Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict
In the wake of the death of the Russian head of the Wagner mercenary group in a plane crash, the focus is now on who will take over the leadership of Wagner, and there are still Wagner forces that could cause problems for Putin.
An interesting development between Libya and Israel unfolded over the past weekend, with Libya’s foreign minister meeting with the Israeli foreign minister in Rome. News of the meeting - unilaterally released by Israel - sparked violent protests in Libya, and Dbeibah, head of the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli, immediately scapegoated the FM, suspending her pending an “investigation”. Clearly, this is all part of Washington’s plan to have Arab countries normalize relations with Israel. Dbeibah took a swing at this and the response frightened him, requiring a scapegoat. The FM is believed to have fled to Turkey for her safety for the time being.
Iraqi Kurdistan’s oil has hit another snag beyond its inability to secure an agreement with Turkey to turn the export pipeline back on, with Ankara stalling as it attempts to broker a revenue-sharing deal. Now, international oil companies are threatening arbitration in London over payment for oil. Even if the Iraq-Turkey pipeline is reopened, the IOCs would refrain from producing any more oil until there is a firm agreement on payment. The current amount being bandied about following talks in Baghdad is for $6 per barrel, which the IOCs will…
Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict
In the wake of the death of the Russian head of the Wagner mercenary group in a plane crash, the focus is now on who will take over the leadership of Wagner, and there are still Wagner forces that could cause problems for Putin.
An interesting development between Libya and Israel unfolded over the past weekend, with Libya’s foreign minister meeting with the Israeli foreign minister in Rome. News of the meeting - unilaterally released by Israel - sparked violent protests in Libya, and Dbeibah, head of the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli, immediately scapegoated the FM, suspending her pending an “investigation”. Clearly, this is all part of Washington’s plan to have Arab countries normalize relations with Israel. Dbeibah took a swing at this and the response frightened him, requiring a scapegoat. The FM is believed to have fled to Turkey for her safety for the time being.
Iraqi Kurdistan’s oil has hit another snag beyond its inability to secure an agreement with Turkey to turn the export pipeline back on, with Ankara stalling as it attempts to broker a revenue-sharing deal. Now, international oil companies are threatening arbitration in London over payment for oil. Even if the Iraq-Turkey pipeline is reopened, the IOCs would refrain from producing any more oil until there is a firm agreement on payment. The current amount being bandied about following talks in Baghdad is for $6 per barrel, which the IOCs will not accept.
Discovery & Development
Mexico has given the green light for the joint Trion ultra-deepwater project between Woodside and Pemex, located in the GoM. The project will add to Woodside’s GoM presence after it recently purchased BHP’s assets in the area.
Eni and partner Petroci began first production from the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire Baleine oilfield in Blocks CI-101 and CI-802–the largest O&G discovery in the country’s sedimentary basin. Baleine is estimated at 2.5 billion barrels of crude and 3.3 trillion cubic feet of associated gas in place. The first stage of development is for a FPSO capable of processing 15,000 bpd and 25 Mcf/d of gas. The second phase will begin by the end of next year, and increase the field’s production to 50,000 bpd of crude and 70 Mcf/d of gas. Cote d’Ivoire’s current oil production is roughly 30,000 bpd.
Petrobras has approved contracting of four deepwater rigs to replenish part of its fleet, after receiving 46 commercial bids from 9 different drilling contractors. The deals are worth a combined $1.7 billion for three years. The rigs are Petroserv’s Pacific Zonda, Transocean’s Aquila, Foresea’s Norbe VIII, and Constellation Oil Services’ Alpha Star. The contracts are the latest in a string of 10 rig contracts for Petrobras that total $4.4 billion.
Alaska will host a lease sale for 1004 tracts totaling 5.7 million acres for oil and gas development starting on November 20, with results released on December 13. The area includes 3.9 onshore acres and 1.8 million offshore acres on the north and west sides of Alaska. Alaska’s previous lease sale was a disappointment, with only six bids received after offering 2.8 million acres.
Shell’s Cullinan-1X exploration well offshore Namibia failed to make a commercial oil and gas discovery, although they did find indications of a working petroleum system in a previously untested area of its license. The well has been plugged and abandoned. Shell will analyze the data before deciding how to proceed.
Deals, Mergers & Acquisitions
Petrobras signed MOUs with CNOOC, Sinopec, and China Energy International Group, increasing its cooperation with China as it continues to develop its energy sector in the wake of the energy transition. The MOU with Sinopec was for research into oil exploration and production in and out of Brazil. CNOOC’s deal is for refining, chemical engineering, oilfield services, and low-carbon energy projects.
The deal with China Energy International was to find renewable energy and hydrogen production opportunities. Also this week, two other Asian companies, Singapore’s Seatrium and China’s Offshore Oil Engineering Company (COOEC) submitted proposals in a Petrobras tender for contracting a pair of large FPSO vessels (Atapu-2 and Sepia-2) that will be deployed at presalt projects offshore Brazil–P-84 and P-85. They were the only companies that submitted proposals in the tender.
On another Petrobras dealmaking front, BW Energy completed this week the acquisition of the Golfinho and Camarupim Clusters from Petrobras, in which BW Energy would gain 10,000 bpd of production along with several low-risk in-field development opportunities with short lead times. BW Energy paid more than $15 million in cash, and up to $60 million in future contingent payments.
Canada’s Lycos Energy Inc is set to acquire oil producer Wyatt Resources for $6.5 million, giving Lycos assets in Frog Lake and Lloydminster, Alberta. Lycos will consolidate its common shares.
