Offshore Energy Timeline:1806-2014
1806 - Spring pole cable drilling developed in US. 1844 - Fluid circulating rotary well drilling patented in England. 1845 - Circulated fluid used to remove drill cuttings for first time. 1860 - Fluid circulation rotary diamond coring drill developed in France. 1869 â T homas Fitch Rowland patents a âsubmarine drilling apparatus,â a fixed, working platform for drilling offshore to a depth of almost 50 feet. The anchored tower had telescoping legs, similar to modern offshore platforms. 1878 - First bulk oil tanker begins operation in the Caspian Sea. 1891 - First ocean-going tanker launched. 1897 - Wells drilled off piers in Summerland, Calif. 1905 â Oil discovered in the Caddo Pine Island field in Lousiana. 1911 - Gulf Refining Co.
Offshore Service Vessels
Flexible fuels, Bold designs ... Eastern Shipbuilding Group has arguably been one of the more progressive and aggressive U.S. builders of high-spec Offshore Service Vessels in recent years, winning a number of high-profile contracts for operators globally. Eastern recently delivered M/V HOS Red Dawn and christened M/V HOS Renaissance, both for Hornbeck Offshore Services, LLC. HOS Red Dawn (H201) â now delivered â was launched on February 15, 2013. HOS Red Rock (H202) was launched April 19, 2013, and is currently at Eastern completing final outfitting, regulatory and DP-2 trials.
Topaz Expands Caspian Presence
Topaz Energy and Marine, an offshore support vessel owner with primary operations in the Middle East and Caspian, announced that it has secured new multi-year charters in the Russian Filanovsky project for nine of its offshore support vessels amounting to approximately $20 million. The vessels have been deployed to offshore contractor Saipem and will support the development of the Filanovsky oil and gas field in the Northern Caspian Sea. The vessels will provide anchor-handling and tug services as well as transport of supplies and personnel.
Finnish Shipbuilding and Arctic Operations
The STX Turku Shipyard in Finland recently lost the order for a third Oasis class cruise ship and an option for a fourth to âsisterâ shipyard STX France, when neither the owner, the financially troubled STX Group, nor the Finnish government wanted to inject a missing $64.3m to the capital of the shipyard. The yard is currently building two 97,000gt cruise ships for TUI Cruises. In January the shipyard delivered the worldâs first LNG-fuelled big size passenger-car ferry, the Viking Grace for Baltic ferry operator Viking Line.
Oil & Gas Warms to Reflex Marineâs Arctic Thermal Pod
Expert in marine personnel transfer Reflex Marine has developed an innovative safety accessory for use with the FROG â the âArctic Thermal Podâ. The safety device is designed to combat potential exposure to wind chill whilst performing crane transfers at low temperatures. During a detailed risk assessment of crane transfer activities an Operator in the Arctic recognised that, in the unlikely event of a crane stoppage mid-transfer, passengers could be exposed to very low temperatures and significant wind chill effectsâŚ
STX Norway Offshore to Build Icebreaker Tugs
STX Norway Offshore has signed contracts for the building of two icebreaker tugs to JSC Circle Marine Invest. The vessels will be delivered in 2011, and the total value of the two contracts amounts to approximately $71.4m. JSC Circle Marine Invest will through its subsidiary Caspian Offshore Construction in Kazakhstan operate the vessels in the Kashagan field of the northern Caspian Sea. The vessels are designed by the STX Europe subsidiary Aker Arctic, and have a length of 213.2 ft and a beam of 53.8 ft. The vessels will have the Ice class notification 1A* Super, according to the Finnish-Swedish Ice classification rules. Further, the vessels will be equipped and designed for other operations like firefighting, rescue operations and towing in shallow waters.
STX Europe to Build Three Icebreakers
STX Europe has, through its wholly owned subsidiary STX Norway Offshore AS, signed contracts to build three icebreaker tugs for JSC Circle Marine Invest. The subsidiary company, Caspian Offshore Construction in Kazakhstan will operate the vessels in the Kashagan field of the northern Caspian Sea. The vessels will be delivered in 2010 and 2011, and the total value of the three contracts amounts to approximately $111.5m. The vessels are designed by the STX Europe subsidiary Aker Arctic, and have a length of 213 ft and a beam of 53.8 ft. The vessels will have the Ice class notification 1A* Super, according to the Finnish-Swedish Ice classification rules. Further, the vessels will be equipped and designed for other operations like fire fighting, rescue operation and towing in shallow waters.
OTC: Offshore Industry Barometer For More Than 30 Years
The Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) annually attracts a global audience of leading engineers, managers, and scientists to the heart of the oil and gas industry. It was 1969 when OTC made its debut in Houston, a big year for the energy industry: oil was discovered in the North Sea; environmentalists were blocking the Trans-Alaskan pipeline that would bring North Slope oil supplies to the lower 48 states; oil rich countries in the Middle East and North Africa were demanding a bigger share of oil profits; and oil prices were positioned for takeoff. That inaugural event was modest by todayâs standards, attracting just 4,200 offshore professionals and 125 exhibitors-less than one-tenth the turnout of recent years. Currently OTC is the offshore industryâs largest annual gathering.
Feature: Schottel Broadens Electric Propulsion Options
German engineers have strengthened the Schottel offering through the development of a propulsor which melds technical design and performance features of the company's proprietary, azimuthing Rudderpropeller series with those of electric podded drives. The resulting hybrid system, known as the Schottel Combi Drive (SCD) and distinguished by its compactness and inboard placement of the integral electric motor, has been designed for unit power applications in the 1,900 to 3,800-kW range. The innovative new product employs proven mechanical elements from the Rudderpropeller design and the latter's optimized-efficiency, Twin-Propeller (STP) version.