It was not a geologist who found oil at Spindletop
It is a murky Friday morning, and it looks as if the sky is about to let go of some more rain anytime. The South Texas plain is flat, vast…
Oil & Gas
Has Norway’s drive to find more gas in the Barents Sea paid off yet?
Fuelled by the gas crisis that unfolded in Europe following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Norwegians voiced hopes that the Barents Sea was the place where additional gas resources were…
Oman – beneath the surface
Much has been written, including in this magazine, about the fantastic outcrop geology of Oman, the wonderful exposure, the preservation of salt at surface in the arid climate, and the…
Africa on course for busiest year since 2020
“Combined with the commercial success rate for the wells drilled so far being better than 50%, this year is looking promising for hydrocarbon exploration across the African continent”, said Jamie…
A coup for the country
The Ministry of Energy and Mines in Peru (Minem) recently indicated that the oil industry is ‘being reactivated’. And so far, the signs are indeed pointing in that direction, particularly…
Another gas discovery confirmed in Colombia, but the real excitement has yet to start
“You’ll be hard-pressed not to find gas out there”, was Joshua Turner’s response on LinkedIn to the news of Petrobras’ reported success drilling the Uchuva-2 appraisal well. The area where…
United Arab Emirates – unlocking the new sources of oil and gas
Eni, RakGas and SNOC have started drilling their first exploration well Fennec 1 on Onshore Block 7, Ras al Khaimah, a key project in the UAE’s energy sector. This well…
Well to Watch: UK Block 48/8b Selene Prospect
A few days ago, Shell spudded the 48/8b-3 exploration well with the Valaris 123 jack-up to drill the Selene exploration well in the UK Southern North Sea gas basin. This…
Exploring for gas – for the first time
“We have practically never looked for gas in the Barents Sea. All exploration wells have had oil as their target, and all discoveries of gas have been accidental”, said Dag…
There are plenty of positive indications for hydrocarbons in Zanzibar, including oil
Launched in March this year, the Zanzibar 1st Licensing Round offers a large frontier area with both oil and gas potential. There are 8 blocks available, named Block 1A to…
Titanic effort in ultra deep waters off Newfoundland
ExxonMobil, with partner QatarEnergy, is drilling the Persephone (C-54) wildcat offshore Canada’s Labrador and Newfoundland coast. This new frontier wildcat is testing a number of conventional clastic reservoirs in rifted…
Returning exploration to Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka is enduring the worst economic crisis since its independence in 1948. Its economy has been on a general downward trend since 2018, shrank by nearly 8 % in…