:: News from Offshore ::

:: TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION

:: Unmanned seabed drilling rig under study
The design of an unmanned and fully automated seabed drilling rig for ultra deepwater and arctic conditions is well under way, according to Seabed Rig AS, in a paper prepared for DOT International Asia-Pacific in Perth, Australia.

:: System pushes the envelope of drilling limits
The challenge of setting of larger diameter and heavier casing strings with total setting hook loads approaching 2 million lb has been met by implementing a systems approach.

:: Drill pipe riser design draws on lessons from Brazil
A second-generation drill pipe riser design has come out of the deployment of a DPR intervention system in deepwater Brazil.

:: EQUIPMENT & ENGINEERING

:: Expandable reamer cuts wellbore vibration
A drastic reduction in wellbore vibration is possible with a sturdy new expandable reamer called GaugePro XPR, which can be used in the BHA to ream the borehole while drilling.

:: AMEC to explore Clair field development
BP has contracted AMEC to begin conceptual engineering studies to test the potential for further development of the Clair oil and gas field in the North Sea.

:: Newpark awarded Petrobras drilling fluids contract
Petrobras has awarded Newpark Resources the Lot B contract to provide drilling fluids and services for a deepwater project off the coast of Brazil.

:: GLOBAL UPDATE

:: Cairngorm area drilling begins
Drilling operations have begun on the Cairngorm discovery area in the UKCS, according to Stratic Energy.

:: Dahab North prospect drilling begins
The Transocean jackup GSF Rig 102 has begun drilling the Dahab North prospect in the East Wadi Araba (EWA) concession offshore Egypt, according to Sea Dragon.

:: StatoilHydro granted North Sea drilling permits
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has granted StatoilHydro ASA a drilling permit for wellbore 35/6-1S.

:: DISCOVERIES

:: El Paso makes discovery offshore Brazil
The Tot exploration well, 1-ESS-185D, located in the ES-5 block offshore Brazil, is a discovery, according to El Paso Corp.

:: Ebony 1 hits pay offshore Ghana
The Ebony-1 exploration well, located offshore Ghana, has intersected two hydrocarbon-bearing intervals in late Cretaceous turbidite sands, according to Tullow Oil.

:: Libra-1 well strikes gas offshore Australia
The Libra-1 exploration well in permit AC/P41 in the Browse basin, offshore Western Australia, has encountered gas in a series of thick sand packages over a vertical section in excess of 180 m (591 ft) gross, according to Nexus Energy.

:: TRENDS & STATISTICS

:: Shell sets subsea well drilling and completion record
Shell Oil Co. has set a world water depth record in drilling and completing a subsea well 9,356 ft (2,852 m) below the water's surface in the Silvertip field at the Perdido development project in the Gulf of Mexico.

:: Deepwater spend to exceed $27 billion per year
A new study by energy business analysts Douglas-Westwood, "The World Deepwater Market Report 2009-2013" forecasts that, despite current oil price concerns, the deepwater oil and gas sector on average will spend over $27 billion annually during the period 2009 to 2013.

:: Callon halts Entrada field development in GoM
Callon Petroleum Co. will suspend operations underway to develop the Entrada field located on the Garden Banks 782 block in deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

:: OFFSHORE MAPS & SURVEYS

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:: OFFSHORE SPONSORED EVENTS

Offshore Middle East Conference & Exhibition
October 12 – 14, 2010
Doha, Qatar

http://www.offshoremiddleeast.com/index.html

Click here for a full calendar of industry events.