- Cairn India discovers oil and gas in KG basin
goendeavor.com | Nov 11, 2011 05:56:31
Cairn India(CAIL.BO), in which London-based Vedanta Resources(VED.L) is looking to pick up a majority stake, has discovered oil and gas in an onshore block in the Krishna Godavari basin, the company said on Monday.
The company has informed Indian regulator Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) about the discovery, Cairn India said in a statement.
The discovery was made at the Nagayalanka-1z well in the KG-ONN-2003/1 block, which is operated by Cairn with an a 49 percent participating interest. State-run explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corp(ONGC.BO) holds the remaining 51 percent.
A flow of 75 barrels per day of oil and 0.27 million cubic feet per day of gas was achieved at the well, Cairn said.
The well is being evaluated to assess the commercial potential of the discovery, the company said.
On Aug 16, Vedanta Resources said it would spend up to $9.6 billion to buy a majority stake in Cairn India, the Indian unit of the UK\\\'s Cairn Energy(CNE.L).
In August 2009, Cairn India began pumping crude from its block in the Mangala oil field in the western Indian state of Rajasthan, the first major crude oil discovery in the energy-hungry nation in two decades.
The firm holds a 70 percent stake in the Rajasthan oil block, called RJ-ON-90/1, while ONGC holds the balance.
The deal with Vedanta needs Indian government approval because Cairn India has production-sharing contracts (PSCs) with the government for oil and gas exploration blocks. According to the agreement, any ownership change will need federal approval.
Approval from partner ONGC is also crucial for any change of ownership.
Media reports on Monday said Vedanta\\\'s proposed acquisition may be scuppered by India\\\'s petroleum ministry. One said the ministry wanted the ONGC to be given a chance to buy the holding, while another said state-owned ONGC, OIL India Ltd and GAIL might make a joint bid to counter Vedanta.
- Songbirds decline as Wyoming oil and gas soars: st
goendeavor.com | Nov 11, 2011 05:56:21
Key populations of songbirds are in decline in the sagebrush plains of southwestern Wyoming as oil and gas development there increases, a University of Wyoming scientist said on Thursday.
A study led by Anna Chalfoun, an avian ecologist with the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, is thought to be the first to shed light on how the energy boom in the Intermountain West is affecting songbirds that rely on sagebrush for feeding, mating and nesting.
The research, published in a recent edition of The Journal of Wildlife Management, may aid in shaping the design of future oil and gas fields in Western states.
Sagebrush ecosystems there have been fragmented or otherwise altered to allow for development of everything from cities to wind farms.
Energy activities have ramped up for two decades on sage-covered public lands in southwestern Wyoming, where biologists have already tracked damage to the habitat of game birds such as the greater sage grouse.
Now Chalfoun and University of Wyoming colleagues are sharpening the focus on migratory songbirds like Brewer\\\'s sparrows and sage sparrows, both classed as sensitive species by the Bureau of Land Management. The birds are suffering range-wide declines of up to 3 percent a year, the study said.
The scientists linked dwindling numbers of those sparrows and vesper sparrows in two gas fields and an oil field in Wyoming to the density of drilling wells, which the study used to gauge the level of petroleum exploration and production in a given area.
Researchers found the steepest declines where the presence of wells, roads and human activity was greatest.
HUMAN ACTIVITY
The Jonah field south of Pinedale, Wyoming, ranks among the most highly concentrated and productive natural gas fields in North America, according to the BLM.
There, scientists found comparatively higher losses among the Brewer\\\'s sparrow and the sage sparrow, with the estimated rate of decline at six birds for every 10 additional wells per square kilometer.
But energy development did not affect all songbirds alike. For unknown reasons, the number of horned larks rose with well density in one gas field, and sage thrashers appeared unaffected by the industry, the study showed.
While habitat loss and alteration were cited as factors in the decline of sagebrush sparrow species, it was also possible that heavily developed areas opened the way for invading predators, like raccoons.
"One hypothesis is areas with human activities attract generalist predators," Chalfoun told Reuters.
Environmentalists like Erik Molvar of the Biodiversity Conservation Alliance said the BLM, which regulates oil and gas production on federal lands, should demand drilling methods that lessen damage to sagebrush.
An example is directional drilling, which requires fewer wells and a smaller footprint. A BLM official said the agency recognizes the impacts of energy development in environmental assessments for proposed projects.
BP America, which owns wells in the Jonah field, is said to be a leader in applying techniques like directional drilling.
"We can produce more energy without impacting as much habitat," Daren Beaudo, BP spokesman, said in a statement.
Encana Oil & Gas Inc. said geologic and economic factors drove that company to employ conventional methods like vertical drilling in its Jonah field operations. That method demands more wells and more traffic.
Spokesman Doug Hock said Encana did not dispute the data in the study, and was eyeing directional drilling for a new natural gas project in Wyoming that would allow for no more than 3,500 wells over 10 years.
"We\\\'re going to continue to monitor future studies as they are done for opportunities to look at further mitigation," he said.
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