YPF signs $1.2 billion contracts to add 15 rigs for Vaca Muerta shale

YPF, Argentina’s largest shale oil producer, has signed two contracts for a total of about $1.2 billion to lease 15 drilling rigs to develop the country’s Vaca Muerta shale formation.

The five-year accords adding rigs to the company’s existing 65 were signed with Norwegian Archer Ltd.’s DLS Argentina Ltd. unit, and Helmerich & Payne Inc., the Buenos Aires-based producer said today in an e-mailed statement. Helmerich & Payne, based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, will provide 10 rigs while Hamilton, Bermuda-based Archer will provide the rest. The contracts have an option for a three-year extension, it said.

YPF is pledging to invest $37 billion through 2018 and is seeking partners to develop Vaca Muerta, an area the size of Belgium that contains an estimated 27 Bbbl of shale oil, the world’s fourth-largest deposit. YPF said it has 19 rigs in Vaca Muerta’s Loma Campana area, which it is jointly developing with Chevron.

The first rig is expected to start operating during the fourth quarter of 2014, said Helmerich & Payne, the largest onshore drilling rig contractor in the U.S. The other nine rigs are expected to be deployed sequentially until reaching full capacity by the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2015, the company said.

The Loma Campana area has 130 wells producing 20,000 boed, YPF said.

Argentina is Latin America’s second most active driller, one rig behind Mexico, according to a Baker Hughes report published Feb. 11. Argentina’s count rose by 26 units, or 37.7%, in the report of active rigs for January.

Rigs in the Latin American region, which accounts for 11% of the global total, fell by 16% to 401, the report said.

Providing useful resources, articles and writings on crude oil, other petroleum products, energy and gas. By O'Niel Petroserve Nigeria Ltd, online.

Sercel launches new broadband vibrator

Sercel has unveiled its new broadband vibrator, the Nomad 65 Neo, at the Geo 2014 convention in Bahrain.

The Nomad 65 Neo optimizes broadband acquisition, by bringing down the sweep start’s frequency at full drive from 7 to 5.4Hz. Therefore, the time spent in emitting the very low frequencies from 1Hz will be significantly reduced, with a positive impact on crew production and cost. The Nomad Neo will facilitate the recording of an extra low frequency bandwidth that has proved to be very beneficial for vertical resolution and seismic inversion. Many of the vibrator’s components have also evolved to provide improved ergonomics.

A newly developed  feature of the new Nomad 65 Neo is the IPM (Intelligent Power Management). This onboard software technology reduces environmental impact by performing an electronic control and regulation of the vibrator engine’s RPM to match engine load, allowing for an appreciable fuel saving. This option can also now be integrated into previous-generation Nomad 65 vibrators.

Providing useful resources, articles and writings on crude oil, other petroleum products, energy and gas. By O'Niel Petroserve Nigeria Ltd, online.

Petrofac awarded $1.2 billion Khazzan gas processing project in Sultanate of Oman

Petrofac, the international oil and gas services provider, has been awarded a contract by BP, worth approximately $1.2 billion, for the central processing facility (CPF) for the Khazzan gas project in the Oman sultanate.

The scope of work will include engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the central processing facility (CPF) at the Khazzan field.  The CPF will include two process trains, each having a capacity of 525 MMcfgd.  The project also includes an associated condensate processing system, power generation plant, water treatment system and all associated utilities and infrastructure.  The project is expected to be completed in 2017.

Subramanian Sarma, Managing Director of Petrofac' s Onshore Engineering & Construction business, commented:  “Petrofac has executed a large number of projects for BP across many aspects of our business and we are delighted to be supporting them on this pioneering project at Khazzan, the largest new upstream project in Oman."

Providing useful resources, articles and writings on crude oil, other petroleum products, energy and gas. By O'Niel Petroserve Nigeria Ltd, online.

Mexco Energy Corp. announces drilling of properties, acquisition

Mexco Energy Corporation has announced the drilling of certain properties in the Permian basin of West Texas and the acquisition of producing properties in four states.

Mexco Energy Corporation is participating as a working interest owner in a JV drilling four vertical development wells to a depth of 11,000 ft on 160 acre spacing in the Dean, Wolfcamp, Cline and Atoka formations on 640 acres in Reagan County, Texas.  Initial per day production rates from two of these wells respectively are 128 bbl of oil and 110,000 cubic feet of natural gas and 94 bbl of oil and 179,000 cubic feet of natural gas.  Mexco' s working interest in this JV is .3% (.24% net revenue interest).

These wells will hold the deep rights for further development by horizontal drilling.  The Wolfcamp formation in this area is an approximately 1,700 ft thick section consisting of interbedded organic shales and carbonates and includes two reservoir units, the "A" and "B" benches that have both been successfully developed with horizontal wells.  These four vertical wells in Reagan County, Texas, are in addition to two horizontal wells in which Mexco is also participating in Reagan County, Texas.

Also, Mexco has acquired for $450,000, a package of non-operated producing properties consisting of 10 oil wells and 1 gas well located in Webster Parish, Louisiana; Eddy County, New Mexico; Billings County, North Dakota; and, Nolan and Smith Counties, Texas.  The purchase price was funded from the company' s $4.9 million bank credit facility.

This purchase, effective March 1, 2014, includes working interests ranging from 27.5% to .13% (net revenue interests of 24.06% - .11%) adding estimated net proved reserves of approximately 35,000 boe at a cost of $12.86 per bbl.

Providing useful resources, articles and writings on crude oil, other petroleum products, energy and gas. By O'Niel Petroserve Nigeria Ltd, online.

ANGF to build LNG production platform in Texas

Applied Natural Gas Fuels (ANGF) has completed the purchase of 31 acres of land in RailPort Business Park in Midlothian, Texas, to build a multi-liquefier LNG production platform.

The platform will consist of up to five liquefiers with a production capacity of 86,000 LNG gallons per day per liquefier and a total on-site storage of 1.5 million LNG gallons.

In addition to formally acquiring the land, the company has executed purchase orders for all long lead items such as storage tanks, production skids and the electric motor and compressor unit.

“Midlothian is a perfect location to build our plant,” said Cem Hacioglu, president and CEO of ANGF. “In addition to having all the required amenities to construct a state-of-the art facility, Midlothian’s strategically important location will allow us to tap into a wide range of customers in fast growing verticals,” added Hacioglu.

The Midlothian LNG plant, which is expected to be operational in early 2015, will focus on end users in the high-horsepower, trucking, E&P, rail, marine, remote power generation and mining markets that currently use diesel fuel and are interested in converting to a lower-cost, cleaner-burning alternative.

ANGF is currently in the process of doubling the production capacity at its Topock, Arizona, LNG plant by adding a second liquefier which is scheduled to come on line in July 2014. When completed, the Topock LNG plant will produce about 172,000 LNG gallons per day. Upon commissioning of all five liquefiers at the Midlothian LNG plant, ANGF' s total production capacity will reach over 600,000 LNG gallons per day.

Providing useful resources, articles and writings on crude oil, other petroleum products, energy and gas. By O'Niel Petroserve Nigeria Ltd, online.