Posted in drilling, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, UK, tagged Atlantic drilling, exploratory drilling, Isle of Man on January 19, 2023| Leave a Comment »
A firm with a licence to drill for natural gas in Manx waters expects to begin exploratory works in October, its chief executive has said.
Crogga has appointed Three60 Energy to drill an appraisal well to understand how much gas is under the seabed 17km (10.5miles) off Maughold Head.
BBC
Posted in energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, tagged 5 year leasing plan, BOEM, EIA, Gulf of Mexico oil production, OCSLA, production forecasts on January 17, 2023| Leave a Comment »
As is evident from the first table below, the EIA’s new short-term production forecast for the Gulf of Mexico differs significantly from the optimistic BOEM forecast.
The EIA 2022 figure is spot-on, as it should be given that 10 months of 2022 production data are now in hand. However, BOEM’s 2022 forecast (published in July) missed the mark considerably. (In fairness to BOEM staff, their work was probably completed months before publication pending internal reviews.)
Of greater concern, given the policy implications, is the rosy BOEM forecast for the out-years. Despite historically low levels of leasing and exploratory drilling, BOEM forecasts oil production to exceed 2 million BOPD through 2027 and to remain well above the current (2022) level through 2031 (second table below).
As previously noted, the authors of the proposed 5 year OCS leasing plan have used the BOEM forecasts to justify a skeleton leasing plan that is unprecedented in program history. Contrary to the OCS Lands Act’s mandate and EIA projections regarding future oil and gas consumption, the proposed leasing plan not so subtly announces the intention to phase out the offshore oil and gas program.
| 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | |
| EIA | 1.75 | 1.87 | 1.85 |
| BOEM | 1.892 | 2.000 | 2.013 |
Posted in energy policy, gas, Gulf of Mexico, natural gas, Offshore Energy - General, tagged Arena Offshore, Byron Energy, Contango, Cox Operating, gas well gas, GOM Shelf, Gulf of Mexico production, Helis Oil and Gas, Hess, natural gas, Samchully, Sanare, W&T offshore, Walter Oil and Gas on January 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Offshore gas has important environmental advantages, particularly nonassociated gas-well gas (GWG). While the GoM production chart (below) is not pretty, there are signs that gas production may have bottomed and is slowly rising. This is largely due to growth in oil-well gas (OWG) associated with deepwater oil production.
A successful offshore program requires a mix of strategies, and it is encouraging that companies are still pursuing natural gas on the GoM shelf. The second chart (below), based on BOEM data, shows 2022 YTD (probably through Oct.) GWG production for the 11 companies that (1) produced more GWG than OWG and (2) produced more than 1 BCF of GWG.
Interestingly, 100% of the gas produced by Contango, Samchully, and Helis in 2022 was from gas wells. Contrast this with bp, the third largest GoM gas producer. None of bp’s gas production was from gas wells.
One has to wonder about the extent to which deepwater gas reservoirs are being stranded due to the less favorable economics. Preventing such resource losses was once an important regulatory consideration given the conservation mandate in the OCS Lands Act and the importance of maximizing the public benefit. However, current policy, as expressed in the proposed 5 year leasing plan, is to phase out offshore production rather than sustain it. This is difficult to reconcile.
Posted in energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation, tagged BOEM, Liz Klein, offshore oil and gas, Offshore Wind on January 10, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Liz is an experienced attorney and leader in clean energy, climate change, and environmental law and policy. A member of the Biden-Harris administration since January 20, 2021, Liz has served as Senior Counselor to Secretary Haaland with an emphasis on water policy and climate change resilience. In this role, Liz also served as Chair of the Indian Water Rights Working Group, which manages, negotiates and implements settlements of water rights claims.
Prior to joining the Administration, Liz was Deputy Director of the non-partisan State Energy & Environmental Impact Center at NYU School of Law, which supports state Attorneys General addressing clean energy, climate, and environmental initiatives of regional and national importance. President Biden is the third President under which Liz has served at Interior, having worked for both the Clinton and Obama administrations. Under Secretaries Ken Salazar and Sally Jewell, Liz served as Interior’s Associate Deputy Secretary as well as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of Policy, Management and Budget. She was a key architect of the Obama Administration’s work to create a new offshore wind industry and leasing program.
DOI
Congratulations to Ms. Klein on being appointed to lead the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. In addition to her commendable support for offshore wind energy, I trust that she appreciates the national importance of the OCS oil and gas program and the need for regular lease sales.
Posted in energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, tagged Gulf of Mexico, offshore leasing, Ram Powell TLP, Talos on January 10, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Posted in energy policy, tagged SPR depletion, Strategic Petroleum Reserve on January 3, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Posted in energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Offshore Wind, Uncategorized, tagged offshore oil and gas, Offshore Wind, synergy on January 2, 2023| Leave a Comment »
The wind program was intended to complement the oil and gas program, not replace it.
These articles highlight some of the challenges facing offshore wind:
Posted in energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Uncategorized, tagged BOE, energy policy, environmental protection, offshore safety, Regulation on December 31, 2022| Leave a Comment »
BOE an independent, unsponsored blog that is dedicated to offshore safety, pollution prevention, energy production, effective regulation, and responsible energy policy. If you would like to submit a post, leave a comment to that effect at any time.
Happy New Year! Bud
Posted in energy policy, tagged Christmas present, SPR depletion, Strategic Petroleum Reserve on December 29, 2022| Leave a Comment »
More “free” oil was withdrawn from the SPR, which has sunk to the lowest level (375.1 million bbls) since Christmas 1983. More rational oil and gas leasing policies would have been a far better gift, particularly for our children and grandchildren.
The “pilot” refill program is scheduled to begin in February. We’ll see how that goes.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 