My happiness at your decision not to leave this board has prompted another "lurker" to respond.
To hopefully perk up every-ones day, I got this off the energy business news at AOL.
LONDON, Dec. 15 (Reuters) - Soaring rates for rig hire and a hectic pace of expl. will push the offshore drilling budgets of oil co. to a mammoth $16 Billion next year, idustry analysts say.
While that amount has quadrupled since 94, actual increase in rig activity has been just 30%, underlining the extent of the cost explosion in the offshore svc. ind.
Exec. at a leading British exp. co have privately complained their drilling cost have doubled in the las year, forcingt a reappraisal of their portfolio of dev. projects. But with oil co profits healthy, availability of rigs, not their rising cost is still the major limting factor in exp. For the big co's cost hasn't yet hit rig demand as the money is there" said Cochrane. What has affected work prog. has been sheer lack of availability. In the US Gulf, smaller operators were deferring exp. drillin in shallower waters in favour of maintenance and production drill work that was a less risky use of their money, he added. But in the North Sea and global ddp-water provinces potentially rich in undersea oil a lack of suitable rigs has begun to crimp the amitions of field operators. Rig demand should have risen by 15% this year, but available supply could meet only a third of that growth, says Petrodata. The long term shortfall will be around 65-100 rigs at minimum. "If you have rigs chartered for exp. next year then you are fine, if not then you are totally at the mercy of the sub-let mkt, said Cochrane. If you have long-term developemnt drilling to do then forget it"
New entrants should bring the global deepwater fleet up to 100 from the current 60 drilling units by the year 2000, though shortages will continue because 20% of the fleet is still contracted to mid-water work. The problem has been worsened by the lack of qualified personnel in all upstream sectors.
A Norwegian co. bldg a deewater semi-submersible has been unable to contract it out because potential customers doubt the firm can find experienced staff for the unit, idustry sources say
Question to thread - last sentence...could this be a problem?
Lois |
