JL Daeschler reports that there has been no wind for the past 4 days at his home in Scotland, and his wind gauge is droopy. (See his sketch below and read the fine print 😉)
Archive for the ‘energy’ Category
JL’s wind monitor
Posted in climate, energy, Wind Energy, tagged Anemoi, JL Daeschler, no wind, Wind Energy on September 21, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Francine shut-in volumes continued to rise
Posted in energy, Gulf of Mexico, hurricanes, Offshore Energy - General, tagged evacuations, Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Francine, production shut-in on September 12, 2024| Leave a Comment »
BSEE data for the past 3 days are tabulated below. Data are as of 12:30 p.m. ET on the specified date. Barring offshore or downstream infrastructure damage, production should begin to resume over the next few days.
Prior to the shale boom, when our national production was lower and the OCS accounted for a larger share, these numbers would have had a more significant effect on oil and gas prices. That is not the case today with only a 2.4% rise in WTI prices.
| date | 9/10 | 9/11 | 9/12 |
| oil shut-in (BOPD) % of total | 412,070 23.55 | 674,833 38.56 | 730,472 41.74 |
| gas s.i. (MMCFD) % of total | 494 25.56 | 904 48.77 | 991.68 53.32 |
| platforms evac. % of total | 130 35 | 171 46 | 169 45.55 |
| rigs evacuated % of total | 2 40 | 3 60 | 3 60 |
| DP rigs moved % of total | 3 15 | 4 20 | 2 10 |
Hurricane Francine shut-in numbers climb
Posted in energy, Gulf of Mexico, hurricanes, tagged Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Francine, production shut-in on September 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »
As of 12:30 pm ET on 9/11/2024, nearly 40% of the oil and half of the gas production was shut-in.
| Total Shut-in (Percentage of GOM Production) | ||
| Oil, BOPD Shut-in | 674,833 BOPD | 38.56 % |
| Gas, MMCFD Shut-in | 907 MMCFD | 48.77 % |
| Evacuations and rig movements | total | % of GOM |
| Platforms Evacuated | 171 | 46% |
| Rigs Evacuated (non DP) | 3 | 60% |
| DP Rigs Moved-off | 4 | 20% |
Labor Day Salute to Offshore Workers
Posted in energy, Offshore Energy - General, Uncategorized, tagged Labor Day, offshore workers on September 2, 2024| Leave a Comment »
On Labor Day 2024, BOE is proud to salute the thousands of dedicated offshore professionals, in the US and around the world, who work in remote locations under challenging conditions to support economic growth and prosperity.
The overwhelming majority of offshore workers do their jobs skillfully and conscientiously, and are committed to protecting their colleagues and the environment. It is their lives that are threatened, their “back yard” that is polluted, and their jobs that are at stake if accidents occur.
Fortunately for us, energy exploration and production doesn’t stop on holidays. BOE wants offshore workers to know that their important contributions to society are greatly appreciated, on Labor Day and throughout the year.
Happy Labor Day!
Natural gas to the rescue
Posted in energy, energy policy, natural gas, Offshore Energy - General, Offshore Wind, tagged natural gas, reliable energy, Wind Energy, wind stops blowing on July 26, 2024| Leave a Comment »
July 24 (Reuters) – The amount of electricity produced by wind farms in the U.S. fell to a 33-month low on Monday, forcing power generators to crank up natural-gas fired plants to keep air conditioners humming during a hot summer day.
Over the past few years, much of the money energy firms have invested in new generation has gone into renewable power sources like wind and solar. But when the wind stops blowing and the sun does not shine, gas is still needed to keep the lights on.
Funny how that works! Being trendy and highly promoted doesn’t make you reliable!
On Memorial Day …..
Posted in energy, Offshore Energy - General, Uncategorized, tagged abundant energy, energy security, freedom, Memorial Day on May 27, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Thinking of those who gave their lives to protect our freedoms, including workers who died providing the energy needed to power our economy.
abundant, reliable, affordable energy 🡆 economic strength 🡆 security and independence
More buzz about Quaise
Posted in climate, drilling, energy, tagged field tests, gyrotron, Nabors Drilling, Quaise Energy, ultradeep geothermal on March 6, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Given the intermittency, space preemption, aesthetic, and wildlife issues associated with wind and solar power, more attention has been shifting to geothermal energy. Quaise’s plan to tap ultradeep heat resources has been on our radar for several years and has been attracting private funding and a bit of media buzz.
Quaise is exciting not only because of the unlimited energy potential, but because of the fascinating gyrotron technology that vaporizes hard rock and could enable wells to be drilled to depths of 20-30 km and temperatures of >1000° C. Nabors, a leading drilling contractor, is one of the Quaise investors, and will be involved with the test drilling.
Demonstrating the gyrotron technology in the field is a big step up from doing so in the lab. Those of us in the “peanut gallery” are awaiting more definitive information on the lab tests that have been conducted to date and the important field tests, which are scheduled for this year.
Autry Stephen’s story reinforces our messages about successful companies
Posted in drilling, energy, Uncategorized, tagged Autry Stephens, Diamondback Energy, Endeavor Energy, management, Midland, Permian, successful companies on March 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »
A Fortune article about Autry Stephens, Endeavor Energy Resources CEO, pegs him as the world’s richest oilman following the sale of his company to Diamondback Energy. His story reinforces many of the success messages previously discussed on BOE:
- Humble beginnings: As the son of peanut-and-melon farmers, his work ethic was no doubt established at a young age.
- Diverse experience starting with entry level positions: He “wore nearly every hat in the oil industry, from trucker to driller to engineer.”
- Private land: Stephens started buying Texas Permian rights early in his career.
- Technology leader: His company embraced the horizontal drilling and advanced well stimulation practices critical to Permian success.
- Contrarian who stuck with his plan: When major oil companies left for more lucrative opportunities overseas, he continued adding Permian leases acquiring a total of 344,000 acres.
- Low debt: His insistence on using cash to acquire drilling rights helped him survive the 2008 financial crisis, which crushed oil demand and bankrupted some US operators.
- Lean organization: He focused on maintaining a lean staff and efficient operations, which no doubt facilitated effective communication and instilled common values.
- Take care of your employees: He insisted that none of Endeavor’s 1200 employees be let go after the merger with Diamondback.
- Support the community: Served Midland and merged with the company that was located right across the street.
- Former Federal employee 😉: Not known as a key to success, but I’ll take it 😀. (Stephens once worked for the Army Corps of Engineers.)
Exxon’s acquisition of Pioneer is impressive, but their business strategy seems a bit hypocritical
Posted in climate, energy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, tagged carbon intensity, carbon sequestration, Exxon, Gulf of Mexico, hypocrisy, Permian, Pioneer on October 12, 2023| 2 Comments »
Impressive acquisition:
- Exxon has acquired Pioneer’s 850,000+ Permian acres, which increases their Permian holdings by approximately 150%.
- The acquisition will increase their Permian resource to an estimated 16 billion barrels of oil equivalent.
- Exxon’s Permian production volume will more than double to 1.3 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, and is expected to increase to approximately 2 MOEBD in 2027.
- Pioneer appears to be a responsible operator from an HSE standpoint.
Hypocrisy?
- Exxon is clearly intent on maximizing production in the Permian. This makes good business sense and is good for the US economy.
- Contradictorily, Exxon intends to establish a CO2 disposal business (“carbon sequestration”) in the Gulf of Mexico. Is their goal to profit from emissions resulting from the consumption of the production that they are maximizing?
- If Exxon believes the consumption of oil and gas is harmful to society, as suggested by their CO2 disposal plans, perhaps they should be curtailing their oil and gas production business rather than expanding it.
- Deepwater Gulf of Mexico production, which Exxon has shunned, has much lower carbon intensity than Permian production, but Exxon’s sole GoM interest is CO2 disposal. Shouldn’t a company that is intent on reducing upstream GHG emissions be active in the leading offshore region in that regard, the region that is adjacent to their world headquarters?
More on ultradeep microwave drilling for geothermal energy
Posted in climate, drilling, energy, Uncategorized, tagged DOE, microwave drilling, Quaise Energy, ultradeep geothermal on September 21, 2023| 2 Comments »
As has been previously discussed on this blog, the renewable energy source that shows the greatest promise for generating the power needed to support economic growth is ultradeep geothermal.
This JPT article nicely describes the opportunities and challenges
Good comparison of drilling into hard basement rock with conventional and millimeter wave (microwave) technologies:
Quaise Energy’s first full-scale testing of a hybrid drilling rig combining conventional rotary drilling and millimeter wave drilling capabilities is scheduled for 2024.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 