Mexico

Western interior regions from northeast Oregon to northeast New Mexico broiled in record-setting temperatures following the July 4 holiday, sending power utilities scrambling to keep loads balanced with aggressive supply and demand-dampening programs. Even traditional hot spots like Death Valley, CA, and Las Vegas broke their own records with 127- and 117-degree temperatures, respectively. Nevada and Idaho utilities set all-time peak demand records.

The $3.5 billion Tahiti project in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, which was scheduled to ramp-up in mid-2008, will be delayed for an unknown period because of metallurgical problems discovered in the facility’s mooring shackles, Chevron Corp. said Thursday. Tahiti’s peak production is expected to be 125,000 b/d of oil and 70 MMcf/d of natural gas.

The $3.5 billion Tahiti project in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, which was scheduled to ramp-up in mid-2008, will be delayed for an unknown period because of metallurgical problems discovered in the facility’s mooring shackles, Chevron Corp. said Thursday. Tahiti’s peak production is expected to be 125,000 b/d of oil and 70 MMcf/d of natural gas.

There were few naysayers to the deal struck by Newfield Exploration Co. to sell its shallow water Gulf of Mexico (GOM) producing properties to McMoRan Exploration Co. for $1.1 billion (see Daily GPI, June 22). Credit analysts, including Fitch, view the transaction as a positive for Newfield’s plans now and into the future.

Although slight, the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) was the only region in the world to show a gain in offshore rigs in April, according to GlobalSantaFe’s Summary of Current Offshore Rig Economics (SCORE).

As the oil and natural gas industry explores ever-deeper targets, particularly in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), the Department of Energy (DOE) is touting a groundbreaking pre-drill seismic technology to confirm deep oil and natural gas reserves.

As the oil and natural gas industry explores ever-deeper targets, particularly in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), the Department of Energy (DOE) used a cost-shared project managed by the Office of Fossil Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) to develop groundbreaking pre-drill seismic technology.

Following an appraisal of its deepwater Droshky prospect in the Gulf of Mexico, Marathon Oil Corp. estimates the discovery holds mean recoverable resource of 80-90 MMboe. The Droshky discovery is located in 2,900 feet of water on Green Canyon Block 244, about 137 miles south-southwest of Venice, LA. The appraisal process consisted of drilling a down dip sidetrack well and a lateral sidetrack well. The wells are about two miles south of the Troika Field Production System. The initial well was drilled to a total depth of 21,190 feet and encountered 250 feet of net oil pay. The down dip appraisal sidetrack encountered more than 600 feet of net oil pay, while the lateral sidetrack encountered 300 feet of net oil pay. All pay intervals are Upper Miocene in age. Marathon expects to produce the field via subsea completions through the Troika system and Bullwinkle Platform, with terms already in place. The timing of initial production will be dependent upon delivery of key equipment (i.e., drilling rig and subsea equipment) and regulatory approvals, but could be as early as 2010. Marathon holds a 100% working interest in the Droshky prospect and a 50% working interest in the Troika unit.

Following an appraisal of its deepwater Droshky prospect in the Gulf of Mexico, Marathon Oil Corp. estimates the discovery holds mean recoverable resource of 80-90 MMboe. The Droshky discovery is located in 2,900 feet of water on Green Canyon Block 244, about 137 miles south-southwest of Venice, LA.