Sharply rising oil prices, coupled with political uncertainty in the Middle East and Russia, have led many international exploration and production companies to substantially expand their efforts to find oil and gas in locations previously considered unviable. Many shallow water oil and gas fields, such as the North Sea, have already been exploited to the point of exhaustion. However, huge advances in technology in recent years have significantly increased the range of conditions in which offshore exploration and production operations can be conducted. In particular, the water depth at the oilfield site is becoming less prohibitive than in the past. Projects are now being planned and conducted in global locations such as Indonesia and the Falkland Islands. And as global warming leads to a rapid retreat of the polar icecaps, huge areas of the Arctic are opening up to development. New equipment specifically designed for operation in 'ultra harsh' environments looks set to enable exploitation of this new frontier.In order to tap into these new fields, which between them are estimated to contain up to 90 billion barrels of oil, contractors need to employ vessels and other floating structures. Platforms fixed to the seabed are only suitable for shallow waters.
October 15, 2008 at 10:05 PM
1 minute read
The original version of this story was published on Legalweek
The continuing plundering of the world’s natural resources has driven energy companies to seek deeper waters for exploitation. Simon Curtis reports
Sharply rising oil prices, coupled with political uncertainty in the Middle East and Russia, have led many international exploration and production companies to substantially expand their efforts to find oil and gas in locations previously considered unviable.
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