Drilling News


Exxon, COPL to return to Liberia

Sep 23, 2015

ExxonMobil and partner Canadian Overseas Petroleum Ltd. (COPL) are planning to return to the waters offshore Liberia as early as next year after the duo delayed drilling plans due to an Ebola virus outbreak in the region. Map of Block LB-13…

Statoil to drill new Heimdal well

Sep 23, 2015

Statoil received consent from the PSA to drill a new production well from the Heimdal facility. The well is to be drilled using a modular drilling rig (MDR). An MDR is a modular mobile rig installed in the facility's drilling area. One has been used for permanent plugging of wells at Heimdal…

VNG spuds Blink prospect

Sep 23, 2015

VNG Norge has started drilling on the Blink prospect in the Norwegian Sea offshore Norway. The well, 6406/12-5 S, is in license PL586, which also contains the recent significant Pil and Bue discoveries (announced in 2014), says partner Faroe Petroleum…

US Gulf of Mexico rig count down 46%

Sep 23, 2015

In response to the decline in crude oil prices since mid-2014, the number of active offshore rigs has declined worldwide, dropping close to 20%, says the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). There were 304 offshore rigs operating in August 2015…

Argos completes Falklands farmout

Sep 22, 2015

Falklands focused Argos Resources has completed a farmout agreement with Noble Energy Falklands and Edison International over license PL001 in the North Falklands Basin. The agreement will allow exploration drilling on the license, which…

Claxton installs drilling riser system

Sep 21, 2015

Claxton has installed a high-pressure drilling riser system as part of a multimillion-dollar contract for the Catcher area field development in the central North Sea.  “Claxton was the only company to offer Premier Oil a fully-forged…

Record interest in Irish offshore

Sep 21, 2015

The largest number of applications in an Irish offshore licensing round have been submitted in the 2015 Atlantic Margin Licensing Round.  Some 43 applications for licensing options, from majors and independents, were submitted by the Friday 16 September deadline…

Primeline mobilizes to East China Sea

Sep 18, 2015

Primeline Energy Holdings announced that its drilling contractor China Oilfield Service (COSL) started the mobilization of the rig for the drilling operation of LS23-1-1 well, in the East China Sea. Following the signing of the drilling…

Tower Resources signs Thali PSC

Sep 16, 2015

Africa-focused Tower Resources announced the signing of the shallow water Thali (formerly known as Dissoni) production sharing contract (PSC), offshore Cameroon. The PSC signing ceremony took place on 15 September 2015 at the offices of Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures (SNH) in Yaoundé…

BSEE: Crew to blame for 2013 blowout

Sep 14, 2015

A new report from the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) blamed the crew working Walter Oil & Gas’ South Timbalier Block 220 Well A-3, 55mi off Louisiana, for a well control incident that caused a blowout and fire onboard…

Cubility gets new international sale executive

Sep 14, 2015

Image: Brandon Buzarde/Cubility Cubility has appointed Brandon Buzarde as vice president, international sales. Buzarde, who will be based in Houston, will be tasked with increasing…

Shell comes up dry in Norwegian wildcat

Sep 14, 2015

Norske Shell, operator of production license 793, came up dry at the wildcat well 6407/10-5, offshore Norway. The well has been drilled about 20km southwest of the Draugen field, less than 10km southeast of the Njord field in the southern…

Quadrant to drill Roc-1 off WA

Sep 14, 2015

Quadrant Energy will spud the Roc-1 well located in the North West Shelf off Western Australia using the Tom Prosser jackup rig. The rig will drill a well for Vermillion Energy at the Wandoo oil field in the northwest of Dampier before commencing Roc-1 drilling operations…

ANP approves Karoon revised appraisal plan

Sep 14, 2015

Karoon Gas Australia has announced that the company has received written notification from the Brazilian oil and gas regulator, the Agência Nacional do Petróleo, Gás Natural e Biocombustíveis (ANP), advising that the revised appraisal plan (PAD) for Karoon’s 65% owned Santos basin blocks…

Lundin gets exploration drilling permit

Sep 11, 2015

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Lundin Norway a drilling permit for well 7220/11-3 A, in production license 609. Well 7220/11-3 S will be drilled from the Island Innovator drilling facility. The drilling program…

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