Feb 29, 2012 - The BW Athena FPSO has departed Dubai Dry Docks World to be moored on the Ithaca-operated Athena field in the UK sector of the North Sea. All FPSO production critical equipment was run and fully tested prior to vessel departure thus minimizing the period between arrival in the field and first production of oil, stated the operator. Upon arrival, the BW Athena will be hooked up to the pre-installed production system. Hook-up will mark completion of the development phase and Ithaca anticipates that the production phase will commence in early 2Q 2012. Production is anticipated to reach approximately 22,000 bopd.

Feb 29, 2012 - Technip has received two subsea contracts under the Diving Frame Contract from Statoil for the Asgard, Gudrun & Valemon projects. The Asgard contract includes deepwater testing of the Pipeline Repair System, remote hot-tap equipment, preparation work and installation of protection structures. Work will be executed in 2012. The Gudrun and Valemon contract includes installation and tie-in of spools and power cable and also a Morgrip midline tie-in, all performed by divers. The work will be executed in 2013 and 2014.

Feb 29, 2012 - The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway has granted BG Norge consent to use subsea facilities and pipelines on the Gaupe field. Production is scheduled to start in March 2012. The Gaupe field is estimated to hold 28 million barrels of oil equivalent.

Feb 29, 2012 - Dong E&P Norge received consent to use a subsea facility and pipeline on the Oselvar field. Production is scheduled to start in March 2012. The Gaupe field is estimated to hold 28 million barrels of oil equivalent. Production is slated to commence on April 1, 2012. Located on the Norwegian continental shelf, the Oselvar field is close to the UK border and is situated on Production License 274 in 72 meters (236 feet) of water.

Feb 29, 2012 - In 2011, Dong Energy drilled a new injector well on the Nini East field, securing good pressure support and sweep. However, an updated geological model of the field has resulted in a minor reduction of 2P reserves resulting in the amount of 10.7 MMboe gross. The Nini East field has produced to the Siri Center since February 2010.

Feb 29, 2012 - Noreco, a partner in the Huntington field, reported that drilling of the development wells continued on the field through 4Q 2011 with the jackup ENSCO 100 (350'ILC) according to plan. The second production well was successfully completed and tested in December, and one of the two planned water injection wells was also drilled during the quarter. The Huntington field will be produced via the floating production and storage unit Sevan Voyageur, which is currently being upgraded for the Huntington assignment at the Nymo shipyard in Norway. The consortium anticipates oil production during the second half of 2012.

Feb 29, 2012 - Late last year, Maersk Oil commenced a seismic reprocessing campaign over the Gita discovery in the Denmark sector of the North Sea. The reprocessing campaign, involving four different surveys, was aimed at pre-stack depth migration to improve depth imaging. The campaign ended but the geologic re-interpretation is on-going. When the updated geologic models are ready, planning of wells will start with the aim to appraise the Gita discovery and unlock further potential in the license by 2013. Gita, discovered in 2009, spans across two licenses in 161 feet (49 meters) of water.

Feb 29, 2012 - Woodside announced it will undertake activities to remove, repair, and replace a section of pipe work that connects one of the subsea wells to a subsea junction point for the Enfield field located offshore Western Australia. The junction is connected to the field's floating production and storaage facility, the Nganhurra. Woodside will use the Nor Australis support vessel to conduct the necessary subsea work, which is estimated to take approximately 20 days to complete. The Enfield field is located approximately 40 km northwest of Exmouth in about 400 m of water and is operator by Woodside and held by Woodside (60%) and Mitsui E&P Australia Pty Ltd (40%).

Feb 28, 2012 - DONG Energy and Bayerngas have announced development plans for the Hejre field in the Danish sector of the North Sea. The total investment in the development of the field is 2.1 billion (DKK 12.1 billion). Dong Energy estimates the total reserves of the field at about 170 million barrels of oil equivalents and expects first oil and gas inlate 2015. The development will compromise a production platform, drilling of production wells and new pipelines that will be tied into existing North Sea pipelines. Production will transport to mainland Denmark. Hejre, discovered in 2001, is located in license 1/06.

Feb 28, 2012 - Premier Oil has commenced exploratory drilling on the Bluebell prospect, located on Blocks 15/24c and 15/25f in the UK sector of the North Sea. The operator is using the Sedco 704 (mid-water semisub) to drill the well. The well is expected to take approximately 30 days to drill.

Feb 28, 2012 - Technip and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering have received a contract for the Hejre project in the Danish sector of the North Sea. The contract covers engineering, procurement, fabrication, hook-up, and commissioning assistance for a fixed wellhead and process platform and associated facilities. The platform includes 11,500-ton topsides supported by a 6,500-ton jacket, and is designed to process high pressure and high temperature hydrocarbons fluids. The platform, which also comprises living quarters to accommodate 70 people and a flare, will be capable of producing up to 76 MMcf/d and 35,000 bopd. The jacket and wellhead unit will be delivered in 2014, the topsides and living quarter in 2015. The field will commence production in 2015.

Feb 28, 2012 - Statoil has awarded Aker Solutions a contract for the upgrade of drilling facilities on the Snorre A platform. "Well drilling and maintenance represent the most important activities we can undertake in order to recover more oil and gas from our fields. By upgrading the drilling facilities on Snorre A we reckon we can recover 67 million additional barrels of oil from the Snorre field," said Bente Aleksandersen, head of Operations South in Development and Production Norway in Statoil. Work will start in March 2012 and be completed in 2015. The Snorre A upgrade will help extend the field’s lifetime until 2040.

Feb 28, 2012 - Apache Energy said that Premier of Western Australia and Minister for State Development, the Hon. Colin Barnett MLA has officially opened the Devil Creek gas plant. The development includes the Reindeer gas field, wellhead platform and raw gas pipeline, the Devil Creek gas plant and the Devil Creek sales gas export pipeline that ties into the Dampier to Bunbury Natural gas pipeline. The Devil Creek gas plant is a two-train facility designed to safely process 200 MMcf/d (220 Terajoules of gas per day) and 1,000 barrels per day of condensate. Also participating in the opening was the U.S. Ambassador to Australia, the Hon. Jeffrey Bleich, and the U.S. Consul General to Western Australia, Ms Aleisha Woodward. The Devil Creek Gas Plant is the state's third domestic natural gas processing hub and the first new domestic gas plant built in Western Australia for over 15 years.

Feb 28, 2012 - Apache Energy awarded EMAS AMC a contract to perform subsea transport and installation work for the Coniston field development in Northwest Australia. The scope of work for the project includes the transportation and installation of pipeline end manifolds, manifold, umbilicals and flexible flowlines in addition to spool fabrication and recovery of two existing flowlines in about 1,247 feet (380 meters) of water. EMAS AMC will execute the project management, engineering, transportation and subsea installation work for the project. Engineering and planning activities will commence immediately with the offshore installation operations scheduled to commence around the first quarter of 2013.

Feb 28, 2012 - Kosmos Energy has exercised a right under the existing Joint Operating Agreement to acquire a participating interest of Sabre Oil & Gas Holdings Limited in the Deepwater Tano Block offshore Ghana. The purchase price is estimated to be approximately $365 million, with up to an additional $45 million contingent upon achieving certain performance milestones. Following closing of the acquisition, Kosmos' interest in the Deepwater Tano Block will increase from 18 percent to 22.05 percent. Kosmos' interest in the Jubilee field will increase from 24.1 percent to 25.8 percent.