Green Canyon News

U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) inspectors and engineers last week carried out an offshore regulatory pre-production inspection of Murphy Oil’s King’s Quay floating production system (FPS) platform. The facility, a semi-submersible FPS, is now currently moored in Green Canyon Block 433 in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, about 175 miles south of New Orleans.“The first offshore follow-up inspection is a very crucial time in the installation of a new production platform in the Gulf,” said BSEE Houma District production supervisor Micah Charpentier.

The drilling of Beacon Offshore Energy's Winterfell-2 appraisal well on Block 943 in the Green Canyon area of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico has been completed with the well showing encouraging results, Kosmos Energy, a partner in the project said Tuesday.The Winterfell-2 well, where Kosmos' working interest is ~16.4%, was drilled to evaluate the adjacent fault block to the northwest of the original Winterfell discovery and was designed to test two horizons that were oil bearing in the Winterfell-1 well…

China's Cosco Shipping has earlier this month delivered the King’s Quay floating production unit to Ingleside, Texas, aboard its M/V Xiang An Kou semi-submersible heavy transportation vessel, after a long journey from South Korea.The 21,498mt platform, built by Hyundai Heavy Industries, will be used for Murphy Oil's offshore oil field developments around 175 miles south of New Orleans in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.The King’s Quay floating production unit is scheduled to go into service in 2022.

Oil major BP has informed that its Argos oil platform, built by Samsung Heavy Industry, has set sail from South Korea and is en route to Texas.The platform, which will be capable of producing up to 140,000 gross barrels of crude oil per day from up to 14 production wells, will be deployed in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico as part of the Mad Dog 2 development.As previously reported, the Argos platform weighing almost 70,000 tons was in January loaded on Boskalis' semi-submersible heavy transport vessel BOKA Vanguard preparation for the sailaway.Announcing the sailaway…

BP's giant Argos offshore platform, to be used for the Mad Dog 2 development in the Gulf of Mexico, was this week loaded on Boskalis' BOKA Vanguard vessel in South Korea and is preparing set sail for the U.S.According to Boskalis, the Dutch marine services contractor, the giant Argos floating production unit weighing nearly 70,000 tons was floated onto Boskalis' semi-submersible heavy transport vessel BOKA Vanguard on Tuesday."The vessel was submerged well over 29 meters to make this happen.

Offshore oil services firm Subsea 7 has announced the award of a sizeable contract by Fieldwood Energy to Subsea Integration Alliance, a global partnership between Subsea 7 and OneSubsea, a Schlumberger company.The award is for the deepwater Katmai field development in the US Gulf of Mexico’s Green Canyon 40, said a press release from the company.This supplier-led integrated subsea development solution, combines OneSubsea’s subsea production systems (SPS) and Subsea 7’s subsea umbilicals, riser and flowline systems (SURF) expertise.The Subsea 7 scope includes project management, engineering, procurement, construction and installation of 40 km of pipe-in-pipe production flowline (12” outer pipe and 8” inner pipe)…

Oil companies bid on less than 1 percent of the parcels offered in a sweeping U.S. auction of Gulf of Mexico exploration leases on Wednesday, showing tepid interest in the region for the second time this year.Oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp was awarded 25 blocks, the largest of any company, followed by BP Plc with 19 high bids and Hess Corp and Equinor, which each had 16.Smaller companies, including Talos Energy Offshore, Houston Energy and W&T Offshore were among the top ten high bidders. In total, 23 companies bid in the U.S.

Chinese oil buyers will keep taking crude from the United States through September, but plan to reduce future purchases to avoid a likely import tariff amid a trade spat between the world's two largest economies, multiple industry sources said.Beijing has put U.S. energy products, including crude oil and refined products, on lists of goods that it will hit with import taxes in retaliation for similar moves by Washington.Beijing did not specify when it will impose a 25 percent tax on oil…

India is set to emerge as a key market for American crude exports in coming months, as refineries in that country are ramping up "test" purchases of U.S. grades to diversify their imports. U.S. exports recently set a weekly record with nearly 2 million barrels of crude a day sent overseas. But shipments to India have been rare, with just a few deliveries since the U.S. lifted its ban on crude exports in late 2015. Indian refineries are starting to increase purchases as the country seeks to secure more supply from outside the Middle East. Refiners are testing both U.S.

Indian Oil Corp, the country's largest refiner, has bought two new types of U.S. crude for December delivery as it tests different grades from the United States, trade sources said on Tuesday. IOC bought 1 million barrels each of U.S. Southern Green Canyon (SGC) and WTI Midland crude likely from a Chinese trader, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The purchase was in addition to 2 million barrels of Basra Light crude to be delivered in the same month. The United States has become a new source of crude supply for Asia since Washington lifted a ban on crude exports in late 2015. India joined other Asian countries in buying U.S. crude in the fourth quarter to widen its import sources as well as to reduce trade surplus with the United States.

Oil tankers carrying around 10 million barrels of U.S. crude are en route to Asia, according to shipping data and trade sources, as U.S. producers take advantage of favorable prices to ship to the region while OPEC ponders further supply cuts next week. At least eight tankers are in transit, sources said and the shipping data in Thomson Reuters Eikon showed, with one of them carrying the first ever cargo of Southern Green Canyon crude purchased by Japanese refiner Cosmo Energy. Another contains the first Alaskan North Slope cargo to arrive in Asia in eight months.

BHP Billiton has announced that the Board has approved expenditure of US$2.2 billion for its share of the development of the Mad Dog Phase 2 project in the Gulf of Mexico. BHP Billiton holds a 23.9 per cent participating interest in the Mad Dog field. BP, the operator, holds a 60.5 per cent participating interest, and Union Oil Company of California, an affiliate of Chevron U.S.A. Inc., holds the remaining 15.6 per cent participating interest. During the fourth quarter of 2016, BP sanctioned the Mad Dog Phase 2 project. Mad Dog Phase 2, located in the Green Canyon area in the Deepwater Gulf of Mexico, is a southern and southwestern extension of the existing Mad Dog field.

Oil pricing continues to hover in the mid-$50s, market confidence is slowly returning and the production floater fabrication market is stirring. A major order for a production semi was placed in early January -- with Samsung receiving a contract to build the production semi for BP's Mad Dog Phase 2 project. The $1.27 billion unit will have capability to produce 110,000 b/d oil from 14 production wells. It will be used to develop further oil discoveries near the original Mad Dog Spar in the Green Canyon area of the GOM.

TGS and Schlumberger today announce commencement of the Dual Coil Shooting* multi-vessel full-azimuth acquisition Revolution XII and XIII surveys in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The surveys will cover approximately 7,150 km2 (306 blocks) in the Green Canyon, Atwater Valley and Ewing Bank protraction areas of the Central Gulf of Mexico. The Revolution XIl and XIII surveys will be acquired using the Schlumberger WesternGeco Q-Marine* point-receiver marine seismic system combined with the proprietary multivessel, Dual Coil Shooting acquisition technique, which will provide broadband, long-offset, full-azimuth data. This combination of leading-edge technology and technique will improve illumination and imaging of the sub-salt and other complex geologic features in this highly active region.

Chevron Corporation announced an oil discovery at the Anchor prospect in the deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Anchor is Chevron’s second discovery in the deepwater Gulf in less than a year. “The Anchor discovery, along with the previously announced Guadalupe discovery, are significant finds for us in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. We had one of our best years with the drill bit in 2014, reporting more than 30 discoveries worldwide and adding an estimated one billion barrels of new resources to our holdings,” said Jay Johnson, senior vice president, Upstream, Chevron Corporation.

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) announced that crude oil and natural gas production has begun at the Jack/St. Malo project in the Lower Tertiary trend, deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Jack/St. Malo is a key part of Chevron's strong queue of upstream projects and was delivered on time and on budget. The Jack and St. Malo fields are among the largest in the Gulf of Mexico. They were discovered in 2004 and 2003, respectively, and production from the first development stage is expected to ramp up over the next several years to a total daily rate of 94…

Statoil together with co-owners in the Stampede development in the Gulf of Mexicohas sanctioned the Stampede project in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Statoil said it will invest $1.5 billion in the Stampede development, which is expected to begin production in 2018. Statoil owns 25% of Stampede, which is operated by Hess. Stampede, a new project named from unitizing the former discoveries of Knotty Head and Pony, is located approximately 350 kilometers (215 miles) from New Orleans, Louisiana at a water depth of more than 1,000 meters (3,500 feet). The reservoir depth is 9,100 meters (30,000 feet).

Chevron Corporation announced today that its subsidiary, Union Oil Company of California (Union), has reached a final investment decision to proceed with the development of the Hess Corporation-operated Stampede project in the deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Stampede is a deepwater subsea development, which will be tied-back to a newly constructed Tension Leg Platform. The project design capacity will be 80,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Project cost is expected to be approximately $6 billion. The drilling program includes a total of six production and four water injection wells. Drilling is planned to commence in the fourth quarter 2015 with first production expected in 2018.

Inchcape Shipping Services has successfully supported Saipem with a major pipe laying project in the Gulf of Mexico. Providing marine agency and logistics support for Saipem’s newest pipelay vessel Castorone during its first project in the Gulf, ISS assembled a 15 person team that provided port agency and husbandry, crew logistics services, freight forwarding, warehousing and personnel logistics throughout the 9 month project. The Castorone, which is a DP3, ice classed, pipelay vessel, was employed on the 219 kilometer long Walker Ridge oil export pipeline, which connects Chevron's Jack and St Malo fields in 2,140 meters of water, north to a Shell-operated platform in Green Canyon block 10.

Deepwater mooring specialist, First Subsea Ltd has been awarded a contract by Technip Inc to supply the subsea mooring connectors for a 23,000-ton truss spar platform moored in 5,310ft (1,620 m) of water in Anadarko Petroleum Corp's Heidelberg field development in Green Canyon Blocks 859, 860,903, 904 and 948 in the Gulf of Mexico. The Heidelberg spar will be moored by nine Series III Ballgrab ball and taper mooring connectors attached to polyester mooring lines. The connector's…

In conjunction with the Underwater Intervention exhibition MTR set forth to find an excellent source to speak in the first person on the diving industry, and more specifically the balance today between deploying man and machine. Kevin Lord is the Subsea Operations Manager within the Marine Construction Division of Chet Morrison Contractors. He began his commercial diving career in the Gulf of Mexico after serving four years in the United States Navy. In his 20 years in the industry…

Technip was awarded a front end engineering design (FEED) contract by BP Exploration & Production Inc. This contract covers the design of a Spar* hull and mooring systems for the Mad Dog Phase 2 Project, located  near Green Canyon Block 825 in the Gulf of Mexico. This first award comes under the framework of the 10-year Spar platform master services agreement signed in 2011. The Mad Dog Phase 2 Spar will be located near the first Mad Dog Spar delivered by Technip for BP in 2004, and installed on Green Canyon 782. Detailed engineering for the new Spar is scheduled to start during the second half of 2012. Technip’s operating center in Houston, Texas, will execute the contract with support from the center in Pori, Finland.

Tata Steel has been awarded a major contract worth more than £100 million to provide pipe for Discovery Producer Services L.L.C. (Discovery) gas pipeline in Keathley Canyon, Gulf of Mexico. Discovery is a 60:40 joint venture between Williams Partners L.P. and DCP Midstream Partners L.P. The company will supply Discovery’s Keathley Canyon ConnectorTM with 214 miles (345km) of 20-inch diameter submerged arc welded linepipe, weighing more than 110,000 metric tonnes. The pipe will be manufactured at Tata Steel’s 42-inch mill in Hartlepool, England.