Angola: Oil Industry Shifts Focus to Angola
Vanguard (Lagos)
6 May 2008
Posted to the web 6 May 2008
Hector Igbikiowubo, With Agency Reports
Lagos
IF there were doubts about the shift in global oil industry focus on the new frontier for oil exploration and production on the African continent, the ongoing Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, Texas cleared the air
when its opening session centred on Angola and not Nigeria fraught with oil shut-ins, kidnappings, arson and the activities of militant groups.
Perhaps the
theme of this year's conference: "Waves of Change" underscores the shift in global oil industry focus on the African continent.
The morning session tagged "Delivering mega projects in West Africa" focussed on BP's Block 18 in Angola with panellists including: Matthew A. Forster, Engineering Manager Abu Dhabi, BP; Tony Oldfield, SURF Project Director Greater Plutonio, BP; John Peak, Greater Plutonio Subsurface Manager, BP Angola BU; Graeme Stewart, Director Project Execution, BP and Graham Stewart, Resource Development Manager, BP Angola BU.
Other sessions yesterday including "Toward low costs for high cost resources" and 'Managing risks in the offshore energy industry' had no Nigerian panellist or discussant.
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Meanwhile, indications are that at this year's conference as usual, Nigeria boasts of the largest contingent of exhibitors and conferees from any country.:cheers:
The annual Offshore Technology Conference is the largest gathering of oil and gas industry service providers and one of the most veritable means of reaching foreign investors.
Currently Nigeria's oil output capacity estimated at 2.5 million barrels per day is down to about 1.8 million barrels per day, while Angola's output stands at about 2 million barrels per day.
Coming at a time the Nigerian oil and gas industry is undergoing structural reforms, expectations are that a conscious effort would be made to showcase such efforts at this year's OTC.
The oil industry restructuring was supposed to have been effected in March 2008 but is currently running two months behind schedule and the delay in the restructuring has informed skepticism on the part of foreign investors.
The Minister of State for Energy (Petroleum), Mr. Odein Ajumogobia (SAN), had while speaking in Vienna, Austria at the last OPEC conference said the implementation committee report should be ready by the end of March and that it would be sent to the National Assembly for ratification.
However, some government officials who spoke with the media yesterday said the committee was yet to submit its report.
Mr. Emmanuel Ebogah, the Presidential Adviser on Petroleum, had in a statement last month said a progress report was submitted to the President last month.
Meanwhile, oil prices crossed $120 a barrel in New York yesterday following fresh attacks on oil facilities in Nigeria and rising tensions between the West and Iran.
New York's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for June delivery, briefly hit $120.20, before slipping back at 1520 GMT to $120, a gain of $3.68 from the closing price on Friday.
In London, Brent crude for June delivery hit an intraday record high of $118.50 around 1515 GMT. It later traded up $3.24 at 117.80. Trading volume in London was light as Britain marked a bank holiday.
Oil rallied close to a record $120 a barrel last week on supply concerns linked to workers' strikes at a Scottish refinery and in Nigeria.
With the strikes resolved, crude prices were largely driven by movement in the US dollar, according to analysts.
"This stubborn oil bull just refuses to die," said Phil Flynn at Alaron Trading.
"Nigeria is the lingering hotspot the markets will be focussing on," said MF Global analyst Ed Meir.
"The news over the weekend has been mixed; ExxonMobil said it has restarted 300,000 barrels per day of Nigerian production out of total of 800,000 sidelined earlier, but there are reports of fresh violence, as another pipeline explosion has shut in more oil production," he added.:bash:
Fresh militant attacks in Nigeria, Africa's biggest producer, have forced oil major Shell to shut down more of its oil production.
Nigerian militants attacked an oil ship off the coast of the West African country and took two people hostage, a military spokesman said Sunday. Shell accounts for about one-half of Nigeria's 2.1 million barrels-per-day output.
"A few oil delivery lines are affected and some oil has spilled into the environment," a Shell spokesman said.
Prices also got support from tensions between Iran and the West.
Iran said yesterday it would reject any offer that violates its right to the full nuclear fuel cycle after world powers said they had prepared a new package to end the atomic crisis.
Oil players fear the ongoing tension could result in Iran - the second-biggest OPEC producer after Saudi Arabia -using oil as a bargaining chip.
