2014 outlook for the Ghanaian oil and gas sector

The year 2013 was very eventful for the Oil and Gas sector in Ghana with the passage of the Legislative Instrument (L.I.) on local content and local participation in petroleum activities being one of the headline occurrences.

The establishment of the Enterprise Development Corporation in Takoradi, the re-submission of the draft Petroleum Exploration and Production Bill to Cabinet for approval, and the progress made on the construction of the gas plant were also notable events of 2013.

Schlumberger introduces new fracturing technique

Schlumberger announced today the introduction of the BroadBand Sequence* fracturing technique, which enables sequential stimulation of perforation clusters in wells drilled in unconventional reservoirs. This new technique sequentially isolates fractures at the wellbore to ensure every cluster in each zone is fractured resulting in greater production and completion efficiency compared to conventional methods.

Developed using a composite fluid comprising a proprietary blend of degradable fibers and multimodal particles, the BroadBand Sequence technique is suited for use in new wells and in recompletions. This technique is particularly suitable for re-fracturing operations, given its ability to promote temporary cluster isolation without the aid of mechanical devices such as bridge plugs.

“Optimizing the stimulation of wellbore perforation clusters in unconventional reservoirs is a significant challenge for our industry,” said Amerino Gatti, president, Well Services, Schlumberger. “The BroadBand Sequence technique addresses this challenge and increases our customers’ well production by enhancing stimulation contact in every zone in the reservoir.”

This fracturing technique has delivered robust and consistent performance in more than 500 operations conducted to date in several unconventional plays including the Eagle Ford, Haynesville, Woodford, Spraberry and Bakken shales.

The BroadBand Sequence fracturing technique has enabled customers in South Texas to increase production from new completions in unconventional reservoirs by more than 20%. It has also reduced well completion time by up to 46% in plug-and-perf operations by stimulating longer intervals compared with conventional methods. In addition, this technology was applied to a well in South Texas for a refracturing operation, which resulted in double the production with a fourfold increase in flowing pressure.

BroadBand Sequence is the first release of a family of BroadBand completion technologies aimed at maximizing well productivity in unconventional reservoirs.

For more information about the BroadBand Sequence fracturing technique, visitwww.slb.com/BroadBand

Why private refineries are not built — Avuru

Unfavourable government policy, harsh economic environment and lack of adequate fund have been identified as some of the impediments to private sector participation in the refinery business.
The Chief Executive Officer, CEO, Seplat Petroleum Development Company Limited, Mr. Austin Avuru, stated this at the just concluded Nigerian Marginal Field workshop, held in Lagos.

According to him, “The reason why the private sector has not been able to invest in refineries is that you cannot go to the bank to borrow $1 billion to build a refinery when the commercial framework is unclear to your bankers. When you are selling the product in the same market as the government-owned refineries that are regulated; when government says you can only sell the product at N97 per litre.

Queues resurface as marketers disagree over fuel supply

Queues by motorists resurfaced in some parts of Lagos on Monday over fears of an impending petrol scarcity.

Though it could not be distinguished on Monday whether the queues were as a result of panic buying or real fuel scarcity, motorists were, however, seen making desperate attempts to get petrol in some filling stations on Awolowo Road, Ikoyi and the Elegushi area of Victoria Island as well as on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Our correspondent, who monitored the situation, also found out that most of the filling stations had limited product dispensing from one or two pumps in anticipation of a full blown scarcity.

While no one was sure of the state of fuel supply in the country as of press time on Monday, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association and the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria have continued to disagree over the availability or otherwise of petrol in the country.

N1.5bn subsidy scam: Ship in Brazil discharged products in Nigeria – Witness

Justice Lawal Akapo of the Federal High Court in Ikeja, Lagos, was yesterday told how Ifeanyi Anosike and his company, Anosyke Group of Companies, refused to carry out any Ship-to-Ship transfer of 15,000 metric tonnes of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) contrary to claims to that effect.

A statement by the spokesman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Wilson Uwujaren, yesterday in Abuja said Anosike and his company are being prosecuted by the commission on charges bordering on forgery and conspiracy to obtain by false pretence the sum of N1,537,278,880.82 from the Petroleum Support Fund.

According to the prosecution witness, Oghare Ebunu, who is an operative of the EFCC, investigations revealed that there was no transfer of petroleum product from the mother vessel, MT KLARA, to a first daughter vessel, MT MARITINA, at Offshore Cotonou, where the content was claimed to have been transferred into SP Boston and Emocean by Anosyke.

ISS secures new offshore contracts in Africa

Inchcape Shipping Services (ISS), the world’s leading maritime services provider, has secured a further significant nomination from one of their key accounts to support their operations in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Building on other recent successes in the region, ISS last month startedan offshore logistics and support contract for Norwegian-based Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS).

Under the 5 month contract, ISS will support a seismic survey project to map oil and gas deposits off the East African coast. Coordinated from the company’s Durban office, ISS will provide PGS’s vessels with a range of services including; standard port agency, vessel husbandry, bunker calls, and freight forwarding services. Additionally, ISS will also be assisting with crew changes, arranging visa and work permit formalities, and airport transfers to and from the vessels.

Minexco launches Ghana work program

Minexco Petroleum Inc. launched its work program for the South Deep Water Tano (SDWT) Block offshore Ghana. Through the company’s JV with AGR Energy and AGM Petroleum Ghana, operational and technical teams will begin work to reassess the existing 3D seismic data over 75% of the SDWT area and further develop its work program for future exploration.

Drilling of prospects is expected to commence in 2015.

AGM Petroleum will work with ExploreCo, a division of state company GNPC, to finalize the work program and subsequently explore and develop the SDWT offshore prospect. The block is in the Tano Basin, which is also home to the producing Jubilee Field.

Martin Keeley, CEO of Minexco Petroleum, said: “The launch of this next phase of analysis and planning further solidifies the cooperation between the operational and technical teams of Minexco, AGR Energy and GNPC to bring this exciting prospect to production.

“As Minexco works closely with GNPC to take an increasingly active role in the development of the country’s natural resources through the training of local talent, we will collectively contribute to the development of Ghana as a hub for the fast growing African offshore E&P sector. We view this model of cooperation as a template for future projects on the continent and abroad.”

Oil spill – Niger Delta leaders embark on SOS mission

Last week, an eleven-member leaders’ delegation of 350 communities, cutting across Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers states affected by the impact of massive crude oil spillage from the Shell/SNEPCO Bonga Fields of 21st December 2011, paid a save-our-soul (SOS) visit to the Ecological Fund Office -EFO, as part of efforts to draw public attention to the failure of Shell company to pay compensation to the affected communities more than two years after the serious incident that generated both national and international concern.

The visit is coming on the heels of outcry by residents of the Niger Delta and civil society of government’s inability to implement the extensive United Nations Environment Programmes’ (UNEP) report on Ogoniland.

OPEC joins U.S. in predicting stronger 2014 oil demand

World oil demand will rise slightly more than expected in 2014, OPEC said on Wednesday, becoming the second major forecaster this week to predict higher fuel use as economic growth picks up in Europe and the United States.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a monthly report, said global demand will rise by 1.09 million barrels per day (bpd) this year, up about 40,000 bpd from its previous forecast. The group, which pumps a third of the world’s oil, also sees potential for further rises.

“Given the improvement in OECD oil demand, the likelihood for upward adjustments for world oil demand growth in 2014 is currently higher than existing projections,” said the report by economists at OPEC’s Vienna headquarters.

OPEC’s report comes a day after the U.S. government’s Energy Information Administration raised its 2014 world oil demand growth forecast by a similar increment. Oil prices edged higher after it was released, with Brent crude trading near $109 a barrel.

Egypt to explore idea of buying gas from Cyprus

Egypt and Cyprus will look to cooperate in the field of hydrocarbons and the European nation could even export gas to the North African country, reports Cyprus News Agency.

According to the news agency, these issues were discussed between the Cypriot Minister of Energy Yiorgos Lakkotrypis and the Egyptian Minister of Petroleum Sherif Ismail in Nicosia on Friday.

“We agreed on the immediate establishment of a joint technical committee, which will look at possible ways of cooperation between the two countries,” said Lakkotrypis after the meeting.

Cyprus is turning to Egypt in an attempt to examine all possible options for the exploitation of hydrocarbon deposits found in its Exclusive Economic Zone, adds Cyprus News Agency.

Lakkotrypis said the since Egypt is facing shortage of natural gas as a result of growing domestic demand, it is finding it hard to meet its export contracts.

Egypt, he said, could probably be a potential buyer of Cyprus’ natural gas, reports Cyprus News Agency.

He added that the Technical Committee between Cyprus and Egypt will examine the technical and economic aspects of this possibility and of closer cooperation in general.

The committee will be set up immediately and the Minister expressed hope that in February it will have its first meeting in Cairo, says the news agency.

Block 12 Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) could hold gas reserves between 3.6tcf and 6tcf with a gross mean resource of 5tcf, according to finding of Noble Energy, which operates the block with 70 percent stake.

Total E&P Cyprus Ltd has been granted a license for seismic exploration for oil and gas in block 10 and in parts of blocks 6, 7 and 11 of Cyprus’ EEZ, reports Cyprus News Agency.