Tag: oil and gas industry

  BSEE staff in the Oil Spill Preparedness Division (OSPD) led a workshop July 30 for the offshore oil and gas industry community at the Gulf of Mexico regional office in New Orleans. The workshop, with an attendance of 90, focused on the new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for activities involving offshore oil spill response planning and preparation. BSEE preparedness analysts explained the SOPS and answered questions pertaining to federal regulations found in 30 CFR 254. This is the first workshop open to operators, contractors, and the public since the new SOPs took effect. Workshop attendees also discussed submission of oil spill response plans, spill response training and exercises, and equipment preparedness. The new SOPs were developed to strengthen uniformity and consistency in BSEE’s oil spill preparedness activities throughout the nation. The OSPD Manual including the SOPs can be viewed and downloaded below: Source and Image Credit: BSEEIn the start, I was outspoken with you propecia before and after has changed my life. It has become much more fun, and now I have to run. Just as it is improbable to sit.

  BSEE is providing updated guidance for the current and future hurricane seasons through a Notice to Lessees (NTL) released. NTL 2015-G02 clarifies reporting requirements related to personnel evacuation, production curtailment, and shut-in activity. These reports are received and processed within BSEE’s hurricane response team and is required to help mitigate risks associated with hurricanes and tropical storms on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Offshore oil and gas operators determine when to activate their severe weather plans for their drilling rigs and production platforms. Once activated, operators are required to report daily to BSEE’s hurricane response team. Reporting and monitoring continues during these storms and until operations return to normal following the severe weather. Through an interagency collaboration, US Coast Guard is embedded within BSEE’s hurricane response team to better coordinate response activities should they be required. Current reporting requirements spelled out in 30 CFR 250.192 including: preparations for hurricanes, tropical storms, and severe weather, and reporting requirements can be found here along with more about how BSEE’s hurricane response team operates. You may view the Notice to Lessees by clicking below: Source: BSEEIn the start, I was outspoken with you propecia before and after has changed my life. It has ...

  ConocoPhillips and CNOOC face public interest litigation for the 2011 oil spill in Bohai Bai, China Daily reports. A landmark lawsuit has been filed against two oil giants in a maritime court over the oil spill in 2011 that polluted a huge area of Bohai Bay in Northeast China. The suit, filed against ConocoPhillips and China National Offshore Oil Corp, is the first public interest litigation brought by a nonprofit organization over marine environmental pollution to be accepted by a court. Such a move was not possible until a new environmental protection law took effect on Jan 1. The China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation said it had been told by the maritime court in Qingdao, Shandong province, that the suit had been filed. The law allows any environmental organization registered with a civil affairs bureau at city level or above and that has been operating for at least five years to bring public interest litigation. Under a damage compensation agreement, ConocoPhillips China offered 1.09 billion yuan for ecological losses, while CNOOC paid 480 million yuan and ConocoPhillips China 113 million yuan for environmental protection efforts in Bohai Bay. Source: China DailyIn the outbreak, I was explicit with you propecia before ...

  Thursday 23 July saw senior representatives of Maersk Supply Service, DeepOcean UK and the Damen Shipyards Group gather at Damen Shipyards Galati, Romania to witness the launching of subsea support vessel Maersk Connector. The vessel is owned and operated by Maersk Supply Service and is built to contract for a seven year charter agreement with DeepOcean. Maersk Connector is the second of a new generation of cable-laying vessels developed by the Damen Shipyards Group. Equipped with survey and trenching capabilities, she will extend DeepOcean’s capabilities in the larger cable-laying end of the market, representing a new focus on interconnector projects in addition to oil and gas sector and renewables work. Her 7,000 tonne carousel will make her well suited for installation and burial projects from land-fall to deep water and also for operations in remote geographical locations. The vessel is designed to meet the high standards demanded by North Sea oil and gas customers. Pierre Boyde, Commercial Director at DeepOcean, said: “We are delighted to see the positive progress being made on this high quality Damen vessel and are very pleased with the working relationships with our partners. Last week we signed our first project for the Maersk Connector - on ...

  After extensive review and under a robust array of safety requirements, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) Director Brian Salerno announced that Shell has received conditional approval of two Applications for Permits to Drill (APD) to conduct limited exploratory drilling activities in the Chukchi Sea offshore Alaska. Specifically, the APDs limit Shell to drilling only the top sections of wells and prohibit Shell from drilling into oil-bearing zones. Shell currently is not permitted to drill into oil-bearing zones because, to do so, BSEE requires that a capping stack be on hand and deployable within 24 hours. A capping stack is a critical piece of emergency response equipment designed to shut in a well in the unlikely event of a loss of well control. Shell’s capping stack is staged on the vessel M/V Fennica, which is currently en route to Portland, Oregon, for repairs. If and when the M/V Fennica is capable of being deployed in the Chukchi Sea and Shell is able to satisfy the capping stack requirement, the company may submit an Application for Permit to Modify the APDs and request to have this restriction reconsidered. “Without question, activities conducted offshore Alaska must be held to the ...

  DNV GL has kicked off a joint industry project (JIP) with Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Company (DSME) and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI)  that will establish a new international standard for offshore oil and gas projects. The results could potentially cut project costs by 15%, or approximately USD 500 million for a typical TLP (tension leg platform) project, for example. The JIP aims to develop common and global best practices for components and equipment to reduce the number of, and variations in, requirements to the minimum necessary.  The JIP is also supported by Korea Offshore and Shipbuilding Association (KOSHIPA) and the Korea Marine Equipment Research Institute (KOMERI) to address this issue.  Other  oil companies and engineering firms are still welcome to join the project. “Unfamiliar specifications and processes are today resulting in re-work, delays and misunderstandings and add thousands of engineering hours to projects,” says  Arthur Stoddart, DNV GL’s new Regional Manager for Korea and Japan. “The implementation of a standardized approach will be an opportunity to significantly reduce the general cost level of offshore projects without compromising on quality or safety.” According to the JIP partners, standardizing even the simplest components at this early ...

  Two Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) personnel conducted inspections of Shell Oil Co. marine vessels Noble Discoverer and the semi-submersible drilling unit Transocean Polar Pioneer in Dutch Harbor, Alaska July 7-12. While onboard the vessels, BSEE inspectors reviewed drilling equipment, assessed overall readiness, and tested key safety devices. They also verified BOEM lease stipulations, environmental mitigation measures, and air quality equipment, as well as Environmental Protection Agency National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit requirements. Additionally, BSEE Alaska Region Director Mark Fesmire conducted a re-inspection of the capping stack onboard the ice management vessel Fennica, which was damaged July 3 while departing Dutch Harbor. The Fennica currently carries the capping stack, which is a key piece of well control equipment used to contain the flow of oil in the unlikely event of a blowout, should all primary and backup blowout prevention equipment fail. Although the Fennica’s damage requires that it be returned to dry-dock for repairs in Portland, Ore., BSEE personnel verified the capping stack was not damaged during the incident. These inspections are part of BSEE’s commitment to safe and responsible offshore energy exploration and development. If drilling operations are permitted and begin, BSEE inspectors will be ...

  Shtandart TT, a 100% subsidiary of the Summa Group (Russian Federation), and the Port of Rotterdam Authority have terminated their contract for the construction of the Tank Terminal Europoort West. The terminal, which ultimately would have had a capacity of over 3 million cubic metres of storage space, was intended for transit of Urals crude oil and oil products. At the end of 2010, the Port Authority launched an 'open assessment procedure', which led to a contract with Shtandart TT. At the beginning of 2013, the Port Authority handed over the site to Shtandart, ready for construction. By early 2015 all of the building and environmental permits necessary for construction and operation of the terminal were in place. The contract between the Port Authority and Shtandart TT, which was concluded four years ago, includes agreements on the schedule and the quantities of crude oil and oil products that would be handled at the terminal. Shtandart TT has recently initiated discussions on the feasibility of the project, which have led to the decision to terminate the joint project. Considering the highly dynamic nature of the global oil sector, including that in Russia, and developments in the handling of oil products ...

  A Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) joint venture has entered into contract with a consortium led by Brazil’s national oil company, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A.(Petrobras) –led Consortium for the charter, operation and maintenance of two Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) systems in Brazil. The MC joint venture has established with Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line), SBM Offshore N.V. (SBM), a global leader in the business, and Brazilian private oil and gas service provider Queiroz Galvão Óleo e Gás S.A (“QGOG”). The two FPSOs will be constructed by converting large crude tankers, and will be used in development at the Lula Alto and Lula Central oil fields, operated by Petrobras, off the coast of Brazil. The FPSOs are scheduled to start production operation from around the beginning of year 2016. As companies explore the development of oil and gas resources in response to the need for securing sustainable energy supplies globally, the development of offshore oil and gas fields is becoming more important. Rich in offshore oil reserves, Brazil is considered an important player in the offshore oil market. In this context, the Lula Alto and Lula Central projects are of major importance for the joint venture led by Petrobras. These ...

  Large oil tankers are seeing less activities to carry long-haul fuel oil from Asia, as the region’s refinery capacity is expected to continue expanding, coupled with stringent regulations to curb the use of high-sulphur bunker fuel on ships, according to a view by Poten & Partners. "Increased Asian refinery capacity has also resulted in higher production of fuel oil (as well as all other oil products) in Asian countries,"Poten & Partners said in a recent report. "This increase in domestic supply naturally resulted in decreased imports of fuel oil, with Southeast Asian fixtures declining over 14m metric tonnes from 2012-2014." "With fuel oil demand and imports decreasing in Asia, arguably the product’s biggest market, and around the world, it is difficult to envision how fuel oil will remain highly in demand and traded in the future," Poten & Partners commented. "Now, most affected shipowners are using marine gasoil, a middle distillate low sulphur fuel, in these coastal zones, with many others starting to look to the fuel as a viable alternative to residual fuel oil," Poten & Partners said. Source: Poten & PartnersIn the start, I was outspoken with you propecia before and after has changed my existence. It ...