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Keathley Canyon News

03 Mar 2015

Gulf of Mexico Oil Production on the Rise

Photo: Nabors

Because of the long timelines associated with Gulf of Mexico (GOM) projects, the recent downturn in oil prices is expected to have minimal direct impact on GOM crude oil production through 2016. EIA projects GOM production to reach 1.52 million barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2015 and 1.61 million bbl/d in 2016, or about 16% and 17% of total U.S. crude oil production in those two years, respectively. The forecasted production growth is driven both by new projects and the redevelopment and expansion of older producing fields.

15 Oct 2014

Crowley Christens New Ocean Class Tugboat

Photo: Crowley

As part of the company's new vessel build program, Crowley Maritime Corp. christened the latest of its four tugboats in the ocean class series, Ocean Sun, today in Lake Charles. The ceremony served to formally welcome the fourth dynamic positioning 2 (DP2) tugboat to the company’s expanded ocean towing fleet, which has been involved in most of the major offshore oil production installations in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico over the past 18 months. Todd Busch, senior vice president and general manager of Crowley’s solutions group, opened the ceremony to approximately 80 guests.

19 Dec 2013

BP's Commitment to GofM Confirmed: New Oil Discovered

Rig/Map Image CCL license

BP says it has made a significant oil discovery at its Gila prospect (which it co-owns with ConocoPhillips) in the deepwater US Gulf of Mexico. This is BP’s third discovery in recent years in the emerging Paleogene trend in the Gulf of Mexico and reflects the company’s ongoing commitment to the US offshore region. The Gila discovery was made by an exploration well on Keathley Canyon Block 93, about 300 miles southwest of New Orleans, in approximately 4,900 feet of water. The well, which penetrated multiple Paleogene-aged reservoir sands, was drilled to a total depth of 29,221 feet.

05 Nov 2013

Crowley Vessels Tow Lucius Spar to U.S. Deepwater

Photo: Crowley

On the heels of the recent delivery of Olympus, the largest tension-leg platform ever to be developed for the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Crowley has once again shown support for the domestic petroleum industry by providing ocean towing and positioning support services for the Lucius spar in the Gulf of Mexico for Anadarko Petroleum. Three of Crowley’s ocean class tugs, Ocean Wind, Ocean Wave and Ocean Sun, towed the 605-foot long, 110-foot wide spar from Corpus Christi, Texas, through the Ingleside Channel and out to Keathley Canyon Block 875 some 300 miles offshore.

19 Jun 2013

Deepwater Spar Hull Delivery Takes Ship to Capacity Limit

Mighty Servant 1: Photo credit Boskalis

The Boskalis subsidiary, Dockwise vessel 'Mighty Servant 1' has offloaded the 23,000 ton spar for the Lucius deepwater oil and natural gas project in the Gulf of Mexico. The Lucius truss spar, measuring 184 meters (605 feet) long and 34 meters (110 feet) in diameter, was loaded onto the Mighty Servant 1 by means of skid on operation at Pori, Finland. The spar was transported 7,700 nautical miles and discharged at Ingleside, Texas and delivered back to Technip. The Lucius Development…

06 May 2013

Tata Steel Showcases Deepwater Pipeline Solutions at OTC

Tata Steel pipe laying

Tata Steel will demonstrate at this year’s Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston May 6-9, 2013. Tata Steel’s pipeline packages include double submerged arc welded (DSAW) line pipe, manufactured at the 42-inch mill in Hartlepool, which the manufacturer claims is equipped with the strongest edge crimping and ‘O’ press combination in the world. This enables the manufacture of thicker wall DSAW pipes even in smaller diameters for withstanding the extreme collapse pressures in the deepest waters.

31 Jul 2012

McDermott Gets Fixed Offshore Platform Contract

McDermott International. Inc. The project is to deliver new junction facilities for Discovery’s Keathley Canyon Connector™ pipeline system with a 3,300-ton, four-leg platform in 350 feet of water. The unmanned platform will provide pipeline junction facilities for incoming deepwater pipelines from the Hadrian South and Lucius fields and for outgoing shallow-water pipelines to shore. Fabrication is expected to commence this summer at McDermott’s Morgan City facility in Louisiana. Offshore installation is expected to commence during the third quarter of 2013, and is intended to be ready for operational start-up before the end of the year. McDermott’s deepwater combination heavy lift and pipelay vessel DB50 is expected to perform the installation.

01 May 2012

Tata Steel Secures Gulf of Mexico Contract

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.

19 Apr 2012

Tata Steel Secures Deepwater Contract for Gulf of Mexico

Tata Steel will provide 105 miles of line pipe (Photo: Tata Steel).

Tata Steel has been awarded an eight-figure U.S. dollar contract to supply pipe for Enterprise Products Partners L.P.’s new crude oil export pipeline in the Gulf of Mexico’s Keathley Canyon area. The contract will see Tata Steel deliver more than 48,000 metric tons of steel pipe from its 42-inch mill in Hartlepool, England, for the Lucius Development Project, which has the capacity to produce in excess of 80,000 barrels of oil per day. Tata Steel will provide 105 miles (169 kilometres) of 18-inch diameter line pipe.

05 Apr 2012

Technip Awarded Subsea Contract for the Gulf of Mexico

Technip was awarded a lump sum contract by Anadarko Petroleum Corporation for the development of  the Lucius field, located in the Keathley Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico, at a water depth of approximately 7,000 feet (2,130 meters). The contract covers installation of a flexible flow line, multiple flexible gas lift jumpers; main gas lift and infield umbilicals; subsea distribution units; electrical, fiber optic and hydraulic flying leads; • design and fabrication of the flexible flowline end termination; fabrication and installation of rigid jumpers; • burial of flow lines; • flooding and hydro-testing of the flowline system. Technip's operating center in Houston, Texas, will perform the overall project management.

16 Mar 2012

First Subsea Wins Technip Connector contract

First Subsea mooring connector used to moor Anardarko' s Gunnison spar in 2003.

First Subsea Awarded Lucius Spar Mooring Connector Contract. Deepwater mooring specialist, First Subsea Ltd has been awarded a contract by Technip USA Inc to supply the mooring line connectors for a new spar platform moored in 7,000ft (2,134 m) of water in the Lucius field, Keathley Canyon block 875 in the Gulf of Mexico. The Lucius spar will be moored by nine Ballgrab ball and taper mooring connectors attached to polyester mooring lines. The Ballgrab connector comprises a male connector and female receptacle. The Series III male connectors will comply with the new ABS Mooring Guide 2009.

10 Jan 2012

FMC Awarded Andarko Subsea Contract

FMC Technologies Awarded Subsea Systems Contract from Anadarko Petroleum Corporation. FMC Technologies, Inc. announced that it has signed an agreement with Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: APC) to provide subsea systems and life-of-field services for its Lucius project. The Lucius field is located approximately 275 miles southeast of Galveston in Keathley Canyon Block 875, in water depths of approximately 7,100 feet (2,160 meters). FMC’s scope of supply includes five subsea production trees and two manifolds. The equipment will be supplied from the Company’s operation in Houston and deliveries are expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2012.

14 Dec 2011

Western GOM Lease Sale Attracts Bids of $337 Million

The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management announced that its Western Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale 218, held today in New Orleans, attracted $337,688,341 in high bids and included 20 companies submitting 241 bids on 191 tracts comprising over a million acres offshore Texas. The sum of all bids received totaled $712,725,998. This announcement is consistent with steps President Obama announced in May 2011 to expand domestic oil and gas production safely and responsibly. “Today’s lease sale, the first since the tragic events of Deepwater Horizon, continues the Obama administration’s commitment to a balanced and comprehensive energy plan,” said Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, who attended the sale and provided opening remarks.

21 Oct 2011

BOEM Approves First BP Exploration Plan in GOM

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) approved a supplemental Exploration Plan (EP) submitted by BP for deepwater oil and gas activities. BOEM conducted a site-specific Environmental Assessment (EA) of the activities described in the plan. This is the 44th plan that has been approved following the completion of a site-specific EA since stronger regulations were implemented in June 2010. Prior to any drilling under the plan, BP must obtain drilling permits from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), which will continue to assess the information that is necessary to allow specific activities. This is the first EP that BP has had approved since the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion and subsequent oil spill.

26 May 2011

Buckskin Prospect Gets U.S. Deepwater Drilling Permit

Maersk Oil is participating in a new deepwater well in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after operator Chevron received a drilling permit from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE). The permit marks the restart of the drilling campaigns Maersk Oil has been a part of in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after deepwater activities were suspended last year as a consequence of the Deepwater Horizon accident. “We are very pleased that this permit has been issued as it will allow us to move forward with appraisal activities on the exciting Buckskin prospect…

25 Mar 2011

BOEMRE Approves Fifth Deepwater Drilling Permit

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) approved a fifth deepwater drilling permit on March 24 that complies with rigorous new safety standards implemented in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting oil spill. This includes satisfying the requirement to demonstrate the capacity to contain a subsea blowout. The approved permit is a revised permit to drill a new well for Chevron USA Inc.’s Well #1 in Keathley Canyon Block 736 in 6,750 ft. water depth, approximately 216 miles off the Louisiana coastline, south of Lafayette, La. Today’s is the first deepwater permit approved for completely new exploration since the deepwater drilling moratorium was lifted…

23 Mar 2011

BOEMRE Approves Additional Deepwater Drilling Permit

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) approved a fourth deepwater drilling permit that complies with rigorous new safety standards implemented in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting oil spill. This includes satisfying the requirement to demonstrate the capacity to contain a subsea blowout. The approved permit is a revised permit to drill a new well for Exxon Mobil Corporation’s Well #3 in Keathley Canyon Block 919 in 6,941 ft. water depth, approximately 240 miles off the Louisiana coastline, south of Lafayette, La. Today’s is the first permit approved that designates the Marine Well Containment Company (MWCC) containment system as its containment solution.

11 Dec 2009

Western GOM Sale 210 Nets $111M in High Bids

The Minerals Management Service (MMS) has accepted high bids valued at $111,385,124 and awarded 155 leases to the successful high bidders who participated in Western Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale 210 held August 19, 2009. Funds from the total high bids will be distributed to the general fund of the U.S. Treasury, shared with the affected States, and set aside for land and water conservation efforts that benefit all fifty states. The leases were awarded following the completion of an extensive, two-phase bid evaluation process to ensure that the Federal government receives a fair monetary return for the public mineral resources it makes available. During Lease Sale 210, twenty-seven companies submitted 189 bids on 162 tracts in the Western Gulf of Mexico.

02 Sep 1999

Conoco Strengthens its Gulf of Mexico Deepwater

Conoco announced an agreement with Exxon Corporation to exchange interest in 59 deepwater blocks in the Gulf of Mexico. Conoco acquired a 50-percent interest in 29 of Exxon's blocks, while Exxon acquired a 50-percent interest in 30 of Conoco's blocks. Conoco was the sole lessee of its 30 blocks and will retain a 50-percent interest in each. The acreage is in Green Canyon, Garden Banks, Walker Ridge and Keathley Canyon areas in the Gulf of Mexico. "The Gulf of Mexico continues to be one of the great growth opportunities for oil and gas in the U.S., and these newly acquired interests are perfectly aligned with our exploration strategy to focus on deepwater," said Rob McKee, Conoco executive vice-president, exploration production.

20 Aug 2009

Offshore Lease Generates $115m

A sale of federal oil and natural gas leases for the Western Gulf of Mexico attracted $115,466,321 million in high bids, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced. To date this year, the department has offered 55 million acres of U.S. public land – onshore and offshore – for oil and gas development, generating more than $875m in revenues. “The responsible development of oil and gas resources on U.S. public lands is an integral part of President Obama’s comprehensive energy strategy for the nation,” Secretary Salazar said. Western Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale 210, held in New Orleans by Interior’s Minerals Management Service, received 189 bids on 162 federal Outer Continental Shelf tracts from 27 companies. The sum of all bids received totaled $145,186,365.00.