The Deepsea Metro I ultra deepwater drillship won a contract with VietGazprom in Vietnam. The vessel, managed by Norway's Odfjell Drilling, will operate for VietGazprom in Blocks 130 and 131 offshore Vietnam, starting mid-3Q 2015, for about 20 weeks…
According to Guyanese Online, Reuters, MercoPress and other news organizations, an ExxonMobil subsidiary and its partners have discovered hydrocarbons offshore Guyana, but the Guyanese government reports that it is not sure if the discovery can be confirmed in commercial quantities…
Transocean’s Polar Pioneer has recently become the center of attention in Seattle. On 12 May 2015 a request was made by the Port of Seattle commissioners which asked Shell to postpone the rig’s move to the Port of Seattle’s Terminal 5 while permitting issues are worked out…
Houston-based, Africa-focused explorer Erin Energy, formerly CAMAC, has been granted a 24-month extension on two of its offshore Gambia licenses. Erin Energy, which operates the blocks with 100% interest, received approval to extend the…
OMV's latest well in the Barents Sea has been classified as dry, according to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. The well, 7324/8-2 on production license 537, was drilled about 6km southeast of Wisting oil discovery, about 310km north of Hammerfest…
Diamond Offshore's Ocean Victory semisubmersible drilling rig has arrived in Trinidad and Tobago to start drilling operations for BP. The rig, which is currently taking on personnel, equipment and supplies, in port, is due to move to the Juniper field…
UK-based Independent Oil and Gas has started a 3D seismic remapping project over its southern North Sea gas portfolio. The project is being carried out on a phased basis, with the first results expected by the end of May. The first phase will cover IOG's core southern North Sea area…
UK-based offshore Ireland explorer Europa Oil & Gas says an independent review of Frontier Exploration License 3/13 estimates it contains nearly 1.5 billion boe prospective resources and the potential for a “play-opening” first well. The estimate…
UK-based operator Premier Oil resumed drilling on the Isobel Deep 14/20-1 well in the North Falkland Basin following repairs to the blowout preventer (BOP) stack. Drilling operations on the Eirik Raude semisubmersible drilling rig were…
Denmark headquartered Maersk Oil has made a hydrocarbon discovery on the high-pressure, high-temperature (HPHT) Xana-1X exploration in the Danish Sector of the North Sea. The Xana-1X well was drilled in license 9/95 in 68m water depth…
The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) granted conditional approval of Shell’s multi-year exploration plan for the Chukchi Sea today (11 May). The approval comes after what the agency described as a “comprehensive review.” Last month…
Shell released this video outlining its safety efforts for Arctic exploration. The company received conditional approval for its exploration plan in the Chukchi Sea on 11 May 2015. Shell is planning to spend US$1 billion to explore the Arctic…
UK-based explorer Cairn Energy is ramping up its exploration and appraisal work offshore Senegal following the firm’s two major discoveries in the country made last year. Cairn is planning a “very ambitious” three-year evaluation plan…
AGR and SP Offshore Energy Services signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) under which AGR will provide a range of exploration services and the drilling of an ultra deepwater (UDW) well off the Comoros Islands, between Mozambique and the Comoros…
Gazprom and PetroVietnam entered into agreements to explore offshore Vietnam later this year, marking the first deepwater well in the area with a depth exceeding 1600m. Gazprom, PetroVietnam signing agreements…