| PetroMin/Hydrocarbon Asia/PetroMin Pipeliner |
|
PIPELINE NEWS | |
|
Energy Solutions International announced that Gujarat State Petronet Limited has decided to expand their deployment of PipelineStudio. GSPL originally deployed PipelineStudio back in 2004. Recently a GSPL led consortium has been awarded a contract from Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) for the installation of three cross-country gas pipelines approximately 3800 Km long. PipelineStudio will be used in the hydraulic analysis and design of these Pipelines. Date: October 2011 < Back to News Index > 
Delivery of Russian gas to South Korea has been a pipedream for a long time due to the non-cooperation of North Korea. However, this looks set to change with North Korean ruler Kim Jong-il paying Russian President Dmitry Medvedev a visit in Siberia. Reports say both men agreed that construction of a gas pipeline should finally be realized. Following that meeting, officials in South Korea’s energy sector made it clear that they too want to see the pipeline finally built. Last week, the president of South Korea’s state-run Korea Gas Corporation met with representatives of the Russian energy firm, Gazprom. The agency says that the officials worked out a road map for future gas deliveries to South Korea. Government estimates say the pipeline would cost $3.4 billion to construct. But some analysts say, in the long run, it will pay off for South Korea. Despite potential savings, current tensions on the Korean peninsula mean the benefits might not outweigh the risks. A shared natural gas pipeline would pose risks for all parties involved, but especially for South Korea. Pyongyang could steal gas or even turn the pipeline off if inter-Korean relations sour. Seoul would need to have a contingency plan to compensate for that loss if tensions rise. In a report this week to South Korea’s National Assembly, the ministry of knowledge economy said that it will consider all risks involved in doing business with North Korea. The ministry added that, for the moment, there have been no discussions with Moscow or Pyongyang on the terms of a contract. But, already South Korean politicians are trying to build-up public support for the pipeline. During an interview on Korean television earlier this month, President Lee Myung Bak said it is only a matter of time before the project begins. President Lee said that both Koreas are already talking with Russia separately about the pipeline. He predicts that, at some point, all three countries will reach an agreement. He says the project could proceed faster than expected and it will be a great business if it works out. Further talks between South Koran and Russia could occur later this year when Presidents Lee and Medvedev meet at the G-20 summit in Paris. Date: October 2011 < Back to News Index >
At the end of September it was announced that Bangladesh, India and Myanmar are set to revive a decade-old tri-nation pipeline project for mutually utilising natural gas. The project has been re-evaluated recently as cooperation between the three countries improved. The tri-nation gas-pipeline project was proposed initially in 1997 by Mohona Holdings Limited of Bangladesh. It was then supported by the Indian gas transmitters. Bangladesh feels the tri-nation gas pipeline project has now become a strategically important issue for the country. Date: October 2011 < Back to News Index >
In November it was revealed that Turkmenistan expects to soon sign a long-delayed agreement to sell natural gas to Pakistan and India via a Trans-Afghan pipeline. The nation’s Oil and Gas Minister Bayramgeldy Nedirov said that he has “no doubts” that the proposed Turkmenistan to India pipeline through Afghanistan will be realized. “Preparations are under way for the imminent signing of an agreement on the sale and purchase of natural gas,” Nedirov told an international investment forum last week. The project was first conceived in the mid-1990s, but has never moved forward. An intergovernmental agreement signed in December contained no specific provisions for security, volumes or gas prices. Funding and security hurdles also loom large. Turkmenistan envisages the pipeline would be supplied by its South Iolotan field, regarded as the second largest in the world containing between 13.1 trillion and 21.2 trillion cubic metres of natural gas. Later in the month it was announced that Pakistan’s Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Asim Hussain is likely to visit India in Decemcer to negotiate the transit fee for planned Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project. Earlier Pakistan had signed initial Gas Sales Purchase agreement with Turkmenistan. India is reported to have already finalised gas price with Turkmenistan under the TAPI project, and has negotiated a transit fee with Pakistan. The 1,700-km (1,056-mile) TAPI pipeline proposes annual supplies of 33 billion cubic metres (bcm) of Turkmen gas. The TAPI gas pipeline is expected to bring in 3.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of natural gas from Turkmenistan’s gas fields to Multan and end at the Indian town of Fazilka. As per the agreement, Afghanistan is likely to get 500 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) of natural gas while Pakistan and India have an equal share of 1,325 mmcfd each. Date: October 2011 < Back to News Index >
Australian gas pipeline owner APA Group has made a takeover offer worth A$1.8 billion Hastings Diversified Utilities Fund, it was revealed in mid-December. APA also announced the sale of gas distribution network APA Gas Network (Allgas) in the Australian state of Queensland to an unlisted investment vehicle in which Japan’s Marubeni Corp and Deutche Bank’s RREEF each held 40%. APA will hold a 20% stake in the venture and use the A$477 million proceeds to repay debt and support the HDF offer, it said in a statement. The HDF offer comes as big gas players in Australia such as Origin and Santos have been talking up domestic gas potential. The combined group of APA and HDF would own or operate more than 15,000 kilometres of gas transmission pipelines across mainland Australia, APA Group chairman Len Bleasel said. Bleasel said the HDF assets were a natural fit with APA’s infrastructure – creating what he said would be a unique asset footprint of infrastructure assets. Under the deal, APA will offer A50 cents and 0.326 securities for each HDF share, giving each share an implied value of A$2 or a 13% premium to the last closing. APA already owns 20.7% of HDF. The offer, which will close on 31 March 2012, requires a minimum 90% acceptance from HDF securityholders, plus regulatory approvals. Hastings Funds Management chairman Alan Cameron said in an announcement that the board would carefully consider the terms of the proposed takeover offer and comment as soon as their assessment has been completed. Date: October 2011 < Back to News Index >
Fiberspar Corporation, the leading producer of spoolable fiberglass-reinforced line pipe, today announced that it has expanded its LinePipe flowline technology into Australia. “LinePipe’s performance and cost advantages will benefit Australia’s oil and gas industry as Australian operators rapidly expand domestic oil and natural gas production. We’re very excited to bring this lower cost, high performance pipeline technology to the Australian market,” said Peter Quigley, Fiberspar’s chief executive officer. “More than 450 North American operators have installed over 15,000 km of LinePipe during the last 10 years, giving LinePipe more kilometers of successful operation than any other spoolable pipeline product,” he adds. “What makes LinePipe the dominant technology for production gathering and injection applications are its lower installed costs and its lower operating costs that result from corrosion being completely eliminated.” Available in long, continuous lengths, LinePipe installs two to three times faster than stick fiberglass or welded steel, with less manpower and equipment. It requires no welding, cathodic protection, wraps, coatings, or internal chemical treatments; and its immunity to corrosion and improved flow properties makes LinePipe less costly to operate and maintain. “Our first installation here of almost 50 km of 4” nominal, 1,500-psi LinePipe, rated for continuous operation up to 82ºC, was installed in less than three weeks in difficult conditions – substantially faster than it would have taken to lay a steel line. On one day we installed over 8 km of pipe,” said Nick Owens, Fiberspar Australia’s engineering and sales manager. “It was very gratifying that on our first installation in Australia, our customer realized significant time and cost savings.” Date: October 2011 < Back to News Index > |
AP ENERGY BUSINESS PUBLICATIONS PTE LTD |