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Vol. 227 No. 3 |
Schlumberger acquired a minority share in Packers Plus Energy Services, a Canadian-based completions company. In addition, Schlumberger has exclusive rights to deploy and market Packers Plus technology worldwide, excluding North America. As a result of this agreement, Schlumberger introduced two new premium services. The StageFRAC multistage fracturing service for high-angle and horizontal wells uses mechanical diversion techniques developed by Packers Plus to enable proppant and acid fracturing of up to eight zones in a day. The RapidSTIM multi-stage stimulation service uses fluids and packers to bring the same efficiencies to matrix acidizing.
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A model of the Qatar Science & Technology Park, now under construction in Doha’s free-trade zone
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As part of a national development strategy, the government of Qatar has established a free-trade zone in Doha to attract foreign companies to conduct R&D in the country. The zone includes the Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP), due to open in 2007. In exchange for a commitment from tenants to focus primarily on technology development, the free-trade zone is tax-free, allows 100% foreign ownership, permits duty-free import and export, and places no restrictions on repatriation of capital and profits. Applicants have the choice of operating as a branch of an overseas company or incorporating a new local company. Several firms from diverse industries have committed to establishing R&D centers at QSTP, including EADS, ExxonMobil, GE, Microsoft, Rolls-Royce, Shell and Total.
QSTP is a part of the Qatar Foundation, a network of educational centers that includes campuses of several major international universities, including Texas A&M, Carnegie Melon, Weill Cornell, Georgetown and Virginia Commonwealth.
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Baker Hughes has formed a new Permanent Monitoring Group as an integral part of its production optimization efforts. With the acquisitions of Luna Energy, QuantX Wellbore Instrumentation and Nova Technology Corp., Baker Hughes has become an industry leader in delivering permanent monitoring products and services for oil and gas production. In support of this new focus, the company has promoted Joe Vandevier to president, Production Optimization, and Steve Hester as VP and general manager of the Permanent Monitoring Group.
Fort Worth, Texas-based Pent Energy, LLC, has acquired Dadson Production, LLC, and Oil Center Operating, Inc. Both Dadson Production and Oil Center Operating are based in Ada, Okla. Pent Energy, which was formed in 2004, assumed responsibility of Oil Center Operating’s employee base, as well as the 2,800-acre Stroud Prue Sand Unit in Creek and Lincoln Counties. The unit is located between Tulsa and Oklahoma City, and yields roughly 135 bbl of crude oil and 40,000 cu ft of gas daily.
Occidental Petroleum Corp. completed its purchase of Vintage Petroleum Inc. for about $1.4 billion in cash and 28 million shares. Vintage shareholders will receive $20/share in cash, as well as 0.42 of an Occidental share for each Vintage share. The purchase will enhance Occidental’s holdings in Latin America, California and the Middle East.
NuTech Solutions created a spin-off company to advise clients in strategic planning and deployment preparation for optimization solutions. The new company is called VGO Associates, and is led by Dr. David Davis, one of the original chief consulting scientists at NuTech. The new company is comprised of prominent professionals in the fields of strategic and business process optimization, to provide thought leadership in optimization that is complementary to NuTech’s science and software.
Superior Wellhead Holdings, Inc., and Nautilus Marine Technologies, Inc., have merged and acquired Gilmore Valve Co., to form Azura Energy Systems, Inc. Azura will focus on the manufacture and sale of wellheads, trees and valves for the land and subsea markets. The combined company will be headquartered in Houston and have 12 North American manufacturing and sales locations, with expected 2006 revenues of around $45 million.
W&T Offshore, Inc., agreed to merge a wholly owned subsidiary of the company with a wholly owned subsidiary of Kerr-McGee Oil & Gas, which owns substantially all of the Gulf of Mexico conventional shelf properties of Kerr-McGee. Base merger consideration for the transaction is about $1.3 billion in cash. Upon completion of the merger, W& T will own 100% of the membership interest in the Kerr-McGee subsidiary. The properties include interests in about 100 fields on 249 offshore blocks spread across the western, central and eastern Gulf of Mexico. They contain an estimated 362 Bcfe of net proved reserves,.
Sense Technology, based in Kristiansand, Norway, has merged with Engineering and Drilling Machinery, based in Stavanger. The new company is called Sense EDM. It supplies specialized multifunctional rigs, pipe-handling systems and advanced control systems to the oil and gas industry worldwide.
AMEC Paragon won the prestigious Texas Association of Partners in Education (TAPE) 2006 Gold Award for their support of Houston’s Spring Branch Independent School District. The company has partnered with the school district for four years, helping to further programs, such as a mentor program that pairs students with AMEC Paragon personnel, to encourage them to pursue postsecondary education.
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