Recent Oil News

The largest-ever U.S. sale of offshore wind development rights - for areas off the coasts of New York and New Jersey - attracted a record $1.5 billion in bids on Wednesday, supporting President Joe Biden's plan to create a new domestic industry.The auction, which will continue on Thursday, is the first offshore wind lease sale under Biden, who has made expansion of offshore wind a cornerstone of his plans to tackle global warming and decarbonize the U.S. electricity grid by 2035…

When the global supply chain runs smoothly, it’s like a well-choreographed dance. Everything comes together elegantly and effortlessly. But when someone misses a step, the show can quickly turn into a disaster. And that’s what’s currently unfolding before our eyes, headline after headline.Those of us in the supply chain industry know it takes a Herculean effort to keep the wheels of commerce turning without so much as a squeak or rattle. And it’s going to take just that to get…

Israel accused Iran on Wednesday of being linked to a recent oil spill off its shores that caused major ecological damage, calling the incident environmental terrorism.The spill was caused by an oil tanker that was carrying pirated cargo from Iran to Syria last month, Israeli Environmental Protection Minister Gila Gamliel said.The vessel sailed through the Gulf and the Red Sea without radio contact, switching its tracking devices back on before passing through Egypt's Suez Canal, Gamliel told reporters.It turned the devices off again before entering Israeli waters in the eastern Mediterranean, and dropped oil into the sea between Feb.

The combination of the coronavirus pandemic and oil price freefall have affected most maritime markets, including inland waterway shipping. Looking at U.S. river transport in particular, the impacts of these two black swan events vary greatly depending on the type of cargo being carried.David Grzebinski, CEO of the America’s largest tank barge operator, Kirby Corp., said in a March conference call that petrochemical customers have driven the market higher as plants and refineries look to shore up their supply chains amid current market upheavals…

The International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) is currently on-site in north-east Brazil attending the recent oil spill that has contaminated approximately 2,500 km of coastline in nine states.The source of the pollution remains unknown, although the Brazilian government has recently reported that they suspect a tanker passing along its coast in late July as being the polluter."Our involvement was requested directly by IBAMA, the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources, on 16th September 2019, a couple of weeks after oil was first spotted washing up on shore," the not-for-profit marine ship pollution response advisers said.ITOPF is normally requested on-site by a shipowner or their insurer…

The vast majority (85%) of professionals working in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector believe that more investment is needed in LNG infrastructure to satisfy forecasts for growing global demand after 2025.However, more than two-thirds (69%) stated that uncertainty over prices is limiting spending in the megaprojects needed to feed the world’s growing appetite for LNG.A new report published by DNV GL has revealed that the vast majority (85%) of LNG professionals believe several new infrastructure projects will need to be initiated in 2019 to ensure LNG supply can meet demand post-2025. Price uncertainty is limiting investment in LNG megaprojects…

Venezuela's main oil export port of Jose and the country's four crude upgraders have been unable to resume operations following a massive power blackout on Monday, according to industry workers and a union leader close to the facilities.The most recent oil shipment for export, on the carrier Dragon chartered by Russia's Rosneft, left Jose, which is owned by state-run PDVSA, on March 24, according to Refinitiv Eikon vessel-tracking data and PDVSA's trade documents."There is no electricity, everything is paralyzed," oil workers' union leader Jose Bodas told Reuters on Tuesday.The blackout, Venezuela's second major power outage in a month…

Kirby Corporation announced a net loss attributable to Kirby for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2018 of ($24.4) million, or ($0.41) per share, compared with earnings of $231.3 million, or $3.87 per share, for the 2017 fourth quarter. Excluding certain one-time charges, 2018 fourth quarter net earnings attributable to Kirby were $44.9 million, or $0.75 per share. Consolidated revenues for the 2018 fourth quarter were $721.5 million compared with $708.1 million reported for the 2017 fourth quarter.For the 2018 full year…

Spending on the offshore service sector will outpace spending on the onshore shale sector this year, said Rystad Energy.According to Rystad's Oilfield Service Research report, service companies exposed to the offshore subsea market and the maintenance, modifications and operations (MMO) sector are set to benefit from this trend reversal.At current oil price levels, spending on land rigs, fracking and other services for the shale industry is likely to stay essentially flat in 2019. The offshore service market, too, will feel the effects of the recent oil price slide, but this sector is nevertheless projected to grow by a robust 4% this year…

After the recent oil spill disaster of the Bow Jubail in the Port of Rotterdam, Fleet Cleaner has stepped up to help the authorities with cleaning ship’s hulls which were fouled by the heavy fuel oil, in order to minimize the environmental impact. Within record time, Fleet Cleaner has transformed its installation to an oil spill response vessel; by installing specialized heating equipment, the high pressure water cleaning robot was made ready for high pressure steam cleaning.

International Maritime Organization (IMO) is supporting regional cooperation on oil and hazardous and noxious substances (HNS) spills in the Northwest Pacific region.IMO’s Roel Hoenders is taking part in meetings of the Marine Environmental Emergency Preparedness and Response Regional Activity Centre (MERRAC) taking place in Incheon, Republic of Korea (17-20 July).The Centre was originally established by IMO and UNEP to create effective cooperative measures to spill response under the Northwest Pacific Action Plan (NOWPAP).Roel Hoenders presented IMO’s recent work and achievements in environmental protection, highlighting ratification and implementation of the International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness…

To better understand the challenges faced by ship operators in Brazil, Maritime Reporter’s correspondent in Brazil spoke to Paulo Cesar P. Freitas, Fleet Manager for Norsul Shipping company, one of the major shipping operators in Brazil. Established in 1963 and operating continuously ever since, “Companhia de Navegação Norsul”, as it is called in Portuguese, is one of the leading private maritime commerce companies in Brazil. Norsul specializes in dry-bulk, neo-bulk cargoes, general cargo, project cargoes, along with chemicals and liquid cargoes, operating in the Brazilian Cabotage and international shipping markets. Freitas has worked for Norsul for 28 years, starting as Ship Superintendent and today operating as Fleet Manager.

Douglas-Westwood has launched its new World Offshore Maintenance Modifications and Operations Market Forecast 2017-2021 which forecasts a steady recovery from the recent oil price downturn with Modifications spend expected to improve significantly between 2017 and 2021. “In 2017, expenditure is forecast to total nearly $81bn for the world’s global offshore platform population of approximately 8700 fixed and floating assets. By service line, Asset Services accounts for over a half of total expenditure, 60%, with Modifications, 21%, Asset Integrity, 14% and Support Services, 6%.

Brazil's Subsalt Polygon, an offshore area that has already yielded some of the world's largest recent oil finds, may hold enough undiscovered petroleum and gas to supply the world's current oil needs for more than five years, researchers said. The Polygon, which covers most of Brazil's Santos and Campos offshore sedimentary basins, contains at least 176 billion barrels of undiscovered, recoverable resources of oil and natural gas (barrels of oil equivalent), according to study released last week by Cleveland Jones and Hernane Chaves of the National Institute of Oil and Gas (INOG) at Rio de Janeiro-State University. That is more than four times the 30 billion to 40 billion boe already discovered in the area.

With the energy market swoon in full blossom, Maritime Reporter checked in with Mark Charman, chief executive of global recruiting leader Faststream, for his insights on the breadth and depth of the impact to the offshore employment market. Uncertainty. If there is one word that summarizes current global energy market conditions, it is uncertainty. The sudden downturn in oil pricing – which started nine months ago and collectively caught much of the global market by surprise…

The global offshore accommodation market has seen significant growth over the past five years, with PoB requirements increasing by 27% between 2009 and 2014. Although the recent oil price decline has negatively impacted the accommodation market to some extent, the affect thus far has been largely limited to demand for units supporting Capex-related activities. However, Capex support is proportionally smaller in terms of total accommodation demand; of greater significance are the Opex markets which will account for 69% of PoB requirements in 2015. Accommodation units are utilised to reduce downtime during periods of essential maintenance. In the current oil price environment, sustaining production levels is key; moreover, reducing downtime from vital maintenance programs will be essential.

*EBIT margin ex. Aker Solutions revenue rose 21 percent to NOK 9.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2014 from a year earlier, helped by strong progress on major projects across the global business. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) climbed to NOK 557 million in the quarter from NOK 486 million a year earlier. The EBIT margin narrowed to 6.1 percent from 6.4 percent amid a slowdown in the Norwegian maintenance, modifications and operations (MMO) market and as some major subsea projects are still in a start-up phase. This was partly offset by strong project execution at the U.S. umbilicals plant, improved capacity utilization in the engineering area and reduced overhead costs in MMO. The EBIT margin, excluding one-off items, was 6.8 percent.

Mermaid has secured a 2-year contract for its dive support vessel, ‘Mermaid Commander’, to provide subsea construction support in the Gulf of Thailand for a repeat international fabrication and installation contractor whose end customer is a major international upstream oil and gas operator. The contract has an estimated value of USD 50 million. The 2-year contract will be for subsea construction and will be performed using saturation diving and will include the installation of numerous spool pieces, risers, wyes, tees, etc. Additional services include the provision of a remotely operated vehicle (“ROV”), survey, and a spool fabrication spread.

GulfMark Offshore, Inc. (NYSE: GLF) announced the initiation of a vessel construction program. The first three vessels in the program will be built by Remontowa Shipbuilding SA in Gdansk, Poland, and consists of two 1000 square meter deck area platform supply vessels of the MMC887CD design and one MMC879CD design with a deck area of over 800 square meters. These large and technologically advanced vessels have been designed to meet the demanding requirements for supporting deepwater and harsh environment activities, and are expected to operate in the North Sea market. The first MMC887CD vessel is expected to be delivered in the second quarter of 2013. The second MMC887CD vessel and the MMC879CD vessel are expected to be delivered in the third quarter of 2013.

Middle East Workboats 2011 opens on optimistic note - 58 new OSVs required to support recent oil and gas contracts worth $10b  The maritime commercial climate in the Middle East is in buoyant mood, especially for the workboats sector, as investment in the offshore oil and gas industry spurs demand for offshore support vessels (OSVs), according to industry experts speaking at Middle East Workboats 2011. The three-day conference and exhibition was officially opened by Awaidha Murshed Al Murar, Director of Shared Services, ADNOC, along with Khalifa M.

At a recent Senior Maritime Forum held in conjunction with Marintec China 2011, Clay Maitland called for marine environment protection as “an essential strategy for corporate risk management”. As NAMEPA’s (North American Marine Environment Protection Association) Founding Chairman, Maitland told the over 400 senior Chinese leaders that “Clean seas are good business”. “In these times of economic pressure, rising insurance costs, and growing regulatory pressure, no shipowner, or charterer, should neglect its risk management procedures,” urged Maitland.

Local equipment suppliers reap dividends, but there’s room for foreign businesses – if they know how to play. After huge oil finds in recent years, Brazil's need for offshore vessels continues to expand and could double between now and the end of the decade. Brazil's state-run oil company Petrobras wants to extract billions of barrels of oil while also developing its shipbuilding and service industries to create jobs. Meanwhile, Brazil is trying to use locally made vessels and equipment, but foreign companies are benefiting from the nation's oil bonanza too.

Libyan oil ports and fields are safe and under government control, the country's interior minister said on Friday after visting the eastern Brega port. "This visit is a message to the world and Libya that the Libyan state is controlling the oilfelds and ports," Omar Sanaki told Reuters after the visit with several lawmakers. Brega was the site of a recent oil protest.   Reporting by Feras Bosalum