new base 626 special 15 june 2015

Copyright © 2015 NewBase www.hawkenergy.net Edited by Khaled Al Awadi – Energy Consultant All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, redistributed,

or otherwise copied without the written permission of the authors. This includes internal distribution. All reasonable endeavours have been used to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this

publication. However, no warranty is given to the accuracy of its content.

NewBase 15 June 2015 - Issue No. 626 Khaled Al Awadi

NewBase For discussion or further details on the news below you may contact us on +971504822502, Dubai, UAE

UAE’s infrastructure investment ‘not affected by oil slump’ The National + NewBase

The UAE will proceed with infrastructure investment despite the fall in oil prices, said the Minister of Economy, Sultan Al Mansouri.

“When it comes to infrastructure such as hospitals, schools, roads, wherever that is needed, we have the capacity to finance it,” he said yesterday. “None of that is going to be affected in the next four to five years.”

The collapse in oil prices late last year led the IMF to urge Arabian Gulf states to cut public spending “over the medium term”, as the UAE prepares this year for its first budget deficit since the global financial crisis in 2008.

The IMF forecasts the UAE’s looming fiscal shortfall to be equal to 2.3 per cent of GDP this year before balancing its books next year. The UAE would plug the gap between spending and revenue by drawing down on its financial reserves, said Mr Al Mansouri.

The country’s infrastructure plans would not be affected by the decline in oil prices “simply because the UAE has created a large and substantial reserve over the years”, he said. “We have managed our budget over the years in a very effective way.”

Investment in airport infrastructure, in particular, will continue to grow rapidly, as Dubai International Airport attempts to become the world’s largest. “We have to meet the increase in demand. This is where the expansion of airports and building new ones is part of the agenda,” said the minister.

The UAE has invested heavily in infrastructure as part of its Vision 2021 plan to diversify the economy from its reliance on hydrocarbons. The World Bank estimates that Arabian Gulf states will invest US$500 billion on new infrastructure by 2020.




The UAE has financial reserves equivalent to about 275 per cent of GDP in the form of the Central Bank’s foreign-exchange holdings and assets owned by its sovereign wealth funds. Analysts believe that the reserves should be enough to sustain current spending levels for decades to come.

Infrastructure spending will be increasingly important for future economic growth, especially for the development of high-tech and knowledge-based industries, said Bruno Lanvin, an Insead academic and co-author of the World Bank’s global innovation index report.

Major infrastructure projects help to diversify the economy by indirectly encouraging new industries. “There are things you can do in countries with good infrastructure that you just cannot do anywhere else,” said Mr Lanvin.

The results of the UAE’s infrastructure spending “can be measured in terms of the ability of the UAE to participate in flows of goods, services and people”, he said. “Dubai has emerged as a hub even when 20 years ago people thought they couldn’t.”

The quality of the infrastructure in the UAE ranks at number three in the world, behind Hong Kong and Singapore, according to the World Economic Forum’s annual global competitiveness report.

Zeine Zeidane, the IMF’s mission chief in the UAE, said last week that although “the UAE had benefited from building up large external and fiscal buffers over the years, thanks to its hydrocarbon wealth”, now was the time to press ahead with budget cuts over the medium term.

The IMF had previously pointed to energy subsidies and public sector wages as areas to cut, while urging the UAE to continue its capital expenditure.




Oman power subsidy declines 2.5pc in 2014 Oman Observer -57 Written by Conrad Prabhu

The cost to the Omani government of subsidising electricity supply to the nation’s estimated 932,000 customers dipped slightly to around RO 302 million in 2014, down 2.5 per cent from the previous year’s high of RO 310 million, according to The Electricity Holding Company (Nama Group). The decline, albeit marginal, is noteworthy because it represents the first ever easing of the uptrend in subsidy payouts by the government in nearly five years despite soaring domestic electricity demand during this period.

Nama Group, which groups eleven companies engaged in the procurement, generation, transmission and distribution of electricity and related water services, attributed the fall to “the favourable energy procurement cost passed on through the distribution companies”.

Grants provided by the Ministry of Finance have been ballooning from year to year in line with energetic demand growth trends. From

RO 144.0 million in 2010, the subsidy amount climbed to RO 153.4 million a year later, soaring to RO 247.4 million in 2012. In 2013, it reached a peak of RO 310.3 million before falling to RO 302.4 million last year.

According to Mohammed bin Abdullah al Mahrouqi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Nama Group, subsidy enjoyed by electricity consumers declined from an average of RO 361 per customer in 2013 to RO 324 in 2014. Subsidy per unit of electricity fell from RO 13.7 per MWh in 2013 to RO 12.04 per MWh in 2014, he said.

Commenting on the overall operational performance of Nama Group during 2014, the Chairman said: “Oman’s electricity and water sector continued to register a strong growth rate in 2014 through increasing the Distribution and Transmission Capital Assets, reaching more customers and new geographic areas, as a result of the growing population that the Sultanate is witnessing. In 2014, the customer base increased by 8 per cent to 932,208 subscribers compared to 2013 and the electricity supplied increased by 11 per cent to 25,121 GWh.”

Investment by group companies surged to RO 363 million in 2014, the Chairman said, up from RO 278 million a year earlier. The gross operating revenue of the Group climbed 6 per cent from RO 759 million in 2013 to RO 806 million in 2014. Net profit after tax increased 9 per cent from RO 113.1 million in 2013 to RO 123 million in 2014, Al Mahrouqi stated in the Chairman’s Report.

Of the RO 302.4 million in subsidy granted to the electricity sector in 2014, Mazoon Electricity Company received the lion’s share of RO 97.5 million, followed by Muscat Electricity Distribution Company with RO 71.4 million. Other beneficiaries were Majan Electricity Company (RO 66.5 million), Rural Areas Electricity Company (RO 42.3 million) and the Salalah System (RO 27.8 million).




Qatar claims breakthrough in solar power research Arabian Business

Qatar’s ambitious plans to diversify its energy supplies have taken a huge leap forward thanks to ground-breaking new research into solar power.

The Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI), a Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF) national research institute, has discovered the chemical secrets of a new material that could make the generation of solar energy far more economical, and finally unleash the potential of this abundant renewable resource.

The breakthrough is ultimately expected to contribute to QF’s mission of building Qatar’s innovation and technology capacity, ensuring the sustainable development of energy that will benefit this country, as well as the rest of the world, a statement said. According to scientific experts, the natural power of the sun supplies the Gulf state with the annual equivalent of 1.5 million barrels of oil per square kilometre.

However, much of this goes to waste. The high cost of harvesting the latent energy has made it an unattractive investment for ‘traditional’ energy companies, and it has become a major obstacle to Qatar in realising its ambition of generating a fifth of its energy needs from renewable resources by 2024.

Now QEERI, which has taken a leading role in energy and water security research in the region, may well have come up with a solution that will lead to less reliance on oil and gas in the future.

Dr Mohammed Khaleel, QEERI’s executive director, said: “This country’s rapid population and economic growth has led to ever-increasing demands for electricity. Without steps to secure additional sustainable energy sources, and to reduce consumption, the economy and the environment will be adversely affected within the next few years.

"For this reason we are continuing to focus our efforts on harnessing the power of the sun – Qatar’s most abundant natural resource – as we develop new energy solutions for this country and the region as part of our continued support of the Qatar National Vision 2030.”

The research, which has been conducted in tandem with AMBER, a research centre funded by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and jointly hosted by Ireland’s Trinity College Dublin (TCD) and the Centre for Research on Adaptive Nanostructures and Nanodevices (CRANN), has looked specifically at a newly discovered material called perovskite.

Perovskite, which is crystal-like in form, has excited the scientific world since its discovery in 2012, due to the fact that it is a cheaper, and potentially more effective, alternative to silicon, one of the traditional materials used in solar cells.




India: Vedanta and Cairn India to merge Source: Vedanta Resources Vedanta, Cairn India and Vedanta Resources have announced a merger between Vedanta and Cairn India. , the main Key Highlights of the deal are :

• Minority shareholders of Cairn India will receive for each equity share held:

o 1 equity share in Vedanta Limited

o 1 redeemable preference share in Vedanta Limited with a face value of INR 10

• Implied premium of 7.3% to the previous close.

• Strategy remains unchanged, with continued focus on delivering attractive growth, sustainable development and long-term value for all shareholders.

• Commitment to growth and to sustain strong dividend distribution.

• Completion expected in first quarter CY 2016 .

Mr Anil Agarwal, Chairman of Vedanta plc, said: 'The merger of Cairn India and Vedanta Limited consolidates our position as India’s leading diversified natural resources champion, uniquely positioned to support India’s economic growth. The independent Directors, at both Vedanta Limited and Cairn India, unanimously recommend the proposed combination. This marks a significant step towards achieving our stated long term vision of a simplified group structure with alignment of interests between all shareholders for the creation of long term sustainable value.' Mr Tom Albanese, CEO of Vedanta Limited, said: 'This transaction consolidates our portfolio of Tier-I assets which, combined with strong management, will deliver superior returns for all shareholders. It will result in improved financial flexibility to allocate capital to the highest return projects and sustain strong dividends. The combined entity is uniquely positioned to help unlock India’s wealth of world-class energy and mineral resources.' Mr Mayank Ashar, CEO of Cairn India, said:

'The merger with Vedanta Limited will generate additional value for our shareholders and derisks Cairn India by providing access to a portfolio of diversified Tier-I, low cost, long-life assets, to deliver significant near term growth. Our Rajasthan fields continue to remain our core asset.




UK: Hurricane Energy provides update on its Lancaster discovery, West of Shetland…Source: Hurricane Energy

Hurricane Energy, the UK-based oil and gas company focused on hydrocarbon resources in naturally fractured basement reservoirs, provided an update regarding its Lancaster discovery, West of Shetland, at the Annual General Meeting of the Company ('AGM') on June 10. The presentation which was given at the AGM is available for viewing on the Company's website at www.hurricaneenergy.com.

Hurricane has made significant progress in its technical work on its Lancaster asset since drilling a successful well in the summer of 2014. Production rates of 9,800 bopd with ESP (electric submersible pump) support and 5,300 bopd under natural flowing conditions were recorded

during the well test, with both production rates being constrained by the limited capacity of surface equipment. No formation water was produced and the recorded pressure and flow information provided unambiguous evidence to support the Company's earlier opinions that the Lancaster reservoir comprises a very well connected fracture system capable of producing oil at commercial rates.

Since completing the well the Company has been working with Schlumberger to develop a state-of-the-art full field simulation model of the reservoir, which marks a step change in the Company's understanding of the field. Hurricane continues to work with Schlumberger with the objective of optimising the simulation model to plan a refined development strategy for the field.

A key conclusion from the analysis of the 1 km horizontal well drilled last year, coupled with Hurricane's internal field development work, is that the Lancaster reservoir can support a commercially attractive phased development, commencing with an Early Production System (EPS), at oil prices below current levels.

The Company is now planning for a higher productivity reservoir, fewer wells for field development and lower initial capex ahead of first oil. This phased development concept including the EPS solution has been presented to potential farminees as part of the ongoing farm-out discussions. Hurricane is pleased to confirm that it has seen significant levels of industry interest in the data room and continues to do so.

As a 100% owner of Lancaster, the Company is considering its options with regards to the required funding for its field development plans - which may or may not include a farm-out - from a position of strength.




Namibia: Pancontinental extends Tullow's farm-in agreement

Source: Pancontinental

Namibia: Pancontinental extends Tullow's farm-in agreement for offshore Namibia licence EL 0037 . Pancontinental Oil & Gas and its EL 0037 joint venture partner and Operator Tullow Oil have agreed (subject to certain conditions) to amend the farmout agreement between the

companies dated 5 September 2013. Tullow recently requested from Pancontinental an extension to a deadline under the farmout agreement concerning a 'drill or withdraw' decision by Tullow, which was to have been made by 11 August 2015. Pancontinental has agreed to an extension of the deadline to 31 March 2016. The extension will allow the joint venture time to further assess the results of the extensive exploration programme of 3D seismic and geological work that have been carried out to date.

Pancontinental is very encouraged by the exploration results of Tullow’s exploration activities within the EL 0037 area. Since farming-in

to the project in 2013, Tullow has so far undertaken exploration work costing approx. US$34 million of the overall estimated farmin programme, with Pancontinental free-carried:

• Led the Joint Venture as Operator; • Reimbursed past costs and has- • 100% funded the 3D seismic survey not less than 3,000km2; • 100% funded the 2D seismic survey not less than 1,000 km2; and • 100% funded additional costs including mapping historic seismic. •

In order to retain its 65% interest Tullow must now fully fund one exploration well at no cost to Pancontinental. Tullow has to date fully carried out the agreed programme and Pancontinental is optimistic that Tullow will continue exploration on the blocks and proceed towards drilling. Licence EL 0037 Petroleum exploration licence 0037 (EL 0037) covers 17,295 sq km (4.2 million acres) in water depths extending to 1,800m in the Walvis Basin offshore northern Namibia. Pancontinental’s exploration team identified the high prospectivity of the licence area and subsequently the Company and co-venturer Paragon Oil & Gas were awarded the 0037




Exploration Licence on 28 June 2011 and a corresponding Production Agreement was signed on 4 July 2011 (also effective 28 June 2011). The following year Pancontinental increased its interest to 95% though a transaction in which it acquired 10% from Paragon. In September 2013, Tullow farmed-in thereby reducing Pancontinental’s interest to a free-carried 30% in exchange for extensive 3D and 2D seismic programmes and one exploration well. In the event that Tullow elects not to drill the well, the whole of its interest reverts to Pancontinental. The free carried activities undertaken by Tullow have no expenditure “caps”. The joint venture led by Tullow has mapped a number of large turbidite “fan” prospects, some of which are interpreted to be at approximately the same stratigraphic level as the oil found in Wingat-1, to the south of EL 0037 and in the same geological system, as well as close vertically to the interpreted oil source rocks. The Company is now looking forward to the further exploration of the area.




U.S. oil drillers pull seven rigs, biggest drop since late May Reuters + NewBase

The market has been waiting for the slowdown in the rig count to stop as crude prices have rebounded over the past few months, but this week's slowdown showed oil drillers were not yet done cutting the number of rigs.

Energy firms pulled another seven rigs from U.S. oil fields this week, the most since late May, oil services company Baker Hughes Inc said on Friday in its closely followed report. That was the 27th straight weekly decline, bringing the total rig count down to 635, the lowest since August 2010.

Drillers this week added a rig in just one basin, the Granite Wash located in the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma.

With Saudi Arabia and Iraq pumping oil at record or near record levels, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries last week kept its output target at 30 million barrels per day as it tries to keep crude prices low to support global oil demand growth while retaining market share by driving out more expensive producers, like U.S. shale drillers.

That OPEC policy has worked, as world oil demand is picking up and supply has slowed. U.S. drillers have eliminated thousands of jobs and idled more than half of the country's active rigs since they peaked at 1,609 in October as U.S. crude futures collapsed 60 percent from over $107 a barrel last June to a six-year low near $42 in March on oversupply concerns.

But with U.S. crude prices averaging around $60 since the start of May, U.S. energy companies have started to return to drilling in some of the biggest shale fields. JBC Energy, an energy research and consulting firm, said the Eagle Ford in South Texas was experiencing a slow recovery in new drilling activity, while the idling of rigs in the Permian in West Texas and eastern New Mexico seems to be bottoming out.

The Permian is the biggest U.S. shale oil basin and the Eagle Ford is the second biggest. Last week, U.S. crude production climbed to over 9.6 million barrels a day, its highest level since the early 1970s, according to government data.

"It seems the intense focus on rig counts has slacked off a bit during recent weeks as it is increasingly confirmed the significant decline in U.S. upstream activity is not having a dramatic impact on supply in the short term," analysts at JBC Energy said.




US:Oil exploring in Arctic continues despite current price environment

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, based on Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission

Alaska's crude oil production has declined from 1.8 million barrels per day (MMb/d) in 1991 to 0.5 MMb/d in 2014, and it is expected to continue declining through 2040. Almost 75% of Alaska's crude oil production from 1990 to 2012 was from the Prudhoe Bay and Kuparuk River fields in the central North Slope, which respectively produced 4.9 billion and 1.7 billion barrels of crude oil over this period.

Crude oil production in Alaska is sensitive to the challenging environment—including variable ice conditions and limited time without ice coverage—as well as pipeline economics. However, recent conditional approval granted to Royal Dutch Shell to begin exploratory drilling in the Burger Prospect in the Chukchi Sea may help to offset future declines in crude oil production from other state and federally managed resources in the region.

Current Alaska oil and natural gas activity is concentrated in three main regions: North Slope Offshore, Central North Slope, and South Alaska. • The North Slope Offshore encompasses the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. Except for the

Northstar field, which spans both federal and state waters in the Beaufort Sea, most of the production, including the Nikaitchuq field and other smaller producing fields, is located in state waters in the Beaufort Sea.

• The Central North Slope includes the Alpine, Kuparuk River, Milne Point, Prudhoe Bay, and West Sak fields, as well as the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). According to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), there are 212 oil and natural gas leases in the NPR-A but no producing units. Oil and natural gas exploration and production are not allowed in the ANWR.

• In South Alaska, ongoing oil and natural gas activity is located in the Cook Inlet area.




Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, IHS EDIN, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Oil and Gas, ESRI

•

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management estimates that the Chukchi Sea, off the northwest coast of Alaska, contains 2 to 40 billion barrels of unproved technically recoverable crude oil resources and 10 to 210 trillion cubic feet of unproved technically recoverable natural gas resources. Technically recoverable resources include oil and natural gas that can be produced based on current technology, industry practice, and geologic knowledge. More than half of Alaska's unproved technically recoverable crude oil resources are in the North Slope Offshore. The unproved technically recoverable crude oil resources in the North Slope Offshore (23.8 billion barrels) are comparable to the unproved technically recoverable crude oil resources in the Bakken formation (22.8 billion barrels) and more than twice the unproved technically recoverable crude oil resources in the Eagle Ford formation (10.3 billion barrels).

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration and Alaska Department of Natural Resources 2014 Annual Report Note: Proved reserves as of Jan. 1, 2013. Unproved resources as of Jan. 1, 2013 for Eagle Ford and Bakken;




Oil Price Drop Special Coverage

Oil down second day, weekly gain cut on Saudi output worry Reuters + NewBase

Oil slid on Friday for a second day, giving back more of the week's gains as investors took profits on worries that higher Saudi Arabia output would feed the global supply glut. The number of oil rigs in the United States notched another weekly decline, but crude prices did not move much on the data from oil services firm Baker Hughes.

Crude rebounded early in the week, but the rally stalled on Thursday as the dollar strengthened against the euro due to developments in Greece's debt crisis, which still dominated sentiment on global markets on Friday. Strength in the greenback makes oil, sold in dollars, less affordable to euro holders.

"The Greece debt debate is clobbering the euro, kiboshing a rally in crude," said Matt Smith, director of commodity research at energy intelligence firm Clipper Datadata. "Rumblings of an impending rise in Saudi production is also providing a downbeat end to the week."

After Thursday's 1 percent drop, crude futures extended their downdraft as Saudi Arabia said it was ready to increase oil output in coming months to a new record. Brent crude LCOc1 settled down $1.24, or 2 percent, at $63.87. For the week, Brent ended up 0.7 percent.

U.S. crude CLc1 fell 81 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $59.96. It rose 1.5 percent on the week.

In May, Saudi Arabia pumped a record 10.3 million barrels per day. The kingdom is the leading member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, and OPEC produces 1 million to 2 million bpd above its target of 30 million bpd.

While Saudi supply is growing, U.S. shale oil producers are cutting the number of rigs. Baker Hughes reported on Friday that energy firms pulled another seven rigs from U.S. oil fields this week, the most since late May. [RIG/U]

On Thursday, the International Energy Agency said it expected world oil demand to rise more than expected this year on the back of economic recovery and a relatively cold winter in the northern hemisphere.




SGX sets up LNG price index LNG World News Staff; Image: Singapore LNG

In an attempt to accomplish greater transparency in physical LNG spot trading in Asia, Singapore Exchange has revealed its price index.

Called the Free on Board Singapore SGX LNG Index Group it comes to light following an eight months long process, Pavilion Energy started with a number of stakeholders in order to create an LNG price marker, the Business Times report.

Data for the FOB Singapore SLInG has been compiled since January, according to SGX’s vice president Michael Syn. He added that 10 global players are to join the group of 13 international LNG players that have already joined the index.

LNG players will offer a fair assessment of LNG cargo prices at a virtual point off Singapore and the index will be based on the averaged submissions. According to Pavilion Energy’s CEO Seah Moon Ming, due to the lack of a clear price benchmark Asia paid a premium of US$130 billion for LNG compared to US and European benchmarks.

SGX informed it is looking for industry participants’ feedback on the index a hopes to be able to launch a physical trading facility in the future. Besides improving price transparency for spot trading of LNG in Asia, FOB Singapore SLInG can also be used for risk control and support function purposes. For example, it can be used to calibrate LNG risk models.

It can also serve as a settlement price for potential derivatives to hedge LNG spot exposures, or excess proprietary views around them, EMC said. SGX is already in talks with EMC to potentially launch a derivative market against the index, EMC added. Potential users of EMC's LNG index are stakeholders of the spot LNG market - LNG producers and users, banks, traders, terminal operators, consultants and derivative-market participants.

Asked about the lingering doubts over Singapore's role in the LNG market - with the country being neither a significant LNG producer nor customer - Mr Syn replied that it is precisely because Singapore is "not very big" that the market will trust the price produced in its "neutral" jurisdiction. Meanwhile, Pavilion Energy reaffirmed its commitment to the joint-initiative. Mr Seah told BT: "This is an important step to fair and transparent LNG pricing in Asia."

For now, SGX wants feedback on the index from industry participants. SGX chairman Chew Choon Seng said: "If this initiative succeeds, it could spawn the launch of over-the-counter (OTC) swap products for Asian gas, and eventually even a physical trading facility. But it can succeed only with the support of our industry partners." Mr Tan said: "When LNG buyers and sellers move from a long-term contract to allow more cargoes to be sold into the spot market, they will look for a way to hedge. When that happens, if they can agree on a reference benchmark, that is when we think an OTC market will form."




NewBase For discussion or further details on the news below you may contact us on +971504822502, Dubai, UAE

Your partner in Energy Services

NewBase energy news is produced daily (Sunday to Thursday) and

sponsored by Hawk Energy Service – Dubai, UAE.

For additional free subscription emails please contact Hawk Energy

Khaled Malallah Al Awadi, Energy Consultant MS & BS Mechanical Engineering (HON), USA Emarat member since 1990 ASME member since 1995 Hawk Energy member 2010

Mobile: +97150-4822502 [email protected] [email protected]

Khaled Al Awadi is a UAE National with a total of 25 years of experience in the Oil & Gas sector. Currently working as Technical Affairs Specialist for Emirates General Petroleum Corp. “Emarat“ with external voluntary Energy consultation for the GCC area via Hawk Energy Service as a UAE operations base , Most of the experience were spent as the Gas Operations Manager in Emarat , responsible for Emarat Gas Pipeline Network Facility & gas compressor stations . Through the years, he has developed great experiences in the designing & constructing of gas pipelines, gas metering &

regulating stations and in the engineering of supply routes. Many years were spent drafting, & compiling gas transportation, operation & maintenance agreements along with many MOUs for the local authorities. He has become a reference for many of the Oil & Gas Conferences held in the UAE and Energy program broadcasted internationally, via GCC leading satellite Channels.

NewBase : For discussion or further details on the news above you may contact us on +971504822502 , Dubai , UAE

NewBase 15 June 2015 K. Al Awadi

new base 626 special 15 june 2015

Documents

infrastructure spending

airport infrastructure

new infrastructure

khaled al awadi newbase

oil prices

countrys infrastructure

national newbase

sultan al mansouri