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Vol. 231 No. 4 |
VAM Drilling, a Vallourec company, has acquired Protools, a supplier of bottomhole assembly (BHA) products. Based in Abu Dhabi, Protools was formerly owned by Hunt Oiltools LLC. Combined with its existing footprints in the US, the Middle East and Europe, the acquisition will make VAM Drilling the only manufacturer of complete drilling product solutions in the Middle East.
Vallourec & Mannesmann Tubes, a Vallourec subsidiary, will construct a new, $650 million rolling mill in Youngstown, Ohio. The project includes heat treatment and threading facilities. The mill will start up in the fourth quarter of 2011 and will produce 23/8- to 7-in.-diameter OCTG. Another Vallourec subsidiary, VAM USA, has started construction on a 54,000-sq-ft R&D testing facility located in Houston. It is expected to open early in the fall of 2010.
Transocean Ltd. announced that the newbuild ultra-deepwater drillship Dhirubhai Deepwater KG2, owned by a joint venture with Pacific Drilling Ltd., has commenced operations for Reliance Industries in India under a five-year drilling contract. The dynamically positioned vessel features National Oilwell Varco drilling packages, off-line tubular-handling and stand-building capabilities, advanced mud system designs, systems for building, storing and running several subsea trees, and efficient riser and BOP-handling systems. It has a variable deckload of 20,000 mt and is equipped to work in water depths of up to 12,000 ft and construct wells up to 35,000 ft.
TDW Offshore Services AS announced that it has entered into a framework contract with Statoil ASA to provide pipeline pressure isolation services and equipment for its installations in the Norwegian North Sea. The agreement requires TDW to supply pipeline pressure isolation services with its remotely operated SmartPlug technology.
Superior Energy Services Inc. will plug and abandon the 29 wells associated with Shell’s Bullwinkle, which is the deepest fixed-leg production platform on the Outer Continental Shelf. Superior took possession of the platform, which was installed in 1988, along with related assets. It produces 4,000 boepd and serves as a processing hub for third parties. Superior has also sold a 49% interest in the assets to Dynamic Offshore Resources, LLC, which will operate the field. The platform will be decommissioned at the end of its economic life, and Shell has agreed to pay Superior an undisclosed amount once decommissioning is complete.
Deep Casing Tools, an Aberdeen-based company, has changed its name from Futuretec Ltd. The company is developing a portfolio of deep well construction tools for its international network of oil and gas exploration customers.
Schlumberger has acquired the privately owned French oilfield services company Geoservices—a specialist in mud logging, slickline and production surveillance operations. The total value of the transaction, including net debt, is $1.07 billion. Geoservices, founded in 1958, employs about 5,000 people in more than 50 countries worldwide. The company has invested heavily in new technology for exploration and appraisal well activities, particularly in deepwater environments.
Ion Geophysical Corp. announced that it has completed a land seismic equipment joint venture with BGP Inc., a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corp. The companies have received all necessary government and regulatory approvals in both the US and China. The joint venture company, named INOVA Geophysical Equipment Ltd., will offer a comprehensive portfolio of advanced geophysical technologies used in oil and gas exploration to land seismic service providers. Offerings include energy source and source control systems, land seismic recording systems and digital full-wave seismic sensors.
Total has signed an agreement to acquire a 50% interest in Kazakhstan’s Concession that is held by Oil TechnoGroup (OTG), the Kazakh subsidiary of Poland’s Petrolinvest. The roughly 5,500-sq-km onshore license is located in northwestern Kazakhstan.
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