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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gasification Technologies -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (296)	4/22/2006 11:02:16 AM
From: Dennis Roth	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1740

Shell to study Qatar GTL project cost escalation Sat Apr 22, 2006 9:09 AM ET yahoo.reuters.com Shell to study Qatar GTL project cost escalation DOHA, April 22 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile, Research) will look carefully again at rising costs for a planned Qatar gas-to-liquids (GTL) project before making a final decision, CEO Jeroen van der Veer told reporters on Saturday. "There will be a very thorough and in-depth look at what the whole cost escalation means for this project," he said. "We have to think about what it means." "We are at the pre-financial investment decision stage -- we hope that we can take a decision this year," he said, without saying by how much project costs had risen or at what level they would become prohibitive. The $6 billion, 140,000-barrels-per-day (bpd) GTL plant was planned to start in two-stages with the first onstream in 2008-2009 and the second two years later. The project's managing director said in February the scope of the project had been split to increase competition in view of the shortage of contractors, and that EPCs would be awarded in 2006. Qatar's Oil Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah has repeatedly voiced concern about a tight contracting industry and rising material costs, saying that if prices shot up high enough some projects in the energy industry may no longer be feasible. South African fuels group Sasol Ltd (SOLJ.J: Quote, Profile, Research) is set to launch the world's first commercial-scale GTL plant in Qatar in June, pumping 34,000 barrels per day of diesel. Chevron (CVX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) will do most of the marketing in Europe and North America from the $3 billion Oryx plant. Other gas projects with Exxon Mobil (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), ConocoPhillips (COP.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Marathon (MRO.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Sasol/ChevronTexaco (CVX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) have been delayed by up to three years while Qatar revies reserves at its vast North gas field and after a jump in construction costs. Qatar aims to raise gas production to around 25 billion cubic feet per day, up from 11 currently, by 2011 and triple LNG production to 77 million tonnes. © Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (296)	7/27/2006 9:09:17 AM
From: Dennis Roth	Read Replies (21) \| Respond to of 1740

Shell launches huge gas-to-liquids scheme in Qatar Thu Jul 27, 2006 2:22 PM GMT za.today.reuters.com By Stuart Penson LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell on Thursday launched the world's biggest gas-to-liquids (GTL) project in Qatar that will convert gas from the Gulf State's vast North Field into clean fuels for the world market. Shell said it expected the Pearl project -- which confirms the Anglo-Dutch company's position as leading player in the emerging GTL sector -- to start around the end of the decade, with a second unit to follow within a year. Shell's long awaited go-ahead for Pearl, which could help boost the company's 2006 reserve replacement, comes amid speculation the project's costs have spiralled because a flurry of gas projects in Qatar have inflated labour and raw material costs. Shell, which announced forecast-breaking second-quarter profits on Thursday, gave no further guidance on capital expenditure for Pearl. The company stuck to its 2006 and 2007 overall capital spending plans. "Previous capex guidance (on Pearl) was $6 billion, although recent comments from the Qatari Energy Minister have suggested this now exceeds $10 billion," CitiGroup said in a research note. Qatar's Oil Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah has repeatedly voiced concern about a tight contracting industry and rising material costs. Pearl is being developed under a development and production sharing agreement with Qatar, covering offshore and onshore costs. Shell is providing 100 per cent of project funding. "Given the long-term outlook for oil prices, GTL still looks attractive even with higher capital costs," Frank Harris of Wood Mackenzie said. GTL plants process gas into clean oil products like low sulphur diesel, demand for which is growing on the back of tougher limits on emissions. RESERVES BOOST? Shell is in talks with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on whether it can book Pearl reserves, and indicated it would do so this year if it can, chief financial officer Peter Voser said. Pearl will include development of offshore gas in the North field, considered to be the world's biggest gas reservoir that is not associated with oil production, with estimated recoverable reserves of more than 900 trillion cubic feet (25.48 trillion cu metres), Shell said. "Over its lifetime, the integrated project will produce upstream resources of approximately 3 billion barrels of oil equivalent," Shell said. Downstream, Pearl's two GTL units, each with a capacity of 70,000 barrels per day, far bigger than $1 billion Oryx plant -- the world's first commercial GTL plant launched in Qatar last month by South African fuels group Sasol Ltd. "Pearl is an extremely important project to the GTL sector as a whole as it will be the world's largest plant and it is a big step-up in size from the current largest project - Oryx GTL," Harris at WoodMackenzie said. Other gas projects with Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, Marathon and Sasol/ChevronTexaco have been delayed while Qatar reviews reserves at its North field and after a jump in construction costs. Aside from Pearl, Shell is investing in Qatar's rapidly growing liqueifed natural gas (LNG) industry. Qatar wants to develop GTL as way to get its gas to market, together with LNG and pipeline projects.

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (296)	3/5/2008 8:17:02 AM
From: Dennis Roth	Respond to of 1740

Qatar Shell GTL plant to start in 2010 Web posted at: 3/5/2008 4:33:14 Source ::: Agencies thepeninsulaqatar.com vienna - The first train at Qatar's gas-to-liquids plant will start in 2010, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy and Industry Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah said yesterday. The Pearl GTL plant to make super-clean fuels is Shell's largest foreign investment and will be the world's largest such plant. Spiralling costs have taken the price to $18bn from an original budget of $5bn. Attiyah said he had met with Shell Chief Executive Jeroen van der Veer on Monday. "We met with van der Veer yesterday, and had a long discussion on the latest at Pearl," he said. "I am satisfied...it's on schedule. The first train will start in 2010." Attiyah also said OPEC has no choice but to keep oil supplies steady when it meets today. "I don't think a cut is on the table," he said. He said a record oil price above $100 a barrel was not due to any shortage of crude. "I think the market is very comfortable for supply," he told reporters. "The oil price is related to geopolitics not to a shortage of supply." Demand for fuel is due to decline during the second quarter and inventories are already comfortable, Attiyah said.