“The Best Leaders Focus on Excellence Without Arrogance”

The Offshore Technology Conference’s (OTC) new event, d5: The Next Big Thing, debuted Friday after OTC 2015 at the University of Houston.

As promised, d5 was unlike any other energy industry event before it. Born out of the realization that the offshore energy industry is in the midst of a global technology boom, d5 brought together innovators, entrepreneurs, investors, economists, and other thought leaders to jumpstart the creative process, highlight emerging developments and inspire leadership.

“We are entering a period where the technological possibilities are beginning to exceed our imagination,” said Steve Balint, chair of the OTC d5 Advisory Board. “This means there are tremendous opportunities just waiting to be plucked if we can get beyond the ‘this is how we have always done it’ mindset.”

The day-long event attracted more than 300 global energy professionals and featured a collection of 10 non-energy industry luminaries, each of whom discussed game-changing technologies to help foster new ideas about “the next big thing” for offshore. Serving as master of ceremonies was Helge Hove Haldorsen, d5 Advisory Board member. “There are challenges, and there are solutions,” he said. “I do not worry about the future of energy when I see these bright minds here.”

Speaker Recaps:

• When it comes to leadership, former U.S. Navy commander Mike Abrashoff said he has been successful by focusing on excellence without arrogance. “You cannot order excellence,” he offered. “You must create a culture of engagement and ownership.”

• Former NASA astronaut and ex-officio member of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board Mike Bloomfield talked about safety and how space exploration and oil and gas exploration face similar challenges.

• Futurist Lisa Bodell stated that “simplicity is the new norm,” as a company culture of clear vision will be the efficient ones moving forward.

• Genomic researcher Juan Enriquez shared how programmable cells will transform systems for fuel, biomedics and even human evolution.

• Consultant Partha Ghosh encouraged attendees to connect the dots of all the speakers to take back to their own companies and “make crazy ideas prosper.” He added that the industry should change return on investment (ROI) to return on inspiration.

• Frans Johansson, author and entrepreneur, described how disparate disciplines have connections if they are viewed through the perspective of intersections. He noted, “The unexpected is what makes us stand apart.”

• Political scientist Bjorn Lomborg said the most vital tenant that will help change the world is free trade.

• Jane McGonigal, an expert on the engagement economy, encouraged attendees to consider games for collective problem solving. In addition, she suggested using gamification to predict human behavior in a possible crisis.

• Economist Michael Porter described his research demonstrating how the energy industrymore than any otheris making the US more globally competitive.

• Avi Reichental, president of 3D Systems, said redefining printing is reinventing the American dream. He asserted, “The technology is here now, and it is exciting to disrupt your own business model since 3D lets you make great things happen.”

Throughout the day, there were breakout sessions for questions and answers with the presenters. The event concluded with a networking reception.

During the event, OTC announced that d5 will return in 2016 at Rice University on Friday, 6 May.

“Following d5’s initial success we are excited to begin planning next year’s endeavor,” said Art Schroeder, OTC d5 Program Committee Chair.

For more information about d5, click here.

NYC-based PIRA Energy Group reports that Cushing crude stocks hit record high, but big draws coming. In the U.S., stock excess marginally narrows. Specifically, PIRA’s analysis of the oil market fundamentals has revealed the following:

Cushing Crude Stocks Hit Record High, but Big Draws Coming

Crude prices rebounded in April, as rig counts continued to drop and shale production appeared to be leveling off. Cushing stocks rose to a record 62 MMB, but Canadian stocks dropped, as the flood of exports to the south continued. These volumes will be sharply lower over the next few months. In addition to less crude from Canada, Cushing will receive less from Midland, while sending more out to the Gulf Coast. Stocks at Cushing have likely peaked.

U.S. Stock Excess Marginally Narrows

The lowest crude and product imports of the year could not manage to substantially change the week-on-week stock build because reported demand fell sharply to the weakest level of the year. The overall inventory build was marginally lower than what occurred last year in the same week. The obvious noteworthy feature of the data was the first crude stock draw of the year. Gasoline and distillate stocks remain above last year, while the crude excess narrowed.

Aramco Differentials Generally Raised for June Barrels

Saudi Arabia's formula prices for June were just released. Adjustments have been made consistent with a number of important factors Saudi Arabia considers in setting its monthly prices: market value for their crude in the key importing markets, available supply for export against increasing domestic burn during summer, competitiveness against competing grades, and global refining margins. Differentials to Northwest Europe were raised most significantly, $1.10-1.40/Bbl, with the greatest increase on the heaviest grades. Elsewhere, changes were minor.

Constructing a Back-of-the-Envelope Model of the U.S. Jet Fuel Demand

Back-of-the-envelope models succinctly capture the important variables in forecasting a particular petroleum product’s demand. PIRA has built just such a model for U.S. kerojet demand. We capture the impact of ticket prices, revenue passenger miles traveled, available seat miles and load factors on kerojet demand. The model predicts U.S. jet fuel demand will increase 3.5% in 2015.

Panama Canal Expansion in 2016 Will Impact U.S. LPG and Condensate Exports More than Crude

When the Panama Canal Authority delivers on its long awaited $5.2 billion canal expansion project next year, the impacts will vary depending on the petroleum market. U.S. exports of LPG and condensate will gain significant competitive advantages due to reduced transit times to Asia, and the subsequent freight cost savings, while the changes to crude oil and refined product trade flow will be relatively minor.

LPG in Asia Dragged Lower

Asian LPG markets followed the rest of the world lower with the June Propane Far East Index losing $19 on the week to settle at $506/MT on Friday, just 50¢ higher than cash. Butane for June delivery was assessed at a $20 premium to C3. Regional LPG prices are becoming increasingly attractive to the petrochemical sector, with C3’s discount to naphtha now wider than $70/MT.

Ethanol Values Increase

U.S. ethanol prices advanced during April boosted by lower supply because many plants were shut down for spring maintenance. Higher petroleum values also provided support.

Ethanol Output Plunges

U.S. ethanol production plummeted last week, dropping to a 29-week low 887 MB/D from 921 MB/D in the previous week as several more plants went offline for spring maintenance. Only 35 thousand barrels were drawn from inventories, which remained at a relatively high 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.

MMT (Sweden) has recently completed a pipeline inspection for Dong E&P in the North Sea, Danish sector. This was the eight year in a row that MMT performed this for Dong.

The operation was conducted with MMTs survey vessel Franklin to find exposed pipe and if it was exposed more than 60 %, a more careful inspection with MMT ROV Comanche was performed including video inspection. The project and report was delivered as planned to both MMT´s and Dong´s satisfaction.

Image: MMT´s Survey & ROV vessel Franklin

Offshore facility operators can now consider an alternative and more cost-effective means to transfer personnel to and from their facilities, which is safe, efficient and regulatory compliant.

Great Yarmouth support hub for offshore wind farms in Southern North Sea

As part of its continuing strategy to focus on growing business sectors in the UK, GAC has opened a new quayside office in Great Yarmouth to meet the needs of the renewable energy sector in the Southern North Sea for integrated shipping and logistics services.

Offshore energy


Great Yarmouth, along with neighboring Lowestoft, has supported offshore energy companies for over 45 years. The two ports constitute England's largest concentration of offshore energy businesses and have been involved with many Round 2 projects. Round 3 includes three of the world's largest offshore wind farms which represent over 60% of the UK's Round 3 developments.

Adrian Henry, GAC UK’s Offshore Manager, says Great Yarmouth has been identified as being one of the key locations for development and notes that the new facility there reinforces GAC’s national network with an office ideally situated to meet the needs of oil and gas customers working in the Southern North Sea.

The area is also home to some of the UK’s largest renewable energy projects, including offshore wind farms at Gunfleet Sands and Thanet. The United Kingdom ranks as the world’s sixth largest producer of wind power. In January 2015, the country had 5,968 wind turbines with a total installed capacity of just under 12 gigawatts, one-third of which is generated by offshore wind farms.

Prime location

GAC’s efforts to meet the growing demand of the renewable energy sector for support, including the transportation of large project cargoes like turbines, is now being spearheaded by the Great Yarmouth team led by Jeanette Shoebridge.

"GAC's presence in Great Yarmouth brings our unique single-source combination of shipping and logistics services to a wide range of energy clients,” says Shoebridge, who has worked on major installations at London Array, Walney 1 & 2, West of Duddon Sands over the past four years.

“Our prime location means we can offer all renewable clients an integrated support package tailored to their needs, including a quay for their support vessels, ship agency, project logistics, warehousing and other related services.”

“Combined with the local expertise, workforce, deep water facilities and hinterland, this enables us to provide unrivalled response, flexibility and - ultimately - cost savings. GAC's global expertise and commitment to delivering our customers' strategies will be a significant factor in the successful completion of Round 2 in the Southern North Sea, through Round 3, and beyond."

When oil prices dramatically dropped in the fall of 2014, operators began to significantly alter their plans. As months passed, many thought service providers would gain clarity on the upstream situation and begin to develop their own strategic plans. However, as we have progressed toward mid-2015, as answers have been obtained, many new questions have arisen.

Conoco CEO Ryan Lance said many producers were trading at valuations that still reflected a price closer to US$80 per barrel while Private Equity executives have mentioned to DW that many bid-ask spreads are too wide on transactions for E&P producers, particularly U.S. unconventional shale players. This is inhibiting some of the necessary revaluation and consolidation that will lead to a more normalized market environment. So oilfield service providers remain in limbo and investors struggle to mark them to market. Until management of service companies can assess market pricing, future activity levels and an understanding of which of their customers are going to be active, short term strategic plans remain fluid and long term strategies in jeopardy.

So how have service companies and manufacturers managed the situation? Schlumberger, for instance, have been very proactive and cut jobs and capital spending relative to projected activity declines. Others are betting on a stronger and quicker recovery, have less aggressively cut, and hope to be well positioned for a market resurgence – which could lead toward greater cuts if the environment doesn’t rebound accordingly.

Strategic planning is crucially important to the investor community and will be scrutinized in critical moments. It will also be an indicator for how in-touch leaders of oilfield service providers are with their businesses. It will be nearly impossible for managers to make unanimously popular decisions, but they will be expected to make the right ones. Time will tell on what companies managed the uncertainty most appropriately.

Andrew Meyers, Douglas-Westwood Houston

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www.douglas-westwood.com

As Repsol completes the acquisition of Talisman Energy, a new organizational structure has been implemented to include the integrated assets and manage the resulting transformation of Repsol into one of the world’s largest publicly-listed oil and gas companies.

In accordance with best practices in corporate governance and as a result of Repsol’s enlarged international presence, the Board of Directors, at the suggestion of Chairman Antonio Brufau and with the favorable recommendation of the Appointment and Compensation Committee, has approved the new organizational structure for the company resulting from the integration of Talisman.

This new organization, which is the foundation for Repsol’s transformation into a group with a relevant presence on every continent, reinforces the business units’ capabilities to increase efficiency and create value under the leadership of Chief Executive Officer Josu Jon Imaz, who holds all the executive functions within the company.

Three top-level committees are created under the chairmanship of the CEO: The Corporate Executive Committee, The Exploration and Production (E&P) Executive Committee and the Downstream Executive Committee (Refining, Marketing, LPG, Trading and Gas & Power.) These committees will have full responsibility over their businesses.

The new organizational structure’s aims include:

• Aligning the organization with Repsol’s new asset portfolio. This is based on a one-company model that takes into account the different characteristics of the E&P and Downstream businesses

• Serving Repsol’s enlarged global footprint. The integration of Talisman increases Repsol’s geographical presence, creating the need to align the structure and operation of the corporate functions.

• Embodying Repsol’s vision of a company focused on long-term business sustainability, technological progress and social welfare.

Recently, LoneStar Energy Fabrication (LSEF) completed work on the $5.1 billion Big Foot drilling platform that is now ready to begin drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. This was the largest project in LSEF’s history, and the company was the primary fabricator of the 4,600HP modular drilling rig. The extended tension-leg platform (ETLP) is the industry’s largest and will operate in the Bigfoot oil and gas field, 225 miles south of New Orleans at a depth of 5,200 feet.

The project took LSEF two years to complete and tapped into the company’s 100 years of combined experience in the fabrication and rig up of offshore rigs, helidecks, modular living quarters and offshore buildings for the oil and gas industry.

“Big Foot is now onsite being moored and should begin drilling soon,” stated Lone Star Energy Fabrication’s President, Brian Shanklin. “This was an amazing project that aligned extremely well with our fabrication, rig up and commissioning capabilities. We had to compete against other, larger, more experienced and better known fabricators to win the Big Foot contract, but our proven ability to deliver high quality work, on time and within or under budget helped us win the job.”

Gargantuan does not begin to describe the size of the Big Foot project. The platform cost approximately $5.1 billion, will house 200 workers, and has the capacity to produce 75,000 barrels of oil and 25 million cubic feet of gas per day. Standing more than 40 stories above the Gulf of Mexico and weighing in at more than 8,200 tons, it will operate in 5,200 feet of water. At that depth pressures exceed 2,325 pounds per square inch.

Big Foot was not the first large offshore project for LSEF. The company also served as the primary fabricator for the $5 billion Olympus project that required more than 650,000 man-hours to complete. Olympus is now in operation 130 miles south of New Orleans and is known as the Mars B TLP DVA rig.

Located on 40 acres in the Cedar Crossing Industrial Park, just 20 miles south of Houston near the Houston Ship Channel, LSEF is perfectly located to work on jobs like Big Foot. With direct access to the Houston Ship Channel, as well as rail and air transportation, the company can tackle onshore and offshore as well as international projects of any size.

“We specialize in modular units that encompass rigs, living quarters and helidecks. As an example, the average sleeping quarters we build accommodates 100+ workers with sleeping, shower and galley facilities,” explains Shanklin. “When a job is completed it can easily be lifted by cranes and loaded onto barges to move into the Gulf or shipped out via rail or truck.”

The company has more than 100,000 square feet under roof and is a certified facility that complies with the most rigorous standards in the industry that includes: ISO 9001, API Q1, ABS (American), BV (French), DNV (Norwegian), SOLAS (British and USCG (American).

In addition to being one of the largest fabrication and rig up yards in the Houston area, it is also one of the top 10 located on the Gulf Coast. The Cedar Crossing complex provides Lone Star unlimited growth potential with 15,000 acres of raw land surrounding the existing facility.

Shanklin has a unique, but very valuable, background. “I started out working as a roughneck on an offshore platform rig. That gives me a unique perspective that very few people who build rigs have. I grew up in the business. I understand what the front line workers have to do on their jobs and how they live on these platforms,” says Shanklin. “You can’t get that perspective from a university or from talking to an engineer or reading about it. When you have lived on a platform a couple hundred miles from shore, like I have, you understand how important safety and quality construction really is,” he emphasizes.

LSFE has completed large projects in the past, has others underway and still more in the pipeline. The company just completed work on one 3,000 HP platform rig for a large Mexican oil company, and a second is being completed, tested and commissioned. Work is also underway on two 120-man living quarter projects along with work for other major oilfield service providers. LSEF was also a prime contractor on the Olympus project, completed in 2012 which was also one of the largest ETLP projects in the Gulf of Mexico.

While the recent drop in oil prices has had a major impact on shale drilling and related services, it has had a minimal impact on LSEF, because large oil and gas companies, LSEF’s primary customers, have had major project budgets in place for years, and most will be completed with the anticipation of higher oil prices in the future. Deepwater drilling and production are long term, multi-billion dollar projects that take several years to complete and are not impacted by short-term fluctuations in oil prices. Some experts even predict resurgence in Gulf oil drilling and LSEF is well positioned to benefit from future projects.

“We also do work for other companies around the world and the combination of offshore, land-based, and international work helps to stabilize our project load and ensures work continues to come in,” explains Shanklin.

Shanklin actually sees the downturn in the oil industry as an opportunity to attract high quality employees. “We are only as good as the people who work here,” he explains. “Most of our team has been built through referrals from existing employees. With the recent downturn, a lot of smaller fabrication companies have been forced to lay off highly qualified employees and our existing team members notify us when they identify a potential employee and we pick from the best available. We have built an excellent team with a broad range of certified skills that helps us continue to win contracts.”

LSEF has big plans for the future. “I believe we have established that we can deliver extremely large high quality projects, on time and within budget, and that is our foundation to grow the company,” Shanklin explains. “I believe the key to our future is to build upon our high quality, cost control culture, and focus on maintaining our safety record. Safety is paramount in this industry. You have to protect your people if you want to become an industry leader. We have made good inroads into international markets and I see LoneStar growing its international business significantly in the coming years,” he concludes.

Flexlife, a specialist provider of flexible pipe integrity and engineering services for the oil and gas industry, has won a number of contracts this year to date, valued at over $6m USD for oil and gas operators in the US Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea and Malaysia.

The contracts are separate from the recently announced award from Apache North Sea Limited for subsea project management and engineering support in the North Sea.

The scope of work for the contracts includes integrity management engineering, flexible riser annulus testing and ultrasonic scanning, subsea project management and engineering support. Also included are the deployments of Flexlife’s Armadillo repair clamps and FlexGel, a cost effective permanent repair solution for mitigating corrosion in caissons, I-tubes and J-tubes.

Flexlife CEO Garry Millard said: “By focusing our business activity on our core competences and patented technology for cost effective integrity management, and by expanding our business acquisition activities to areas of growth, we are seeing positive results in a difficult market.”

Aberdeen-born Flexlife is widely recognized throughout the industry for its expertise and excellence in the integrity and engineering of flexible risers and flowlines. The company’s latest financial results, to year end April 2014 marked its highest revenue and profit to date, with an increase of 5% in group turnover to £14.9m, and a 50% increase in customers.

2H Offshore, an Acteon company, is adding strength to its flexible marine riser engineering capabilities by growing its teams in Aberdeen and Kuala Lumpur.

Highly experienced flexible riser engineer, Gilles Gardner, has been hired as a technical manager to support 2H’s growing flexible riser engineering service offering from the Aberdeen office. Gardner will assist the local management team in the development of 2H’s flexible riser analysis and engineering capability in the region.

Gardner holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Memorial University, Newfoundland, Canada, and has been active in the offshore industry since 2003. He joins 2H from Flexlife, where he was engineering, delivery and integrity director. Gardner previously held positions as a flexible pipe design engineer with Technip, and a flexible package delivery manager and riser team leader at Wood Group Kenny.

Gardner said, “My experience with design, analysis and specification of flexible riser systems is a natural complement to 2H’s existing capabilities, and I am excited to contribute in developing existing and new business opportunities for 2H in Aberdeen.”

Additionally, Hanh Ha, technical director, has relocated from the 2H London office to the Kuala Lumpur office, where he will support the local management team in the growth of 2H’s flexible riser engineering capability in the Asia Pacific region. Ha will provide technical support to projects, from FEED, through detailed engineering, to manufacturing and installation. He will also continue to contribute his specific technical expertise in flexible risers and umbilicals to other 2H projects.

Tim Eyles, managing director, 2H Offshore, said, “Flexible riser engineering remains a key strategic growth area for 2H. By hiring another flexibles specialist and relocating a member of senior personnel, we have illustrated our commitment to this growing business area. A landmark project for 2H in late 2013 was our appointment by Tullow Oil as lead riser engineering consultancy for the Tweneboa, Enyenra and Ntomme (TEN) field development, offshore Ghana, which 2H continues to support through the fabrication and installation phases.”

Subsea 7 S.A. (Oslo Børs: SUBC) announced that in view of the difficult business and economic conditions in the oil and gas market and declining workload, a program of cost reduction measures will be implemented including a re-sizing of the fleet and workforce, and the restructuring of its corporate organization.

It is envisaged that the overall reduction in the global workforce would be approximately 2,500 by early 2016, down from the 13,000 reported at the end of 2014. Consultation with employees and employee representatives will continue to take place on a local basis and consultation processes have begun in Norway and the UK.

The global fleet will be reduced by up to 11 vessels, based on a mixture of non-renewal of charter vessels and either disposal or stacking of owned vessels. It is intended that the reshaping of the fleet will be phased over the coming 12 months, commensurate with the projected global workload as well as continued effective execution of projects.

At the end of 2014, the fleet consisted of 39 vessels with a further five under construction.

Jean Cahuzac, Chief Executive Officer, said: "These cost reduction plans will allow us not only to adapt to present market challenges but also to maintain our competitiveness and the long-term viability of our business. This will enable us to emerge stronger once the downturn ends. Reducing employment is not a decision we take lightly but one that is necessary in today's difficult oil and gas environment."

"Deepwater oil and gas production remains a significant market with long-term growth potential. While implementing the restructuring of our organization, we remain committed to preserving our core capabilities and investing in key enabling technologies to deliver cost-effective solutions to our clients through all stages of the oil price cycle."

Intertek, a leading quality solutions provider to industries worldwide, is launching a new set of oil and gas decommissioning services to help manage costs and asset inventory.

The company showcased the new services, which focus on the circular economy approach, at Decom North Sea’s lunch and learn yesterday.

Raymond Pirie, Vice President of Exploration and Production said: “We have many years experience of asset inventory and asset integrity planning so bringing all our experience together in a complete solution for managing decommissioning is a natural progression for the business.

“Circular economy provides great opportunities for decommissioning, when planned correctly it can create greater cost control as well as ensuring that redundant materials are removed and used in the most effective way possible. Asset inventory is a key component of this, knowing what is on the asset will determine what can be done with each piece. This in turn has implications for timing, cleaning, cutting and removal options so early identification of the inventory is crucial to understand the reuse opportunities.”

With over 30 years experience in environmental consultancy services, Intertek will complete and manage the applications and permits associated with decommissioning projects for regulators and stakeholders. They will also utilize the expertise of their labs in waste analysis to provide waste characterization and ensure that pipelines are safe to prepare for removal. Once equipment has been decommissioned and repurposed, Intertek can then recertify it to ensure it is ready to reuse – the final step in the circular economy approach.

To assist with managing inventory and data for each asset, Intertek are using its GeoAIMS (Geographical Asset and Information Management System). GeoAIMS is a web-based application which allows users to interact, query and retrieve data from the database without needing GIS software. Using GeoAIMS for decommissioning projects means real-time updates of hazardous materials can be taken as and when they are located and identified. It will also allow the type and quantities of hazardous and residual materials to be logged and tagged to their exact location.

Mr. Pirie continued: “As well as the services to manage the decommissioning work, we can also provide training and manage the change for the people involved. The offshore environment is different for an asset in the decommissioning stage to one in production and we can help people to recognize that and develop the right culture.

“By offering our clients a full life-cycle approach to decommissioning, the client can have one dedicated point of contact and our knowledge of their project ensures that all the phases run effectively together.”

Offshore Installation Services (OIS), an Acteon company, has been awarded a contract to decommission multiple wells in the North Sea by Centrica Energy. The initial campaign includes six subsea wells in the central North Sea, in categories 2.1 and 2.2, which will be abandoned using a diverless, vessel-based approach.

Massy Wood Group has achieved 18 million consecutive safe work hours without a lost time incident, across its operations in Trinidad and Tobago.

The milestone was accomplished over a nine year period on 15 contracts delivered in country by the company, which is jointly owned by Wood Group PSN (WGPSN) and the energy division of Massy Holdings Limited.

Vaughn Martin, managing director of Massy Wood Group, said: “The safety of our people, everything we design, construct, operate and maintain is our top priority and integral to how we do business.

“This achievement recognizes our commitment to safety and the dedication of over 1800 employees and subcontractors who have demonstrated excellence in acting as our safety leaders.”

Established in 2003, Massy Wood Group provides brownfield and greenfield production services to the oil & gas, petrochemical and power industries in Trinidad and Tobago.

The company has offices in Port of Spain, Chaguanas, Galeota, Point Lisas and Point Fortin.

▪ Project to develop 190 million barrels of oil

▪ Total Block 15 production anticipated to reach 350,000 barrels of oil per day

▪ Nearly $740 million invested in Angola for the project

ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) has announced that its subsidiary, Esso Exploration Angola (Block 15) Limited (Esso Angola), has started oil production ahead of schedule at the Kizomba Satellites Phase 2 project offshore Angola.

Kizomba Satellites Phase 2 is a Block 15 subsea infrastructure development of the Kakocha, Bavuca and Mondo South fields. Mondo South is the first field to begin production, and the other two satellite fields are expected to start up in the coming months.

The project develops approximately 190 million barrels of oil with peak production currently estimated at 70,000 barrels of oil per day. The project is expected to increase total daily Block 15 production to 350,000 barrels. Esso Angola is operator of the project and Block 15.

The project optimizes the capabilities of existing Block 15 facilities to increase current production levels without requiring additional floating production, storage and offloading vessels (FPSOs). The Mondo South field is being developed with tiebacks to the Mondo FPSO, while the Kakocha and Bavuca fields are being developed with tiebacks to the Kizomba B FPSO.

“This exemplifies ExxonMobil’s project management expertise and the capabilities of local suppliers and businesses that helped maximize the value of Angola’s petroleum resources,” said Neil W. Duffin, president of ExxonMobil Development Company. “As a result, our team achieved the best safety performance to date among the major Block 15 projects and reached a high level of Angolan participation.”

Nearly $740 million has been invested in Angola for the project, including contracts for fabrication, logistics support and training and development of Angolan personnel.

“Achieving successful startup has a lot do with the strong partnership between ExxonMobil and other Block 15 co-venturers, the government of Angola, most notably the Ministry of Petroleum, and Sonangol,” Duffin said.

ExxonMobil was awarded Block 15 in 1994 and, to date, has discovered a total of approximately 5 billion oil-equivalent barrels. Oil production from Block 15 to date has exceeded 1.8 billion barrels. Kizomba Satellites Phase 1 started production in 2012.

Operator Esso Angola has 40 percent interest in Block 15. Other co-venturers include BP Exploration Angola Limited, with 26.67 percent, Eni Exploration Angola BV, with 20 percent, and Statoil Angola Block 15 AS, with 13.33 percent. Sonangol is the concessionaire.

On March 17, 2015 Hertel has announced the acquisition of Hertel by Altrad for its worldwide access solutions, insulation, corrosion protection and mechanical businesses. Hertel Offshore was not part of the acquisition by Altrad, but will continue its activities and business with the same shareholders (NPM Capital, Ackermans & van Haaren and Hertel Offshore Management) under a new brand name.

Hertel Offshore has now changed its name and will continue its business as per May 1, 2015 under its new name: CKT Projects.

Hertel Offshore was an amalgation (between 2005 and 2008) of three companies: Hertel Marine Services BV, CKT Projects BV and McGill Services Ltd. As CKT Projects BV has always been a reputable and reliable partner for many in the On- and Offshore Oil & Gas, Naval and Marine and Defense industries, this familiar brand name has been chosen and will be rejuvenated.

Robert Jan Dubbeldam, Managing Director of CKT Projects adds; “ We are convinced that we have a strong potential to further develop CKT Projects as a market leader in our businesses and to serve our customers locally and around the globe under our new brand name CKT Projects”.