Frontier Acquisitions in GOM
StatoilHydro has acquired a 40% stake in 50 blocks from BHP Billiton in the frontier DeSoto Canyon area of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. "DeSoto Canyon is a mostly unexplored region in the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). Obtaining early access to new plays is regarded by the company as key to our success," said StatoilHydro vice president of exploration for North America, Tony Dore. "We did a similar early access deal with ExxonMobil in 2005 in the Walker Ridge Area of Central GoM. We believe that through a close cooperation with BHP Billiton we can mature high quality prospects," he adds. DeSoto Canyon is located east of StatoilHydro's current production operation at Independence Hub. The area has water depths of about 1,000 m. StatoilHydro and BHP Billiton bid at the recent OCS Central Lease Sale 208 on 14 additional blocks within the trend, and together the two companies were the apparent high bidder on all blocks. The issuance of leases on these 14 blocks is subject to the Minerals Management Service's final approval.
contract for the Maloob-C platform construction in December 2007," said John Nesser, J. Ray's Executive Vice President and COO. "Our Altamira, Mexico fabrication facility was fast-tracked and constructed in record time, and its deepwater fabrication capabilities and strategic access
to the Gulf of Mexico make it the ideal location for deepwater project construction. J. Ray has a reputation as an industry leader known for delivering quality products with schedule certainty, and we look forward to further developing a partnership with PEMEX on future projects."
J. Ray Wins PEMEX Deal
Houston-based J. Ray McDermott won a contract by PEMEX Exploración y Producción for transportation and installation of the IxtalB and Maloob-C drilling platforms. These projects are located in the Bay of Campeche, Mexico, in 216 and 272 ft. of water, respectively. Contracts of this nature are typically valued at more than $40m. "This is the first installation contract PEMEX has awarded directly to J. Ray and follows on the heels of our
www.seadiscovery.com Marine Technology Reporter 13
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