Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Bet You Won't Hold That Offer Open For "Anytime During The Next 2 Years".
O.T. Nigeria labor says no agreement to end fuel strike
By BASHIR ADIGUN and JON GAMBRELL | Associated Press – 22 hrs ago
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria's government and labor unions failed to end a paralyzing nationwide strike over high gasoline costs, potentially sparking an oil production shutdown in a nation vital to U.S. oil supplies.
It was not immediately clear early Sunday whether a major oil workers' union had gone ahead with its threat to have its members walk off their jobs starting at midnight in an effort to halt oil production. But the fact labor unions left quickly from their meeting with the government and no one announced when talks would resume raised concerns the impasse would see Nigeria go through more days of disruptive strikes.
Nigeria, which produces 2.4 million barrels of oil a day, is the fifth-largest oil exporter to the United States. Any disruption to oil production could roil the oil futures market at a time traders remain concerned about world supply.
President Goodluck Jonathan did not show up for a meeting with union representatives held Saturday night at the presidential villa in Nigeria's capital Abuja, nor did Vice President Namadi Sambo. Instead, the nation's Senate president and its House speaker represented the government along with other officials.
After the meeting, Nigeria Labor Congress President Abdulwaheed Omar told waiting journalists: "We have not reached a compromise."
Asked whether oil production would immediately halt, Omar said: "We are taking these things gradually."
Senate President David Mark described the talks as "very fruitful," though he offered no other details.
Nigeria has been gripped by a paralyzing strike since Monday when labor unions called the nationwide work stoppage in response to a government decision to remove subsidies, causing fuel prices to more than double in Africa's most populous nation. However, oil workers mostly remained on the job.
On Thursday, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria threatened to stop all oil production in Nigeria at midnight Saturday. President Babatunde Ogun and other union officials were not immediately available to confirm whether its members had left their posts.
The union's ability to enforce a shutdown across the swamps of Nigeria's southern delta to its massive offshore oil fields remains in question. Much of Nigeria's land-based oil fields remain largely automated and an increasing amount of production comes from large offshore oil fields far from the country's coasts.
But the threat of a strike caused jitters on global oil markets Friday. And if something breaks, if the pressure in the wells fluctuate, or if countless other problems occur that cause an automatic system shutdown, there wouldn't be anyone there to get production running again at the Nigerian fields.
The strike began Monday, paralyzing the nation of more than 160 million people. The root cause remains gasoline prices: President Goodluck Jonathan's government abandoned subsidies that kept gasoline prices low on Jan. 1, causing prices to spike from $1.70 per gallon (45 cents per liter) to at least $3.50 per gallon (94 cents per liter). The costs of food and transportation also largely doubled in a nation where most people live on less than $2 a day.
Anger over losing one of the few benefits average Nigerians see from being an oil-rich country, as well as disgust over government corruption, have led to demonstrations across this nation and violence that has killed at least 10 people. Red Cross volunteers have treated more than 600 people injured in protests since the strike began, the International Committee of the Red Cross said Friday.
Even if strikers are only partially successful, fears of tightened global supplies could raise oil prices by $5-$10 per barrel on futures markets next week. Gasoline prices would follow, rising by as much as 10 cents per gallon and forcing U.S. drivers to spend an additional $36 million a day at the pump.
Experts predict the national average in the U.S. could rise as high as $4.25 per gallon ($1.12 a liter) in 2012.
Companies with subsidiaries in Nigeria include Chevron Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp., Italy's Eni SpA, Royal Dutch Shell PLC and French firm Total SA, which operate in tandem with the state-run Nigerian National Petroleum Corp.
___
Jon Gambrell reported from Lagos, Nigeria and can be reached at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.
I For One Would Like To Thank Them For Letting Myself (& Maybe Some Others) To Bring Down My/Our S.P. Ave.
O.T. Natural gas glut fuels export debate
By Simone Sebastian, HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Debate is brewing over whether to keep the nation's glut of natural gas at home for cheap energy or export it at five times the price, possibly creating jobs and boosting the domestic economy.
Businesses that purchase natural gas for industrial and residential use have rallied against proposals to liquefy and export the fossil fuel to Asian and European nations willing to pay much higher prices.
Nine companies have sought federal approval to export about 10 billion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas per day, which would boost prices for U.S. customers.
Cheniere Energy's Sabine Pass LNG plant in Louisiana already has won approval to ship out more than 2 billion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas a day.
In total, the proposed export volume equals about 14 percent of the natural gas produced in the United States - 26.8 trillion cubic feet in 2010, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The U.S. consumed about 23.8 trillion cubic feet.
Rates versus jobs
There's little doubt that exports will cause the price of natural gas to rise. The debate is whether the rise in gross domestic product and gas field employment might offset the negative effects of higher domestic energy prices.
"I don't think anybody knows the answer to that question, which we think argues for slowing down these (export) facilities," said Dave Schryver, executive vice president of the American Public Gas Association, a trade group for municipal gas utilities.
"Until you have a strong, accurate view of what the impact is going to have on consumers, it's premature."
The price of natural gas in the U.S. has plummeted as technology has made it economical to extract natural gas from dense shale rock.
Natural gas futures closed at $2.67 per million British thermal units in trading Friday on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price was more than $15 in 2005.
"We have so much natural gas coming up that we don't know what to do with it," said Andrew Ware, spokesman for Houston-based Cheniere Energy.
Except, maybe, ship it overseas.
Natural gas is selling for as much as $12 per million Btu in Europe and as high as $18 in some Asian markets, said Ira Joseph, executive director for international gas at consulting firm PIRA Energy Group.
Cheniere and other LNG companies have said that allowing natural gas exports from the Gulf Coast would create jobs by encouraging more drilling.
The Energy Information Administration is expected to issue a report next week examining the price effects of exports.
A second report in March will examine how the proposed exports would affect the broader U.S. economy on job creation and gross domestic product, said Bob Corbin, director of the office reviewing the applications.
It's not clear when the Energy Department will decide on the pending export permits, because the nation previously hasn't had to contemplate exporting natural gas on this scale, Corbin said.
The U.S. has exported some gas since the 1960s, when Conoco's Alaska LNG plant began shipments to Japan.
From the Lower 48
But the Sabine Pass terminal, along with other LNG facilities seeking federal approval, represents the first effort to export it from the Lower 48 states.
That worries companies that buy natural gas for home heating and factories.
"If you create this highway that makes it easy for natural gas to flow to where the price is highest, that would make natural gas prices higher here," said Schryver, of the Public Gas Association.
Price is one factor in considering export permits, Corbin acknowledged, but the chief concern is supply.
"If there wasn't enough gas to support both domestic demand and exports, that would be enough to disqualify the application," Corbin said.
simone.sebstian@chron.com twitter.com/Simones929
O.T. Key US oil supplier may cut off spigot Sunday
Angry youths protest in front of the National television station on fourth day of the nationwide strike on the removal of a fuel subsidy by the government in Lagos, Nigeria, Thursday, Jan. 12, 2012. A union representing 20,000 oil and gas workers in Nigeria threatened Thursday it would shut down all production starting Sunday to take part in the crippling nationwide strike over spiraling fuel prices. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)
One of the biggest suppliers of oil to the United States may shut off the spigot this weekend, pushing crude and gasoline prices higher for Americans.
Nigeria, which supplies 8 percent of U.S. oil imports, could see production halted if striking workers walk off the job Sunday. Workers are demanding the return of a vital government fuel subsidy that has kept gasoline prices low in that impoverished and restive nation of 160 million people.
It's unclear how much of Nigeria's production would be affected. At worst, the country's 20,000 unionized oil workers could take as much as 2.4 million barrels of daily crude production off the market, striking at the heart of Nigeria's oil-dependent economy.
Even if strikers are only partially successful, fears of tightened global supplies could raise oil prices by $5-$10 per barrel on futures markets next week. Gasoline prices would follow, rising by as much as 10 cents per gallon and forcing U.S. drivers to spend an additional $36 million a day at the pump.
Gasoline now costs $3.39 per gallon (89 cents a liter) after rising 11 cents since the start of the year. Experts predict the national average could rise as high as $4.25 per gallon ($1.12 a liter) in 2012.
The Nigerian government already has offered a smaller, temporary fuel subsidy and will meet with union leaders on Saturday. The strike could be called off but protesters have promised to halt production if they don't get the full, $8 billion subsidy restored.
Disruptions would have a long-term impact on Nigeria's economy. Union president Babatunde Ogun said it could take six months to a year to restart oil fields once they're shut down.
"If everything comes to a standstill, the government will budge," Ogun told reporters this week in Lagos.
The threat to shut off oil production is the latest move by protesters after a week of violent, anti-government clashes throughout the country. The strike began Monday to challenge President Goodluck Jonathan's decision to abandon the fuel subsidy.
"It's going to be a showdown this weekend," in Nigeria, Oppenheimer & Co. analyst Fadel Gheit said. "You can only hope that cooler heads will prevail."
It's hard to predict how effective a national oil worker strike would be.
Oil production facilities are usually automated, allowing them to pump oil out of the ground without anyone at the platform. But if something breaks, if the pressure in the well fluctuates, or if other problems occur that cause an automatic system shutdown, there wouldn't be anyone there to get production running again.
It's likely oil companies operating in the region _Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., Total SA and Eni S.P.A. _ would simply shutter their platforms and wait for political tensions to subside, Gheit said. Oil companies could still export oil from storage terminals on the coast; that is, if union workers at the terminals stay on the job.
The price of oil already has swung up and down this year because of supply concerns in another oil-rich part of the world, the Persian Gulf. Iran, the world's third-largest crude exporter, is sparring with the U.S. and Europe over its nuclear program.
While Iranian imports are banned in the U.S. because of long-standing tensions, the country supplies 2.2 million barrels per day to the rest of the world, including Europe. Meanwhile, Libya is quickly restarting oil fields that were shut down during the anti-government uprising last year. It has about 1 million barrels per day back online, and it expects to increase production to pre-rebellion levels of 1.6 million barrels per day by mid-year.
Oil prices fell by $2.86 this week to end at $98.70 per barrel in New York. Prices dropped as Europe delayed a decision to ban Iranian imports. But they could snap back up given the variety of geopolitical problems affecting world supplies, including the threat of a Nigerian oil worker strike.
The U.S. government expects the price of oil to average $100.25 per barrel this year.
Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research, said oil could jump by $5-$10 per barrel if the strike begins Sunday. Nigeria ranks behind Canada, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Venezuela in oil exports to the U.S. It produces a valuable crude variety that is easier and cheaper to turn into gasoline than others.
Investors, who have been numbed from years of political unrest in Nigeria that included sabotage, thievery, environmental protests and other operating problems, may wait to see how the government works with the union. Nigerian oil always seems to be under a perpetual threat of some kind, Lynch said.
"Though this time seems more serious," he said.
Nigerians have been upset for years as international oil production damaged the environment with little apparent domestic benefits. One of the only visible perks was the fuel subsidy. Removing it forced gasoline prices to jump overnight from $1.70 per gallon to at least $3.50 per gallon _ a crippling increase for a nation where most people live on less than $2 a day.
The government still seems determined to have its way, Barclays analyst Helima Croft said, but an oil field strike would be a game changer. If workers can shut down oil production, it's only a matter of time before declining oil revenues will force the government to cave, she said.
"Any disruptions in either oil production or exports would severely constrain government activities and its ability to meet its obligations," Croft said.
Eighty percent of the country's revenue comes from oil.
___
Follow Chris Kahn on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ChrisKahnAP
____
Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Lagos, Nigeria, contributed to this report.
O.T. North Dakota Surpasses OPEC Member Ecuador in Oil Production
January 12, 2012,
Jan. 10 (Bloomberg) -- North Dakota oil production surged 42 percent to 510,000 barrels a day in November, exceeding the output of OPEC member Ecuador, as energy explorers accelerated drilling in the Bakken Shale formation.
The state’s daily crude output topped a half-million barrels for the first time during the month, North Dakota’s Oil and Gas Division said today in a statement. North Dakota’s 6,300 wells produced enough oil to displace imports from foreign suppliers such as Iraq or Colombia, Lynn Helms, division director, said in the release.
Oil producers including EOG Resources Inc. and Continental Resources Inc. have spurred a five-fold increase in North Dakota’s oil output by using intensive drilling practices to tap the Bakken, a geologic formation that stretches from southern Alberta to the northern U.S. Great Plains. It’s estimated to hold as much as 4.3 billion barrels of tecnically recoverable oil in North Dakota and Montana, according to a 2008 report by the U.S. Geological Survey.
“This is big news for the state and the country,” Helms said. “Oil production in the state has increased anywhere from 8,000 to 40,000 barrels a day every month since June.”
Production will continue to increase as drillers hone their techniques, Andrew Steinhubl, co-leader of consulting firm Bain & Co.’s North American oil and gas practice, said in a Jan. 6 interview from Houston.
Rising Crude Production
In the Bakken formation alone, crude production rose 56 percent in November to 443,425 barrels a day from a year earlier, state figures showed. Bakken oil accounted for 87 percent of the state’s total November output.
Continental, the Enid, Oklahoma-based oil company controlled by billionaire Harold Hamm, is the largest leaseholder in the Bakken shale region, with 901,000 acres, based on third-quarter 2011 data compiled by Bloomberg Industries. Hess Corp. of New York and Denver-based Whiting Petroleum Corp. are second and third with 900,000 acres and 680,000 acres, respectively.
Bakken crude is a low-sulfur variety preferred by refiners not equipped to handle heavier, more corrosive types of oil. Bakken crude rose 1.5 percent to $97.97 a barrel today at the Clearbrook, Minnesota, hub, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The price has increased 15 percent in the past year.
Ecuador, with 500,000 barrels of daily output in November, was the smallest member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, according to data from the International Energy Agency in Paris.
--Editors: Jasmina Kelemen, Tina Davis
O.T. China Set To Frack America In Shale Deal With Devon
Showing that it isn’t worried about the upswell of angst over hydraulic fracking technology, the Chinese government, through state-controlled Sinopec, today struck a deal with Devon Energy to buy into five prospective new exploration areas in the U.S.
The deal, which includes $900 million in cash upfront and a promise of $1.6 billion in the years ahead to cover drilling and development, gives the Chinese a 33% stake in five of Devon’s fields, and a front row seat to what is effectively the second wave of development of U.S. shale assets. The areas in question include the Tuscaloosa in Louisiana, the Niobrara in Colorado, the Mississippian in Devon’s home state of Oklahoma, the Utica in Ohio and the Michigan basin.
This isn’t the first time a Chinese company has bitten off a piece of shale — Cnooc has partnered with Chesapeake Energy in the Eagle Ford and Niobrara in recent years — but it is the first onshore U.S. foray for Sinopec.
Foreigners have been hot for shale in recent months, with Chesapeake also today unveiling its Utica JV partner as Total. Last week SandRidge Energy, run by Chesapeake co-founder Tom Ward, sold a $1 billion worth of its acreage in the Mississippian to Spain’s Repsol. A few months back Aussie mining giant BHP Billiton continued its shale gobble with the $15 billion pick-up of Petrohawk, following its earlier $5 billion buy of Chesapeake’s Fayetteville shale acreage. India’s Reliance Industries, though a JV with Atlas, controls some 350,000 acres in the Marcellus shale.
Sinopec’s deal makes sense — it’s buying promising acreage in the U.S. at a time when the price of natural gas is low ($3 per mcf) and the value of the dollar as a reserve currency is high.
(With $3 trillion in U.S. government debt set to be turned over in 2012 we’ll need to attract a lot more foreign investment than this — but that’s another story.)
So what does this deal do for Devon? Bob Brackett, analyst at Bernstein Research, was scratching his head over this today. In a note Brackett wondered why Devon was doing the deal at all. “Unlike companies like Chesapeake who need JVs to fund development activity, Devon isn’t in dire need of the proceeds,” considering its $5.6 billion in cash on the balance sheet. What’s more, Brackett thinks Sinopec got the better end of the deal; he values the deal acreage at a fair value of $5,900 versus the implied deal value of $4,800 an acre.
More important, Brackett wonders when Devon will reveal what it has in mind for its cash. A big acquisition perhaps? Share buybacks? Or maybe just some really, really nice accoutrements for the giant new skyscraper headquarters it’s building in downtown Oklahoma City.
Whatever Devon decides to do with its cash, the likely destination will be onshore. The company sold its deepwater and select international assets to BP for $7 billion in 2010. With new partner Sinopec. That move was the first big one that Chief Executive John Richels made upon taking the reins of the company from Larry Nichols (who founded Devon with his father four decades ago). But divestitures don’t make a legacy, and Richels is surely seeking to make a lasting mark on Devon.
The market liked today’s move, pushing Devon shares up 6.63% to $66.11.
Market Will Be Closed Tomorrow (Mon.)
O.T. China to Invest $1.5 Trillion in Oil and Gas Exploration and Production
Thursday, December 22, 2011
10
China’s offshore oil and gas sector is expected to get the majority of the $1.5 trillion investment in the country's energy plan (2011-2015). The nation also announced it anticipates domestic oil production will be increased to 500,000 barrels per day by 2015.
China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) increased its investment by 30 percent in the South China Sea during 2011. China National Petroleum Corp, Sinopec, Exxon-Mobile and BP are also working in the offshshore sector and are expected to invest heavily in its development.
At the recent Offshore Support Vessel-China Conference in Shanghai a number of key players in the OSV vessel and shipbuilding industry gathered to discuss the new opportunities. But, safety and vessel technologies and well intervention were at the top of the agenda as well.
Simon Liang, CEO, Sinopacific Shipbuilding Group and John Janik, CEO, Electronic Power Design (EPD Asia and the EPD worldwide group), kicked off the two-day seminar recently at the Grand Hyatt Shanghai. Liang, whose company is the largest builder of energy support vessels in China, shared Sinopacific’s ‘Five Year Plan’ (2011-2015), which offered the key advantages of building OSVs in China as well as some of the challenges.
Janik, whose integrated ‘Engine Operating Station’ (EOS) has been installed in hundreds of offshore energy support vessels around the world, explained the financial and operational benefits of the integrated systems for owners and shipyards. EPDs' containerized power systems are locked during vessel construction and only reopened during commissioning. He also spoke about the importance of strategic partnerships and real-time testing as well as properly training the end users. EPD operates around the world and has manufacturing and service facilities in the U.S., Brazil, China and Singapore.
Denis Welch, CEO of IHC Merwede - South East Asia, acted as moderator for the event. Arnstein Eknes, Segment Director-Special Ships, Det Norske Veritas, discussed technological challenges facing the changing world of multi-purpose vessels and well intervention. Other presenters included Leong Seng Keat of Nam Chong, Dr. Markus Johannes Voege of Drydock World UAE, Paul Zhou of China Merchants Heavy Industry, John Payne of Hallin Marine, Xu Guang of China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation, Gerhard Aulbert and George Zhang Guanhao of Germanischer Lloyd.
The South China Sea and deepwater areas between Hong Kong and Hainan Island and ultra-deepwater offshore holds the best promise for oil and gas production for China. Currently, the nation's imports about 50% of its consumption and the unrest in the Middle East has put an increased emphasis on its offshore sector, which is now at the top its energy strategies.
http://www.maritime-executive.com/article/china-to-invest-1-5-trillion-in-oil-and-gas-exploration-and-production
TOB 745,172 Shares @ The Later Date Of 9/18/2011
NTEPHE PETER Officer 09/18/2011 Buy direct 51,000 0.1100 745,172
Any Chance Someone Can Post A Picture Of BB? Always one of my favorite posters, would really appreciate knowing what he looked like. My Condolences also to the family. The ERHE family here will miss him very much.
Attaka76: Welcome To Middies iHub.
A. What Are You Doing Up So Late? & B. Again, I think they were waiting for "ERHE" to get partner(s). Maybe waiting until EVERYBODY had their ducks in a row.
I Think They Were Waiting For ERHE To Find A Partner(s).
Snayeman; If You Mean The JDZ Board, Seek Doesn't Post There Anymore. You need a "Message Board Subscription" to post, & I believe his/her subscription expired.
Abiotic Oil: A Theory Worth Exploring
It’s our nature to sort, divide and classify. We label ourselves to identify political leanings, religious beliefs, the food we enjoy and the sports teams we cheer… And in the oil industry, that too has its own distinct labels which includes the ‘Peak Oil’ theorists; those who believe the world is fast depleting the finite supply of fossil fuel, and, the pragmatists, those who recognize that engineering and technological advances in oil drilling and extraction continuously identify new reserves that make oil plentiful.
And there’s a third group you may not know. These people are deeply interested in oil and its origins but their advocacy of “abiotic theory” has many dismissing them as heretics, frauds or idealists. They hold that oil can be derived from hydrocarbons that existed eons ago in massive pools of liquid hydrocarbons deep within the earth’s core. That source of hydrocarbons seeps up through the earth's layers and slowly replenishes oil sources. In other words, it turns the fossil-fuel paradigm upside down.
Perhaps the breakthrough for this theory came when Chris Cooper’s story appeared (April 16, 1999) in The Wall Street Journal. Here’s an excerpt:
Odd Reservoir Off Louisiana Prods
Oil Experts to Seek a Deeper Meaning
HOUSTON -- Something mysterious is going on at Eugene Island 330.
Production at the oil field, deep in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana, was supposed to have declined years ago. And for a while, it behaved like any normal field: Following its 1973 discovery, Eugene Island 330's output peaked at about 15,000 barrels a day. By 1989, production had slowed to about 4,000 barrels a day.
Then suddenly —some say almost inexplicably— Eugene Island's fortunes reversed. The field, operated by PennzEnergy Co., is now producing 13,000 barrels a day, and probable reserves have rocketed to more than 400 million barrels from 60 million. Stranger still, scientists studying the field say the crude coming out of the pipe is of a geological age quite different from the oil that gushed 10 years ago.
According to Cooper, "Thomas Gold, a respected astronomer and professor emeritus at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, has held for years that oil is actually a renewable, primordial syrup continually manufactured by the Earth under ultrahot conditions and tremendous pressures. As this substance migrates toward the surface, it is attacked by bacteria, making it appear to have an organic origin dating back to the dinosaurs, he says.
All of which has led some scientists to a radical theory: Eugene Island is rapidly refilling itself, perhaps from some continuous source miles below the Earth's surface. That, they say, raises the tantalizing possibility that oil may not be the limited resource it is assumed to be."
More recently, Forbes presented a similar discussion. In 2008 it reported a group of Russian and Ukrainian scientists say that oil and gas don't come from fossils; they're synthesized deep within the earth's mantle by heat, pressure and other purely chemical means, before gradually rising to the surface. Under the so-called abiotic theory of oil, finding all the energy we need is just a matter of looking beyond the traditional basins where fossils might have accumulated.
The idea that oil comes from fossils "is a myth. … We need to change this myth," says petroleum engineer Vladimir Kutcherov, at the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. "All kinds of rocks could have oil and gas deposits."
Alexander Kitchka of the Ukrainian National Academy of Sciences estimates that 60% of the content of all oil is abiotic in origin, and not from fossil fuels. He says companies should drill deeper to find it.
Is abiotic theory the real deal? Is Eugene Island ‘Exhibit A’?
2 Posts From Seek The Light...
Can we expect news about ERHC acquiring assets in Angola and Gabon?
PN mentioned those countries in the IMO news and in March when he was at the Oil and Gas conference. So bacically he has been talking about assets in those two countries for 6 months and mentioned them several times. Also the block in Mali is interesting because TOTAL should have results soon of their well in the same basin across the border in Mauritania.
Bring on the news?
----------------------------------
Sylvan on the video said he is excited and ready to make things happen. I think i detect from others this is true and good things are going to happen. Some are acting to me as if they are really wishing they could talk about what they know, but cannot yet. Maybe we will hear something very soon. Have a good weekend!!!
Of course they found biogenic gas, probally in the first 7-8 hundred feet, but it was not part of the petroleum system. The problem was the missing element not discovered, but Bovill says they know it is " down there."
(This Is All From Seek The Light From The Other Board, at his request. R.M.)
In the email from DK, the is most important point ,in my opinion, is part c, " c) Estimate resources of undrilled traps and evaluate drillable trap(s). And is also contained in the definition of "petroleum system", ie " trap and seal."
I think what was not found was the expected accumulation of oil because in Kina, Lemba, and Malanza they did not drill in the correct place to find traps and faults. They found traces of oil in unconsolidated sands just as Total found in Akpo. They also found in Kina and Lemba high pressure gas and not much in malanza.
I have believed for some time if oil was not there in these wells they will have to drill deeper or in different locations and to the south . I was very glad to see knownski comment yesterday that they have to drill "low."
It seems to me that the three sites drilled in the JDZ that have the highest elevations from the common ground base ie. Kina,Lemba, and Malanza, and two of these apparently has high pressure gas and maybe condensate. OBO1 and Bomu both have substantially less elevation from the base and apparently have oil or oil shows. Interestingly Oaki East has by far the less elevation of any of the drill sites, and is to the south. It is also has the most closely guarded drilling information. Basically no word on it, except back channel rumors of discovery.
My point with all of this is that the drill sites that were drilled deeper into the base below those under the sea mountains have better results. In other words they were drilled deeper, just as knownski suggested. Conversely the highest of those under the sea mountains may not have traps or faults at all but were simply pushed up far above the petroleum system by the high pressure gas over a very extended period of time.
All of the above is my considered opinion.
Umbra:
1. Shade
2. Shadow from a Planet
A visible appearance of something not present & especially of a dead person.
Comparative darkness of obscurity due to interception of light.
Dude Pay No Mind To The Other Dude. The board is being taken over by the Dark Side to the point they don't even want to hear anything that might be positive. Stay with the Force.
I Agree It Is Obvious What A Number Of Posters Here Are Doing 10 Hours A Day. Everyday. Without let up.
This Should Be Sticky Posted...
It is clear that you and a few others are devoting an impressive amount of time and energy to constantly attacking ERHC Energy and its executives. You and a few others have alleged criminal wrongdoing, which is libelous and defamatory. You twist and turn what the company discloses to meet your agenda of raising doubts, anxieties and confusion about the ERHC. By so doing, you have contributed to the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars of valuation, which I suppose is why ERHC’s investors have asked the Company to take forthright action to identify those who devote their days and nights to destroying ERHC’s reputation and take action against them.
Therefore, I will not contribute to your efforts through further correspondence.
Sincerely,
Chad Oil Overview
Chad is one of the most exciting new areas for oil exploration and production in Africa. The country covers almost 1,284,000 km2 and is situated in what has become a golden triangle of African oil production. Chad is bordered in the North by Libya which has the largest crude oil reserves in Africa and is Africa’s second largest producer. Nigeria, to the West of Chad, is Africa’s largest crude oil producer and has Africa’s largest reserves of natural gas. Chad is bordered in the East by Sudan which is Sub-Saharan Africa’s third largest producer of crude oil. Cameroon which borders Chad to the South West is also a net exporter of crude oil.
Chad is among Sub-Saharan Africa’s most significant crude oil producers. The country has proven oil reserves of 1.5 billion barrels with studies establishing the prospect of more discoveries. Production came on stream in 2003 when a consortium of Chevron, Esso E&P (Exxon) and Petronas brought the Miandoum field into production. Production followed from the Kome and Bolobo fields in 2004 while the Nya, Moundouli and Maikeri fields went into production between 2005 and 2007. In 2007, the Chinese National Petroleum Company (“CNPC”) began producing from the Mimosa and Ronier fields in the Bongor basin in South Western Chad.
Chad began to export oil in 2004. The export route is through the Chad-Cameroon pipeline completed in 2003 at a cost of over $3.7 billion. The pipeline runs 1,000 km from Chad’s prolific Doba basin through Cameroon’s Logone Birni basin to the port of Kribi in the Gulf of Guinea. A new, 300 km pipeline has been constructed to transport crude oil from the Koudalwa field in the South Western Chari-Buguirmi region to the Djarmaya refinery. The Djarmaya refinery, situated about 40 km North of N’Djamena, Chad’s capital, was built as a joint venture between CNPC and the Chadian state oil company, SHT. The refinery became operational in July 2011 and has an initial capacity of 20,000 barrels of oil per day which will rise later to 60,000 barrels of oil per day.
ERHC has a 100% in the Manga Block which is north of Lake Chad, along the border with Niger. The Company also has 100% and 50% interests respectively in BDS 2008 and Chari-Ouest Block 3 which lie next to the prolific Doba and Doseo Basin oilfields. In 2010, the Doba and Doseo Basin oilfields had an average production of 122,500 barrels of crude oil per day. BDS 2008 is also bounded by the Bongor basin which hosts the producing Mimosa and Ronier fields. Extensive exploration activity in the three basins has resulted in many discoveries, including the Benoy-1 in Chari-Ouest Block 3 by the Taiwanese Company, OPIC. The Benoy-1 discovery, while lying outside ERHC’s notified acreage area, is estimated to have the potential for up to 9,800 barrels of high-quality, light crude per day and 1.2 million cubic feet of natural gas per day The Doba and Doseo basins are part of the Central African rift system. They contain up to 10 km of non-marine sediments recording the complex tectonic and climatic evolution of the region from Early Cretaceous to the present. The Doba basin is within the oil-proved zone confirmed by the M’biku and Belanga Wells. The Doseo Basin is one of the tertiary –cretaceous Chad rift basins. The basin is bordered by the Central African Republic in the South and South East. Wells drilled in this basin include Kedini-1, Keita-1, Kibea-1, Kikwey-1 Maku-1, Nya-1, North Sako-1, Tega-1, Bambara-1 and Bona Kaba-1. These wells were drilled by Exxon and Conoco and were all hydrocarbon shows except for Keita-1 and Bona Kaba-1
C.Call 6 A.M. (PST) On A Friday Morning Before the Markets Open. Is this normal?
jsc52033 JDZ Nigeria-Sao Tome e Principe
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=5564
Thanks T.T. 4 The P.M. Especially The BTW
Seek T. Light Or Wtao: Would One Of You Please Tell Us What Price SEO Has Turned For This Stock? I bring it to this board because I can't post on the other board.
"all i will say if some people knew what seo turned down they would be sick" (wtao)
"Over the years, Offor has turned down at least three or four offers for his stock, and each offer has been higher than the one before." (S.T.L.)
Africa's Premier International Oil & Gas Event
http://www.petro21.com/events/?id=673
One Of The Speakers....
Mr Peter Ntephe
President & Chief Executive Officer
ERHC ENERGY INC
(Sorry if info is already known)
Petroleum assessment of the intrcratonic Taoudeni basin, Mali
http://www.cprm.gov.br/33IGC/1203319.html
Geography of Mali
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Mali
Taoudeni basin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taoudeni_basin
"This Chad thing must be just a diversion to try to silence the vocal minority"
Yeah, I'm Sure!
That must be the only reason they would go and obtain 2 1/2 very large oil blocks.
Tam; As A Moderator Can't You Limit Our Two Main Management Hating Posters To Just A Few Posts? I'm sure they can tell us how much they hate management in 2 or 3 posts.
Mid; I Think This Is Your Proof.
(Thanks To Julius Erving)
I believe Peter has explained that ERHC abides by its contractual and regulatory obligations to allow the operator to be the source of information about drilling. When we have made disclosures about drilling in our Blocks (which we have) we have done so with the authorization of the operators, as required. In your JDZ Block 1 example, the operator has consistently been the source of information about drilling as far as I know. Afren is not the first to disclose an oil discovery. And there is no reason to believe that Afren disclosed the information you cited without first gaining authorization to do so.
Another consideration that some fail to recognize is that ERHC has special incentive – currently valued in the tens of millions of dollars and potentially many times higher than that in the future -- to comply by the letter of the agreements it has in the JDZ: its costs are carried through to production. The Company’s priority has been to protect its assets and therefore, complying with contractual and regulatory requirements is the prudent course.
Ok I Count At Least 3. One says he will spend 9 to 10 hours everyday.
Petemantx: I Concur. "I think our partners are already locked in"
We just have to wait til the lawyers cross the "T's"
Mid; Yes Out Of The Blue. No one on this board, including you, had any suspicions this was going to happen. I'm not bothered one iota the way the company is doing this. News on Friday during trading hours. And I'm sure we will get more info on Wednesday. With info on partners still to come. I see an almost empty glass now half full, you find the glass half empty.
Tell Them I Said We Should Be @ A Buck Within 12 Months. ;-D
$.25 - $.30 By The End Of The Week?
HP I'm Surprised "Mark" Didn't Give Us A Heads Up On Chad. :-p
BB I hope You Get Well Soon. I would love to hear your Dot Connecting With all that is, & will be, happening with ERHE.
God Bless