent Oil are looking to build a gas city in Iraq's western province of Anbar that they hope would draw US$60 billion in investment, said Province Governor Qassim al-Fahdawi. The gas could come from the province's Akkas gas field, which al-Fahdawi said Dana and Crescent were also keen to develop with the central Oil Ministry. The plan would use gas Baghdad has previously earmarked for possible export to the Nabucco pipeline or for export to Syria in order to feed power generation plants as well as petrochemical and fertilizer factories, the governor said. Fahdawi said Dana and Crescent had estimated an investment of US$8 billion for the development of the Akkas Field and added a South Korean company had also put in an offer to develop the city.

Taqa, partners invest 800m Euro in gas storage

Abu Dhabi National Energy Co (Taqa) said it had agreed with partners to invest 800 million Euros (US$1.2 billion) to jointly develop a gas storage project in the Netherlands with Russia's Gazprom Construction of the facility north of Amsterdam will start after all necessary permits have been granted, which Taqa expected to receive in 2010. It is aiming for commercial operations to begin in 2013. "This is a substantial milestone and represents Taqa's commitment to this flagship project," said Paul van Gelder, managing director of Taqa in The Netherlands. Taqa is working on the Bergermeer project with a consortium that includes developers Dyas, Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN) and Petro-Canada.

Nakilat and Qatargas announce the delivery of the LNG Carrier 'Al Karaana'

Another of the world's largest and most advanced Q-Flex LNG carriers was delivered to Nakilat and chartered on long term contract to Qatar Liquefied Gas Company Limited (4), known as QG4, at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. Ltd., shipyard on Geoje Island. The Nakilat owned Q-Flex LNG Carrier "Al Karaana" (210,000 CBM) will be used to ship LNG produced by QG4, to markets primarily in North America. The Q-Flex and the even larger Q-Max are a new generation of LNG mega-ships. The Q-Max has 80 per cent more capacity than conventional LNG carriers with about 40 per cent lower energy requirements due to the economies of scale created by their size and the efficiency of the engines. Q-Max LNG carriers are unique and purpose built for Nakilat and allow for more efficient transport of Qatar's natural gas to markets throughout the world.

Norwegian DNO resumes ops in Iraq

Norwegian oil minnow DNO International ASA said earlier this month its rights to its production sharing contracts in the northern Kurdistan region of Iraq were reinstated with immediate effect. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) suspended all operations of DNO in the semi-autonomous region on September 21. The background for the move was that the Oslo Stock Exchange (OSE) and Norwegian media had connected KRG's minister of natural resources to a stock transaction, involving 4.8 per cent of DNO. DNO said it had been in continuous discussions with the KRG over the past weeks to address the issues that the KRG wished to resolve and they have now been cleared. Now, DNO can resume the role of operator without any restrictions. Until a future payment mechanism for crude exports is in place, the company will focus on local sales.

IPIC, Oman sign deal on new refinery project

Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) and Oman Oil Company (OOC) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the potential development of a refinery and petrochemical complex. The MoU, which covers plans for the port district of Duqm, Oman was signed by Khadem Al Qubaisi, managing director, IPIC and by Ahmed Al Wahaibi, CEO, OOC. The MoU will include feasibility studies for the proposed project. Al Wahaibi said: "The prospect of constructing refinery and petrochemical facilities at Duqm is important, not only for OOC and IPIC, but also for the Sultanate's economy." "We anticipate commissioning the necessary studies, including important feasibility and marketing analysis for the project, in the very near future," he added. The Duqm refinery and petrochemical complex will play a significant role in Oman's plans to diversify and develop the economy, the companies said.

Kuwait says plan to boost production on track

Kuwait's oil minister said this month the OPEC member's plan to boost crude output capacity to 4 million barrels a day is on track for the year 2020. Sheik Ahmed Al Abdullah Al Sabah's comment came a day after he said the output plan had been pushed back by a decade, to 2030. He had cited a weak market and a lack of skilled workers as the reasons for the change in the timeline. In his latest comments, Sheik Ahmed said the target was to maintain the 4 million barrel a day capacity in 2030.

Nippon consortium wins Nassiriya

A bid from Nippon Oil and partners was chosen above offers from Eni and Repsol for an Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract for the 4.4 billion barrel Nassiriya oil field, Iraqi Oil Ministry officials said. The ministry “evaluated the proposals from Eni, Repsol and Nippon. Eventually we are dealing with Nippon,” said Abdul Mahdi al-Ameedi, acting director general of the ministry’s Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate. Ameedi said the terms may change, though the commercial and financial issues “about settled down.” Regardless, he told reporters earlier, no other companies are in talks on Nassiriya. “No one else,” he said. “It is just Nippon.” The ministry will meet with Nippon on Nov. 1. The company is reviewing the ministry’s comments of Nippon’s earlier proposed contract.

South Korean gas company secures stake in Iraqi oilfield

South Korea's state-run gas company has secured a stake in a major oil field in southern Iraq, the government said. The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) had teamed up with Italy's ENI Group and Occidental Petroleum Corporation to win the Zubair field, west of Basra. The operational field is estimated to hold up to 6.6 billion barrels worth of crude. The ENI-led consortium signed a provisional development deal, and a formal arrangement is to be reached very soon that will call for at least 10 additional drilling operations. Developments rights are expected to last 20 years with an option to extend by five years, according to the ministry, which is in charge of the South Korea's industrial and energy policies. At present the field produces about 195,000 barrels per day, with the total to be raised to 1.12 million barrels in seven years and top 6 million barrels when full-fledged production takes place.

Renaissance unit wins Turkmenistan contract

Renaissance Services has won a new contract in Turkmenistan through its subsidiary, Topaz Energy and Marine, valued at RO5.4 million (US$14 million), representing a strategic breakthrough for the oil and gas services provider. The contract will be operated by BUE Turkmenistan, a group company of Topaz Energy and Marine, and runs for a period of 12 months. The scope of work under the contract will involve operating seven marine vessels in the Carigali field offshore Turkmenistan for client MMHE (Malaysian Marine and Heavy Engineering). MMHE is operating a joint venture between Technip and Petronas in the construction and linkage of a high-tech platform, the Magtymguly Collector Riser (MCR-A), offshore Turkmenistan.

Kuwait, China confirm swift approvals for mega refinery project

State-run Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) signed this month two MoU’s with local Chinese governments as part of its strategy to expand in the international downstream refining, petrochemicals and retailing station sectors in southern China. "The MoUs, the one with the Guangdong provincial government and another with the Zhanjiang municipality government, provide for a support package for the establishment of a world-scale integrated refinery and petrochemicals joint venture project on Donghai Island, located in Zhanjiang city in Guangdong Province," Kuwait Petroleum International (KPI) said . "The Kuwait-Sino joint venture project includes a refinery of 300,000 barrels per day (bpd), ethylene cracker with the capacity of 1 million ton per year, linked to network of retail stations and supplied 100 per cent by Kuwait Export Crude (KEC)," the statement said. KPI, the international refining and market unit of KPC, has been in talks with the Chinese side. Currently, formal approval from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's top economic planning agency, is expected be obtained as soon as early 2010, said KPI, adding that the project owners still target to start operation as early as 2013.

Bahrain and Aramco in talks to build pipeline

Bahrain is now in talks with oil giant Saudi Aramco over plans to move ahead with constructing a new pipeline between the two countries, said a top government official. Oil and Gas Affairs Minister and National Oil and Gas Authority chairman Dr Abdulhussain Mirza said discussions focused on what route the proposed pipeline would take to move crude from Saudi Arabia to Bahrain. 'We are now in discussions on the design and the route,' the minister said. The more than 100 kilometers project, expected to cost US$350 million, is expected to take off by the end of the year.

Kentz gets multi-million dollar EPC contract in Qatar

Kentz Corp Ltd said it received a multi-million dollar contract for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of a project for Laffan Refinery Co in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar. The contract included full site development of the main fuel truck distribution point for the Laffan refinery tank farm. Qatar Petroleum holds a 51 per cent stake in Laffan Refinery. The project is expected to be completed in 2011, the Irish engineering group said.