Handling the loadCargotec is to deliver MacGregor offshore and subsea load-handling systems to a deepsea research vessel on order at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries鈥 Shimonoseki shipyard in Japan.鈥楾his contract highlights Cargotec鈥檚 capacity and technological expertise in offshore load-handling鈥
The oil & gas industry and analysts greeted President Obama鈥檚 offshore drilling plan as a step in the right direction. But subsequent events surrounding the Deepwater Horizon disaster (see Heavy losses in Horizon tragedy ) could complicate matters鈥
Late in the evening 20 April, an explosion rocked the deck of the Deepwater Horizon and set off a fire that raged for 36 hours before the Transocean semisubmersible plunged to the seafloor 5000ft below. As OE went to press, operator BP and other鈥
When the P-61 tension leg wellhead platform (TLWP) begins operations at Petrobras' Papa Terra offshore Brazil in 2013, it will be the new kid on the block in more ways than one. Not only will the deepwater unit be the first TLWP facility off Brazil鈥
With well costs escalating to consume up to half of a project鈥檚 funding, operators are seeking ways to trim costs. During IADC鈥檚 Deepwater Drilling conference in Rio de Janeiro in March, operators discussed some of their strategies to trim costs鈥
鈥業t seems the world is feeling better,鈥 observed Talisman Energy president and CEO John Manzoni, striking an optimistic note in his keynote speech at the recent IP dinner in London. But, he wondered, is the oil & gas industry ready to drive鈥
While operating in Brazil鈥檚 pre-salt region does require an array of technologies, Petrobras CEO Jose Gabrielli told a Houston lunch that a bigger challenge lies in meeting logistical demands for operating in deep waters offshore. During the Brazil-Texas Chamber of Commerce event in March鈥
Water shortages could pose as great a threat to energy security as political instability or terrorism, leading peak oil theorist Matt Simmons told delegates at the Global Marine Renewable Energy Conference in Seattle, Washington, last month鈥
The scheduled 2012 lease sale offshore Virginia will proceed, even without the environmental impact studies necessary to allow oil & gas exploration in place, according to MMS director Liz Burnham.The sale 鈥 the first on the US Atlantic OCS鈥
The shaky economic recovery could be threatened if US energy policies push up prices, ExxonMobil chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson said in Houston last month.鈥榊ou can raise taxes, raise royalties 鈥 it's going to ultimately increase the cost of energy鈥
In 2007, OGX was but a dream of Brazilian entrepreneur Eike Batista. In the course of three short years, the company secured financing for leases, bid on and won shallow water blocks, secured drilling rigs, hired about 150 staff, tallied six鈥
Two recently published reports point to a speedy recovery for offshore E&P. The deepwater sector of the oil & gas business should recover quickly from the economic downturn and resume the growth the sector enjoyed before the recession, suggests a new report from Douglas-Westwood鈥
Two competing gas transportation projects in southern Europe could be combined to increase the future security of European gas supply, Eni chief executive Paolo Scaroni told CeraWeek attendees in Houston in March. According to Scaroni, combining鈥
Compact Azipod units promise the means of producing more efficient thrust for drilling vessels, saving fuel cost and cutting emissions. OE hears from developer ABB Marine.Bunker prices for the IFO380 grade fuel used by the majority of ships were on the rise at time of writing鈥
The trend toward putting more and more production equipment on the seabed 鈥 and in increasingly deeper waters 鈥 strongly challenges the offshore construction industry to continuously improve their ability to perform such activities in a safe and cost-effective manner鈥
