Oil, Gas and Refinery Projects update

[ghazi52]

ExxonMobil Suspends offshore drilling near Karachi Coast due to repairs

They temporarily halted drilling as their equipment needed repair, Ministry of Maritime Affairs Adviser Mahmood Moulvi told Express TV. “The parts in question will be changed in the next two to three days and subsequently drilling will resume,” he said.

The fault has delayed completion of drilling operations by at least one week. “The company was scheduled to submit a drilling result report on March 7. Now, it will submit the report after March 15,” he said.

The two companies began drilling Kekra-1 well in the Indus-G block on January 11, 2019, which is located 280 km from the Karachi coast.

“Eni Pakistan has estimated nine trillion cubic feet of gas deposits in the offshore well,” an official of the Ministry of Petroleum told The Express Tribune recently, adding that ExxonMobil expected the discovery of oil deposits there.

They undertook the task to drill around 5,800-metre-deep well in the sea for 60 days. For the purpose, ExxonMobil brought one major drilling ship, three supply vessels and two helicopters at the site.

Eni Pakistan is the operator of the block, while Exploration and Production Pakistan BV (EPP) was drilling the well. State-owned Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC) and Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) are also part of the joint venture. Each of the four firms has 25% participating interest in the block.

The well was being drilled after a gap of almost nine years as the last exploratory well in an offshore block was drilled in January 2010.

“This is the 18th attempt to find hydrocarbons in deep waters in Pakistan,” the ministry official said. “Earlier, Pakistan drilled 17 times in deep sea. Wells were found either dry or not commercially viable to operate.”

Some of the surveyors have found the Indus-G block similar to the Indian offshore Mumbai High oilfield, which produces 350,000 barrels of crude oil per day (bpd) while some compare it with the wells producing hydrocarbons in the oil and gas-rich Kuwait.

ExxonMobil Corporation, through ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Pakistan BV (EPP), had acquired 25% participating interest in May 2018 in the offshore Indus-G block.

Pakistan meets around 15-20% of its energy needs through domestic oil and gas exploration and production while the rest is met through expensive imports.

Oil and gas imports cost Pakistan around one-fourth of the total import bill for a year. The country has emerged as one of the largest gas (liquefied natural gas) importers in the last couple of years globally.

 

[ghazi52]

PM directs local companies to expedite exploration work in Oil and Gas sectors

March 11, 2019

Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed the local companies to expedite their exploration work in the oil and gas sectors.

He was presiding over a meeting held to review issues pertaining to petroleum sector in Islamabad today.

The Prime Minister directed Petroleum Division to extend every possible assistance to foreign companies working in this sector.

He also directed to digitize all the system and removal of unnecessary hurdles to ensure completion of every project in the oil and gas sector in the allotted time.

Prime Minister said nature has given oil and gas reserves beside other minerals to Pakistan and we can take benefit of these by their exploration and usage.

Imran Khan said unfortunately, previous governments concentrated on import of precious fuel items instead of exploration in the oil and gas reserves. He said this phenomenon affected the industrial sector and also put an extra burden on the masses.

Prime Minister directed to provide complete security to foreign companies attached with exploration of Oil and Gas sector.

It was decided in the meeting to set up a task force for the security of foreign companies in this sector.

The Prime Minister was given a detailed briefing about the unnecessary hurdles in the exploration of oil and gas wells.

The meeting was attended by Finance Minister Asad Umar, Petroleum Minister Ghulam Sarwar, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Iftikhar Durrani, Secretary Petroleum and other senior officials of the Ministry.

 

[ghazi52]

Pakistan offer gas fields to foreign explorers, investors

‘More than 30 onshore gas blocks have been identified and the govt plans to auction a large chunk of them in one or two licensing rounds by the end of 2019’

Pakistan plans to offer dozens of gas field concessions in the coming year to fill in a fuel shortage, a senior official said, with Islamabad hoping a sharp drop in militant violence and changes to exploration policy will attract foreign investors.

Much of the mineral-rich South Asian nation remains unexplored despite gas discoveries dating back to the 1950s. Conventional gas reserves are estimated at 20 trillion cubic feet (tcf), or 560 billion cubic meters, and shale gas reserves, which are untouched, at more than 100 tcf.

Italy’s ENI and US oil major Exxon Mobil are jointly drilling for gas offshore in Pakistan’s Arabian Sea, but many other Western companies have not returned after leaving more than a decade ago because of Islamist militant violence.

Nadeem Babar, head of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Task Force on Energy Reforms, said that the government was amending its natural gas regulation and drawing up its first-ever shale gas policy, with licensing rounds to follow later this year.

The government hopes improving security in recent years and the country’s extensive pipeline network will attract investors.

More than 30 onshore gas blocks have been identified and the government plans to auction a large chunk of them in one or two licensing rounds by the end of 2019, Babar said in his office in the capital Islamabad.

“I expect in the second half of this year we will be auctioning at least 10, if not 20 blocks for exploration.”

Pakistan’s domestic gas output has plateaued in the last five years, falling to 1.46 trillion cubic feet in 2017/18, from 1.51 trillion cubic feet in 2012/2013, according to an annual report from the Petroleum Ministry.

This has led to severe gas shortages as Pakistan’s population, now at 208 million people, has risen sharply over the same period, driving fuel demand from industries and new power plants higher.

Gas demand was estimated at 6.9 billion cubic feet per day for 2017/18, according to Pakistan’s Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority, nearly 3 billion cubic feet more than daily output.

To help plug the deficit, Pakistan has built two liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminals, and demand is expected to hit 6.97 billion cubic feet a day for 2018/19, and 7.06 billion cubic feet a day in 2019/20.

But LNG is expensive, so Islamabad wants foreign companies to ramp up domestic exploration.

Babar said Pakistan was also drafting its first shale gas policy and it should be finished this year, with a licensing round in the first half of 2020.

One recent study by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) put Pakistan’s shale gas reserves at more than 100 tcf in the Lower Indus Region alone, enough to meet current demand for at least a few decades.

One of the keys to developing natural gas production is to give investors affordable and reliable access to a pipeline network, Babar said, and such a plan is being drafted.

“The entire mechanism of how the pipeline system is working today is being re-looked at, to make it more deregulated, make it more open access,” Babar said.

Babar said the blocks for auction were “prolific and … (had) good data”, with interested companies including Saudi Arabia’s Aramco, Exxon Mobil and Russia’s Gazprom.

Only about 4 percent of Pakistan’s landmass has been explored, and the success rate, with one out of three wells making a find, is above the international average, he said.

Babar said at least three more offshore blocks have also been carved out near where Eni and Exxon are searching for gas.

“We will be auctioning those … probably next year.”

To address security concerns, Babar said a military or a paramilitary unit will be created to guard companies that are exploring in the riskier parts of Pakistan, with the companies paying the costs.

“A mechanism like what was done in CPEC will be developed,” Babar said, referring to a 15,000-strong army division set up to safeguard Beijing-funded infrastructure projects in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Pakistan also plans to introduce measures that ensure auction rights are unaffected by government or policy changes, to give investors greater regulatory certainty

 

[ghazi52]

Govt plans to increase LNG import from Qatar

Pakistan has decided to increase import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar in an effort to ease a widening shortfall in natural gas supplies in the country.

The decision came despite investigation by the anti-corruption watchdog into a previous long-term deal with Qatar for LNG supply to Pakistan for 15 years – an agreement signed during the tenure of previous Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government.

At present, Pakistan is importing 500 million cubic feet of LNG per day (mmcfd) from Qatar and has planned to step up imports to 700 mmcfd in order to run the second LNG terminal at Port Qasim at maximum capacity.

 

[ghazi52]

10 LPG air-mix plants to be set up in Balochistan
March 19, 2019

SSGC is in the process of floating tenders to set up 10 liquefied petroleum gas air-mix plants.— AFP/File




ISLAMABAD: Sui Southern Gas Company Ltd (SSGC) is in the process of floating tenders to set up 10 liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) air-mix plants in selected areas of Balochistan to facilitate consumers where natural gas supply does not exist.

As per the instructions of SSGC Board, the process of setting up the first lot of 10 LPG air-mix plant is in progress, Currently, the tendering process through open competitive bidding for the plants is in progress, an official source privy to the petroleum sector developments told APP.

In first phase, he said, as many as 10 sites in different localities of the province including in Uthal, Kharan, Khuzdar, Washuk, Killi Khanozai, Loralai, Killa Saifullah, Zhob, Kech (Turbat) and Muslim Bagh had been identified at the state land and handed over to the company for the purpose.

While in second and third phase, the company would install 23 more plants in selected areas after seeing its financial position and analysing actual data and results of the ten LPG units, he added.

Answering a question, the official said, the SSGC had got five licences from Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority to construct the LPG plants in Uthal, Kharan, Khuzdar, Muslim Bagh and Turbat, while it was actively pursuing for issuance of construction licences for the remaining locations.

 

[ghazi52]

Survey to identify suitable site for new LNG terminal

Ministry of Maritime Affairs will soon launch a geological survey to identify a suitable site for setting up a new LNG terminal in order to meet the growing needs of the country.

Sources in the Ministry told The Nation on Monday that the ECC has assigned it the task so that efforts are accelerated towards awarding the terminal concession at the earliest. The proposed survey, according to the sources, will take into account whether the existing system of FSRU at Port Qasim should be followed or the new terminal should be a land based facility. At present, two terminals are functional at sub-optimal capacity at Port Qasim and both are FSRU facilities

 

[ghazi52]

Saudi Aramco team in Pakistan for talks on first LNG deals:

April 13, 2019

Company does not currently produce LNG and any such sale would be first of its kind.

ISLAMABAD: A delegation from the world’s largest crude oil producer, Saudi Aramco, is in Pakistan for discussions on what would be its first ever liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments, said a top Pakistani official.

Pakistan is facing an energy crisis with repeated power blackouts and gas supply outages that led to the sacking of the heads of two of its main gas distribution utilities in January.

The Saudi delegation, which arrived on Thursday, was discussing LNG supplies, Nadeem Babar, the head of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s task force on energy reforms, told Reuters.

“They’re discussing LNG sales. They’re entering this business,” he said. “Aramco is starting an LNG trade operation, and we are in discussion over all aspects, including terms and quantity, etc.”

Aramco doesn’t currently produce LNG, and any such sale would be first of its kind. Aramco didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Saudi Aramco Chief Executive Amin Nasser said in February that Saudi Arabia aimed to export three billion cubic feet per day of gas before 2030 via both pipelines and LNG tankers.

Pakistan’s demand for LNG could more than triple in the next three to five years, the chief executive of Pakistan LNG said last month, adding that Islamabad was expected to negotiate a few more long-term contracts to import LNG into the country.

Last year, Pakistan imported nearly seven tonnes of LNG, data from Refinitiv Eikon showed.

This year, it could grow to as high as 15 million tonnes and to up to 25 million to 30 million tonnes over the next three to five years, said Pakistan LNG Managing Director and Chief Executive Adnan Gilani.

Pakistan LNG is a state-owned company that buys LNG from the international market to supply to the domestic market.

Pakistan’s two import terminals have a regas capacity of 1.2 billion to 1.3 billion cubic feet of gas per day, or about 9 million to 10 million tonnes of LNG a year, according to Gilani’s presentation at the LNGA 2019 conference in Singapore.

 

[ghazi52]

April 26, 2019
Kekra drilling process hits another snag



ISLAMABAD: The spudding, that was to kick start on April 20, 2019 at Kekra-1 well in G-bloc, Pakistan’s ultra-deep sea after pause of 12 days, could not take off as it has hit another serious snag.

The blow out preventer (BOP) that prevents from any blow out or any kick pressure that can result into eruption of fire, has gone out of order and its repair is underway.

Sher Afgan, Additional Secretary and spokesman for Petroleum Division, confirmed the development saying the blowout preventer that is attached with valves at the end of rig has developed serious problems owing to which the drilling could not start on time.

Up till now, the official said, drilling is virtually stopped for the last 18 days and the status will last till the repair process of BOP is completed. However, Ghulam Mustafa, expert of oil and gas exploration and production, did not accept that the blow out preventer takes four to five days for repair, arguing that the BOP cannot be repaired, rather it can be upgraded by changing its affected spare parts and this process does not take more than one hour. He said the drilling machine may have developed other problem that is not being shared.

Earlier, the drilling got stalled on April 8 at the depth of 4,810 meters because of cementing and casing process which took almost 12 days to get completed. Now the issue of blowout preventer has emerged which according to the official of Petroleum Division is being coped with. And once the BOP’s repair is completed, the Mobile Exxon with ENI as operator at Kekra-1 well will start the drilling of the remaining 650-800 meters under second side tracking.

GA Sabri, former secretary of Petroleum Ministry, opined that BOP is one of the important tools that prevents the rig and whole apparatus from any blow out that is caused because of pressure kick that also may lead to eruption of fire. He said that BOP ensures the safety of the machine (rig and whole apparatus). When asked what will happen to the drilling as in May, the sea will turn rough because of high tide, Sabri said according to new weather forecast, monsoon has delayed so the chances of sea to turn rough have got minimised in May which is a good news.

Once the BOP issue is sorted, Kekra-01 well will enter a phase where the operator will, for the first time, begin to receive information that would help determine the well prospects. This would include results from LWD (logging while drilling), salinity testing, potential hydrocarbon traces in mud and rock samples and hydrocarbon kicks.

Time required to drill the remaining depth will depend upon the rate of penetration (RoP). The penetration rate is significantly slower for northern region of Pakistan than the southern region.

“We don’t yet have precedents to form a reliable estimate for the RoP for offshore Indus-G, where Kekra-01 is being drilled. An RoP of 10 meters per hour (generally considered low) would mean that it would take 80 hours or a little more than three days to reach the target depth.’’

After completion of drilling, the operator will likely do wire line logging which could take another three or four days. This will likely be followed by another casing and cementing exercise that can take four to six days. At this stage a substantial amount of information regarding the well prospects will be known, however, the results (discovery or dry well) will require completion of proper testing.

 

[Clutch]

April 26, 2019
Kekra drilling process hits another snag



ISLAMABAD: The spudding, that was to kick start on April 20, 2019 at Kekra-1 well in G-bloc, Pakistan’s ultra-deep sea after pause of 12 days, could not take off as it has hit another serious snag.

The blow out preventer (BOP) that prevents from any blow out or any kick pressure that can result into eruption of fire, has gone out of order and its repair is underway.

Sher Afgan, Additional Secretary and spokesman for Petroleum Division, confirmed the development saying the blowout preventer that is attached with valves at the end of rig has developed serious problems owing to which the drilling could not start on time.

Up till now, the official said, drilling is virtually stopped for the last 18 days and the status will last till the repair process of BOP is completed. However, Ghulam Mustafa, expert of oil and gas exploration and production, did not accept that the blow out preventer takes four to five days for repair, arguing that the BOP cannot be repaired, rather it can be upgraded by changing its affected spare parts and this process does not take more than one hour. He said the drilling machine may have developed other problem that is not being shared.

Earlier, the drilling got stalled on April 8 at the depth of 4,810 meters because of cementing and casing process which took almost 12 days to get completed. Now the issue of blowout preventer has emerged which according to the official of Petroleum Division is being coped with. And once the BOP’s repair is completed, the Mobile Exxon with ENI as operator at Kekra-1 well will start the drilling of the remaining 650-800 meters under second side tracking.

GA Sabri, former secretary of Petroleum Ministry, opined that BOP is one of the important tools that prevents the rig and whole apparatus from any blow out that is caused because of pressure kick that also may lead to eruption of fire. He said that BOP ensures the safety of the machine (rig and whole apparatus). When asked what will happen to the drilling as in May, the sea will turn rough because of high tide, Sabri said according to new weather forecast, monsoon has delayed so the chances of sea to turn rough have got minimised in May which is a good news.

Once the BOP issue is sorted, Kekra-01 well will enter a phase where the operator will, for the first time, begin to receive information that would help determine the well prospects. This would include results from LWD (logging while drilling), salinity testing, potential hydrocarbon traces in mud and rock samples and hydrocarbon kicks.

Time required to drill the remaining depth will depend upon the rate of penetration (RoP). The penetration rate is significantly slower for northern region of Pakistan than the southern region.

“We don’t yet have precedents to form a reliable estimate for the RoP for offshore Indus-G, where Kekra-01 is being drilled. An RoP of 10 meters per hour (generally considered low) would mean that it would take 80 hours or a little more than three days to reach the target depth.’’

After completion of drilling, the operator will likely do wire line logging which could take another three or four days. This will likely be followed by another casing and cementing exercise that can take four to six days. At this stage a substantial amount of information regarding the well prospects will be known, however, the results (discovery or dry well) will require completion of proper testing.

The drillship left end of March ... I am not sure what to make of all these news reports.

I think the article has the timeline wrong ..
The well probably did impact the BOP (blowout preventive) when the well experienced a kick ... They had to fix it in order to continue the drill.

 

[Mega_Man]

The drillship left end of March ... I am not sure what to make of all these news reports.

I think the article has the timeline wrong ..
The well probably did impact the BOP (blowout preventive) when the well experienced a kick ... They had to fix it in order to continue the drill.

Is there any source for news regarding drilling ship have left the site ? Or just another rumour?

 

[Clutch]

Is there any source for news regarding drilling ship have left the site ? Or just another rumour?

It's from this live marine map of the drill site. There are only development ships there now such as Pacific Huron and Pacific Gull. However the drillship called Saipem 12000 left end of March.

Click here to see for yourself:
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:66.116/centery:22.507/zoom:13

If you click on the ships on the map, it will give you the ship details.

 

[Mega_Man]

It's from this live marine map of the drill site. There are only development ships there now such as Pacific Huron and Pacific Gull. However the drillship called Saipem 12000 left end of March.

Click here to see for yourself:
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:66.116/centery:22.507/zoom:13

If you click on the ships on the map, it will give you the ship details.

And
It's a transport vessel which left for equipments, drilling rig is still there.

 

[Clutch]

And
It's a transport vessel which left for equipments, drilling rig is still there.

I don't see the drillship... How are seeing it?

 

[ghazi52]

Qatar emerges as front-runner for LNG deal for Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Qatar has emerged as the front-runner for a long-term gas supply deal to Pakistan, a senior Pakistani official said, with the cabinet of Prime Minister Imran Khan set to decide in the coming weeks on an agreement, Reuters reported on Friday.

Pakistan, with 208 million people, is running out of domestic gas and has turned to liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports to alleviate chronic energy shortages that have hindered its economy and led to a decade of electricity blackouts.

Qatar is already Pakistan’s biggest gas supplier after signing a 15-year agreement to export up to 3.75 million tonnes of LNG a year to the South Asian country. That 2016 deal supplied Pakistan’s first LNG terminal.

Emerging as one of the world’s fastest growing LNG markets, Pakistan is looking to secure a long-term supply contracts for its second LNG terminal, which can receive 600 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) of natural gas.

Pakistan has already signed a five-year import deal with commodity trader Gunvor and a 15-year agreement with Italy’s Eni, but is seeking long-term agreements for about 400 mmcfd.

Pakistan has been negotiating with eight countries with whom it has signed inter-governmental agreements in recent years, including Qatar, Russia, Turkey, Italy, Oman, Azerbaijan, Malaysia, and Indonesia. A Saudi Arabian delegation representing state-owned Saudi Aramco has also shown interest in a gas deal.

The senior Pakistani official told Reuters that state-run Qatargas put forward the lowest bid for a long-term LNG supply contract that would have a price review after five or 10 years.

“Qatar has offered the lowest price,” said the official, declining to say the amount of LNG or the price offered by Qatar.

Pakistan’s cabinet is in the next week or two expected to decide if it will proceed with a government-to-government deal, when it will also decide on the size, he said.

Cash-strapped Pakistan is most likely to go with the cheapest supplier, in this case Qatar, officials have said. However, the government may choose more expensive rates to bolster its relations with a chosen country.

Khan’s cabinet could also choose to put out an open tender for long-term agreements, said the senior official. However, some energy officials believe direct government-to-government deals could offer better rates than tendering.

The Pakistani official added that Saudi Aramco may sign a long-term supply deal with Pakistan, potentially also providing some of the 400 mmcfd available at the second terminal.

 

[Clutch]

It's from this live marine map of the drill site. There are only development ships there now such as Pacific Huron and Pacific Gull. However the drillship called Saipem 12000 left end of March.

Click here to see for yourself:
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:66.116/centery:22.507/zoom:13

If you click on the ships on the map, it will give you the ship details.

Correction:

I have stated on this forum on multiple times that the Saipem 1200 drillship has left the drill site end of March early April.

I may have been wrong. I wish to retract that statement.

Apparently the ship is back at the site as per the latest GPS update by Marine Traffic Website.
Here is the drillship latest GPS location: https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ai...22.50478/zoom:10/mmsi:311030700/shipid:373247

Ship info: https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ai...msi:311030700/imo:9437359/vessel:SAIPEM_12000

I am not sure if the ship returned back to the location or it never left.

I apologize for the mistake or any misdirection.

Regards,
Clutch