China and the war for Oil

**Wahalla** · 12-26-2011, 08:04 PM

Re: China and the war for Oil

The Scarabeo 9 is owned by Siapem, ....an itlaian company. This scared mongering tempered with Xenophobia and out right rascism.. ...Siapem ordered two identical rigs..Scarabeo 8 and the Scarabeo 9.. I beleive the Scarabeo 8 was bear boness ship when it left China and was outfitted in Singapore The rigs were built originally to be used by their part owner of ENI...an Italian oil company.. Who negotiated a deal to sub contract it ot Repsol.. Who will use it it Cuba..

Yanki paranoia.. Even PDVSA own oil in the US GOM so does ENI who own small stripper feilds in Wyoming..... But there are few that operates deep water wells

The US will not let CNOOC to operate deep water wells in US GOM.... There are qualifications that CNOOC wont meet, experience .. Tjhey thus can invest but not operate wells. There is a way round that CNOOC.. I beleive that CNOOC have operated drilled a couple deep water wells this year, with 5 or six as part of a consortium..But they did not operate wells that are similar to Cuba.. greater than 1000 m of water. They acknowledge this limitation...and are working to aliviate this deficiency....

.As BP discovered there are limitation without personnel and experience ... This is the identical situation in Cuba.. where the Chinese corporations own shares in the Repsol project but wont operate or manage the drilling of the well. Repsol, I beleove moved their team from Brazil to Cuba....

The Chinese are coming there is no doubt....

.. In Cuba there are Kanandian, Brazilian, Vietnamese, Venezuelan, Malaysian, French, Spanish, Russian, Norwegian, even Angolan companies....But the paranoia about the yellow peril is resurrected...

Chinese companies own parts of Yanki oil companies, as well as French, British as well as in Australian, Kanadian companies... and there is complimentary investment...

By the way I think the Cubans are making a mistake if they are going to allow the first well to be drilled by the Scarabeo 8 is a deep water well in their waters... I would strongly urge them to test the rig on at least two shallow water wells in a known field before they spud the a deep water wild cat with the nearest offset possibly hundreds of kilometers away,, .... In fact I would be surprised they dont see the Cuban water lithology as a mirror of the west GOM...So it will be politically interesting how other parnters who could have acces to the information through information trading if they can pass it on to their cuban affiliates.....

**Wahalla** · 12-27-2011, 09:16 AM

Re: China and the war for Oil

There are two factual errors in that report.. the claim that Karzai was a consultant for UNOCal came from one reference in Le Monde and has no back up..

Unocal owns no unique technology.. That is a plain mis understanding and misdirection.. they may have sone interative software but then so does every other oil company... deepwater technology is rigs (6th generation rigs with 3rd generation Dynamic Positioning, principally this is supplied by Konsburg a Norge company), not owned by oil companies, BOP's technology is weith a couple service company, Seismic.. this is technology is owned by principally service companies Baker, Schlumberger and Halliburton. .. But also by COCL the mega chinese company.. who compete for seismic on land..

Devon, Anadarko, ENI have all operated deep water wells off shore china in which CNOOC SNEPCO are partners, ie thee Western companies do the actual drilling ....(During my time in China, I used to have coffee every morning with these western companies and many others who did the South China Sea .. imagine a coffee we all took rounds at buying the coffee, the bill came to 300 to 500 US dollar ( once it did top a 1000 US I think there was a bout 20 people there that morning) depending on who attended.. The Chinese workers were always impressed and horrified that this group of Gwilo would arrive before them and when they opened we would set out the tables.. I while they made the lattes.... and got the pastries. I mention this as I recall REPSOL just arrived in China to join in as a operator....)

What the chinese were after was the deep water operating experience as well as teh oil assets.. BP took over ARCO (a yanki company) and this was the division of BP that cause Macondo..

ARCO was the first western company to drilling China in the late 80's early 90's....

**Wahalla** · 12-27-2011, 09:41 AM

Re: China and the war for Oil

See Petrobras is the most experienced deep water drilling company outside of BP.. yet they are just getting permissions to operate in US GOM, the Chinese CNOOC has limited experience operating deep water wells will not at this stage get permissions in the US gulf. BP screwed up even with their experience.. if you recall during the Macondo the competency of a Brazilian Petrobras engineer was questioned in congress... Whhat do u think the yanki would say if they see a Rig Supervisor from mainland china... (Yet Halliburton, Schlumberger and the oter service companies have a significant proportion of chinese rocket science types) See the seacond from bottom comment in red...

The issue is not rigs but personnel with Deep water experience....

Given that Siepem has two new deep water rigs that will start drilling next year where will the crews come from ?????? U cant simply pull a derrick man out of thin air much less a Driller, tool pushers, ticketed dynamic positioning personnel.. Even roughnecks with experience are like hens teeth...they are now demanding rough necks with BOP supervisor certification...Tjhen there are the service personnel::::: the Mud engineers, the Directional Drillers, MWD, Loggers, cementers ect....do a internet search on these for jobs and literally hundreds of these vacancies world wide....As for Drilling Engineers and Senior Drilling Engineers.....completion engineers.... HSE..

Sicne unno love si statements from yankis here is something from Rigzone (They usually have a lot of stroies from the Xinhua news agency as well)

Rigs, Workers Go Abroad Leaving GOM Operators in the Lurch
Greenwire|Friday, December 23, 2011

Though delays in federal permitting for new Gulf of Mexico drilling are shrinking, industry executives fear new opportunities abroad will draw staffing and equipment away from Gulf projects.

Operators are finding it more difficult to lure back offshore rigs chased away by the drilling moratorium that followed last year's BP oil spill. The increasing complexity of drilling in deeper waters is also making it more difficult to hire, train and retain qualified staff, companies report.

Speaking Dec. 1 on the future of offshore operations at an industry gathering hosted by Jefferies & Co. in Houston, oil and gas executives said they expect an active 2012 in the Gulf, especially in the deep waters of the outer continental shelf. Several new finds and an uptick in interest by big global players like Statoil and Petrobras are seen as particularly benefiting Houston-area offshore service providers.

But at the same time, some of the Gulf's most active drillers admit that they are being slowed down not only by a permitting backlog, but by the growing difficulty of deepwater operations and a boom in activity in Africa, Australia and Brazil.

Chuck Meloy, vice president for worldwide operations at Anadarko Petroleum Corp, said he doubts predictions by some that 2012 drilling activity will return to 2009 levels. Though the Gulf is an important target, Meloy said, Anadarko is more actively eyeing prospects in West and East Africa.

Duncan Peace, managing director at Crondall Energy Consultants, warned executives that staffing is now "the biggest constraint" in the offshore oil and gas industry. Though new opportunities abound, companies expect "real pressure on resources," he said. Offshore talent is being lured, he said, to Australia and Brazil in particular.

Company executives now experiencing these supply-side constraints concur.

"Frankly, the people are harder to replace, harder to train," said Kevin Robert, senior vice president for marketing at Ensco PLC, which operates the world's second-largest offshore rig fleet.

Though Ensco is bullish on the offshore market in the Gulf, he warned his peers that it will take at least another two years before rig availability is no longer a problem. He says active plays abroad are seeing rig suppliers less willing to commit equipment to wells that can take several months to drill, especially in light of the recent regulatory uncertainty in the U.S. offshore environment.

The BP spill and moratorium have pushed a large number of rigs away from the United States, and "it's difficult to get those rigs back," Robert said. "We don't really see any availability until 2013."

Gustavo Amaral, head of U.S. operations at Petrobras, agreed with Robert's assessment. The Brazilian oil giant is making its first forays into the Gulf, and navigating the new regulations and permitting procedures in the United States has been "a very fruitful learning for Petrobras," he said.

At the same time, Amaral also complained of a staffing crunch, expressing fears that it could slow down their Gulf drilling plans more than expected.

"It's hard to find good people and keep good people," Amaral said.

Technological advancements and, in some cases, a lack thereof, are also causing difficulties, insiders say.

Amaral said his company would still like to see much better subsurface seismic data to confirm their expectations for resource potential. Though Petrobras is growing excited about its expansion in the United States, its Gulf drilling in the coming years will be "on a much smaller scale" than what the company is pursuing in Africa and Brazil, partly because the hydrocarbon potential is better understood in those places, he said.

Still, growing demand for offshore drilling in more challenging environments is making equipment providers excited about the future.

James Harp, CEO of Hornbeck Offshore Services, told investors the future Gulf of Mexico development serves "as a proxy for the rest of the world," namely a push toward "deeper waters, deeper wells and further offshore."

To supply the coming boom, Harp said, Hornbeck is moving to build 73 floating rigs. Massive new drill ships that can operate in environments that take days to reach from shore are also being considered as Hornbeck and its competitors prepare for the demand they see coming.

"Hence our bullish outlook," Harp said.

Copyright 2011 Environment and Energy Publishing, LLC

WHAT DO YOU THINK?
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JD | Dec. 26, 2011
I started in the oilfield in 2001 and it was the best move that I ever made. Offshore is a whole new world and there is plenty of money to be made. I know for a fact that its easier for a person to get on if you know somebody rather than having experience. Whats the deal with all this deep water drilling scare when there is more than plenty of work for jack up drilling rigs in shallow water. To be honest I dont care what Jo Blow thinks about me or how he treats me Im just there to work and make a living and support my family "bottom line".

Robert Root | Dec. 26, 2011
I think there are quite a few Workers waiting on the drilling to start back up . Lots are ready to come back to the gulf .

wayne nealy | Dec. 26, 2011
as a rig manager i see alot of hands come and go. Its not the lack of hands, its the upper management turning away men that have been in the oilfeild all of their working life to recruit kids that have no knowledge of what they want out of life, which would be ok if they keep a few men around to train them.

Windsock | Dec. 26, 2011
I would love to work again in the GOM, but need sponsorship. I know a lot of experienced people who would go there tomorrow. There is no shortage of experienced people for GOM activity, just a shortage of Americans, or people who can get work permits. Tell it like it is. The shortage is just a shortage of good ol boys. I lost my job in West Africa to a good ol boy (I was a consultant, he was a direct employee). I would like too see the Gulf open up to us foreigners, or take their good ol boys home from the International arena, and let me have a chance to work again.

Curtis | Dec. 26, 2011
"hard to find good hands", when companies decide to treat experienced people like they should, people will stick around, when you can make the same wage @ Wal-mart as in the oilpatch, where do you think people will go -companies need to pay a lot better and treat people better, then workers will come back to the oil patch --go Wal-mart

Fergie | Dec. 26, 2011
I am an old north sea hand their are plenty of solid hard working oil guys available in all disiplines in the uk especialy Scotland give them a chance without the prolonged hassle that occurs on visas and you wont regret it they are from some of the harshest working areas in the oil industry ,employ them att true worth rates and youll get true worth professional work from a force ready to DO WHAT IS REQUIRED NOT [censored] AROUND !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, Cheers FERGIE .

PabloAU | Dec. 24, 2011
Rather a case of the U.S. based rig operators like Diamond / Ensco etc keeping their U.S. staff and rotating them on foreign work visas to reduce cost. Cheaper to pay for flights than compete or pay Australian waged for example - sometimes to the detriment of the operation - before the waves of basher appear there are some of the U.S. rig staff whop would not get jobs with other companies - fact plain & simple. Yes rigs cost money & no one is earning if a rig is dry / wet stacked. Management need to be held accountable for their decisions though. I am so over dealing with "No Nothing, Good Ole Boys" who think Asia Pacific is the G.O.M. Why dont the US play level field rules with immigration visas so we WITH the training can work in the G.O.M? Is not going to happen due to the Immigration Mess the US has with its current border situation

Richard Ator | Dec. 24, 2011
Now who could not see this coming. That is a lot of iron to just pick up and move. Cant blame them a bit for not just running back to the gulf at least not until after next November. As for me I have 25 years of heavy indrustrial maintenance behind me and am ready to make a move to the offshore oil patch but cant even get an interview, Not qulifyied. Fast easy trainer here if anyone needs a good dependable hand. Richard Ator Lipan Texas

| Dec. 23, 2011
If it was me it would be a cold day in H--L before I would let Petrobas set one lousy foot in our GOM those worthless bums fired me and other good hard working AMERICANS on the drillship I was working on only brazilians can work on it with the exception of my Driller and AD and a Toolpusher who are americans us roughnecks and roustabouts and pumproom hands petrobas cand us all said Brazil wont let you work offshore. So is that going to apply to Brazil and petrobas if they do come to GOM to drill I hope to hell they have to hire all american crews and pay good wages to boot I know first hand how the brazilians work I worked with them for 3 straight months and they dont hold a candle to good ol US OF A oilfield workers in all my years of working on Drilling Rigs I have never seen a hand start work at 6 in the morning in clean coveralls and 12 hrs later they are still clean??? Go figure I asked the petrobas OIM what gives your hands dont get dirty but us americans bust our a---s to get your rig ready ot sail to brazil and they dont help and his reply was his workers are above that they will hire cheap labor when the rig gets to brazil what a bunch of c--p, well all I can is lets just see what our offshore companies and our govt will do??? 

David Cubberly | Dec. 23, 2011
"Hard to find good people" is the daily refrain of so many articles, but the industry attitude of arrogance and exclusivity is a self-defeating hurdle to new personnel entering the field.

Ken Rose | Dec. 23, 2011
May be should of trained in the slow times like was done a few years back. Pay now or pay later. The oil industry has bought on ite own problems on there own.

M

**Wahalla** · 12-28-2011, 11:08 AM

Re: China and the war for Oil

Today Afghanistan signed an oil agreement with China.. The Afgans get 70 %....This is a worst deal than in Mauritania....

Note also how the award was made by Cabinet: I question the back ground was there other bidders ? How transpartent was the bid process ??/

What this dashes is the illusion that Karsai was a stooge for Unocal...and the yankis has first dibbs on oil... In fact though the proven afgan oil feild are small relitively currently .... getting production into them would make a trans Afganistan pipe line a more viable option...However the same thing as in Iraq, European, Kanadian and Chinese oil companies are more represented than Yanki..Especially in Kurdistan.
(Last year a agency sent me an email for a contract there as well as in Mongolia)

Also note that the front runner against the Chinese were the Indian.. Note ONGC and Relaince are experts at drilling deep water operators.. How they did it was recruit alot of westerners and adopted competitive bidding for contracts. ONGC are going to operate in Cuba as well...

Afghanistan cabinet OKs oil deal with China's CNPC
By Mirwais Harooni
KABUL (Reuters) - Afghanistan's cabinet cleared the way for the war-torn state to sign a deal with China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) for the development of oil blocks in the Amu Darya basin, the Afghan president's office said on Monday.

The deal covering drilling and a refinery in the northern provinces of Sar-e Pul and Faryab will be the first international oil production agreement entered into by the Afghan government for several decades.

It marks the second major deal for China in Afghanistan after Metallurgical Corp of China signed a contract in 2008 to develop the huge Aynak copper mine south of Kabul, which is due to start producing by the end of 2014.

"The Afghan cabinet has ordered Mines Minister Wahidullah Shahrani to sign an oil exploration contract for Amu Darya with China National Petroleum Corporation," the statement said.

Jawad Omar, a spokesman for the mines ministry, said the contract would be signed on Wednesday.

State-owned CNPC and joint venture partner Watan Group -- a diversified Afghan company -- will explore for oil in three fields in the basin - Kashkari, Bazarkhami and Zamarudsay, which are estimated to hold around 87 million barrels of oil.

Under the contract, CNPC will agree to pay a 15 percent royalty on oil, a 20 percent corporate tax and give up to 70 percent of its profit from the project to the Afghan government.

The mines ministry said in October that the deal was likely to result in government revenues of $5 billion over the next 10 years.

Indian and Chinese bidders have been front-runners for deals to develop Afghanistan's vast mineral deposits, which are valued at $3 trillion, worrying Western firms that have hesitated to invest in the country due to security concerns.

Experts have warned that mining projects in Afghanistan are likely targets for insurgents, that production and transport costs will be high and that sovereign risk is a serious concern.

But China and India, where demand for energy and industrial inputs is booming, are willing to take risks to secure supplies.

India is ignored often in this game.. this is a multi player scanrio.. They may lack the clout of the chinese....But thye are in every bid....

Last week the Ukrainians signed a billion dollar deal in iran.. Given that last month a number of agencies called me to go to the Ukranie for a yanki organisation a shale gas project ...it merely establishes how complex and confusing this is... There is a scramble going on right now for oil.. But not only for oil but for personnel with experience.. like a chess game.. companies will sign personnel and assets to prevent competitors getting access to to them...

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China and the war for Oil

China and the war for Oil

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