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Nord Stream 2 to Secure Russian Gas Supplies to Europe

Energy Industry

cDiver

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November 3, 2015

Nord Stream 2 to Secure Russian Gas Supplies to Europe

The Gazprom headquarters hosted a working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and Sigmar Gabriel, German Vice-Chancellor and Federal Minister of Economics and Energy.

The parties addressed the issues of Russian natural gas exports to Germany and other European countries as well as the prospects for the European gas infrastructure development, Gazprom wrote.

The participants paid great attention to the Nord Stream 2 construction and stressed the importance of the project meant to secure reliable gas supplies from Russia to European consumers against the falling gas production in Europe.

In September, Gazprom, BASF, E.ON, ENGIE, OMV and Shell inked the Shareholders Agreement to construct the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline system with the capacity of 55 billion cubic meters of gas a year from Russia to Germany across the Baltic Sea.

Germany is the biggest Russian gas consumer. In 2014 Gazprom sold 40.3 billion cubic meters of gas in the German market.

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Divers have begun work at possible Argo site

About Commercial Diving

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November 3, 2015

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Divers have begun work at possible Argo site

Divers began work Tuesday on what’s believed to be the wreck of the Argo, a barge that sank in Lake Erie in 1937 while carrying a large cargo of oil.

High winds forced the divers to stay out of the lake Wednesday, and bad weather is expected Thursday, but it’s hoped the divers can resume work Friday, said Lt. Ryan Junod, a spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard’s Marine Safety Unit in Toledo.

“Until the weather improves, continuing to dive on the vessel is not safe,” Junod said.

Keeping track of the weather at the site of the wreck won’t be a problem.

“We have a weather buoy out there to give us a live update,” Junod said. “That was provided by NOAA.”

That stands for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The wreck is about 12 miles northeast of Sandusky and about eight miles east of Kelleys Island, about two miles south of the border that separates the Canadian side of Lake Erie from the American side.

Junod said divers have not found a possible leak yet, but did a general assessment around the site, including taking measurements of the wreck, which lies on a lake bottom that’s about 50 feet beneath the surface.

The measurements show that the size of the wreck is consistent with the Argo, but it has still not been positively identified, Junod said. The Coast Guard wants to find the Argo’s name on the hull or find an identifying number.

Still, evidence continues to grow that it’s the Argo.

“We are leaning in that direction,” Junod said.

The Coast Guard boat at the scene was joined by T and T Salvage’s diving operation. And the Sandusky Fire Department also brought over its boat, manned by paramedics, as a safety measure, Junod said.

The Coast Guard strike team at the scene used “sniffing” equipment to try to detect fumes from a possible oil leak, but did not detect anything.

Water samples were taken at the scene for testing.

A Coast Guard helicopter flying over the area found a patch of silver-colored water, about 75 yards wide, 4.5 miles northwest of the sinking site. Officials at NOAA and Environment Canada determined that it could have come from the Argo.

After obtaining permission from Canada’s Coast Guard, a U.S. Coast Guard ship entered the area and ran a search to find the patch of colored water but did not find it, Junod said.

A NOAA aircraft based in Ann Arbor, Mich., has been flying over the scene taking photographs for analysis. Nothing from a possible leak has been detected so far.

Water samples and marine growth samples have been taken at the scene and sent off to NOAA for analysis.

Meanwhile, Ohio Sea Grant prepared and posted a Frequently Asked Questions document on the Argo on the agency’s website.

“Exactly what is leaking is unknown at this point, but the Argo was believed to have been carrying 4,762 barrels (over 200,000 gallons) – half benzol (a coal-tar product containing benzene and toluene) and half crude oil,” the FAQ says.

It notes that the Coast Guard has told boats to stay away from the site.

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Divers Preserve USS Houston’s Final Resting Place

About Commercial Diving

cDiver

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November 3, 2015

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Divers Preserve USS Houston’s Final Resting Place

USS Houston sunk, along with more than 700 souls, in Indonesia on February 28, 1942 during the Battle of Sunda Strait. In 2014, reports of unauthorized salvaging has reached the Navy but divers found no evidence of such operations after their survey.

Last week, EOD Mobile Diving and Salvage Team Seven divers on board USNS Safeguard conducted another survey to verify if the ship still remains untouched as part of history and heritage preservation. They were aided by their Indonesian counterparts in this operation that was completed on October 24, 2015.

USS Houston wreck site is a popular tourist destination for recreational divers. Although the wreckage is located in Banten, Indonesia, it is still a property of the United States under international maritime law.

The assessment showed that there are no signs of salvage events that transpired since their previous survey.

The divers are honored to be part of this heritage conservation efforts and to pay respect to the fallen sailors of the ship, they performed a wreath-laying ceremony.

Following the survey, a conference was held in Jakarta to raise awareness of the sovereign vessels protection.

Commonly Asked Questions

About Commercial Diving

cDiver

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November 3, 2015

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What certifications are received upon completion of the course?
Upon completion of the course graduates will receive:

ADCI Entry level Tender/Diver Certification (Association of Diving Contractors International). This certification is necessary in order for graduates to work commercial diving in the United States, but it is not accepted in all other countries.
DCBC (Diver Certification Board of Canada) International Restricted Surface Supplied Diver Certification. This certification is accepted world-wide.
DSI Dive Lab (Dive Systems International) Superlite Helmet Maintenance Technician certification
TDI Nitrox I
TDI Advanced Nitrox
PADI and TDI Nitrox Gas Blender
American Red Cross: O2 Provider
American Heart Association: Emergency First Responder
- CPR
- First Aid

In order to work in Canada, England, Norway, Australia, South Africa and many other areas of the world; you need the DCBC certification. The DCBC Restricted Certification is also accepted by IMCA; International Marine Contractors Association. Both of these certifications are offered here at Minnesota Commercial Diver Training Center. An item of interest is that MCDTC is one of five commercial diver training facilities that offer the DCBC certification.

What is the normal class size?

MCDTC’s goal is to provide students with the best training in the quickest amount of time possible. That’s why class sizes are limited to 12 students per course. This allows students to have a lot of personal attention from their instructors, a lot more time in the water, and to better understand and grasp the properties of commercial diving.

Where is the training conducted?

The MCDTC resides in the heart of MN; the land of 10,000 lakes. Most of the dive training will be done in the Cuyuna Mine Pits in Crosby/Ironton and in the Mississippi River. There’s also a 14ft deep training tank inside the school where students will first learn the proper use of equipment and protocol, etc.

How long is the course?

The course is eleven weeks long with students attending class Monday – Saturday from 8 – 6pm (10 hours a day). The schedule for this year is available on the Home page.

Are there any prerequisites for the course?

Students must be at least 18 years of age (by the first day of class)
Have a high school diploma or GED (equivalence)
Proof of SCUBA certification (ie Open Water certification)

Is there any financial aid available?

Students accepted into the course are able to apply for a SELF LOAN from the state of Minnesota. The maximum loan amount is limited to $7500. Applications are available by contacting us (1-800-216-5521).

Students have the option to register for this course through Brainerd’s community college, Central Lakes College, for elective credits. Student aid and grants may be possible through this option, but will most likely only cover CLC’s expenses. Also, registering for this course through CLC will make the tuition more expensive. Students may contact the college to find out more about what they have to offer by calling (829) 855-8000. Please keep in mind that if a student wishes to register for this course at CLC they must FIRST register for the course period they want to be in with MCDTC.

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BP: Current Technology Can Meet 2050’s 2.5 Trillion Barrel Demand

Outlook

cDiver

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November 3, 2015

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BP: Current Technology Can Meet 2050’s 2.5 Trillion Barrel Demand

The oil and gas industry will be able to meet the world’s consumption demand of around 2.5 trillion barrels of oil and gas in 2050 using current upstream technology, according to BP’s Technology Outlook report, which was launched at the energy firm’s London office Monday.

BP’s report shows that, by using the best available technologies in the sector today for discovered oil and gas, around 4.8 trillion barrels of oil and gas equivalent would be available around the world. Furthermore, if exploration and new technologies are factored in, this number has the potential to grow to around 7.5 trillion barrels of oil and gas equivalent, which is likely to be roughly triple the world’s demand by 2050.

Addressing a number of journalists in an exclusive media briefing, David Eyton, BP Group head of technology, stated:

“On current trends around about 2.5 trillions of barrels equivalent of oil and gas will be consumed by 2050 and over this time technology will continue to unlock new resources so we have more than enough to meet demand and, critically, no new technologies frankly are required to meet that demand at 2050. Our analysis shows that if we use best available technologies today for discovered oil and gas, then you move around to 4.8 trillion barrels of oil and gas equivalent available in the world, so roughly double what we probably need is already accessible using today’s technology. If you then take into account what might be achieved through exploration and what might be achieved through new technology, at to 2050, that number grows from 4.8 to 7.5 trillion barrels of oil and gas equivalent.”

Commenting on some of the current key technology levers for extracting oil and gas, Eyton highlighted the importance of seismic imaging, enhanced oil recovery and digital inventions, such as sensors, robotics and supercomputers for data analysis. Eyton also confirmed that “energy resources are plentiful” during the BP Technology Outlook launch and stated that concerns over running out of oil and gas “really have disappeared” in BP’s view.

Source

Scientists Study Impacts of Tohoku Earthquake on Deep-Sea Floor

Environment

cDiver

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November 3, 2015

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Scientists Study Impacts of Tohoku Earthquake on Deep-Sea Floor

Dr. Kazumasa Oguri, Senior Research Scientist for Analyses of Changes in East Japan Marine Ecosystems and his colleagues at JAMSTEC carried out long-term monitoring of the seafloor environment off Otsuchi Bay to investigate environmental changes of the deep-sea floor after the 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake.

Two self-powered deep-sea stations were deployed on an upper continental slope site (around 300m water depth) and on bathyal (998m) site. The respective monitoring periods were from March 13, 2013 to September 12, 2013 (upper continental slope) and from August 12, 2012 to October 12, 2013 (bathyal).

These long-term monitoring provided high-resolution environmental data in one hour interval and their time-series data illustrated seasonal changes in bottom water characteristics, which had not been available before.

In particular, seafloor photographs and videos clearly recorded the disturbance and their subsequent recovery of benthic habitats after the largest aftershock during the monitoring period, which hit near the Japan Trench on December 7, 2012, measuring at magnitude 7.3.

These data will contribute to long-term forecast models of oceanic environmental variability and also for planning of fishery activities. The research group will continue these observations to introduce data telemetry system using with an underwater winch technology for semi-real time monitoring.

This project was carried out as a part of Tohoku Ecosystem-Associated Marine Sciences funded by Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

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Chevron Slashes 2016 Budget To Weather Low Oil Prices

Energy Industry

cDiver

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November 2, 2015

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Chevron Slashes 2016 Budget To Weather Low Oil Prices

Chevron Corp, the second-largest U.S.-based oil producer, slashed its 2016 capital budget by 25 percent and said it would lay off roughly 10 percent of its workforce, one of the most-drastic reactions to date to the plunge in crude prices. The price drop has forced Chevron and dozens of its peers to make tough decisions about what projects to fund or not fund in order to offset natural declines at its existing fields.

The choices are that much starker at large international oil giants like Chevron that rely heavily on their massive budgets to fund exploration projects crucial to finding new energy sources. Chevron said on Friday it plans to spend between $25 billion to $28 billion next year and expects to further slash spending in 2017 and 2018 as well, an acknowledgment that oil prices are not expected to rise at all in the near future.

The San Ramon, California-based company also said it would lay off 6,000 to 7,000 workers as part of the cuts. “We are focused on improving results by changing outcomes within our control,” Chief Executive John Watson said in a statement. Chevron posted a sharp drop in quarterly profit that still beat Wall Street’s expectations due to cost cuts and strong refining margins. The company reported net income of $2.04 billion, or $1.09 per share, compared with $5.59 billion, or $2.95 per share, in the year-ago period.

By that measure, analysts expected earnings of 76 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Production fell 1 percent to 2.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d). Profit at the company’s downstream unit, which makes gasoline, lubricant and other refined products, jumped 49 percent.

Refiners tend to be more profitable when oil prices are low. Chevron cut operating and administrative expenses by 7 percent during the quarter, but it was not enough to fully offset the price drop. Shares of Chevron rose 1.4 percent to $91.15 in pre-market trading on Friday.

Source

WesternGeco Completes UK Govt-Funded Seismic Shoot

Seismic Survey

cDiver

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November 2, 2015

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WesternGeco Completes UK Govt-Funded Seismic Shoot

The Oil & Gas Authority (OGA) announced the completion of the UK Government-funded seismic data acquisition.

The £20 million programme in underexplored areas of the United Kingdom Continental Shelf (UKCS) will improve the seismic coverage in the Rockall Trough and Mid-North Sea High regions, OGA said.

The programme, completed by WesternGeco, acquired almost 20,000 km of new 2D seismic lines over an area of 200,000 km2. WesternGeco used WG Vespucci vessel for the acquisition.

Additional seismic information contributed by WesternGeco from the 2014 Atlantic Margin survey will be complemented by other legacy datasets to create a combined data package of 40,000 km.

The OGA is currently preparing for the 29th Round which, subject to the necessary regulatory approvals, will be announced in 2016 focusing on frontier areas using the data from the seismic campaign.

Gunther Newcombe, OGA’s Director of Exploration and Production, said:

“I am delighted that our partner WesternGeco has completed the campaign on time and without incident, having surveyed an area almost the size of the British Isles. Seismic data is currently being processed by WesternGeco and data packages will be made freely available when they are finalised towards the end of Q1 2016.

“HM Treasury’s financial support for the programme and the close working relationship between industry and the OGA underlines the benefits of collaboration. We are confident the results will highlight the significant opportunities that remain on the UKCS and will aim to announce the 29th Offshore Licensing Round next year, focusing on frontier areas.”

Oonagh Werngren, Oil & Gas UK Operations Director, said:

“The completion of the data acquisition stage of the seismic programme is very good news at a time when the sector is challenged with attracting fresh investment into the UKCS. It clearly demonstrates that government and industry can work together to make a significant contribution to developing understanding of the basin. By ensuring that the data will be made available to both industry and academia, the OGA is promoting maximum value from the surveys, which will help to stimulate further exploration activity in the UK.”

Exploration activity on the UKCS has fallen in recent years and this campaign is part of a comprehensive plan to help revitalise exploration on the UKCS. Other related activities include the ongoing 21st Century Exploration Roadmap Palaeozoic Study, managed by the British Geological Survey in collaboration with industry, OGA aadded.

Source

Southwestern Energy Co. CEO Speaks About Managing Employees

Career outlook

cDiver

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November 2, 2015

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Southwestern Energy Co. CEO Speaks About Managing Employees

In the midst of a difficult time for the oil and gas industry, Steve Mueller, CEO of Houston-based Southwestern Energy Company, shared insights on how to manage employees at WorkforceNEXT’s fall summit Thursday.

“The best way to keep people is to tell them the truth and let them help you solve the problem,” Mueller said during a morning keynote.

Stressing honest communication in the workplace between senior leaders and employees, Mueller also said managers have to be honest about their mistakes as well.

“If [a company] has layoffs, that’s a management problem, not a people screw-up,” he said.

In regards to succession planning, a topic several companies have been forced to visit during this downturn, Mueller has a simple approach.

“If I get the best of everything, I don’t have the most efficient company – I just have the best of everything,” he said. “The goal is not to have a perfect succession plan or perfection within each group. We want to have the best value for our shareholders and other stakeholders.”

It’s important for a CEO to set standards within a company as soon as a new employee is hired into the organization.

“How should leadership be developed and grown in an organization? My standard is when I hire you, I expect you to know how to do your job,” Mueller said. “The goal is to set standards for leadership at the very beginning.”

And those standards don’t change according to generation.

“There are certainly differences between people, but people haven’t changed,” said Mueller when asked about millennials in the workforce. “I don’t care if you’re a Gen Xer or an old guy like me. People still have things that they value. I’m not going to take the standard and change it for each generation. I say, ‘this is the standard. Now make sure you get to that standard.’”

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INTERVIEW: New Class of Ocean Observing System

Vessels and Equipment

cDiver

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November 2, 2015

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INTERVIEW: New Class of Ocean Observing System

Investments in unmanned maritime systems are becoming more popular every day, especially in the areas of ocean scientific research, the oil and gas industry, and naval industry.

Developers and manufactures of robotic systems used for monitoring and surveillance of oceans, such as unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), are constantly coming up with new ideas to make these systems more attractive to various offshore markets.

Namely, a relative newcomer on the market, a company based in San Diego called Ocean Aero has designed and built an unmanned vessel that can operate both on the surface as well as underwater, thus expanding its applications.

For many years, oceanography centers have been developing and deploying AUVs, and similar robots, to explore the ocean depths, while USVs have found their applications more in shallow water surveys and military ocean observations. Offshore oil and gas industry has found use for these systems in monitoring and surveying the subsea infrastructure.

Ocean Aero’s unmanned underwater surface vessel (UUSV), known as Sabmaran, is designed for extended autonomous ocean observation and data collection. The vessel is powered by wind and solar energy, capable of months at sea, and it can be deployed from land, sea or air.

In an interview with Subsea World News, the company’s founder, CFO and Executive VP Ken Childress shared more information about this project and Ocean Aero’s future plans.

Could you tell us a little bit more what you do, what is the company involved with and how did it all start?

Ocean Aero was founded 3 years ago by myself and Mark Ott our current CTO. We had previously worked on a project for the US Navy building unmanned hard wing sailboats. The project came to an end in 2011 and we wanted to put what we had learned to work so we founded Ocean Aero to build unmanned sailing systems. We had learned that the wind/solar power approach was well accepted but that the vehicle needed to be more portable than the 50’ trimaran we had built. The Submaran S10 is the first product.

What sort of products do you provide and what markets are you aiming at?

We build hybrid, wind and solar powered unmanned vessels that operate both on the surface as well as underwater. The concept of submersion is part of the product and first came about by looking at ways to get the small vehicles out of harms way in harsh weather. We later extended the idea into operational submersion so that we have a complete system that is an Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) an Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) and a sea Glider all in one. The current S10 can submerge down to 10 meters and another vehicle, the S200 will be introduced in late 2016 and will submerge down to 200 meters. Our markets are: Government (non-military and military), Scientific Research and Commercial like offshore Oil and Gas operators and Fishing. Anyone who needs to gather information/data on or from the ocean for long periods of time, or is currently using surface or subsurface gliders is a potential customer.

Our readers know you through your Submaran UUSV project, how long has it taken you to develop the vehicle from its prototype to commercial stage?

The Submaran has been developed over 3 years. Of course, as I mentioned, we had 8 years of experience building unmanned marine systems prior to starting with the Submaran. Over the 3 years of development we have built 5 Submaran prototypes making improvements along the way. We have used a rapid prototype development model with extensive use of technology such as 3D printing of parts and “on the fly” software development.

You’ve exhibited your recently launched Submaran S10 at Oceans 2015 in Washington, how was the vehicle received?

Oceans 2015 was absolutely outstanding. The reception was overwhelming. We had so many people around the booth all the time it was hard to get to answer everyone’s questions. We are now in discussion with a number of customers and representatives about projects and delivery of boats early next year. We will also be attending the Underwater Intervention show in New Orleans in February and an AUVSI event in May.

When do you expect first orders to start coming in and what is Submaran’s advantage over other USVs and AUVs on the market?

We are already in discussions about first orders and expect to have them in place before the end of the year. The Submaran’s primary advantages are, the ability to submerge to get out of the weather or out of sight, it’s speed (over 5 knots) for long periods of time and when the S200 is released, it will be the 3 in one vehicle so customers will need only one type of vehicle for missions down to 200 meters. For customers who do not need deep dive capability the S10 will always be a less cost, surface and shallow dive alternative.

Last year, you’ve entered into a strategic partnership with Teledyne, how has that helped your company move forward and are there others involved in development of your projects?

The partnership with Teledyne has been extremely positive for us. They have now invested considerable money and owns about a third of Ocean Aero. We have benefited from being able to locate in one of their facilities in San Diego, which has helped us to not have to worry about facilities and facilities management. We have also benefited from a Business Development standpoint by being allowed to share booth space at events and get input from their product specialists and introductions to potential customers. Overall it has been good and we are looking forward to the future.

You’ve landed a contract with the Department of Defense to develop a prototype Long Range UUSV, similar to your Submaran model, what can you tell us about that project?

I can tell you that the LR-UUSV is a significant scale up of our existing Submaran technology. It will be over 12 meters long and capable of submerging to 150 meters. It will deploy 2 (or more) folding wingsails and have a surface speed of 10 knots in good conditions. The payload capacity will be about 500 kilos and it will be completely wind and solar powered. I think it may be one of the most interesting boats ever built.

What are the next steps for your company?

We are now moving forward to becoming a product manufacturer instead of just a “development phase” company. This means we need to be planning for growth in both facilities and personnel to support manufacturing of Submarans. Additionally, we will be building out our sales and marketing infrastructure that will include employees as well as re-seller partners around the world. Of course we will also continue to grow our R&D to improve our products and look for new innovative approaches. We are looking at things like wind power for large vessels and continued development of autonomous robotic behaviors.

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