Kinsale News

Norwegian vessel owner Siem Offshore has agreed to sell two anchor handling tug and supply vessels Siem Garnet and Siem Diamond.Siem Offshore said that the vessels would be sold to an independent third party, for further trading outside the offshore shipping industry. "Siem Garnet” was delivered to the Buyer today and “Siem Diamond” is scheduled for delivery during next week," Siem Offshore said.Siem Offshore said its objective was to reduce debt, adding that the sale of the AHTS due was done "on market terms and at book values," without sharing the exact value."Surplus cash after debt repayment on the two vessels sold will be used for additional debt repayment on the 8 remaining AHTS vessels in accordance with the restructuring plan agreed with our secured lenders last month.

Norwegian offshore vessel operator Siem Offshore has won a three-month charter for the 91-meters long AHTS vessel Siem Pearl in Ireland.The contract is with PSE Kinsale Energy Ltd, the Irish subsidiary of the Malaysian oil giant Petronas, which is currently working to decommission its Kinsale area fields off Ireland.The Kinsale area offshore gas fields in the Celtic Sea in July last year officially ceased production, after more than 40 years online. Production from the fields, between approximately 40 and 70km off the County Cork coast, began in 1978 and peaked in 1995.Siem Offshore's 2009-built Siem Pearl anchor handler will be supporting…

Oslo-listed offshore vessel owner S.D. Standard Drilling Plc. has agreed to sell the Standard Olympus platform supply vessel for $7.5 million to an undisclosed buyer."The sale of Standard Olympus will result in a gain for Standard Drilling of gross USD 1.3 million," the company said.The vessel is a large Platform Supply Vessel (PSV), built at Havyard Ship Technology AS, Norway, in 2014, with 800m2 deck space. "The transaction is a result of Standard Drilling’s renewed focus on more diversified investments within the shipping, offshore, and renewables segments. It gives Standard Drilling increased flexibility to pursue other investment opportunities” said Martin Nes, Chairman of Standard Drilling.

More than 100 years after the sinking of the RMS Lusitania, divers have recovered yet another artifact from the wreckage of the historic ocean liner. The Lusitania was sailing from New York to Liverpool on May 7, 1915 when it was torpedoed by a German U-boat off the Head of Kinsale. A second explosion then led to the vessel’s sinking and the loss of 1,198 lives, marking a key moment in World War I history. The latest artifact brought up from the Lusitania is a telegraph, the second…

Fastnet the UK and Irish listed E&P company focussed on near-term exploration and appraisal acreage in Morocco and the Celtic Sea, is pleased to announce that it has entered into an amended exclusive option agreement with PSE Kinsale Energy Limited ("Kinsale Energy"), a wholly owned subsidiary of PETRONAS, in relation to the "Deep Kinsale Prospect". The Deep Kinsale Prospect extends from 4,000 feet subsea below the producing Kinsale Head gas field and is defined by a sub-area (the "Deep Kinsale Sub-Area") of Petroleum Lease No. 1 (see map of the area on the Company's website: www.fastnetoilandgas.com/go/operations/ireland). Following agreement with Kinsale Energy…

Ahead of investor meetings today, Fastnet, the E&P company focused on exploring in Africa and in the Celtic Sea, provides an update on its operations, including its proposed forward work programmes and farm-out activities. An updated corporate presentation is now available on the Company's website (http://www.fastnetoilandgas.com/investor-relations/presentations/2014.aspx) providing an overview of the Company's recent corporate developments and its asset portfolio. ·     * 3D seismic confirms five potential reservoir targets with potential for substantial in-place oil based on structural size, up to 140 sq. ·     * A two-stage farmout process is underway with increased interest following the highly successfully Celtic Sea Conference held in Dublin in April.

Four RNLI lifeboats were launched to aid the sinking 42 metre Dutch training vessel 'Astrid', wrecked on rocks inside the Sovereign Islands at Ballymacus Point near Kinsale in Cork. All 30 people on board were brought to safety when Kinsale lifeboat transferred all the casualties from the sinking ship onto Courtmacsherry RNLI lifeboat and a local vessel. They were then taken to Kinsale. Both Kinsale and Courtmacsherry RNLI lifeboats were called out to go to the immediate aid of the sail training vessel that had got into difficulties on the western entrance to Kinsale Harbour in Cork.

Up to $134.6m will be spent on the Irish offshore this year as part of the busiest drilling program offshore Ireland in decades, according to a report in the Independent. With the Corrib partners completing a total of five production wells on the Corrib gas find, the program is also scheduled to include drilling on the Old Head of Kinsale gas find by Island Oil and Gas, as well as the Hook Head prospect, where Providence is the operator. Providence is scheduled at the beginning of August to start a 50-day drilling program over Hook Head in the Celtic Sea, a drilling campaign designed to test a structure on which two previous wells have discovered hydrocarbon bearing sands.

Island Oil and Gas PLC said it spudded a gas appraisal well (49/23-2) in the Celtic Sea, offshore Ireland. The well is the first of this year's drilling program. It is also the company's second well at the Old Head of Kinsale and follows on from the gas discovery with its operated well 49/23-1 in 2006. The company plans to produce first gas in the fourth quarter of 2008. Source: AFX

Island Oil & Gas plc has spudded well 48/23-3 at Seven Heads West in the Celtic Sea offshore Ireland. The well is the first in its planned 2006 and 2007 drilling programs. Well 48/23-3 is designed to appraise a possible extension of the Upper Wealden gas sands that are producing gas in the 48/24-6 production well immediately to the east. The well, which is in a water depth of 329 feet, will be drilled to a planned total depth of 3,200 feet TVD ss. Island concluded a Sub-Area Equity Interest Assignment Agreement for the Seven Heads West area with Marathon International Petroleum Hibernia Limited, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Marathon Seven Heads Limited (formerly Ramco Celtic Sea Ltd) in February 2006.