Circle Oil Acquires Interest in Oulad N'Zala Permit

Circle Oil Plc has completed the acquisition of a 60% interest in the Oulad N'Zala Permit in the Rharb Basin, Morocco. Office Nationale des Hydrocarbures et des Mines ("ONHYM") holds 40% of the permit. This permit contains the ONZ4 gas discovery well, which has now been tied into the local gas infrastructure. Following a meeting of the partners it has been agreed that Circle is scheduled to commence production from the ONZ4 well on September 15, 2008...more...

Bowleven has completed a successful initial drill stem test (DST) on the IF-1r discovery. The initial test perforated 56 feet of formation within the previously identified 200 feet oil column. The well flowed an average rate of 3,371 barrels per day of 36 degrees API oil and 2.65 million standard cubic feet of associated gas per day on a 32/64 inch choke at a well head pressure of 2,291 psia. The Company is now preparing to carry out a further DST which has the potential to extend the oil column to approximately 400 feet...more...

Candax Energy Spuds Ezzaouia 18 in Tunisia

Candax Energy Inc. announces that Ezzaouia 18 well (31.4% WI), onshore Tunisia was spudded yesterday. The well is targeting an area in the western side of the Ezzaouia field which based on the reservoir mapping and modelling, has un-developed up-dip reserves in the main productive Jurassic reservoir. The well will be drilled to a total vertical depth of 2,350 metres; drilling and completion are expected to take approximately 45 days...more...

PetroSA to Sign Energy Deal With Venezuela

PetroSA, the state owned oil company of South Africa is paving the way to enter and acquire assets in Venezuela. President Hugo Chavez is expected to sign this energy deal next week. PetroSA has held high-level discussions with its Venezuelan counterpart, PDVSA, on projects including oil exploration and the production of heavy crude oil in the Orinoco belt of Venezuela. Everton September, vice president of PetroSA's new ventures unit, said that Chavez's signature was needed to formalise a memorandum of understanding. "The MOU will come into effect immediately upon signature. PetroSA would like to acquire an oil producing asset in Venezuela (and) receive a direct crude allocation from PDVSA in the short term, between 6 months and one year," September said via email...more...

Angolan Oil Exports Expected To Rise 14% in October

Angola is expected to export 1,996 million barrels of oil per day in October, a new record that is 14 percent more than the amount exported in the same month of 2007. The increase will mainly be accounted for by rises in production at the Mondo (a 93.6 percent rise to 122,600 barrels per day) and Cabinda (a rise of 29 percent to 245,160 barrels) fields. Of the new fields coming into production, Saxi Batuque (Exxon Mobil) is a highlight, which in October is expected to account for an increase of 92,000 barrels exported, with the expectation that it will reach 200,000 barrels by the end of the year, similarly to the Mondo field. Amongst the main exporters are multinational companies BP, Total, Chevron and Exxon Mobil...more...

Blackford Dolphin Assigned to Drill Offshore Ghana

The drilling semisubmersible unit Blackford Dolphin has completed the commissioning and test phase in Rotterdam and has commenced mobilization under the drilling contract with Tullow offshore Ghana. Keppel Verolme B.V. and Blackford Dolphin Pte. Ltd, a subsidiary of Fred Olsen Energy ASA, have entered into an addendum to the upgrading contract with the aim to resolve outstanding disagreements on final payments...more...

Tracerco Wins Contract For Pazflor Project Offshore Angola

Tracerco, a subsea separator measurement and control specialist and part of the Johnson Matthey Group, was awarded a contract for the supply of its Profiler instruments to FMC Technologies.  The Profilers will be part of FMC's delivery to the Pazflor project, offshore Angola. The order follows the successful installation and commissioning of Tracerco Profiler units for StatoilHydro's Tordis Improved Oil Recovery system, the world's first full field subsea separation boosting and injection system in the North Sea...more...

CNOOC Ltd. plans to relinquish its interest in the oil prospecting license (OPL) 299 in Nigeria. The company bought a 35% working interest in the 1,357-square kilometer block for USD 60 million in 2006, and was recently reported to retreat from the block due to dim outlook. According to some sources, CNOOC evaluated the prospecting risk, potential oil reservoir and operating costs of the block and decided to temporarily relinquish the block, and it was in talks with related Nigerian parties on the delivery. The quit was part of CNOOC's efforts to balance its global investment portfolio to reduce risk...more...

A drilling rig contract for the drilling of an exploration well on the Bouanane license onshore Morocco has been entered into by the Operator, Dana Petroleum plc, on behalf of the partner group including Tethys Oil and Eastern Petroleum.

The drilling rig, owned by Aladdin Middle East Ltd.,Tethys' partner in Turkey, is an American built 2,000 horsepower model with a depth capacity of 5,000 meters. The rig is currently being mobilized from Turkey to Morocco. It will first drill a well for another operator in Morocco before being mobilized to Bouanane to drill the Tafejjart-1 exploration well...more...

Artumas Issues Exploration Update For Mozambique & Tanzania

Artumas Group Inc. has issued an exploration and operational update for its African assets, specifically highlighting seismic activity in these blocks.

Seismic recording is scheduled to commence before the end of the month over the planned 500 km 2D seismic data acquisition program in the Artumas operated Onshore Rovuma Block. As of mid-August, over 480 km of seismic lines have been cut and over 225 km have been surveyed in preparation for data recording. The seismic acquisition program is targeted for completion in October, with data processing complete in January and drilling locations chosen by end-1Q:2009...more...