WASHINGTON: The Group of Seven (G7) industrial countries have called on oil producers to increase output, saying higher prices posed “substantial risks” to the global economy. With growth weakening in key economies and tensions over Iran worrying major oil importers, finance ministers of the powerful group also hinted they were ready to push for the release of strategic oil reserves to prevent a tightening of the market. “The current rise in oil prices reflects geopolitical concerns and certain supply disruptions,” the G7 finance ministers said in a statement. “We encourage oil-producing countries to increase their output to meet demand, while drawing prudently on excess capacity. “We remain vigilant of the risks to the global economy.” “In this context and mindful of the substantial risks posed by elevated oil prices, we are monitoring the situation in oil markets closely,” according to statement, which was released by the US Treasury. The statement applauded Saudi Arabia's commitment, made at the Group of 20 summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, in June, to mobilise spare capacity when necessary to ensure supplies to the market are adequate. But it also suggested the leading industrial democracies were ready to tap into global strategic oil reserves to keep price pressure down. “We stand ready to call upon the International Energy Agency (IEA) to take appropriate action to ensure that the market is fully and timely supplied,” the statement said. “We remain committed to well-functioning and transparent energy markets.” The statement came four days after the Petroleum Economist magazine reported that the IEA, which represents oil-consuming nations, was reluctantly backing the idea of a release of strategic oil stockpiles by major importers in September. The IEA came behind the idea after Washington signalled it would move alone on a release “The loss of supplies from sanctions-hit Iran will be used to justify the move,” the magazine said. It added that the move could involve as much or more than last year's release of 60 million barrels from stockpiles. Sanctions on large crude exporter Iran to pressure the government to curtail its nuclear activities accused by the West to be aimed at developing nuclear weapons have tightened oil markets and helped boost prices. Oil prices nevertheless remain around 13% below their peak of the past year. The US benchmark WTI crude closed in regular New York trade on Tuesday at US$96.33 a barrel, and fell only slightly in after-market trade following the G7 announcement. That price compared with the year's low in late June of around US$77 a barrel, but still well beneath the 52-week high of US$110.65 and far below the July 2008 all-time peak of US$145 a barrel. The London benchmark, Brent crude, was at US$112.58, compared with its June low of around US$89. In July 2008 Brent spiked to US$147 a barrel. AFP
Singapore's Sembcorp Marine – the world's second-largest oil rig builder – said Wednesday that it has won a contract worth $674 million from to carry out work for two floating, production, storage and offloading vessels (FPSOs). The contract was awarded by Tupi B.V, a consortium owned by majority shareholder Petrobras Netherlands B.V., together with BG Overseas Holdings and Galp Energia E&P B.V. A Sembcorp subsidiary will build a total of eight modules and module integration works for the FPSOs P-68 and P-71. The two vessels are expected to be completed in 60 months and they will be deployed in the Tupi field offshore Brazil. Commenting on Sembcorp Marine's announcement on Wednesday, Maybank Kim Eng Analyst Yeak Chee Keong told Rigzone that it "validates his view that offshore activities will continue to be strong and that more contract wins will be forthcoming for Sembcorp Marine." As of August 22, 2012, Sembcorp Marine had already surpassed its record-high of $4.6 billion (SGD 5.7 billion) worth of orders from fiscal year 2008, securing $6.5 billion (SGD 8.1 billion) in offshore contracts. Yeak believes that the company will be able to end off the 2012 fiscal year with $8.8 billion (SGD 11 billion) worth of rig orders. - Rigzone
Investigation results on the fire which blazed at the Petronas Carigali's Tukau B Platform offshore Miri on June 11 this year have not yet been released, and it is unclear if the national oil company intends to make its findings public. According to an email from Bernard Christopher's family members, Petronas has not yet informed the family about the cause of the fire, nor has the company kept them updated on the status of its findings. Bernard Christopher, 39, is the most seriously injured victim in the accident, and he suffered 40 percent second degree burns. He was initially warded under the Red Zone critical unit at Miri hospital. Alongside with Christopher, four other Petronas employees were injured by the blaze. "Bernard is still undergoing treatment in Kuala Lumpur. He said that he had lodged a report on a faulty skid compressor prior to the accident. As his family, we will like to be informed of the root cause of the accident," one of Christopher's family members told Rigzone on Wednesday. A spokesperson from Petronas confirmed on Wednesday that the company has not released any of its investigation results to the public pertaining to the Tukau B Platform fire. The spokesperson declined to comment on whether Petronas intends to make its findings public. Petronas was hit by two other fire accidents this year. The most recent Petronas-related incident involved an oil tanker which caught fire and exploded at the jetty of Petronas Chemicals Methanol Sdn Bhd on July 26, 2012. The facility is part of the Rancha-Rancha industrial zone, which is located on the island of Pulau Enoe, near Labuan. The 38,000 deadweight-tonne MISC tanker was loading methanol when a small fire broke out during a thunderstorm, The Star Online reported on July 29, 2012. The fire quickly turned into a raging inferno sparking off at least three major explosions that could be felt throughout the island, the daily added. Earlier on May 11 this year, a Petronas gas process plant in the GPP Complex A in Kerteh was rocked by two explosions. A worker died on the spot, while 23 others were injured. Some 2,000 workers were at the site when the explosions occurred. - Rigzone
France’s Technip has been awarded a flexible pipe supply contract for Brunei Shell Petroleum’s Champion field, offshore Brunei. The contract, awarded by Swiber Offshore Construction, covers the supply of 12 flexible flowlines totalling 19 kilometres long. The pipes will be used by Brunei Shell for its Champion field, which is being redeveloped to increase production. “This award is an important milestone for Technip as it confirms the cost-effectiveness of the flexible pipe solution for shallow-water field redevelopment in Asia,” Technip stated. The company said it also reinforced its position as the primary flexible pipes supplier in the Asia Pacific region. The contract will be executed by Technip’s operating centre in Kuala Lumpur, with the flowlines being manufactured at the company’s Asiaflex Products plant in Tanjung Langsat, Malaysia. It is planned for completion in the first semester of 2013. Brunei Shell’s Champion field is located 40 kilometres offshore Brunei at a water depth of 45 metres. The Champion WaterFlood project, divided into brownfield and greenfield sections, will be carried out in several phases and aims to increase oil recovery from the field. Technip is also performing engineering work for the potential exploitation of new gas condensate reserves at the Total-operated Block B, off Brunei Darussalam. - Upstream
LABUAN: Implementing effective safety and risk management programmes, along with developing the workforce’s competency in safety across the organisation, has become a focus for major oil and gas companies in the region. Labuan Shipyard Engineering Sdn Bhd (LSE) health, safety and environment manager (HSE) Spencer James in an exclusive interview with Bernama said one of the major challenges facing oil and gas companies right now is being able to assure the competence of their staff, particularly those in safety-critical roles. “With the demand for energy rising all the time, the pressure to increase safety awareness is very challenging, and a workforce of a very diverse cultural mix and behaviours working with complex chemicals and machinery, the industry is challenged in managing very complex risks each day. “The growing multi-cultural workforce due to the rate of expansion remains the biggest challenge. There is a need to keep technical education programmes fresh and interesting, in addition to assuring that training on behavioural safety is appropriately embedded,” he said. He was commenting on the recent statement from the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) which called on the government to make the safety and health regulations compulsory for all industries to achieve a zero rate of industrial accidents in the country. MTUC vice-president A Balasubramniam was quoted as saying the safety and health laws were currently self-regulated and as such, many companies did not bother to pay much attention to them.Workers were also not educated on the precautionary measures to be taken when working in dangerous situations, resulting in unwanted accidents, he said. Statistics released by the Social Security Organisation (Socso) showed that a total of 56,339 accidents were reported in 2007, he said, adding that this was a high rate considering the number of workers in the country. Meanwhile, James said the LSE has continuously worked to promote HSE policy and regulation for its sub-contractors and employees. “Certainly our company and our associate companies aspire to have a health and safety performance exemplary in the country,” he said. He said the industry, as a whole, is very high-profile and has very high-profile stakeholders. HSE, therefore, has been put very high up on the corporate agenda. HSE was also the main priority when winning contracts and looking to expand projects or working with international partners, and the trend has now shifted to HSE being the responsibility of every manager and employee, from top to bottom, although at varying levels, he said. “A golden rule for a successful HSE programme is the personal commitment of those at the top of the organisation. We set the standard and determine the priorities and where resources are directed in times of austerity,” he said. He said with a stringent safety regime it is possible to bring the risk of such an accident down to the absolute minimum. Damage done to the environment and coastal economies can be significantly reduced if an effective emergency response plan is put in place beforehand. — Bernama
Venezuela President Hugo Chavez has ordered an investigation into an explosion and ongoing fire at the country's biggest fuel refining facility that has left at least 41 people dead and more than 80 others wounded. Firefighters continued to struggle on Monday to put out the blaze at the Amuay refinery. It erupted on Saturday and continues to burn in two storage tanks, threatening to spread to nearby fuel storage facilities. The Venezuelan leader promised an investigation into the tragedy and three days of national mourning were declared ahead of his trip to the refinery in the country's far north. Chavez, fighting a re-election campaign ahead of October 7 polls, slammed reports that poor maintenance was responsible for the accident at the state-owned refinery, one of the biggest in the world, as he paid a visit there on Sunday. "Some philosopher said, I don't know who, that 'life must go on'," said Chavez, describing as "irresponsible," experts who have suggested that the government had inadequate safeguards in place at the site. 'Latest technology' Both Amuay and the ministry of energy have estimated the 645,000 barrel-per-day refinery can restart work in two days. International oil prices have ticked upward as a result of the fire, and investment bank Goldman Sachs noted on Monday that similar major fires "typically [have] caused months in delays". Al Jazeera's Lucia Newman, reporting from the town of Punto Fijo, said the refinery's director "told me that they have the latest, most modern technology to put out [these kind of] flames, [but] they haven't been able to do so". Vice-President Elias Jaua, who travelled to the area in western Venezuela, said on state television late on Saturday that the dead included 18 National Guard troops and that six of the bodies had not yet been identified. Other officials said earlier that the dead included a 10-year-old boy. Five of the injured remained in hospital and were being evaluated, while two were transferred to a burn unit in a neighbouring state and the remainder discharged with minor burns. Balls of fire rose over the refinery, among the largest in the world, in video posted on the internet by people who were nearby at the time. The explosion shattered walls of nearby shops, ripped out windows from homes and left the surrounding streets covered with rubble and twisted scraps of metal. 'Whole house shook' In a neighbourhood next to the refinery, shopkeeper Yolimar Romero said she was at her computer when a shock wave swept over the area shortly after 1am. "At that instant, the whole house shook as if it were an earthquake," she said. "The windows went flying off with their frames and everything." The Venezuelan president pledged to help the people who have been displaced from their homes at the refinery complex, which also houses workers and their families, and in impoverished neighbourhoods nearby. Rafael Ramirez, the energy minister, said the explosion was triggered by a gas leak, the cause of which remained to be determined. "The gas cloud exploded, igniting at least two storage tanks and other facilities at the refinery," he told state-controlled VTV television. Ramirez said the explosion was powerful and caused "significant damage" not only to the plant, but also to nearby shops and homes. Firefighters were able to bring the fire under control, though smoke was still billowing from the facility. Fuel supplies Government officials pledged to restart the refinery within two days and said the country has plenty of fuel supplies on hand to meet domestic needs as well as its export commitments. The energy minister said he expected production of the 645,000-barrels-per-day facility, which makes up two-thirds of the world's second largest refinery complex, to resume within two days. As far as fuel shipments, he said, "we won't have major effects". Ramirez said nine storage tanks were damaged and that oil workers inspecting the damage along with troops would determine the cause of the gas leak. Images in state media showed the flames casting an orange glow against the night sky. One photograph showed an injured man being wheeled away on a stretcher. Vice-President Jaua said earlier on his Twitter account that the military was deployed to the area and that air ambulances were dispatched to ferry the wounded. Amuay is part of the Paraguana Refinery Complex, which also includes the adjacent Cardon refinery. Together, the two refineries process about 900,000 barrels of crude a day and 200,000 barrels of gasoline. Venezuela is a major supplier of oil to the US and a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries. OPEC certified in 2011 that Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the world at 296.5 billion barrels, surpassing Saudi Arabia, the country with the largest refining capacity. Source: Al Jazeera and agencies
PETALING JAYA: Volatility in the global oil markets has pushed Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd (formerly known as Esso Malaysia Bhd) into a loss-making position during the second quarter (Q2) ended June 30, 2012. The petrol refiner and retailer reported a net loss of RM75.1mil for Q2'12, compared with a net profit of RM1.8mil for the corresponding period last year. Loss per share was 27.80 sen, compared with an earnings per share of 0.70 sen previously. In a statement, Petron explained that the reference prices for crude oil and finished products dropped steeply and continuously during the period leaving negative margins on higher-costing inventory sold in the second quarter. Petron's revenue for Q2'12 totalled RM2.85bil, compared with RM3.06bil for Q2'11. The company said that sales volume decreased to 7.4 million barrels in the second quarter from 7.9 million barrels over the same period last year. “Oil companies around the world were not spared from the effects of the steep drop in crude oil and product prices,” Petron chairman and CEO Ramon S. Ang said. On its future prospects, Petron conceded that the fragile global economy on the back of an expected slowdown in economic growth and the continued crude and product prices volatility would have an impact on its potential earnings. It would therefore focus on sustaining flawless operations, cost control and product and services quality, as well as strengthening its business position through continued emphasis on strategic programmes and initiatives to ensure the company's growth and profitability over the long term. “Despite these external challenges, we remain focused on our initiatives to help ensure Petron Malaysia's growth and profitability moving forward,” Ang said. Petron has recently started formal studies on the possible improvements to the Port Dickson refinery. An initial investment of around US$100mil (RM312.3mil) would have to be made to comply with Eyro-IV fuel specifications that would take effect from 2015. Other possible upgrades will become clearer once technical studies are completed. “Our investments in Malaysia are directed by a long-term view of the country's continuing economic growth. We are optimistic about our prospects and will continue to focus on building the business,” Ang said.
KUALA LUMPUR — Shareholders in Canada’s Progress Energy Resources Corp have approved a takeover bid from Malaysia’s state oil company Petronas at C$22.00 a share, or near C$6 billion (RM19 billion) including debt, Progress said. The acquisition would be the first time an Asian state investor has bought its Canadian partner in a gas project, and is likely to be scrutinised by Canadian regulators. The Progress board has already approved the takeover, which is the smaller of two bids by state-owned Asian firms for Canadian energy companies. China’s CNOOC wants to pay US$15.1 billion (RM48 billion) for Nexen Inc in what would be China’s largest foreign deal. Along with shareholders who will vote next month, that takeover must also be approved by the Chinese, Canadian and US governments. Petronas initially offered to pay C$20.45 per share in June for Progress, then raised its price in late July to counter a competing bid from an unknown third party, driving Progress’ shares up to more than C$22.00 at one point. Progress also said it has received a “no-action letter” from Canada’s competition commissioner of competition about the takeover, it said in a statement dated August 28. “The ‘no-action letter’ confirms that the commissioner has reviewed the arrangement and concluded that she does not, at this time, intend to make an application for a remedial order”, it said. Petronas declined to comment today. — Reuters
NAIROBI (Reuters) - A pipeline allowing South Sudan to export its oil via the Kenyan port of Lamu, freeing the landlocked country from reliance on a route through Sudan, will cost $3 billion, Finance Minister Kosti Manibe said. Manibe said that although South Sudan did not have the money to pay for the pipeline's entire cost, the newly independent country would invest in the project and had the necessary reserves of crude to offer guarantee to any financiers. "The 2,000 km pipeline will cost approximately $3 billion dollars," he told a news conference in Nairobi on Friday. "We don't need to have the money right now, we have the reserves," he said. "South Sudan will definitely have equity in the pipeline," he added. Officials expect construction on the pipeline will begin by June 2013 and last two years. They said it will be able to transport between 700,000 barrels and 1 million barrels of Southern Sudanese crude per day. South Sudan has 7 billion in proven reserves, the country's energy minister Stephen Dhieu Dau said. South Sudan seceded from Sudan last year and the two countries have disagreed over how much the Juba government should pay to transport its oil output through Sudan. They reached an interim deal last Friday, ending a row that led to the shutdown in January of southern oil production of 350,000 barrels per day. Oil is essential to both economies and made up 98 percent of South Sudan's budget. China was the biggest buyer of South Sudanese oil before the shutdown, and Chinese state firms are the biggest oil operators in the world's youngest country. In January, South Sudan signed an agreement with neighboring Kenya, the region's largest economy, to build the pipeline to connect its oil fields with Lamu, which is under construction. The pipeline could also transport crude from Kenya's Turkana area, where British explorer Tullow Oil found oil deposits in March should they be prove to be commercially viable, said Kiraitu Murungi, Kenya's energy minister. "We believe from the indications that we've been given that we if we are lucky we might have as much oil as (South) Sudan. Any extra that we don't use in the country we are going to put in the same pipeline as the Sudanese oil and export it through the port of Lamu," said Murungi. Murungi said the country is also planning to build a second refinery in the northeastern town of Isiolo to produce up to 100,000 barrels per day and refine crude from Turkana. Kenya already has another refinery near the port of Mombasa, processing 1.6 million tonnes of crude a year.
Welding Inspector for XMAS Tree - QAM-Velosi QAM-Velosi is urgently seeking welding Inspector for XMAS Tree Fabrication inspection work in Singapore. 3 days / week, ongoing. Immediate start! CV's to resources2@qam-velosi.com
Welding/NDE Inspectors & 2 Coating Painting Inspectors - offshore Myanmar We need 4 Welding/NDE Inspectors & 2 Coating Painting Inspectors. Project will start on 15th September 2012 at offshore Myanmar.
Please can you get back to me with key personnel cvs and certificates by next week 30th Aug 2012. Please ask your friends to give me quote on US$(12hrs/Day). We dont pay any overtime. We will provide airticket and accommodation. Inspectors has to work continuously 3 months and after that Inspector can take vacation for 2 weeks. All the key personnel's should meet PTTEP requirements (Full Compliance). Please see the requirements below. Welding / NDE inspectors : Minimum qualification requirements : 10 years previous experience in a similar role with knowledge of NDE techniques (Radiography, UT, MPI & DP) qualified / approval to ASNT level 2 or equivalent. An essential requirement is previous experience of working within a fabrication yard for Offshore and Onshore facilities / activities. For structural welding inspectors, the candidates shall be qualified / approval to the following qualification as minimum o CSWIP 3.1 Welding Inspection o MT and PT ASNT level 2 o RT CSWIP / PCN level 2 o UT CSWIP / PCN level 2 For pipeline welding / NDE inspectors, the candidate shall have previous experience of working in lay barge and shall have at least one or the combination of following qualifications; o PCN radiographic interpreter o 3.9 U/T (CSWIP) o 3.1 or 3.2 welding inspector (CSWIP) Protective coating, Painting and Insulation inspectors : Minimum qualification requirements : 10 years previous experience in a similar role with sound knowledge of external/internal blasting, cleaning and protective coating techniques and installation of insulation materials. An essential requirement is previous experience of working within a fabrication yard for Offshore and Onshore facilities / activities. Painting inspector shall be qualified to NACE Coating Inspector (CIP) level 2 or equivalent Thanks Best Regards Satish Reddy SGoli@eagle.org ABS Consulting Singapore Tel:62708663, Dir:62771208 Fax:62709987 www.absconsulting.com
TOKYO: Japan's top city gas supplier Tokyo Gas said it has signed a basic agreement to buy 900,000 tonnes per year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Malaysia for 10 years from April 2015. The agreement was signed with Malaysia LNG Sdn Bhd, which is led by Malaysia's state oil firm Petronas, the company said in a statement. The deal comes as a follow-up to an existing contract, due to expire at the end of March 2015, under which Tokyo Gas buys LNG from the Malaysia Dua LNG project. The Malaysia Dua project is one component of the larger Malaysia LNG project, which is owned 90 percent by Petronas and 5 percent each by the Sarawak State Government and Mitsubishi Corporation. - Reuters
KUALA LUMPUR, - Perbadanan Pembangunan Perdagangan Luar Malaysia (Matrade) bekerjasama dengan Halliburton untuk menyediakan platform bagi syarikat Malaysia mempromosikan produk dan perkhidmatan mereka kepada perniagaan bertaraf dunia. Halliburton merupakan satu daripada penyedia produk dan perkhidmatan terbesar dunia kepada industri tenaga. Matrade akan menganjurkan satu program mengenai peluang perniagaan dalam industri minyak dan gas dengan Halliburton Malaysia pada 6 Sept di Matrade Hall di Menara Matrade, Kuala Lumpur. Objektif program tersebut adalah untuk mewujudkan kesedaran kepada syarikat Malaysia mengenai rantaian bekalan dan keperluan penyumberan Halliburton, menyediakan maklumat mengenai peluang perniagaan yang tersedia di Halliburton dan mewujudkan penanda aras bagi produk dan perkhidmatan minyak dan gas Malaysia, kata Matrade dalam satu kenyataan. Antara topik yang dibentangkan ialah Pengenalan mengenai Halliburton Malaysia, Rantaian Bekalan dan Keperluan Penyumberan Halliburton, kata perbadanan itu. -- BERNAMA
QA/QC Inspectors for offshore - Myanmar We are looking QA/QC Inspectors for offshore Projects. · Project Start Date : Mid of September. · Openings : 8 · Project duration : 3 months · Working hours : 12 hours either will be day shift or night Shift · Work location : Myanmar offshore. · Certificate requirements are § CSWIP 3.1 § PCN RI § BOSIET certified Interested candidates can forward their updated CV, Certs & passport copy with expected salary. If you are tied with any other assignments, kindly refer your friends. Thanks & Regards S Dharmaraj Placement Executive Hp: +65 85716817 Email: dharmaraj@cutechgroup.com
PERTAMINA'S ambitious plan to become a global energy company, similar to Malaysia's Petronas and Thailand's PTT, has been hamstrung with political intervention and corruption at home. Karen Agustiawan, Pertamina's president director since February 2009, has promised to recruit foreign talent and capable human resources and state-of-the-art technology to help meet the company's strategy. "The basic (resources) and the plan are already there," Karen told the Jakarta Globe in an interview at her residence in Patra Kuningan, South Jakarta, on Friday.
Karen, 52, has been travelling overseas, talking to executives and industry members on the best practices of managing and operating energy companies like state-controlled Pertamina. She has invited a former executive of Petronas to share his experience in transforming the Malaysian firm into a world-class oil company.
"A former CEO of Malaysia's Petronas, Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican, will visit Indonesia and I want him to meet several ministers to explain the reasons behind Petronas' success, on what the Malaysian government has provided," Karen said.
Hassan, chief executive of Petronas from 1995 until 2010, has been widely credited for Petronas' rise to success.
Pertamina's ambitious plan will not be easy to achieve, though. In the five years through 2011, Pertamina's assets rose 58 per cent to 319.9 rupiah trillion (RM105.4 billion). That was a fifth of Petronas's US$153 billion (RM474.3 billion) and lower than PTT's US$44.5 billion.
Just last month it transformed itself into an energy company that encompasses geothermal and coal, broadening from crude oil and natural gas.
Still, revenue and net income at Pertamina has been increasing in the past three years. Revenue rose 36 per cent to 589.9 trillion rupiah last year. It was higher from 365.34 trillion rupiah in 2009. At the same time net income rose 22 per cent to 20.47 trillion rupiah in 2011. In 2009 profit was 16.2 trillion rupiah.
Karen said that in the past Pertamina had been implicated in various corruption practices that hurt its attempts to become a global energy player.
Pertamina, set up in 1957, has been portrayed as a cash cow for corrupt officials. During the early 1970s oil bonanza, Pertamina racked up huge debts, around US$10 billion according to some estimates, due to mismanagement and corruption.
Karen identified three major challenges - a lack of understanding, intervention and the perception of corruption that refuses to go away.
"It is unfair for Pertamina to be perceived as the same company it used to be some 50 years ago," she said, insisting that the firm had performed many good deeds for the country like paying huge amounts of tax and dividends to the state.
Karen said that Pertamina had to deal with the central government and other state-controlled companies such as electricity producer Perusahaan Listrk Negara and airline operators such as Merpati Nusantara. Doing business with those companies caused Pertamina's debts to rise to almost US$7 billion.
"With Pertamina eyeing growth many times over, this must be stopped," the president director said.
Aside from mismanagement, Pertamina must also deal with political intervention.
"Anything that we have done is constantly challenged. I do not know whether this is a product of reformation, but I personally think that it has gone to a point where it is too much," Karen said.
Such distractions will not stop Pertamina from making acquisitions locally and abroad, she insisted.
Pertamina's moves to acquire Medco Energi Internasional in 2010, the country's largest listed oil and gas company, was scrapped at the last minute due to political reasons.
"And now our plan to acquire oil assets in Venezuela is starting to be politicised, as to why Pertamina must go there when the political environment was not there," Karen said.
She added that Pertamina had improved a lot, which was exemplified by its partnership with some of the biggest names in the industry. "If the old image persists, it is impossible for Pertamina to get the best choice of partners."
Pertamina has also improved in terms of internal management, Karen says.
"Now, our board of directors are no longer perceived as untouchable and more humane, in touch with the lowest level of the company's management," she said.
Pri Agung Rakhmanto, an executive director at think-tank Reforminer Institute, said that Pertamina's image had improved in the past 10 years.
"Pertamina, however, must make more effort toward transparency, to explain its decisions to the public to completely eradicate its old image as a corrupt institution," he said.
Pri Agung also called on Pertamina to continue to display professionalism so that people would be more reluctant to intervene in its operations.
"A constant improvement in terms of efficiency is a must for Pertamina," he said.
BEIJING: CNOOC, China's top offshore oil producer, is looking to team up with foreign companies this year to explore for oil and gas in another 26 blocks, including 22 in the strategically important South China Sea, although an analyst said none of these were in disputed territory. The tender comes two months after China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) invited international firms to bid for nine blocks in the western part of the South China Sea, a move Vietnam said was illegal as the blocks encroached on its territorial waters. China at the time insisted the tender in June was in accord with Chinese and international law and urged Vietnam not to escalate the quarrel. Huang Xinhua, a geologist at energy consultancy IHS, said none of the latest blocks appeared to be in disputed areas. One of the blocks is in the northern Bohai Bay, with three in the East China Sea, 18 in the eastern part of the South China Sea and four in the western South China Sea, the company said on its website (www.cnooc.com.cn). They cover a total area of 73,754 square kilometres. The three deep-water blocks in the east of the South China Sea are at depths between 700 and 3,000 metres, it said, adding that foreign firms have until Nov 30 to view data packages for all the blocks tendered. "The tender should be CNOOC's largest in terms of the number of blocks offered since the 1990s, showing CNOOC really wants to beef up its exploration in offshore China with the help of international firms," said Huang. CNOOC, parent of CNOOC Ltd , normally teams with foreign firms to explore for oil and gas off Chinese shores, but once a commercial find is made the firm holds the right to take a 51 percent stake. Beijing claims almost all the South China Sea, a body of water believed to hold rich reserves of oil and gas and which stretches from China to Indonesia and from Vietnam to the Philippines. Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia claim parts of it. - Reuters
Sapura Kencana Petroleum looks the most expensive among 10 companies in Malaysia's energy sector, data from Thomson Reuters StarMine shows. The data includes firms tracked by at least three analysts. The firm fares badly on the Relative Valuation (RV) model with a score of 19. The lower the score, the more expensive the stock. The stock currently trades at a 11 percent premium to its intrinsic value of 2.22 ringgit. The company's net margin for 2012 lags the industry average by 11.6 percent, and its SmartEstimate forward 12-month P/BV trails its peer average by 7 percent. The company also has a below-average Value-Momentum (Val-Mo) score of 25. Of the 17 analysts tracking the stock, 16 rate it a strong buy or buy while one ranks it a hold. At the other end of the spectrum, Tanjung Offshore is the most undervalued in Malaysia's energy sector with a RV score of 96. The higher the score, the more undervalued the stock. Sapura Kencana is up nearly 18 percent year-to-date, while the broader index is up almost 8 percent for the same period, as of Friday's close. CONTEXT: StarMine's Relative Valuation model combines six different ratios that measure a company's valuation and then ranks it compared with all other stocks in the same region. StarMine calculates a SmartEstimate by applying models to the full range of current estimates and weighting them for variables including estimate age, analyst experience, and the presence of a RevisionCluster. StarMine's Val-Mo model provides a 1-100 percentile ranking of stocks and rates companies based on a combination of value and momentum metrics. (Reporting By Reshma Apte;Editing by Sunil Nair)
KUALA LUMPUR: Pipe-coating specialist Wah Seong Corp Bhd has completed the acquisition of 57.70 million shares in Petra Energy Bhd at RM1.68 per share. Stock market data showed the shares, representing a 26.9% stake, were transacted in several off-market deals on Tuesday. At RM1.68, this was 23 sen below the Monday's closing price of RM1.91. To recap, the Petra Energy block of shares was divested by Perdana Petroleum Bhd due to its inability to control much of the business direction in the former. Perdana Petroleum had in April appointed CIMB Investment Bank Bhd to undertake a restricted tender process for the divestment of its entire block of shares in Petra Energy. Wah Seong is the second-largest shareholder in the integrated oil and gas (O&G) brown field services provider with the finalisation of the deal.
Two Malaysian oil and gas outfits, Bumi Armada Bhd and M3Nergy Bhd, have been shortlisted by Oil and Natural Gas Corp of India (ONGC) for the development of several offshore marginal fields on the west coast via a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, sources said. Bumi Armada is understood to be partnering India’s Shapoorji Pallonji & Co Ltd. The two have equal shareholding in a joint venture company SP Armada Oil Exploration Pvt Ltd. Industry players said Bumi Armada is the front runner to bag the job. The other shortlisted companies were not known at press time.
“Yes we know both the companies — Bumi Armada and us — are in, but we are not sure who else is,” an executive from M3Nergy told The Edge Financial Daily yesterday.
A source at Bumi Armada confirmed his company has put in a bid for the contract but declined to comment on whether it was shortlisted.
“We have the capability and the financial resources … I don’t see why we won’t be shortlisted,” was all he offered when asked if Bumi Armada was the front runner.
It is understood that the two Malaysian companies made the cut while several Indian companies which had bid for the lucrative job were dropped.
Among the Indian companies dropped include ABG FPSO Pvt Ltd, a unit of publicly-traded ABG Shipyard Ltd, Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Co Ltd, Hind Offshore Ltd and Mercator FPSO Pvt Ltd, a unit of Mumbai-listed Mercator Ltd, sources said.
The contract is highly sought after as it involves the chartering of an FPSO with a storage capacity of at least 510,000 barrels, for a primary nine-year period with a further seven-year extension, in separate one-year options.
Considering ONGC floated a global tender back in mid-October 2011 inviting bids for “Charter hiring of FPSO for Cluster-7 marginal fields”, an award could be made anytime soon.
The offshore marginal fields located in West coast areas include B-192, B-45, and WO-24, collectively called Cluster-7.
ONGC is said to require the installation of four new unmanned wellhead platforms, drilling of 20 wells, laying of interconnecting pipelines, subsea manifolds while the produced oil will be processed on the FPSO, and the crude oil offloaded to a tanker to be transported to a refinery.
Alliance Research’s O&G analyst valued the nine-year contract at approximately RM1.5 billion to RM2 billion, at bareboat charter rates.
“It is lucrative, and could add on between RM40 million and RM50 million a year to Bumi Armada’s bottom line contribution,” she said yesterday.
Operations and maintenance (O&M) of the FPSO is slated to be the responsibility of the selected FPSO contractor, which would add on to the successful company’s bottom line.
For its six months ended June, Bumi Armada posted a net profit of RM181.63 million on the back of RM769.12 million in revenue.
According to its website, Bumi Armada has five FPSOs: Armada Perkasa, Armada Perdana, Armada TGT1, Armada Claire and Armada Sterling, while M3Nergy has the FPSO Perintis.
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KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 28 — Five Kuantan residents made headway today in their bid to stop Lynas Corp from firing up its controversial rare earth plant here after they got the High Court’s nod to challenge the science, technology and innovation minister’s decision to award a temporary operating licence (TOL) to the Australian miner. Kuantan High Court judge Mariana Yahya delivered the decision in her chambers when their case was up for a judicial review today. “We expected the legal representatives from the Attorney-General’s Chamber to raise an objection to our application but instead they consented. “This means we get to proceed with the judicial review,” Tan Bun Teet, one of the five applicants, told The Malaysian Insider today. He said the residents wanted a judicial review of the minister’s decision against revoking the TOL awarded in January this year because they believe it to be biased in favour of the Sydney-based company and had failed to take into consideration the expert recommendations made by the United Nation’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) after it looked into the project last year. Tan, who heads a grassroots movement opposing the rare earth refinery called Save Malaysia Stop Lynas (SMSL), said the minister had not complied fully with the IAEA’s recommendations, or get a detailed environmental impact assessment report or a fresh radiological impact assessment from the mining giant that must be approved by the Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) before granting a licence to the plant to start operations. “The minister did not comply with the provision in the Atomic Licensing Act 1984,” Tan told The Malaysian Insider when contacted. He added that Lynas has yet to provide details of its radioactive waste disposal management plans even after the IAEA recommendation report last year. “We are asking the court to make a declaration that the minister acted in excess of his jurisdiction and that the minister’s decision to grant the TOL has no effect. “We are also asking for a declaration that the minister exhibited a real likelihood of bias in favour of LAMP and therefore ought not to have adjudicated on any appeal against the decision of AELB to grant the TOL for LAMP,” he said, referring to the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant located some 20km north of the Pahang capital in the Gebeng industrial site. He said the residents also wanted the court stay the project starting up pending the outcome of the judicial review. Apart from Tan, the other residents who applied for the judicial review are Ismail Abu Bakar, Tan Ah Meng, Syed Talib Syed Sulaiman and Hasimah Ramli. Putrajaya has approved the RM2.5 billion plant but said it had to fulfil all conditions before it can start operations. Lynas has cleared its final major hurdle to getting the TOL after a parliamentary select committee (PSC) called for the miner’s licence to be issued as “scientific facts” showed that its plant is safe. The positive feedback tabled in the PSC report came just four days after the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry dismissed an appeal against the plant by residents living nearby and instead imposed two conditions that Lynas says it will have no problems satisfying. Lynas had said in April that delays in obtaining the licence for its facility, which was initially approved in January, may have “very serious consequences” for the RM80 billion worth of rare earth orders already received as it is “sold out for the next 10 years. - TMI
