Companies in the news

Sempra Energy said that the Cameron Liquefaction Project sponsors, Sempra LNG, GDF SUEZ SA, Mitsui & Co., Ltd., and Mitsubishi Corporation, through a related company jointly established with Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, have approved a final investment decision for the development, construction and operation of the natural gas liquefaction and export project planned at the site of Sempra Energy’s Cameron LNG receipt terminal in Hackberry, La. The total project cost is estimated at about $10 billion, including contribution of the existing Cameron LNG facilities, construction of new facilities and financing costs. The project’s financing commitments total $7.4 billion, and will be provided by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI), and a group of 29 commercial banks.

A wholly-owned subsidiary of KrisEnergy Ltd., KrisEnergy (Asia) Ltd., has entered into an agreement with Chevron Global Energy Inc. to acquire the entire, issued share capital of Chevron Overseas Petroleum (Cambodia) Limited. The latter firm holds a 30% participating interest in, and operatorship of, Cambodia Block A. The contract area, home to the Apsara oil discovery, covers 4,709 km² over the Khmer basin in the Gulf of Thailand. The total consideration for the transaction is $65 million. Chevron Cambodia will be renamed KrisEnergy (Apsara) Ltd., once the transaction is acknowledged by the Cambodian government.

Rex Energy Corporation will acquire approximately 208,000 gross (207,000 net) acres in the company’s Butler Operated Area. Rex Energy has entered into a definitive purchase agreement with SWEPI, LP, an affiliate of Shell, to acquire a 100% interest in acreage prospective for the Marcellus, Upper Devonian/Burkett and Utica shales in Pennsylvania and Ohio, for approximately $120 million in cash. The additional acreage, combined with recent leasing, will bring Rex Energy’s position in its Butler Operated Area to approximately 298,000 gross acres.

LINN Energy, LLC, and LinnCo, LLC, reported that the former has signed a definitive purchase agreement to acquire assets in the Hugoton basin from Pioneer Natural Resources, for $340 million. The assets produce approximately 40 MMcfed, roughly 60% of which is natural gas, with a shallow base decline of approximately 6%. Total proved reserves are estimated to be about 340 Bcfe (approximately 95% PDP). The asset package comprises roughly 235,000 net acres, all held by production, with approximately 1,200 producing wells.

OneSubsea, a Cameron and Schlumberger company, Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. and Schlumberger have entered into a letter of intent to form an alliance to develop technologies and deliver services, to optimize the cost and efficiency of subsea well intervention systems. Upon approval on the final terms of a definitive agreement, the alliance will leverage its combined capabilities to provide a fully integrated offering, combining marine support with well access and control technologies. The alliance will focus on several objectives, aimed at increasing the operating envelope of today’s subsea intervention technology.

Cameron has received an order from Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas LLC to supply a 20,000-psi BOP stack. Cameron supplied the industry’s first and only 183/4-in., 20,000-psi BOP, which is operating in the field today. In addition, Freeport-McMoRan is operating the industry’s first and only 135/8-in., 25,000-psi BOP, with another on order and scheduled for delivery in 2015. This is the third ultra-high-pressure BOP that Freeport-McMoRan has ordered for its high-pressure drilling activities in the Gulf of Mexico.

Sandvik and Tenaris have signed a new five-year strategic alliance agreement on the exclusive joint supply of corrosion-resistant alloy OCTG materials and technology. The two companies will look to bring to market a complete offering, combining Sandvik’s corrosion-resistant alloy tubes with TenarisHydril premium connections with Dopeless technology. These solutions will be especially applicable in challenging oil and gas E&P environments, including HPHT and deepwater developments.

Landmark Software and Services, a Halliburton business line, has acquired Neftex Petroleum Consultants Limited, a UK-based company specializing in sequence stratigraphy-based products and consulting for subsurface risk reduction. The Neftex Earth Model integrates millions of data points to deliver a global overview of the geological history and resource development of the earth. Landmark customers will now be able to integrate data and interpretations from the Neftex Earth Model with the DecisionSpace application platform.

The Greater Lafourche Port Commission (GLPC) recently named its newest port facility the Johnny Melancon, Sr., Fourchon EOC in memory of GLPC board member John “Johnny” Melancon, Sr., who died in 2010. Situated next to GLPC’s Fourchon Operations Center, the Fourchon EOC is meant to serve as the epicenter of incident response during emergencies impacting the Port Fourchon area, or oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico.

Artificial Lift Company (ALC) has changed its name to AccessESP, to better communicate the value proposition of the company’s electric submersible pump (ESP) conveyance technologies. The company unveiled its name, logo and website Aug. 6. AccessESP’s management team is based at its headquarters in Houston.

Check-6 has inked a deal with the Bob L. Herd Department of Petroleum Engineering at Texas Tech University. The company will install three Well Control CATS (Competency Assurance Training Systems) in the Chevron Well Control Simulation Lab at the new Terry Fuller Petroleum Engineering Research Building. Each Well Control CAT System features a 150° dome display, which delivers academic and simulation modules designed to keep crews and students sharp on the critical fundamentals of primary and secondary well control. Check-6 expects to have all three units built and integrated into the building by late-October.

Variable Bore Rams (VBR) has expanded with a new distribution center in Midland, Texas. The facility is aimed at improving response time in New Mexico, Oklahoma and West Texas by up to 7 hr. Available inventory will include approximately 100 sets of various dressed rams and 200 sets of spare elastomers.

The official acquisition of Varel International Energy Services by Sandvik closed on May 21. Team members from VIES and Sandvik Venture met in Carrollton, Texas, to begin the integration process during the last week of May. Primary subjects under discussion included IT, HSE issues, finance/treasury/tax, legal, compliance and marketing communications, according to VIES.