Pipelines NEWS

Wood has won a contract in the United States for the construction of a natural gas pipeline. The contract is worth £26million. Under the work scope, the company will construct a 28-mile pipeline which will carry gas from Pennsylvania to Ohio. Wood’s CEO of Asset Solutions Americas said, "We’re delighted to be playing a key role in this strategic project".

According to the sources, Chevron has closed some of its oil production facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. Chevron has taken this step after the operator, Shell Pipeline Company shut down its almost 350,000 bpd Amberjack pipeline system. Amberjack connects the fields of the Gulf of Mexico to the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast refiners. The facilities shut down by Chevron include Jack/St. Malo, Tahiti, Big Foot and Genesis.

UAE state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Corporation (ADNOC) has entered into a definitive agreement with U.S. investment firms KKR and BlackRock. The $4 billion midstream pipeline infrastructure deal is expected to close in 3Q2019. While the consortium of KKR and BlackRock will own 40% stakes in the entity, ADNOC will own the rest. ADNOC will also hold sovereignty over the pipelines and management of operations.

Amidst the ongoing debate on Nord Stream 2 pipeline, the European Union's main institutions have agreed on a tentative deal. This deal will increase the bloc's role in managing a pipeline from Russia to Germany. EU's Energy Commissioner has declared "that everyone interested in selling gas to Europe must respect European energy law." However, US has declared Nord Stream as a threat to Europe's energy security.

OMV has announced that the company will export gas which will compete on price, firmly rejecting US’ criticism over Nord Stream 2. The Austrian energy company is the stakeholder in the planned Nord Stream 2 pipeline to Germany. OMV’s CEO said “If the U.S. were to offer competitively priced liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Europe, they need not worry about the prospect of supply from NS 2 gas”.

An explosion in a ruptured pipeline burnt many people trying to fill containers with fuel in central Mexico yesterday. Television footage showed flames blazing from the burning pipeline in the municipality of Tlahuelilpan. State governor Omar Fayad denied knowledge of any deaths, but said that he had received reports that “many people” suffered burn injuries in the explosion.

GAIL awarded a pipe laying contract worth Rs 270 crore to IL&FS last year but is planning to terminate that contract. This is because the financially-troubled contractor is delaying the project. According to the source “Due to its financial crisis, IL&FS is unable to pay its subcontractors and suppliers. So, these sub-contractors have stopped working and vendors have stopped supplies.” This 2,655 km pipeline is called Pradhan Mnatri Urja Ganga.

Energy services firm, Wood Plc has secured a $43 million contract to build an 80 mile-long steel pipeline in West Texas. The Aberdeen-based company informed that the pipeline would be used to transport natural gas liquids (NGL) across Texas. Wood said that the contract award reinforced its position as a "major midstream player". Wood secured three contracts last month to assist the onshore oilfields development in the UAE.

India-based Great Eastern Energy Corp (GEECL) is planning to put in approximately $2 billion to exploit shale gas reserves in West Bengal’s Raniganj block. The company is looking to begin the initial exploration work of drilling core wells in 2019. GEECL has reached an initial understanding with state-owned GAIL (India) for an offtake or a transmission agreement through the upcoming Jagdishpur-Haldia & Bokaro-Dhamra pipeline.

Gaz-System, gas grid operator of Poland and its Danish counterpart have marked their approval on the Baltic Pipe gas link. This Polish project is intended to reduce its reliance on Russian gas. Baltic Pipe, a 900 kilometres pipeline will link Poland with Norway’s deposits past Baltic Sea and Denmark. Poland’s deal with Russia’s Gazprom will end in 2022 and it is expected that the project will be ready by that time.

NordStream 2 pipeline has been under severe criticism from a long period of time. Previously, Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany stated that the fellow nation should put this pipeline project on hold after Russia’s act of seizing three Ukrainian ships near Crimea. But, Germany is unaffected by any criticism regarding NordStream 2 which will transport gas to Europe, bypassing Ukraine. Germany’s government spokesman informed that Ukraine will remain a transit country.

India’s ONGC will have to pay 242 crore to the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT), as ordered by the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP), India. This compensation has been imposed on the firm as wharfage compensation for the transportation of crude oil through the two pipelines of ONGC. The company said that it is examining the admissibility of the claim.

Woodside Petroleum Ltd informed that it has inked a 20-year gas sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with Perdaman Chemicals and Fertilisers Pty Ltd. The agreement will lead to the pipeline supply of 125 TJ of gas per day for use in Perdaman’s proposed urea plant. Woodside will source the gas to Perdaman from its proposed Scarborough development.

Securing contracts from Permian, Alaska through the Bakken and then Louisiana’s onshore energy contract, Wood has won a string of new contracts in US midstream this year. These contracts are worth about £190m, and will create about 1,000 new jobs. CEO of Wood’s Asset Solutions Americas commented “These contracts show the strength and expertise of Wood to deliver a diversified portfolio of energy,”

Oil minister of India has updated the nation about the recent talks with Nepal. The two countries have agreed to discover various possibilities for laying pipelines to supply LPG and natural gas. Pradhan said “Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) will work together on these projects,” The leader of both the countries have agreed to complete the ongoing pipeline work from Motihari, India to Amlekhgunj, Nepal.

India and Bangladesh yesterday jointly unveiled a pipeline project for widening the connectivity network in the region. The projects include the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline and the Dhaka-Tongi-Joydebpur railway project. The unveiling came after the Bangladesh cabinet approved access of Chittagong port by NE states of India. The pipeline will transport high speed diesel to Bangladesh, currently being supplied through cross-border train from Numaligarh refinery.

At an enterprise valuation of $2 billion, investment firm Brookfield is all set to acquire the East West Pipeline Ltd (EWPL), currently running at a loss. Post-acquisition, Brookfield will own the 1,400 km common carrier pipeline from Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh to Bharuch in Gujarat. Brookfield is supporting India Infrastructure Trust, an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) as the acquisition vehicle.

According to the source, Algeria has decided to enhance the output of Europe, for which it will invest $280 million to build a gas pipeline. The capacity of the pipeline will be 4.5 bcm per year and is expected to be online by 2020. The plan is to connect this 197 km pipeline with two others that will further link it to Spain.