Energy

In support of President Donald J. Trump’s America-First Offshore Energy Strategy, Department of Interior’s Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management Joe Balash and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Acting Director Walter Cruickshank have announced that the Department will offer 77.3 million acres offshore Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida for oil and gas exploration and development.

As part of the ongoing review of the Gardline Group’s strategic direction, the Metocean Department within Gardline will be closed. No new assignments will be accepted and all long-term clients have been informed of the closure. Gardline thank their clients, partners and collaborators with whom they have worked over the years.

Researchers from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) have developed procedures and designs to obtain energy from marine currents in areas of great depths optimizing the costs.

A consortium comprising Petrobras (30%), ExxonMobil (40%) and Statoil (30%), presented the winning bid for the C-M-657 block in Campos Basin with a signature bonus of 638,550,000 USD*. The same consortium made up of Petrobras (40%), ExxonMobil (40%) and Statoil (20%), presented the winning bid for the C-M-709 block in the Campos Basin with a signature bonus of 450,000,000 USD. Both blocks will be operated by Petrobras.

Against the backdrop of encouraging global economic growth and an improved outlook for the shipping industry, the International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) provided its expert opinion on the current state of offshore energy insurance market at its Spring Conference in Hamburg 18-19 March 2018. The content below has been edited for length.

Vineyard Wind will begin the third in an ongoing series of undersea marine surveys in early April to gather geological and ecological information that will inform ongoing permitting reviews. Information collected includes water depths, geology of sea floor, benthic habitat types as well as the presence of shellfish, eel grass, and other species.

Imenco Corrosion Technology AS (sister company of Imenco AS) have been awarded a contract to deliver equipment for corrosion protection (cathodic protection) of the world’s largest offshore wind farm – Hornsea Project One off the Yorkshire coast in UK.

The employment of the GRT has turned out to be an important milestone for the logistics function of Siemens Gamesa. Having been striving to create efficient solutions for long-term storage, Siemens Gamesa has included a GRT in their portfolio with the potential to ensure cost reduction and help ensure max lifespan of their turbines.

The EU-funded FORESEA programme has awarded a “Recommendation for Support” to three offshore renewable energy projects under call 4, following an interim review.

Statoil and Total have completed their previously announced transaction whereby Statoil has acquired Total’s equity stakes in, and taken over the operatorships of, the Martin Linge field and the Garantiana discovery on the Norwegian continental shelf.

The board of directors of Statoil proposes to change the name of the company to Equinor. The name change supports the company’s strategy and development as a broad energy company.

Statoil and its partners have decided to invest just over NOK 5 billion in the further development of the Snøhvit field in the Barents Sea, which will provide feedstock for the LNG plant at Melkøya in Hammerfest.