Hercules Offshore (NASDAQ: HERO) announced that it has signed a five-year contract with a subsidiary of Eni S.p.A. for use of the Hercules 260 in West Africa. The dayrate under the contract will range from a minimum of $75,000 per day when the price of Brent crude oil is $86 or less per barrel, to a maximum of $125,000 per day when the price of Brent crude oil is $125 or more per barrel. Contract commencement is expected in early April 2015. Costs for contract specific upgrades will be reimbursed by the operator.

Lifting the 40-year-old export ban on U.S. crude oil would have far-reaching effects on pricing, energy security and energy sector investment, according to new research from the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy in Houston.

The study, "The US Crude Oil Export Ban: Implications for Price and Energy Security," was presented today at a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., by Kenneth Medlock, the center's senior director and the paper's author.

Medlock's research assessed a wide range of crude oil prices, from $30 per barrel to $150 per barrel, whereas previous studies looked a narrow range of high prices only. This, along with the fundamental approach taken in the study, distinguishes it from previous studies. The study highlights, among other things, the importance of addressing this policy issue even in the current low-price environment.

Over the past decade, innovative techniques involving the use of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing have triggered unprecedented increases in production of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids from shale.

"The United States has recently experienced an unprecedented surge in domestic crude supply, thanks to significant production increases from areas like the Bakken and Eagle Ford shale formations," Medlock said. "The production surge has led to a large decline in U.S. crude oil imports. The trade balance effects extend to petroleum product markets where, due to stagnant domestic demand, the U.S. has become a net exporter of petroleum products over the last few years."
Medlock found that lifting the ban would level the playing field for the U.S., as it faces continued discounted domestic crude oil prices relative to internationally traded crudes. In fact, the study shows that because the majority of light tight oil produced from U.S. shale formations is of higher quality than both WTI and Brent, if it were exported it would fetch higher prices than WTI and Brent in the international market, he said.

In the wake of the domestic supply surge, Medlock said there is an increasing realization that the U.S. refining infrastructure was not originally designed to handle the domestic crude qualities that are increasingly available. And given the ban on crude oil exports, he said this has prompted concerns that domestic crude oil prices are becoming increasingly discounted relative to internationally traded crudes.

"In turn, this could dampen U.S. upstream investment. Opening foreign markets to U.S. crude would facilitate new investments in the upstream and midstream sectors, as domestic oil prices would move into greater parity with other international crudes," he said.

"Studies that focus on the differential between WTI and Brent effectively underestimate the 'discount' that is being realized by the higher-quality light oils produced from shale," Medlock said. "The implication is that earlier studies likely underestimate the impact on U.S. shale production from removing the oil export ban. Our study includes a statistical analysis that explains what the relationship would be between the prices of crudes of different qualities in an unconstrained setting without an export ban, which is important to providing a more accurate projection of the impact of current U.S. policy."

Data also shows that the U.S. refining sector has backed out the lighter crude imports through substituting the domestic light shale oils. In fact, with growing shale oil production, refiners are now backing out imported crude oils heavier than WTI and the shale oils, he said. However, since those refineries made previous investments to process the heavier crudes, they will only switch to lighter shale oils if those shale oils are priced competitively with the heavier crudes they would normally buy, which means they must be discounted relative to international prices.

"Counterintuitive to some, removing the ban generates distinct energy security benefits," Medlock said. Some have argued that crude oil exports would increase gasoline prices in the U.S. However, because refined products, such as gasoline, can be freely exported, the prices of refined products sold in the U.S. are in parity with international refined product prices. Thus, the discounted prices of oil produced in the U.S. are not reflected in U.S. gasoline and refined product prices. Thus, removing the crude export ban, although it would raise the price of crude oil domestically, would not increase the price of gasoline in the U.S.

The full study provides an in-depth analysis of the U.S. energy security benefits of ending the restrictions on oil exports. Specifically, the research shows that removing the ban yields positive impacts by providing a more stable and secure source of oil to the world. That greater stability would lessen price volatility that U.S. consumers face and thus improve U.S. energy security. The study also shows the positive implications for overall market function, investment capital inflows and economic activity.

Anders Opedal (photo) is appointed executive vice president and takes on a new position as chief operating officer (COO) in the corporate executive committee (CEC) on 1 April.

Opedal will be responsible the corporate improvement programs and for driving operational efficiency across Statoil's business areas.

"I am pleased to announce that Anders assumes this new position in the CEC. He will be a driving force in our effort to further improve the safety and efficiency of our operations. I really look forward to his contribution to develop a highly profitable, competitive and resilient Statoil," says president and CEO Eldar Sætre.

Anders Opedal comes from the position as senior vice president of projects in Statoil's Technology, Projects and Drilling business area, where since 2010 he has been responsible for Statoil's approximately NOK 300 billion project portfolio. Previously he has held a range of positions in drilling and well, procurement and projects. Anders Opedal joined Statoil in 1997 as a petroleum engineer in the Statfjord operations.

"We must prepare for challenging times ahead. Uncertainty and volatility will remain a key part of our business environment. Against this backdrop, I have decided to establish a COO role to drive our corporate-wide efforts to strengthen safe and efficient operations across Statoil. The current line accountability for the safe, efficient and reliable operation of our assets remains unchanged," says Sætre.

Over the last few years Statoil has continuously improved its safety performance, and the serious incident frequency (SIF) for 2014 was at an all-time low. Statoil started to address the cost and efficiency challenge of the industry well ahead of the downturn in the oil price seen over the last few months.

The staffs and services project, strong prioritization of spending levels, organizational efficiency projects in the line (OE), and last but not least the Statoil technical efficiency program (STEP), are examples of how Statoil have been addressing this fundamental challenge of efficiency and competitiveness.

"The COO will play a key role in the further development of Statoil. I want Anders to lead the process of reviewing the corporate operating model with emphasis on simplification and efficiency," says Sætre.

Anders has an MBA from Heriot-Watt University and an engineering degree from NTH. He lives in Sandnes, Norway.

Following its inauguration ceremony in Rotterdam on 27th February 2015, Allseas' Pioneering Spirit will start its first job offshore Norway this summer with an integrated Dynamic Positioning (DP) and maneuvering system based on state-of-the art Kongsberg Maritime technology. The Kongsberg Maritime delivery includes forward and aft bridge systems in addition to an extensive automation network and the HiPAP subsea position reference system.

Eight years in the making, Allseas' Pioneering Spirit single-lift vessel is the largest construction vessel in the world. Kongsberg Maritime has been involved with this ground-breaking project from near the very start, having been selected by Allseas to provide the Dynamic Positioning system for Pioneering Spirit (then Pieter Schelte) early in 2008.

Allseas' Pioneering Spirit single-lift vessel is the largest construction vessel in the world. Image courtesy of Allseas.

Pioneering Spirit's role as a platform installation, decommissioning and pipelay vessel demands the most comprehensive, reliable and feature rich DP and maneuvering system available. With sea trials already completed in summer 2014, Kongsberg Maritime's Class 3, fully redundant DP system and other vital systems will next be put through their paces this summer, when Pioneering Spirit starts its first and particularly challenging project, the removal of the 'Yme' platform topsides in the North Sea.

The Kongsberg Maritime integrated Dynamic Positioning and maneuvering concept for Pioneering Spirit relies on a distributed and open system design, which employs a fully backed-up system-wide standardized communication network. The communication network integrates the K-POS Dynamic Positioning, K-Thrust thruster control, K-Bridge Navigation and K-Chief machinery automation systems, into a complete solution with unique positioning and maneuvering capabilities required for Pioneering Spirits complex operations.

Pioneering Spirit features two fully equipped redundant Kongsberg Navigation bridges with Multi Function Displays (MFD); forward and aft (in separate fire zones). The K-Bridge system utilizes new Radar Transceiver interface technology distributing radar signals from the eight radar transceivers on a Local Area Network (LAN). This enables the possibility for long cable runs (500m) allowing for locating two radars in each 'corner' of the Pioneering Spirit. The K-Bridge system is delivered with innovative new features such as the ability to combine radar images from multiple radar transceivers and display them as a single composite picture. This eliminates blind sectors and provides a 360 degree view around the vessel.

Kongsberg Maritime has also provided subsea position reference systems to ensure the accuracy of the Kongsberg Maritime DP, including the industry standard HiPAP high precision acoustic positioning system.

Wood Group has been awarded a five year, US$ multi-million contract by Total, which includes the option for two, one year extensions. Under the contract Wood Group PSN (WGPSN) will deliver engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning services to four offshore assets and two onshore facilities in the UK continental shelf (UKCS).

The contract, effective immediately, continues WGPSN's 12 year history of providing these services to the Alywn, Dunbar, Elgin and Franklin platforms and the St Fergus Gas Terminal. It also covers support for the Shetland Gas Plant (SGP), the onshore receiving facility for Laggan Tormore, which will start production later this year.

Dave Stewart, chief executive officer (CEO) of WGPSN said: "Our knowledge and in-depth understanding of this key client's needs, and our strong commitment to working safely, collaboratively, innovatively and efficiently to maximize productivity of these assets, helped us to secure this contract. We look forward to continuing our long-standing partnership with Total in the UKCS."

WGPSN has UK offices in Aberdeen, Glasgow, Runcorn and Hull.

HBW Resources, LLC (HBW), an integrated strategic consulting and advocacy firm focused on energy and transportation issues, and CSA Ocean Sciences Inc. (CSA), a firm specializing in services related to environmental impacts of activities throughout the world, have announced a global strategic partnership to perform a variety of services in support of offshore commercial projects worldwide. This new offering will combine HBW's unique skills in consulting and advocacy for energy and transportation projects with CSA's offshore environmental expertise to present a combined level of global capabilities that is unmatched.

Through this strategic partnership, HBW and CSA will jointly pursue a number of commercial opportunities, including non-technical risk assessments utilizing HBW's PRIME+ platform for offshore projects. HBW Resources established the PRIME + (Project Risk, Intelligence, Mitigation and Evaluation) process as a way to proactively identify and map non-technical risks to energy and infrastructure projects, prioritize them according to their likelihood and impact, and allow for proactive mitigation and management of project risks.

The combined service, PRIME + H20, will assess non-technical risks associated with offshore projects, quantify and qualify those risks in terms of impact to projects and likelihood of occurrence, and develop implement mitigation strategies to avoid those risks.

"Non-technical risks account for 73 percent of cost and schedule failures for energy projects today," said Jack Belcher, executive vice president, HBW Resources. "We are pleased that our strategic partnership with CSA Ocean Sciences will provide the unique ability to deliver unmatched risk assessments and other services to offshore projects that will avoid and mitigate those risks and associated cost and schedule failures."

"By combining CSA Ocean Sciences offshore technical and environmental expertise with HBW's energy, government and regulatory expertise, our partnership will offer the offshore industry an unprecedented ability to identify and mitigate risk and provide valuable service to our clients, said Al Hart, Executive Vice President of CSA. "Our PRIME + H20 and other service offerings will provide companies a safe harbor in the uncertain offshore environment we face today."

CSA offers a wide range of marine services, including environmental impact analyses worldwide, drawing upon the extensive knowledge of its qualified personnel in addition to the techniques, facilities, equipment, and business considerations of applied sciences and technologies. Over the last 45 years, CSA has successfully conducted approximately 2,500 studies for more than 500 clients, including the oil and gas industry; engineering/surveying firms; utility companies; law firms; land development companies; and local, state, federal, and international government agencies.

UTEC Survey, an Acteon company, has announced award of a 3-year Master Service Agreement (MSA) with Technip, North America.

The award confirms a three-year extension to its current North America MSA with Technip, an agreement which encompasses a full range of survey services including, but not limited to, pre-lay and as-built surveys, pipeline and flexible installation support, acoustic and laser spool-piece metrologies and shore based dimensional control services.

UTEC has held Technip's North America MSA for projects operated out of Houston since 2008 and the latest announcement is viewed as an important development in the relationship between the two companies.
Commenting on the news, UTEC's Americas Regional Manager, Dave Ross, said: "UTEC continues to grow its reputation in both North America and overseas, and this award further underlines the company's position as a market leader."

UTEC CEO Martin O'Carroll added: "We are pleased to reinforce our long-term relationship with Technip by providing global capabilities, key core values and teams of highly skilled and motivated people who safely deliver high quality services to a growing number of key clients all over the world."

NYC-based PIRA Energy Group reports that Long haul trucking has been losing market share to rail since 2002. In the U.S., there was another record U.S. commercial stock level. In Japan, crude stocks and finished product stocks built. Specifically, PIRA's analysis of the oil market fundamentals has revealed the following:

Lower U.S. Diesel Prices Should Limit Further Long Haul Trucking Loses to Rail
Long haul trucking has been losing market share to rail since 2002 when diesel prices averaged $1.75/gallon. This note estimates that diesel prices no higher than $3.25/gallon should stem any further erosion of long haul trucking's competitive position through 2016 even though momentum has set in for rail to displace long haul and possibly medium haul trucking on a long term basis.

Another Week, Another Record U.S. Commercial Stock Level
Total commercial stocks built last week to yet another new record high. With a small draw this week last year, the year-over-year surplus widened again. Crude built again this week. The four major refined products drew and all other oils were flat. The crude stock surplus versus last year stands at 82.7 million barrels. The four major refined products surplus widened to 30.3 million barrels, and the all other oils surplus widened to 45.8 million barrels above last year. Of that "other oil" excess, 43.7 million barrels is in propane & other NGL stocks.

Japanese Crude Stocks and Finished Product Stocks Build, Runs Ease
Crude runs eased again as maintenance continues to pick up its pace. Crude stocks built slightly due to a higher import figure. Finished product stocks also built, notably gasoil, naphtha, and fuel oil, though there was a strong end-of-season draw on kerosene. The indicative refining margin remained strong.

Tight Oil Operator Review
Weak oil prices dominated fourth quarter results and the outlook for 2015. The effect of falling prices rippled throughout the production chain, both on an operational and a financial level. For the companies covered, capex guidance for 2015 was 35% lower than 2014 capex on average. Simultaneously, technology and productivity improvements continued in 4Q14, and are expected to accelerate in 2015. The consensus seems to be a target of a 10% reduction in costs from efficiency gains, and a further 20% cost reduction from service price deflation. PIRA expects U.S. shale oil production to flatten out and slightly decline in 2Q15.

LPG Prices Drop with Season Change
LPG prices fell as U.S. inventories rose for the first time in 14 weeks. April propane futures for Mont Belvieu delivery fell to 50¢/gal, a 6.6% decrease on the week. Butane also lost ground as seasonal gasoline blending demand evaporates. LPG prices should remain under pressure as demand is set to continue decreasing as winter conditions continue to fade.

Manufacture of Ethanol- blended gasoline Jumps
Ethanol-blended gasoline manufacture soared to a 12-week high 8,676 MB/D the week ending March 13, from 8,434 MB/D in the previous week. Inventories declined for the third consecutive week, dropping 353 thousand barrels to 20.8 million barrels.

The information above is part of PIRA Energy Group's weekly Energy Market Recap - which alerts readers to PIRA's current analysis of energy markets around the world as well as the key economic and political factors driving those markets.

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) (SIX: RIGN) announced that it intends to scrap, in an environmentally responsible manner, the following two rigs: GSF Aleutian Key and Sedco 707.

These rigs are classified as held for sale. As a result of this decision, the company expects its first quarter 2015 results to include an estimated non-cash charge of $90 million to $110 million, net of taxes. Including these two rigs, Transocean has announced plans to scrap a total of 18 floaters.

As the company continues to evaluate the long-term competitiveness of its fleet, additional rigs may be identified as candidates for scrapping.

Potential of Indonesian Merakes gas finding upgraded 
- New gas discovery offshore Libya, in the Bahr Essalam South exploration prospect

Eni has completed post drilling studies on the Merakes-1 gas finding, located in the Indonesia deep offshore East Sepinggan Block, which indicates significant upside gas potential. Eni is the operator of the East Sepinggan Block with an 85% interest.

The new studies upgrade the potential of Merakes from previously estimated 1.3 TCF up to 2 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas in place. The well was drilled in October 2014 in 1,372 meters water depth, encountering a 60 meter section of high quality sandstones. Eni will bring forward the appraisal program to evaluate the possible fast track development of the finding, optimizing synergies with the near Jangkrik field, also operated by Eni.

The East Sepinggan block is located offshore of East Kalimantan (Borneo), 170 kilometers south of Bontang LNG plant and just 35 kilometers south of Jangkrik field.

Eni has been operating in Indonesia since 2001 and currently holds a large portfolio of exploration, production and development assets which have an increasing importance in contributing to the overall growth of the company. Eni's average equity production in the Country amounts to 17,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Additionally, Eni has made a significant discovery of gas and condensates offshore Libya, in the Bahr Essalam South exploration prospect in Area D, 82 kilometers from the coast and 22 kilometers from the production field of BahrEssalam. Eni, through its subsidiary Eni North Africa BV, is operator of Contract Area D with 100% working interest in exploration phase.

The discovery was made through the B1-16/4 well, drilled at a water depth of 150 meters, which encountered gas and condensates in the Metlaoui Formation of Eocene age. During the production test, constrained by surface facilities, the well produced 29 million square cubic feet per day (mmscfd) and above 600 barrels per day (bbpd) of condensate with "64/64' choke size. In a producing configuration the well is estimated to deliver in excess of 50 mmscfd and 1,000 bblpd of condensate. The proximity to the Bahr Essalam infrastructures will allow a quick development of this new discovery.

Eni is currently active in the country's offshore with three drilling rigs used in the exploration and initial delineation of Contract Area D's discoveries.

This exploration success further confirms the enormous potential of Libyan gas resources. The future development of Libyan resources will allow supporting the growth of the domestic consumption and industry, while maintaining Libya's position as a strategic supplier for Italy and Europe. Eni started production in 2004 from the area D fields of Wafa and Bahr Essalam, which supply gas destined for domestic markets and Italy via the Greenstream sealine. These fields also yield high percentages of associated liquids.

With an important string of development projects in its pipeline, both ongoing and planned, Eni aims at capitalizing the significant commercial discoveries made in past years in Area D, and is undertaking an important exploration program to support the constantly growing domestic demand. This discovery in the Bahr Essalam South exploration prospect very well fits with such project pipeline. Eni's domestic deliveries grew from around 1 billion square cubic meters (Bscm) in 2009 to 4.3 Bscm in 2014, with the potential of reaching 6.2 Bscm in 2015.

Eni has been present in Libya since 1959 and currently produces approximately 350,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in the country.

imorph, the Aberdeen-based specialist training and change management provider, has launched Gloe, an innovative training program based at tackling the issues behind the growing problem of obesity facing the nation - and the offshore industry.

It is a sensitive issue, which regularly hits the headlines. The Step Change HSSG (Helicopter Safety Steering Group) recognizes that whilst this issue is not exclusive to the offshore industry, the sector does have a duty to ensure it sets workers up to succeed in the offshore environment, with health and well-being as crucial factors.

It is clear that whilst operators are aware of this issue and do work to ensure that nutrition programs based on low calorie and low fat eating are available offshore, statistics and recent news suggest that - as with most weight reducing measures – these measures just aren't working.

Addressing the full spectrum of challenges associated with changes to diet and lifestyle, Gloe aims to improve both the health and consequent work output of offshore personnel - whatever their size - by creating a sustainable health programme, developed by imorph's behavioural change experts, in conjunction with nutrition consultant Dr Chris Fenn.

Caroline Hughes, director at imorph (photo), is enthusiastic about the fundamental changes the course can bring to the industry and beyond: "Gloe is a really exciting development for the oil and gas industry, as it's the first course truly aimed at creating a more energised, more productive and generally healthier workforce, which brings almost immediate health and cost benefits to the companies who undertake the training.

"It's not just about weight loss, and it's definitely not a lecture. It's about practical adjustments to existing routines, and in an industry so driven by routine, those changes are almost impossible to sustain without the knowledge and behavioural change support Gloe offers."

With 25 years' experience, Chris Fenn understands the benefits nutrition and habit can have upon a work force: "Obesity is linked with well-known health risks, and can significantly reduce quality of life and work. It can result in the psychological challenges of depression, stress and self-consciousness – all of which can affect interpersonal relationships, performance and attendance at work.

"At this crucial time for the oil and gas industry, a healthy work force performing at its optimum level is one of its greatest assets."

We're not competing with fixed foundations, we're just creating the future. And that future's not that far away." CEO, Principle Power, EWEA 2015

Several floating wind turbines have been installed in recent years, with operational turbines in Norway, Japan and Portugal. Floating turbines have several benefits over their conventional counter-parts – firstly, they are more economically efficient, as onshore assembly and the ability to tow them into place reduces the need for costly heavy-lift vessels or specialized WTIVs. Secondly, floating turbines can be installed in deeper water (often further offshore) alleviating concerns of visibility from the coast. Thirdly, greater offshore distance increases wind exposure, resulting in comparatively higher electricity generation. We ask, however, whether floating wind turbines will be utilized globally as governments seek to meet renewable energy quotas?

Successful installations provide hope to those championing floating wind turbines. The WindFloat project in Portugal, is a particularly interesting example – currently supporting a 2MW turbine, 6km from shore. WindFloat refers to the floating support structure, which allows wind turbines to be installed in water depths exceeding 40m. The structure comprises three columns, each is fitted with water entrapment plates at the base, resulting in improved motion performance and allowing the use of conventional wind turbines atop the structure. WindFloat has been operational for three years and by end-2014 had delivered 12GWh of renewable electricity to the Portuguese grid, with no issues to date. Other successful projects include Hywind and Sway prototype projects in Norway, and a number of pilot projects in Japan.

DW's Offshore Wind Database shows at least nine floating projects are likely to come online by 2020, totaling 225MW – a further six projects in the pipeline provide upside potential. However, these technologies require significant investment and cooperation (WindFloat involved 60 suppliers), and each project is unique – standardization is key if floating offshore wind turbines are to be rolled out on a large scale. However, with some predictions that floating wind turbines could cut offshore wind costs in half, there are huge incentives for increased use of the technology.

Rachel Stonehouse, Douglas-Westwood London

www.douglas-westwood.com

Jay Johnson appointed Executive Vice President, Upstream; Joe Geagea named Executive Vice President, Technology, Projects and Services

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) confirmed today that George L. Kirkland (photo), vice chairman and executive vice president, Upstream, will retire from the company, effective June 15. He will be succeeded by James W. (Jay) Johnson, as executive vice president, Upstream, effective June 16.

"George's business acumen and deep operational knowledge of our industry have helped create enormous value for Chevron and our shareholders over many years," said John Watson, chairman and CEO. "I am confident our track record of success in the upstream will continue under Jay's leadership, as his broad base of experience has prepared him well for the job."

Kirkland, 64, joined Chevron in 1974. He was named executive vice president of Upstream in 2005 and elected vice chairman in 2010. During his career he has held numerous assignments across the company's worldwide operations, including leadership roles in Indonesia and Nigeria, as well as president of the North America and international upstream businesses. Under his stewardship, the company enhanced its position as an industry leader – it applied advanced gas injection technology to grow production at the Tengiz field in Kazakhstan, developed groundbreaking Lower Tertiary resources at the Jack and St. Malo fields in the Gulf of Mexico, assembled a world-class shale oil and gas position in North America, enhanced functional capabilities and base business reliability, and developed long-lived liquefied natural gas assets at Gorgon and Wheatstone in Australia. Under his leadership, the company consistently reported peer-leading performance.

Johnson, 56, joined Chevron in 1981 and has been senior vice president of Upstream since the beginning of 2014. Previously, Johnson was president of Chevron's Europe, Eurasia and Middle East Exploration and Production Company and managing director of its Eurasia business unit, responsible for upstream and transportation activities in Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Russia and Turkey. Johnson also was managing director of Chevron's Australasia business unit, responsible for exploration and planning for the development of the Wheatstone and Greater Gorgon area gas fields. Past positions also include work in production operations, major capital projects, shipping and strategic planning.
Watson also announced that effective with Kirkland's retirement, Joseph C. (Joe) Geagea is appointed executive vice president of Technology, Projects and Services (TPS).

TPS includes a number of key functional groups that support the enterprise with services such as major capital project development; drilling and upstream base business operations; energy and information technology; health, environment and safety; procurement, and workforce development.

Geagea, 55, joined the company in 1982. He has been senior vice president of TPS since the beginning of 2014. Previously, he was president of Chevron's Gas and Midstream group, managing director of the company's Asia South business unit and president of downstream operations in East Africa, the Middle East and Pakistan.

Both Johnson and Geagea will report to Watson.

FMC Technologies, Inc. and Technip have signed an agreement to form an exclusive alliance and to launch Forsys Subsea, a 50/50 joint venture that will unite the skills and capabilities of two subsea industry leaders. This alliance will redefine the way subsea fields are designed, delivered and maintained.

Bringing the industry's most talented subsea professionals together early in the project concept phase, Forsys Subsea will have the technical capabilities, products and systems to significantly reduce the cost of subsea field development and provide the technology to maximize well performance over the life of the field.

By combining the industry-leading technologies of the parent companies, Forsys Subsea will reduce the interfaces of the subsea umbilical, riser and flowline systems (SURF) and subsea production and processing systems (SPS). It will also simplify the seabed layout, reducing complexity, accelerating time to first oil, and maximizing sustainable peak production. This unique combination will drive a new, step-change approach to how equipment designs and installation methods converge in a new generation of subsea architecture.

Gathering the expertise and experience of its parent companies, Forsys Subsea will focus on:

• Early involvement in the concept selection phase of front-end engineering and design, when ability to influence cost is greatest.
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• Integrated life-of-field well surveillance, monitoring, data interpretation and advisory services.
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• Joint R&D to drive technological innovations that will boost efficiency and further reduce development costs.
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In addition, the alliance will be uniquely positioned to deliver and install a seamless subsea infrastructure from seabed to topside by eliminating interfaces and by integrating SPS with SURF, attaining the highest reliability and uptime and the lowest total ownership cost available in the industry.

"The world needs new sources of oil, and deepwater holds the greatest promise of meeting this demand. But these sources are expensive to develop, and operators will not pursue them unless they can significantly reduce costs," said John Gremp, FMC Technologies Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. "This requires not just incremental improvements, but step changes and new ways of thinking. Service providers must be involved at the project concept stage, provide innovative technology that reduces costs, standardize processes and equipment for greater efficiency, and execute flawlessly. The creation of Forsys Subsea with an industry leader such as Technip embodies this new way of thinking to a degree that's never been done before."

"In today's fast-changing environment, clients require closer relationships with, and more integrated solutions from, their partners of choice. This imposes a new way of working in the industry," said Thierry Pilenko, Technip Chairman and CEO. "Beyond products, we need to design optimized development concepts. Beyond concepts, we need to be strongly focused on the practicalities of project execution. Simplicity, standardization, innovation, technological creativity and delivering tangible results to clients — this is exactly what Forsys Subsea is about, and we are delighted to make this step a reality with FMC Technologies."

After closing and upon launch of the joint venture, Forsys Subsea will have a workforce of 320 people and will be supported by the 58,000 employees of FMC Technologies and Technip. The company will be headquartered in London, with regional hubs in Oslo, Houston, Paris, Rio de Janeiro and Singapore.
The leadership team of Forsys Subsea will include Rasmus Sunde (FMC Technologies) as CEO, Alain Marion (Technip) as Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Arild Selvig (FMC Technologies) leading front end engineering and Gerald Bouhourd (Technip) leading life of field.

FMC Technologies and Technip will have 50/50 ownership of Forsys Subsea. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

Fugro took delivery of the Fugro Americas, a new-build shallow draft survey vessel, on March 18th 2015. Custom designed to Fugro's specifications, the vessel is fitted with the latest geophysical survey equipment and houses some of the most advanced instrumentation in the field.

The Fugro Americas is optimised for working in the Gulf of Mexico, but she is also suitable for other geographical areas, being permanently mobilised and available for rapid deployment to locations throughout North and South America as well as the Caribbean.

The 59 metre-long vessel is capable of carrying out a wide range of offshore services including high resolution geophysical and light geotechnical surveys in water depths of up to 4,500 metres. Fugro Americas is built to operate Fugro's new 4,500 metre-rated Hugin 1000 Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV), Echo Surveyor VII, which was delivered in December 2014. Specialist equipment on the new survey vessel includes a dynamic positioning system and state-of-the-art survey systems, including a deep water EM302 multibeam echosounder to be used for gas seep surveys.

The Fugro Americas meets stringent industry safety and environmental standards and was built by Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors in Louisiana, with supervision by Fugro Marine Services.

ASCO announces the award of a contract by BP Exploration and Production to provide a range of integrated oilfield services to support its UK North Sea operations.

The comprehensive contract, which is worth in excess of £100 million, covers a variety of activities including: supply-base operations; warehouse operations; the provision of waste management and local freight forwarding services.

The 5 year contract with options will bring all ASCO's service lines together to provide a strong, cohesive delivery model focused on the provision of value and service excellence.

Craig Lennox, CEO – Europe at ASCO said: 'We are pleased to be building on a client relationship that spans more than 20 years. Maintaining this strong and successful connection with BP is a great achievement and we look forward to safely and efficiently delivering on this key contract.'