Renewable Revolution

Aerial view of the Auger Tension Leg Platform in the deep-water US Gulf of Mexico in foreground. Noble Jim Thompson drilling rig in background. Photo credit: Royal Dutch Shell

Will Oil Majors Actually Sink Money Into America’s Waters?

January 5, 2018 by Bloomberg

SNIPPET 1:

It’s not that there aren’t potentially good prospects out there. Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico are obviously well-developed in certain areas already. The waters off southern California are also tempting. Meanwhile, using a little Pangaean jigsaw-puzzling, West Africa’s prolific fields suggest there may be similar riches off the Eastern Seaboard.

And it’s not like major oil companies are brimming with exploration prospects right now. The energy crash crushed spending on discoveries, with 2017 seeing the fewest on record, according to Rystad Energy, a consultancy. Another firm, Wood Mackenzie, estimates just $37 billion will be spent on exploration this year, down more than 60 percent from 2015.

There are two big complications when it comes to capitalizing on America’s federal waters, though: politics and time.

SNIPPET 2:

Offshore spending isn’t dead.Some operators, such as Norway’s Statoil ASA, have worked hard to cut costs and shorten schedules to make projects work at lower prices.

In the Gulf of Mexico, William Turner of Wood Mackenzie authored a recent report forecasting oil and gas production to reach a record of 1.94 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2018.

However, he cautions that exploration spending there will remain flat this year and activity will focus on less-ambitious projects, such as those tying back to existing fields and infrastructure. Current energy pricing, and the renewed focus on staying nimble when it comes to deploying capital, are powerful restraints.

And these challenges would be magnified in new, relatively undeveloped areas. Turner points out, for example, that the swiftness of the Gulf Stream, a wide current running parallel to the Eastern Seaboard, could present big challenges to drilling on the Atlantic shelf.

Full article:

http://gcaptain.com/will-oil-majors-actually-sink-money-americas-waters/

Agelbert NOTE: The problem humanity has is NOT lack of hydrocarbons; it is the adamant and totally unreasonable refusal to accept the FACT that we have ALREADY exceeded the "carbon budget" for a FOUR DEGREE C rise in average global temperature, never mind a TWO DEGREE C "target". We are now on our way to 10 DEGREES C PLUS! The worse scenario the IPCC came up with (BAU RCP-8.5) is too conservative a projection of the heat increase (it is MUCH, MUCH WORSE!).

Anyone telling you that fossil fuels are "running out" needs to read the published figures from the oil and gas producing nations of this planet. The emissions are INCREASING, NOT "leveling off or decreasing". PLUS, tropical rain forests AND permafrost melt are now ADDING to the carbon emissions! GHG is GHG. no matter where it is coming from! You are NOT going to turn this heat engine off easily. Several heat adding feedbacks we have triggered by burning too much fossil fuels are NOT in our control, PERIOD.

Where in God's good earth these fossil fueler wishful thinking FOOLS think that we are somehow going to get a handle on this massive heating NOW IN THE Global Warming radiative forcing INERTIA pipeline, even if we stopped all hydrocarbon burning today (rather than the present tragic reality of increased burning), is a mystery to me. They certainly DO NOT get this idea from empirical evidence or sound science.

This stubborn clinging to a happy talk myth about some "quick recovery from fossil fuel burning caused global warming" is a testament to the extremes people in denial of an extinction threat reality will go to. 

And for the propagandist liars that know the truth and push the happy talk for money, I can only say that they are greater fools than those naive folks that believe the fossil fuel fascist funded happy talk lies and distortions. These bought and paid for propagandists are behaving as STUPIDLY as any person possibly can. You STUPID, MONEY LOVING BASTARDS deserve the Darwin Evolutionary Dead End Award.

Unlikely unless the price of Oil goes up substantially.  Investment cost is too high, and consumers can't afford the price already.  Huge infrastructure build out to do this, they would need to run pipelines from all the offshore drilling rigs.  Unlikely to happen in the near term.

RE

Yes, RE. That's what the article made clear. The article also made clear that production of oil and gas is going to the moon.  And as to the rig business and the OBVIOUS plan to use said rigs to drill somewhere, already the first one of 2018 was delivered.

World’s Biggest Rig Builder Delivers First Rig of 2018

January 5, 2018 by Bloomberg

SNIPPET:

The world’s largest rig builder, Keppel FELS, has delivered its first rig of 2018 and the first of five jackups that it is building for Borr Drilling.

The jackup rig, SAGA, was delivered by Keppel FELS in Singapore. Keppel FELS is a subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine.

“We are pleased  :evil4: to deliver the first rig to our new customer Borr Drilling,” said Mr Chris Ong, CEO of Keppel O&M. “As the drilling market recovers, the quality and capabilities of our KFELS B Class designs would be important differentiators for rig owners seeking efficient and reliable operations. Our rigs have set the industry benchmark and we are confident that this rig will be just as successful when deployed.”

The KFELS Super B Class rigs are designed to operate in 400 feet water depth and drill to 35,000 feet. They are equipped with a two million pound drilling system and a maximum combined cantilever load of 3,700 kips for high horsepower during drilling operation.

Full article:

http://gcaptain.com/worlds-biggest-rig-builder-delivers-first-rig-2018/

RE, they are NOT going to stop drilling until we-the-people MAKE THEM stop drilling. All this talk about what people can "afford" is not going to stop the plans of these bastards. These 5 rigs, of which the first one was just delivered, were ordered in the oil and gas price market levels for the past year, which was actually LOWER than what it is now. It is wishful thinking to think that they won't drill unless state governments stop them.