2015 truly was the year of ups and downs.
At the start of the new year the price of oil tumbled to just below the US$50/bbl mark and by 31 December it rested at just under $40, at $37.04/bbl. However, it is not known what true bottom is for the market. According to the Wall Street Journal, US prices dipped 30% during 2015; the Brent fell 35%. At the time of this writing (7 January 2016), oil hit a 12-year low of $32/bbl amid fears about China’s economy.
In addition to the fall in oil price, arguably another noteworthy fall this year was Petrobras. The Brazilian state owned oil and gas firm has had a year plagued with scandal, and the ensuing corruption investigation (Lava Jato) has been far-reaching. Early in 2015, Petrobras CEO Maria das Gracas Foster and five directors stepped down from their posts. Next, head of engineering firm Odebrecht, Marcelo Odebrecht, was arrested and jailed. The scandal soon began infecting dozens other foreign companies who had in the past secured contracts with the firm. OE has followed the story all year, and a mighty list can be found here.
Despite the prices, there have been plenty of highlights to share within the offshore industry. Mexico, which ended a 76-year state monopoly on its energy industry, held its first bid round. And while that round had issues, subsequent rounds have been a success, even though leasing rounds held in the US Gulf of Mexico and Brazil this year did not eventually garner much interest. However, as noted in our popular stories from OEDigital.com this year, exploration is still on the minds of some, particularly in East Africa.
Of course, no downturn is complete without a few mergers and acquisitions. In 2015, oilfield giant Schlumberger went after several companies including Cameron International and Novatek. The Cameron deal, worth $14.8 billion, has smoothly sailed through approvals from both stockholders and government regulators. The same can’t be said for another noteworthy merger, Halliburton and Baker Hughes – where regulatory agencies around the world have slowed the process, likely into 2016, since the $34.6 billion marriage was announced in late November 2014.
2016 is likely to be a rough year for the industry, but if there is one thing that is assured, the global oil and gas sector is resilient.
Image: Maersk Developer/Maersk
No. 1 – Mexico's bleak Round One ends
On 15 July 2015, Mexico held the first phase of its long-awaited Round One bid round. The first phase, of three, held last year, was widely regarded as a disappointment with only two of 14 blocks being awarded. (Above photo from Mexico's CNH.)
No. 2 & 3 – Somalia eyes return to exploration
In early September 2015, Somalia's Puntland Petroleum Minerals Agency (PPMA) awarded ION Geophysical and Spectrum Geo seismic acquisition contracts. ION's scope would have the company acquire 8000km of seismic data covering the entire Somalia Puntland offshore margin. Spectrum will acquire some 28,000km of long offset 2D seismic data offshore south Somalia. The two awards could help pave the way to a return to exploration offshore Somalia, which was halted in the 1990s under a force major after civil war broke out in 1991.
No. 4 – Total, Eni, Exxon bet on Mozambique
In August, three majors vied for the same block offshore Mozambique in Mozambique's fifth licensing round, according to the round application details released by the country's National Petroleum Institute (INP). It reveals that ExxonMobil, in partnership with Rosneft, Eni, with partners Sasol and Statoil, and Total, have all separately applied for area A5-A in the Angoche basin, offshore northern Mozambique.
No. 5 – Schlumberger to take Cameron for US$14.8 billion
In August 2015, Oil services giant Schlumberger entered into a deal to acquire Cameron International in a US$14.8 billion stock and cash deal that will offer the industry’s first complete drilling and productions systems. In December, Cameron stockholders voted to approve the merger. The acquisition is expected to close in Q1 2016.
No. 6 – Chevron’s Rosebank re-emerges
Also in August, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) awarded Bluewater Energy Services a contract for the engineering, procurement, construction and integration for Chevron’s West of Shetland-area Rosebank FPSO turret and mooring system, which is expected to be one of the world's largest turret systems when complete. The award was a signal that the long-awaited project was finally moving forward. However, plans hit a snag in late October when Fred Olsen Energy declared that a construction contract for a newbuild semisubmersible rig, Bollsta Dolphin, which was originally destined for development drilling at Rosebank, had been cancelled.
OE’s editorial staff presents this list of 12 magazine stories from our 2015 archive that we deemed “can’t-miss” reading material. Illustration of Mariner field from Statoil.
January
Supporting seismic in the Gulf of Mexico
With well data often scarce, many deep water Gulf of Mexico operators rely on the structural images and elastic properties derived from seismic when evaluating the probability of success and estimating reserves in prospective fields. Vincent Vieugue suggests this is not enough.
February
Area 4 is the jewel in Italian explorer Eni’s African crown. Meg Chesshyre reports on the company’s plans to get its large gas discoveries off Mozambique to market.
March
The Mariner heavy oil discovery on the East Shetland Platform in UK block 9/11 will be one of the largest offshore developments on the UK Continental Shelf in more than a decade. Meg Chesshyre checks on its progress.
April
Ask about subsea well intervention and most assume it’s riserless light well intervention you want to talk about – for good reason. Elaine Maslin reports.
May
EPCIC contractor EMAS AMC is betting on the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, bringing not only its newbuild vessel the Lewek Constellation, but investing and upgrading a sprawling marine base in Ingleside, Texas. Audrey Leon reports.
June
Forty years ago this month (June), after a frenzy of exploration and something of a race to be first, first oil was produced from the UK North Sea. Elaine Maslin takes a look back.
July
Decommissioning in the 21st Century
InterMoor's Jim Macklin discusses challenges and strategies for decommissioning.
August
Big data is not just for the seismic segment. Elaine Maslin takes a look at other areas, such as condition monitoring, where the industry could make significant gains.
September
Hurricane Energy has proven commercial oil can flow from its fractured basement oil reservoirs West of Shetland – it’s next job is finding an economical solution to get it to market. Elaine Maslin reports.
October
Subsea robotics firm FMC Technologies Schilling Robotics has a vision, which it thinks could overturn the way subsea equipment is designed. Elaine Maslin found out more from co-founder Tyler Schilling.
November
For the offshore floating rig market, the downturn presented the perfect storm: too many rigs, not enough demand, and with some 200 newbuilds set to enter the market over the next decade. Audrey Leon reports.
December
Driving cost down on a sustainable basis
The price collapse has created a greater urgency for rethinking how the industry does business and operators and suppliers are more receptive to collaborating in new ways, according to Tore Halvorsen, FMC Technologies’ Senior Vice President of Subsea Technologies.
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