Page 13 - AsianOil Week 37
P. 13
AsianOil OCEANIA AsianOil
Australia’s Oilex prepares for UK foray
PROJECTS & COMPANIES
AUSTRALIA-BASED Oilex is plotting a foray on to the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS), with plans to snap up stakes in three East Irish Sea gas discoveries.
The company, listed in London and Sydney, said on September 16 it had signed an exclusivity agreement with the UK’s Koru Energy to acquire 50% interests in the Knox, Lowry and Whitbeck gas discoveries. Koru itself has exclusive rights to buy the three fields wholly from Aberdeen’s Reach Coal Seam Gas.
Knox, Lowry and Whitbeck are shallow-wa- ter gas accumulations that were discovered between 1992 and 2009. They are in close prox- imity to an existing subsea tie-back pipeline used to deliver gas to UK Spirit Energy’s nearby North Morecambe gas production platform and termi- nal, which was recently refurbished.
Knox and Lowry, found at depths of 411 and 640 metres respectively, have already success- fully test-flowed gas at rates of 348,000 cubic metres and 623,000 cubic metres per day. Whit- beck, located at a lower depth of 1,641 metres, has not yet been tested.
“After an extensive and detailed search for suitable assets for Oilex in the UKCS, we are delighted to make this announcement today,” Oilex’s managing director, Joe Salomon, com- mented. “The licences, which incorporate dis- covered and tested gas volumes and comprise a portfolio of projects, provide the initial platform for the company to build the necessary critical mass for a sustainable UKCS business.”
Oilex currently operates offshore Australia, India, Indonesia and Timor-Leste. It recently entered the Cooper Basin off the coast of north- east Australia and has managed to resolve a dispute with India’s state-owned Gujarat State Petroleum over the Cambay field.
The company has paid Koru a non-refunda- ble GBP50,000 ($62,000) fee for the exclusivity agreement, which is valid until September 30. During this time the pair will discuss terms, with a proposal having been made that Oilex should pay GBP500,000 ($620,000) for the interests, minus the exclusivity fee. Oilex also said it was in advanced talks with potential co-investors to help cover this cost.
Inpex mulls Ichthys LNG expansion
PROJECTS & COMPANIES
JAPANESE developer Inpex has revealed that it is looking at ways to expand its $45bn Ichthys LNG project offshore north-western Australia as it approaches full capacity.
“In Australia our focus is on fully utilising our Ichthys LNG facilities, while creating a solid base for future expansion,” Inpex’s president director for Australia, Hitoshi Okawa, told Reuters on September 13.
Okawa said the 8.9mn tonne per year (tpy) Ichthys LNG project was ramping up smoothly and that he expected the terminal to reach peak capacity shortly. The executive said that since its first shipment of LNG in October 2018, Ichthys had dispatched a further 77 cargoes as well as 18 shipments of liquid petroleum gas (LPG) and 36 condensate cargoes.
While Okawa did not provide an exact time- table for the project reaching full capacity, the company had originally anticipated that it would take two to three years before it plateaued.
In terms of a possible expansion, Okawa said the company had enough room to add another four production trains that could be fed from either offshore fields or from Inpex’s acreage in the onshore Beetaloo Basin in the Northern Territory. The company is seeking the NT gov- ernment’s approval to begin exploration work.
Okawa added that the 890-km pipeline that connects the Ichthys field and the liquefaction facility had five free connections for new off- shore fields to tie into.
In terms of the company’s other offshore exploration efforts, Okawa said the company was looking to begin acquiring seismic data in the 3,460-square km Block AC/P66 in the Bon- aparte Basin, which it won in June. The block, which lies in water depths ranging from 60 to 500 metres, lies within the vicinity of the Lam- inaria oilfield. Inpex operates the licence with a 100% participating interest.
In response to questions about potential acquisitions in Australia, including PTT Explo- ration and Production’s (PTTEP) Cash Maple gas field, Okawa said: “At this moment, we would not rule out any opportunity to meet with our Vision 2040.”
Week 37 18•September•2019
w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m P13
