Mar 30, 2012 - Aker Solutions has completed the manufacturing and load-out of eight subsea manifolds and six riser bases for Eni's Goliat project in the Barents Sea. The load-out commenced on March 27, 2012. Aker Solutions' Goliat contract, signed in September 2009, consisted of engineering, procurement and construction of a complete subsea production system. Subsea hardware deliveries include eight overtrawlable four-slot subsea templates with manifolds, wellheads system, 24 subsea trees, subsea and topside controls systems, 12 miles (20 kilometers) of steel tube umbilicals, work-over equipment and a tie-in and connection system. Goliat, the first oil field to be developed in the arctic waters of the Barents Sea, is scheduled to commence production in 2013. The field has a life expectancy of 15 years.

Mar 30, 2012 - BP will extend the maintenance and modification contract with Aker Solutions, exercising an option in the existing agreement for the Ula, Valhall, Skarv, Hod and Tambar fields. Work under the extended contract will last until April 2014. The original maintenance and modification contract was signed in 2005. Scope of work under the contract includes maintenance support services and brownfield modification projects covering engineering, procurement, fabrication and offshore installation. Maintenance and modification work will help to increase oil recovery rate and extend the life of BP's fields.

Mar 30, 2012 - Total is mobilizing two rigs to drill a relief well in an attempt to halt a gas leak from the Elgin platform in the North Sea, according to the U.K Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). The firm is also seeking a second solution of pumping heavy mud into the well, DECC added. "We believe the hydrocarbons are coming from a rock formation above the reservoir at a depth of 4,000 meters (13,120 feet)," a spokesperson for the firm told Rigzone. The Elgin/Franklin project has been shut-in since Monday, March 26.

Mar 30, 2012 - Petrobras awarded Saipem a new E&C offshore contract in Brazil for the Lula development. The EPCI contract is for the gas export trunkline Rota Cabiunas, situated in the Santos Basin pre-salt region, approximately 186 miles (300 kilometers) off the coast of the State of Sao Paulo. The development comprises the engineering and procurement of subsea equipment, and the installation of a 236-mile-long (380-kilometer-long) pipeline with a 24-inch diameter, in a maximum water depth of 7,218 feet (2,200 meters). The pipeline will connect the central gathering manifold in the Lula field, in the Santos Basin, to the onshore Processing Plant of Cabiunas, located in the Macae district, in the State of Rio de Janeiro. Work is slated for completion in 2Q2014.

Mar 30, 2012 - Noreco has commenced drilling at exploration well 7228/1-4 on the Eik prospect in the Barents Sea. The well is being drilled by the Transocean Barents (UDW semisub). The partners in the license PL396 are Noreco (operator, 50 percent), Front Exploration (30 percent) and Petoro (20 percent).

Mar 29, 2012 - Total may have confirmed the source of the gas leak at its Elgin platform in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. The firm insists that the still-alight flare on the platform does not pose any immediate risk. After reports early Thursday morning that Total had a "good idea" of the source of the gas leak on its Elgin platform, a spokesperson for the firm told Rigzone: "We believe the hydrocarbons are coming from a rock formation above the reservoir at a depth of 4,000 meters [13,120 feet]." On Wednesday evening, Total released a press statement explaining the situation regarding the flare on the Elgin platform. "The flare is an integral part of the platform's safety system. In an emergency, it is used to safely evacuate all the gas from the platform. During the incident, it performed this task perfectly, allowing everyone to evacuate safely," said Total. "The flare is still lit because when the platform is shut down and de-pressurised in an emergency, it cannot be fully purged as done in a controlled shutdown. This is perfectly normal. Some liquids do remain in the system and these liquids are now evaporating. As these liquids evaporate, the flow of hydrocarbons to the flare will exhaust itself and the flare should burn out."

Mar 29, 2012 - Bridge Energy reported that the Tartan and Duart field operator, Talisman, is working to restart operations on the Tartan platform and projects production to restart at the end of March. The extended shutdown on Tartan has enabled completion of a comprehensive work scope which should increase the near term uptime of the facility, said Bridge. The increased host uptime and a period of flush production following the long shut down is expected to partly offset the delayed production volumes.

Mar 29, 2012 - McMoRan is continuing to flow test the Davy Jones No. 1 well on Block 230 at South Marsh Island. As previously reported, McMoRan saw positive pressure response from the Wilcox "D" sand which was perforated on March 24, 2012. On March 26, 2012, the operator attempted to perforate the Wilcox "C" sand. As the perforating gun was being removed from the hole, the well began to flow. When the gun was brought to the surface, it was determined that the gun did not fire in the Wilcox "C" sand from what appears to be a simple disconnection of the detonator cord. The company plans to use a new perforating gun to complete the testing of the Wilcox "C" sand. Currently, the test is ongoing from only the Wilcox "D" sand, which resulted in the flare shown in the exhibit attached. The flow from the "D" sand is being affected by considerable debris in the 5-inch liner, from what McMoRan believes to be residual drilling fluid from drilling of the well. Results of a clean flow test, as opposed to the current test hampered by debris, will be announced as further progress is achieved and flow rates are measurable. McMoRan will provide updates as completion operations progress.

Mar 29, 2012 - Technip's wholly-owned subsidiary Duco received a contract by Bluewater Industries for the Cheviot field development. The contract covers engineering, project management and fabrication of four static steel tube umbilicals, four dynamic thermoplastic umbilicals, and a thermoplastic subsea intervention valve umbilical. The total length is 7.5 miles (12 kilometers). The umbilicals will control four drill centers from a floating semisubmersible production facility. The project is scheduled for delivery in 2014.

Mar 29, 2012 - Statoil has awarded Sevan Marine a study of the potential application of a Sevan FPSO for the company’s Skrugard/Havis development in the Barents Sea. The study will be performed from April 2012 to May 2013 and will be focused on further development of the Sevan FPSO as basis for future preferred concept.

Mar 27, 2012 - A formal field development approval for the Alma/Galia project is expected to be imminent which will allow the addition of a fourth hub, with gross production capacity of over 20,000 boepd.

Mar 27, 2012 - Statoil and partners have signed a pre-unit agreement regarding the Johan Sverdrup discovery in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. According to the agreement, the owners of production licenses 265 and 501 will cooperate in the planning of the Johan Sverdrup field towards an investment decision and submission of the Plan for Development and Operation (PDO). Statoil has been appointed as the working operator. The work will form the basis for developing and establishing the best field solution for Johan Sverdrup. An agreement for the development and operational phase will be signed between the licensees ahead of the submission of the PDO to Norway's Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.

Mar 27, 2012 - Valiant Petroleum has commenced drilling on the Tybalt appraisal well in the UK sector of the North Sea. The work program, which includes a well and a contingent test, is designed to prove commercially exploitable volumes via a nearby infrastructure which includes the Magnus fields and the Dons Area complex. Tybalt is an Upper Jurassic discovery originally made by Valiant in 2010 with gross resources estimated at Valiant to be 7 MMbbls. The well is being drilled by the Borgsten Dolphin (mid-water semisub) rig and is expected to take 35-40 days to complete.

Mar 27, 2012 - Shell has removed oil workers from two of its North Sea rigs due to their proximity to Total’s Elgin/Franklin platform, where a gas leak occurred Sunday. According to its press statement, Shell reported that it had reduced personnel on its Shearwater platform and the nearby Noble Hans Deul (400' ILC) rig. Drilling operations on the Noble Hans Deul (400' ILC) rig, which is located offshore Scotland 138 miles (222 kilometers) east of Aberdeen, have been suspended and the wells "left in a safe state," said Shell. "While the move is purely precautionary and primarily driven by the prevailing weather conditions, and both facilities remain operational, it has been decided to reduce numbers to a more manageable level until the full situation surrounding the Elgin leak has been established," said a Shell spokesperson. On Monday night, Total said that two aerial surveillance flights from an Oil Spill Response had confirmed a gas sheen on the water. Total said that two more OSRL flights would be carried out Tuesday. Experts have been mobilized from elsewhere in the Total Group in order to help with the incident, the firm reported. The "precise cause of the leak remains unclear," added Total.

Mar 27, 2012 - The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Faroe Petroleum a drilling permit for wellbore 2/8-18. The well will be drilled from the Maersk Guardian (350’ ILC) jackup in Production License 440 S. Well 2/8-18 S is the first exploration well to be drilled in the production license.