Gazprom Neft subsidiary Gazpromneft-Sakhalin has started drilling an exploratory well in its Dolginskoye field, located 75km off Russia in the Pechora Sea, the operator announced today. It is the fourth well drilled at the site, after two drilled in North Dolginskoye and one in South Dolginskoye…
Statoil announced further delay in developing the Johan Castberg project, postponing final concept selection on the Barents Sea project until 2015. “Unfortunately, the exploration campaign has proven less new oil resources in the Castberg area than expected…
Premier Oil has sold interest in six Central North Sea offshore licenses to Hungary’s MOL Group for US$130 million, the duo announced on 30 June 2014. The sale includes non-operated equity stakes in the Nexen-operated Scott (21.84%), Rochelle (15%) and Telford (1…
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Norwegian exploration and development company, Det norske oljeselskap ASA, a drilling permit for well 2/9-5 S. Well 2/9-5 S will be drilled from the Mærsk Giant jackup drilling facility at position 56°24’45…
Statoil’s Brugdan II well offshore the Faroe Islands is being plugged and abandoned after finding no hydrocarbons. The well, which was a re-entry of the 6104/21-2 well, was drilled to 4542m, 130km offshore the Faroe Islands. Drilling…
Tangiers Petroleum has said the Ralph Coffman jackup rig started drilling at the TAO-1 exploration well, offshore Morocco, yesterday. The TAO-1 well is within a proven petroleum system, adjacent to the Cap Juby heavy oil discovery and has been designed to test up to three stacked objectives…
Fractured basement explorer Hurricane Energy has successfully completed the testing phase of its horizontal appraisal well in the Lancaster fractured basement oil discovery West of Shetland. The well will be suspended as a future producer…
Mubadala Petroleum began drilling operations on the Rojana-A exploration well in block G11/48 in the Gulf of Thailand, partner KrisEnergy Ltd. announced on 23 June 2014. The company is drilling the Rojana-A well using Atwood Oceanics' Atwood Orca jackup rig…
Byron Energy Ltd. announced that the Byron Energy SM 6 #1 BP01 well reached a measured depth of 2338m and a true vertical depth of 2321m as of 23 June. Current operations are circulating in preparation to trip out of the hole to change the drill bit…
Maersk Drilling has ordered the offshore oil and gas industry’s first 20,000-psi (20-ksi) rated deepwater blowout preventer (BOP) stack and riser systems. The four BOPs and two risers, ordered from GE Oil and Gas, will be used in the Project 20K agreement with BP…
A wildcat well drilled by E.ON E&P Norge in production licence 558 was dry, according to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. Well 6507/5-7, which was the first well drilled in PL 558, was drilled about 18km southeast of the Skarv field in the Norwegian Sea…
KrisEnergy Ltd. an independent upstream oil and gas company, announced it has contracted the Key Gibraltar jack-up rig for development, appraisal and exploration drilling in two licenses in the Gulf of Thailand. The contract with Shelf Drilling (Southeast Asia) Limited…
Deeper and more difficult reservoirs are demanding different concepts offshore West Africa, including tension leg platforms. Jérôme Iacovella and Pauline Beraud discuss the options. The Moho Nord TLP design…
Russian national Rosneft and private oil giant Lukoil have started drilling appraisal well №. 1 at the Caspian Oil Co.-operated Ribachya structure in the North Caspian project license. Total prospective resources of the block are estimated at 1…
Drilling technology has improved by leaps and bounds in the past 20 years. Yet, Statoil’s drilling and well research manager says there’s room for a revolution when it comes to efficiency. Elaine Maslin reports. “I think there’s room and need for a revolution in offshore drilling…