|
Wintershall: New culture of partnership in the Middle East
Wintershall and Mubadala Petroleum agree upon future cooperation
13.01.2014 + + + At the opening of the UAE Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi today, Martin Bachmann, Member of the Board of Executive Directors of Wintershall Holding GmbH and responsible for Exploration & Production, called for a new partnership culture between national oil and gas companies (NOCs) and private international oil companies (IOCs): “We need new strategic partnerships between NOCs and IOCs that will create diversification and security for both sides.” He said that Wintershall is prepared to deploy innovative technologies when working together with NOCs, in their home countries and also abroad. He also said that everyone who contemplates the future of energy markets and the potential of collaboration will realize that the situation in the producer countries in the Middle East is changing considerably. “The region itself is becoming an important energy consumer,” said Bachmann. According to the forecasts of the International Energy Agency (IEA), the region’s energy consumption will increase to 900 million tons of oil and gas by 2030 – an eightfold increase compared to 1990. This raises the question as to how the producer countries will be able to meet their energy requirements in future without forfeiting their position as the world’s most important region for exporting oil and gas. “This can succeed through improved exploitation of the existing reserves using innovative Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technologies,” explained Bachmann: “With innovation made in Germany.” He confirmed that Wintershall is ready to share its technological expertise and to make joint use of it.
Wintershall and Mubadala Petroleum agree upon future co-operation
Also on Monday, Wintershall and Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Petroleum have agreed to work together in assessing future opportunities in North Africa and the Middle East (MENA). Both parties confirmed their intention to cooperate during a visit of Rainer Seele, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of Wintershall, to Mubadala, in Abu Dhabi. The parties will combine Wintershall’s technological know-how and long-standing experience in the region with Mubadala’s growing capabilities to identify and execute E&P projects that can be pursued in partnership.
“We view our cooperation as a strong basis for further expanding our activities in the MENA region,” said Seele. Maurizio La Noce, CEO of Mubadala Petroleum, added: “We are pleased to be working with Wintershall with their considerable experience in North Africa. Partnering with companies such as Wintershall, that offer the right synergies and are aligned with our aspirations, is a key component of our growth strategy.”
Wintershall is stepping up activities in the Middle East
Wintershall is increasingly active in the Middle East and plans to step up its upstream activities significantly. The company intends to develop new natural gas reserves off the coast of Qatar and in the United Arab Emirates. For the Gulf region, Wintershall has chosen Abu Dhabi as its regional headquarters. In June 2012, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), Wintershall (operator) and OMV signed an agreement on the technical evaluation of the sour gas and condensate field Shuwaihat. To ensure the best possible evaluation and future development of the Shuwaihat field, Wintershall will apply cutting-edge technologies with the highest standards and make use of its more than 40 years of experience in the safe development and production from sour gas (H2S and CO2) fields in Germany and other countries. Furthermore, Wintershall is also participating in the appraisal of the Al Radeef field off the coast of Qatar in direct proximity to the largest natural gas field in the world, the so-called “North Field”. Here, Wintershall just recently verified the existence of approx. 70 billion cubic meters of gas in place in the Khuff formation.
Schizophyllan wins EOR Project of the Year award
Wintershall’s largest research project has now won an award in Abu Dhabi: its Schizophyllan project has been conferred the “Enhanced Oil Recovery Project of the Year” award at the Oil&Gas Middle East Awards. At an official ceremony held at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Abu Dhabi, the renowned Oil&Gas Middle East journal honored companies from the international oil and gas industries.
The gelatinous Schizophyllan increases the viscosity of water, which is then injected into the reservoir to improve production. Thickened water makes it easier to force oil from the rock pores, enabling more oil to be recovered. With Schizophyllan, this amounts to about ten percent in accordance with the reservoir. The biopolymer is currently undergoing preliminary testing in an oil field in Bockstedt in northern Germany.
Mubadala Petroleum is a young and ambitious international, upstream oil and gas exploration and production company. It was established in 2012 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mubadala Development Company (MDC), Abu Dhabi. Incorporating and building on the success of MDC’s Oil & Gas business unit, Mubadala Petroleum has oil and gas production in Central and Southeast Asia through their affiliate Pearl Energy and in the MENA region through their 100%-owned affiliate LIWA Energy.
Wintershall Holding GmbH, based in Kassel, Germany, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BASF in Ludwigshafen. The company has been active in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas for over 80 years. Wintershall focuses on selected core regions, where the company has built up a high level of regional and technological expertise. These are Europe, North Africa, South America, as well as Russia and the Caspian Sea region. In addition, these operations are complemented by the company’s growing exploration activities in the Arabian Gulf. Today, the company employs more than 2,500 staff worldwide from 40 nations and is now Germany’s largest crude oil and natural gas producer.
Source: Stefan Leunig
Wintershall Holding GmbH, Kassel
www.wintershall.com
|
Worldwide more than 100,000
paid subscriptions
PennWell
Petroleum Group:
OGJ - Oil & Gas Journal
OGJ_eNewsletter
Offshore Magazine
Offshore eNewsletter
Oil & Gas Financial Journal
Oil, Gas & Petrochem
OGJ Russia
OGJ LatinoAmericana
PennEnergy
PennEnergy-eNewsletter
+ + +
.
PennEnergy
Weekly
Video News
.
+ + +
For more information, media
kits or
sample copies please contact
wilhelms@pennwell.com
www.sicking.de
|
