The word “recovery” dominates most discussions about the offshore oil and gas industry these days – and has done so for over two years. But what does recovery actually mean? By David Carter Shinn There seems to be little doubt that a recovery in the rig market will happen one day, and from the [&h
Drilling contractor Songa Offshore posted a smaller profit for the first quarter of the year despite increase in revenues. The driller expects the North Sea rig utilization to reach historic low during this year. The company’s net profit was halved during the first quarter of 2017 totaling $5 millio
Oil company Repsol Norge has found weak traces of gas during drilling of a wildcat well in production license 705 in the Norwegian Sea, classifying the well as dry. Repsol Norge is the operator of the license with an ownership interest of 40 percent. Other licensees are DEA Norge with 30 percent and
Awilco Drilling, a UK-based offshore driller focused on the North Sea, has forecast an increased interest for offshore drilling rigs in the UK, starting in the second quarter of 2018. The company owns two semi-submersibles drilling rigs built in the 1980s, but upgraded a few years back, – the WilPho
Norway’s offshore safety watchdog, the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA), has completed its investigation of last year’s fire on the Scarabeo 5 rig and identified several safety breaches. To remind, the fire broke out in one of the engine rooms on the Saipem-owned Scarabeo 5 drilling rig on November
Faroe Petroleum, an independent oil and gas company, has set a date for the drilling of an appraisal well on the Brasse discovery in the North Sea. Faroe said on Wednesday that, after receiving all required consents, the 31/7-2S Brasse appraisal well would be spud on or around May 18, 2017, at the e
Norwegian oil major Statoil has received consent from the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) to use the Songa Encourage rig for drilling and completing a production well on the Troll field in the North Sea. The Troll field is around 65 kilometers west of Kollsnes in Hordaland county. It has been devel
Offshore ultra-deepwater driller Pacific Drilling sank deeper into the red during the first quarter of 2017 while its revenues almost halved during the period when compared to the year-before quarter. The driller on Friday posted a net loss for the first quarter 2017 of $99.8 million, compared to ne
Oil company Lundin has received consent from the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) to drill an exploration well in the Barents Sea with the Ocean Rig-owned Leiv Eiriksson drilling rig. The well is located in block 7220 in the Lundin-operated production license 609 in the Barents Sea off Norway. The o
Offshore driller Noble Corp. has reiterated its belief in long term-oil market fundamentals despite posting a loss of $302 million in the first quarter of the year on revenues of $363 million. The company said the loss would have been $42 million had it not been for a negative impact of non-cas disc
Norwegian offshore safety body, the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA), has given Maersk Drilling an Acknowledgement of Compliance (AoC) for the Maersk Invincible XLE jack-up rig. This means the rig is in compliance with regulatory requirements and is allowed to carry out petroleum activities in Norwa
With rig owners and investors looking to scoop up assets at more realistic – but still low – values, transaction activity is picking up. And it’s set to continue. By David Carter Shinn We’ve been saying it for a few months: the offshore market looks better than it did six months ago. But there’s sti
Azinor Catalyst Limited, a UKCS-focused E&P company, has awarded a rig contract to one of Diamond Offshore’s semi-submersible rigs for a drilling campaign in the third quarter 2017. Azinor said on Friday that the contract was for the drilling of two operated wells using Diamond Offshore’s Ocean Guar
With stable oil prices, rig oversupply, and lower-than-ever dayrates, the offshore drilling market couldn’t be more attractive to oil companies. But by not keeping offshore rigs on contract, oil companies are contributing to an industry-wide breakdown which may end up coming back to haunt them. By D
