2001.09.25
Associated Press:
Tough Meeting Expected for OPEC.
OPEC Faces Tough Meeting to Decide Oil Output Amid Tumbling Prices and U.S. Attacks.
"OPEC's benchmark price for crude has dropped by 25 percent in 11 days to $20.51
a barrel -- far below the group's established target price of $25 a barrel."
Wall Street Journal (subscription):
Tensions
Put Oil Concerns Drilling In Mideast in Vulnerable Position.
"Oil companies large and small are finding themselves unusually exposed in the
globe's hot spots as the U.S. declares war on terrorism."
Oil & Gas Journal:
Observers
say technology gains can't nullify industry's personnel gap.
"... advancing technology has emerged as a `bandaid' to improve the efficiency
and productivity of workers at oil and gas companies. Many industry sources,
however, doubt how long these newly gained efficiencies will last without
industry addressing the underlying problem: its shortage of skilled technical
workers owing to a "generation gap" spawned by the boom-and-bust cycles of
recent decades."
Oil Online:
MMS
issues multisale nominations call for U.S. Gulf sales.
"The Minerals Management Service published a Call for Information and
Nominations for 10 tentatively scheduled Outer Continental Shelf lease sales in
the Western and Central Gulf of Mexico in the proposed 2002-2007leasing program."
Oil Online:
Amerada
Hess secures approval to drill off Faeroes.
2001.09.21
Deutsche Presse-Agentur:
Baghdad
accuses Kuwait of "stealing" Iraqi oil from border fields.
"Kuwait's alleged stealing of Iraqi oil was one of the reasons cited by Iraq for
invading Kuwait in August 1990."
Oil & Gas Journal:
Raymond
James analysts foresee `almost certain' oil supply disruptions.
Scientific American:
The End of Oil.
Will gas lines in the coming decade make those of 1973 look short?
"Deffeyes used a slightly more sophisticated version of the Hubbert method to
make the global calculations. The numbers pointed to 2003 as the year of peak
production, but because estimates of global reserves are inexact, Deffeyes
settled on a range from 2004 to 2008."
> The reason I became a geophysicist was because as a teenager, I was familiar
with studies from the mid-70's that predicted an oil shortages starting around
the turn of the century. $100 to $150 per barrel oil seemed likely, and I thought
that would make a geophysicist worth his/her weight in gold. I'm still waiting.
> Whether you believe in it or not, if you want to know more about "the coming
global oil crisis," check out The Hubbert Peak of Oil Production.
Apparently the Chronicle got the facts wrong in their report on Chevron
layoffs earlier this month. A friend at Chevron sent me the real story.
2001.09.20
Scientific American:
Antarctic Ozone Hole Gapes Again.
"As winter melts into spring across Earth's southern hemisphere, the Sun's
return triggers the onset of another event: the opening of the ozone hole."
Not exactly on-topic for me, but I feel like I should give the Bush administration
credit ->
AP:
Bush
Wants Change in Farm Spending.
"In a break from traditional Republican farm
policy, the Bush administration on Wednesday criticized subsidies
for big grain and cotton farms and proposed putting money into
conservation programs that benefit more growers."
Oil & Gas Journal:
Shell
to develop Manatee by tieback to Bullwinkle.
Oil Online:
Shell
to tie-back Manatee discovery.
"Shell Exploration & Production Co. (SEPCo) plans to develop Manatee, a subsea
production system located in the Gulf of Mexico in 1,940 feet of water. Manatee
will be a two- well development located approximately 160 miles southwest of
New Orleans in Green Canyon Block 155."
2001.09.18
Oil Online:
Statoil
hits duster off Faeroes.
Oil & Gas Journal:
Amerada
Hess prepares to spud Faroe Islands wildcat.
"The well is expected to take 2-3 months and will be the last
well drilled on the Faroe Shelf this year."
Associated Press:
Exxon
says it halted seismic tests alleged to push whales off feeding.
"[Glenn Waller, director of external affairs for Exxon Mobil in Moscow]
said Exxon went beyond regular international standards of leaving a one
kilometer (0.62 mile) buffer zone around whales -- extending that to four kilometers
(2.49 miles) for the gray whales. `Whenever we saw a gray whale within that four
kilometer radius we shut down,' he said."
2001.09.10
Long day at SEG; gave my "booth presentation" twice. My talks went pretty well,
but the grid tomography section needs a better demo (understatement).
The great thing about SEG always is seeing so many friends, old and new, in
one place.
I saw Phil Schultz of Unocal give a "Recent Advances and the Road Ahead" talk.
He was really jostling conventional wisdom. For instance, he showed some
Kirchhoff / wave equation prestack depth migration comparisons with better
subsalt imaging on the Kirchhoff results. Also, he said he didn't think
anisotropic migration would ever get out of research departments because there
are too many model parameters to derive!
2001.09.07
Oil & Gas Journal:
FTC
finally clears way for $35 billion Chevron-Texaco merger.
"... ChevronTexaco will have a combined enterprise market value of more than
$100 billion, assets of $83 billion, net proved reserves of 11.5 billion boe,
daily production of 2.7 million BOE, and operations throughout the world." ...
"... some 4,000 jobs worldwide representing a 7% reduction of the present
workforce of some 57,000 will be made redundant through the merger."
Wall Street Journal (subscription):
There Are
Lots of Jobs Available If You Want to Be a Roughneck.
"Drilling companies and contractors are in such desperate need of hands that
they are paying $75,000 a year or more to roughnecks working seven days on and
seven days off."
2001.09.06
Oil & Gas Journal:
Oil
firms explain diverse technology strategies at Aberdeen conference.
"Areas of evolutionary advance in which Amerada Hess is especially interested
include application of seismic methods to depths of 30,000 ft, improved seismic
imaging, deepwater and subsea applications, and reservoir modeling." ...
"Kenny Lang, vice-president for upstream technology ... described a formal
method BP applies for deciding whether to build or buy technology, with
decisions to build related mainly to proprietary areas such as seismic processing
and reservoir characterization."
Oil & Gas Journal:
Mexico
to offer more oil service contracts to speed E&P.
2001.09.04
Oil & Gas Journal:
Devon
Energy to buy Anderson Exploration for $4.6 billion.
"Devon Energy Corp. of Oklahoma City is acquiring Calgary-based Anderson
Exploration Ltd. in a $4.6 billion deal that will give it the most North
American oil and gas reserves of any independent, officials said Tuesday. This
latest acquisition comes on the heels of Devon's Aug. 14 agreement to buy
Mitchell Energy & Development Corp., Houston, for $3.5 billion in cash and
stock."
Houston Chronicle:
Chevron-Texaco
merger go-ahead looms, along with job cuts.
"The companies say they plan to trim 7 percent from the combined work force of
57,000, or about 4,000 workers. Applying that percentage to Houston would mean
about 280 people here could lose their jobs after the deal closes.
"The headquarters of the combined company, to be named ChevronTexaco, will be in
San Francisco, but it will have a substantial presence in Houston."
I'm ignoring stories about the
Global Marine, Santa Fe merger because they're drilling companies. I really
shouldn't. I bet they employ lots of geophysicists.
And how about that Compaq
buyout?
Houston Chronicle:
The end of an era up
there. Satellite that confirmed ozone harm to be shut down.
"The decommissioning will save NASA $10 million in annual operating costs, a
final dividend from the little-known spacecraft that silenced much of the
debate over whether human activities can harm the environment and fueled efforts
to reverse the damage."
