Petroleum Review - November 2010
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Editorial - An editor's swan song
NORTH AMERICA – GAS-TO-POWER
Gas up
The prospects for gas-to-power (GTP) in North America are in for a roller coaster ride, writes Gordon Cope.
GLOBAL ENERGY INVESTMENT – GAS-TO-POWER
Powering to success
Is now the time for ‘Big Oil’ to plunge into power? ask Booz & Company’s Viren Doshi, Robert Oushoorn, Robert Famulok and Adrian Del Maestro.
ASIA-PACIFIC – OVERVIEW
Energy demand expands as Asia-Pacific shrugs off recession
Oil and gas demand data for the Asia-Pacific region clearly shows that the global recession had a quite limited impact on the region, with many countries experiencing energy demand growth in 2009, writes Chris Skrebowski. The region remains energy resource poor, however, which means it is increasingly dependent on energy imports from other parts of the world.
ASIA-PACIFIC – REVIEW
Stepping on the gas
David Hayes provides a snapshot review of some of the latest developments in the Asia-Pacific’s energy sector, where LNG is playing an increasingly important role.
ASIA-PACIFIC –JAPAN
Diplomatic wrangles in Pacific over rights to reserves
Until recently, few had heard of Zhan Qixiong or his battered fishing boat. However, after the fisherman and his 14-strong crew were taken into custody by the Japan Coast Guard in September, he found himself at the centre of an escalating geopolitical row that quickly put planned discussions over gas and oil deposits between Beijing and Tokyo on hold, and ratcheted up broader tensions in the region. Julian Ryall reports from Tokyo.
ASIA-PACIFIC – INDIA
The quest for affordable energy in India
In the pursuit of energy security, price is as important as supply, writes James Camilleri. However, the pricing of oil and natural gas has not been satisfactorily addressed by the government of India. This can be attributed to the complexity of the task as well as the fear of political fall out.
ASIA-PACIFIC – INDONESIA
Powering Indonesia
Indonesia, like many rapidly emerging economies, is facing power supply problems. Its power sector, mostly owned by state utility PLN, faces major problems in meeting the needs of this booming economy. These problems are huge. Indonesia is a country the size of Europe, with a population of 237mn scattered across 17,500 islands. For Indonesia, unlike other developing countries, it is less of the problem of an absence of energy resources, but rather the issue of gaining access to them by affordable means, writes Nicholas Newman.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC – POWER
Power sector stuck in subsidy black hole
The electricity sector in the Dominican Republic has been in a crisis since the late 1960s and no end is in sight, writes Maria Kielmas.
FUEL – LOGISTICS
Fuelling the fight
As warfare became increasingly mechanised, new fuels and lubricants, long-distance pipeline systems and sheer imagination became vital to the war planner. World War II offers several examples, writes Nigel Bance, who, over the years, has interviewed a number of key Russian personnel in both the army and the country’s oil and gas sector.
E&P – SAFETY
Offshore safety under review
The Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico has major implications for safety regulation and oil spill response for offshore installations worldwide. Experts agree there is no room for complacency, although some areas like the UK and Norwegian North Sea sectors are considered to have more robust regulatory regimes already in place. Petroleum Review invited leading representatives of the operators, regulatory authorities and unions to suggest key areas for review and action. Brian Davis reports.
H&S – SKILLS
Personnel competence safety scheme
In July 2010, IECEx – a conformity assessment scheme providing confidence that equipment, services and personnel covered by an IECEx Certificate meet specified standards – launched the IECEx Certification of Personnel Competence Scheme (CoPC), one of the world’s first international schemes for the certification of personnel associated with equipment, installations and servicing industries. Bob Cooper, Director of Sira Certification Service (a IECEx certification body), explains the scheme, its groundings in international compliance, its framework and progress to date.
SKILLS AND CAREERS – TRENDS
Targeting talent
Petroleum Review recently talked with Katie Potter, Senior Account Manager at NES in Houston, about recent trends in the global oil and gas recruitment sector and how industry can best tackle the ongoing ‘talent gap’.
TECHNOLOGY – DRILLING
Continuous circulation system
Recent events have emphasised the need for increased safety in the conduct of drilling operations, particularly in deepwater. Although not directly related to the apparent cause of the blowout in the Gulf of Mexico, the ability to maintain continuous, uninterrupted circulation and a steady downhole pressure regime while making up or breaking out drill pipe connections should significantly enhance safety when drilling the pressure sensitive formations encountered in deepwater wells, explains Jim Jenner CEng FEI.
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