Category Archives: Offshore

With the possibility of oil and natural gas exploration off the Atlantic seaboard back on the table, South Carolinas coastal leaders find themselves once again taking a stand to prevent drilling in local waters.

In April, President Donald Trump signed his America-First Offshore Energy Strategy, which would open up the 94 percent of offshore areas that the federal government has closed to energy exploration and production for the first time in more than 30 years. With the administrations push to expedite a new leasing program for the national outer continental shelf beginning in 2019, the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is now accepting public comments regarding the possibility of bringing the offshore energy industry to South Carolina.

Faced with an Aug. 17 deadline to provide public input, state and local officials rallied in Mt. Pleasant Monday to ask that citizens voice their opposition to such a proposal and encourage Gov. Henry McMaster to do the same.

The whole idea that were spending time and energy going out there and trying to find out what we already know that its not out there, a finite resource and not dedicating our efforts to doing something that is long-term and sustainable to me is a fight worth having. And I invite all of you to join with me, said Charleston City Councilman Mike Seekings during the rally hosted by advocacy groups Dont Drill Lowcountry, Stop Offshore Drilling in the Atlantic (SODA), Coastal Conservation League, Oceana, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, and Southern Environmental Law Center.

While Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke pushed Trumps new energy strategy by saying that the more aggressive approach would cement our nations position as a global energy leader, the evidence that is currently available suggests that the Southeast coast will likely not by the key to furthering any energy supremacy.

Current estimates of resources off the Atlantic coast from BOEM project 414,000 million barrels of oil and 1.78 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in the South Atlantic region stretching from South Carolina to Florida. This roughly equates to 9 percent of the estimated oil supply along the entire Atlantic region and less than 5 percent of potential gas resources.

The point of contention with these estimates is that they are partially derived from the a period of seismic testing and exploratory drilling conducted in the late 70 and early 80s. Modern advancements in exploratory and drilling methods allow for deeper wells and the possibility of gaining a better understanding of what resources are available off the coast.

Of specific concern to opponents of offshore energy exploration is that the results of any seismic testing that would be permitted off the Southeast coast would not be available to the public. This means that little oversight would be possible in making the decision to risk South Carolinas booming coastal tourism industry against the possibility of untapped resources.

This region, the Lowcountry, is really a brand. Its a very valuable brand, and it needs to be protected. When you talk about brands, it really is key to our quality of life here in the Lowcountry, and in the Lowcountry our quality of life is really dependant on our natural environment. So we need to protect that at all costs, said state Rep. William Cogswell, who cosponsored a bill from fellow House member Leon Stavrinakis that would prevent the state or any municipalities from approving plans to construct infrastructure used to transport offshore oil into the land and waters of South Carolina.

This bill coincides with another piece of proposed legislation introduced by Sen. Stephen Goldfinch, which calls for a 2018 statewide referendum on questions of whether or not the development of an offshore oil and natural gas industry should be permitted in South Carolina.

Cogswell was joined at Mondays rally by state Sen. Chip Campsen, whose district covers more than 80 miles of the South Carolina coast. According to Campsen, his primary reason for opposing offshore oil exploration and drilling is the potential impact that the industry would have on the shore.

The onshore infrastructure necessary to sustain offshore drilling is highly industrial, very extensive and expansive, and very unseemly, which is a kind way to put it, said Campsen, who later shared a phone conversation he had with Gov. McMaster following a fishing trip in the Ace Basin.

I want to tell you, and I have authorization to do this, I talked to the governor on my way back from tarpon fishing. He told me that he knows my position. I kind of restated it. And he told me that You go ahead and tell the crowd. He whole-heartedly agrees with my position, said Campsen. The truth is we have developed a land-use pattern on the coast of South Carolina that is wholly incompatible with the onshore infrastructure necessary to support oil.

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Charleston-area leaders rally against offshore oil exploration; Gov. McMaster's stance against drilling affirmed - Charleston City Paper

Mike Antonuccis Union Report appears Wednesdays; see the full archive

Amid stagnating union membership rolls across the country, the American Federation of Teachers added 40,000 education employees into its ranks last week.

AFT reached an affiliation agreement with the Asociacin de Maestros de Puerto Rico, the exclusive bargaining agent for the islands public school teachers. It represents a unit larger than the Chicago Teachers Union.

But the affiliation is a unique one, characteristic of the difficult and often combative relationship between American unions and Puerto Ricos teachers.

For one thing, AFT and AMPR describe the new relationship as a trial affiliation of up to three years. This is an unprecedented arrangement in my experience. Second, AMPR will be charged national dues of only $1 per member per month. AFT affiliates on the U.S. mainland, by way of comparison, will pay $19.28 per member per month beginning in September. AMPR members dues will remain stable because their union pledged to pay AFTs fee from its own coffers. For its part, AFT pledged to provide AMPRs members with the same services it provides all other members.

AMPR became the bargaining agent for teachers in Puerto Rico in April 2016 after an election in which its rival, the Federacin de Maestros de Puerto Rico FMPR was banned from participation. The two unions have been battling since public-sector collective bargaining was enacted in Puerto Rico in 1999, even as Americas unions have treated the island like their own little Game of Thrones.

Back in 1999, AMPR was affiliated with the National Education Association and FMPR with AFT. FMPR won the first union representation election the right to negotiate the islands teachers contract giving AFT the upper hand and all but eliminating NEAs presence in Puerto Rico.

In 2003, a radical caucus won election to FMPR leadership and began disaffiliating from AFT. In what has since become standard operating procedure, AFT first sought to have the FMPR president removed from office, then, in 2005, attempted to establish a trusteeship over the union. This was met with massive defiance and protests that reached all the way to an AFT conference in Washington, D.C.

After losing several court battles and failing to form a competing organization, AFT effectively surrendered, disaffiliating FMPR as if FMPR had not already disaffiliated itself.

FMPRs victory was short-lived, however. After it authorized an illegal strike, the government of Puerto Rico decertified the union in 2008 and called a new representation election. With FMPR legally sidelined, AMPR rose from its ashes, assisted by a new affiliation with the Service Employees International Union.

Teachers were given the choice of AMPR or no union, and 55 percent of them voted for no union. That ended SEIUs involvement, and left the islands teachers without any union representation.

Labor militancy continued, however with both FMPR and AMPR participating in strikes and protests in 2014, but it wasnt until last year that the government allowed a new representation election to be held. With FMPR banned from participating, AMPR easily won.

AFT gets a morale boost from taking AMPR under its wing, but not much else. Puerto Rico doesnt permit the collection of agency fees. All union dues are voluntary. Even if every teacher were to join, the annual take for AFT would be less than $500,000, not enough to cover the cost of three union staffers.

Perhaps AFT members will think it is worthwhile to subsidize union operations in Puerto Rico, but AFT isnt likely to ask them.

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Analysis: Teachers Union Adds 40000 Offshore Members While Labor Rolls Stagnate at Home - The 74

Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Talking Taxes: How to Bring Offshore Profits Home Wall Street Journal (subscription) U.S. companies are holding more than $2.6 trillion in profits across the globe and they haven't paid U.S. taxes on it. Why is so much money offshore, and how could the tax code be changed to bring it back? WSJ's tax reporter Richard Rubin dives in.

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Talking Taxes: How to Bring Offshore Profits Home - Wall Street Journal (subscription)

There have been some very early signs that the offshore oil and gas industry is picking back up again, but you can't find those signs in Noble Corporation's (NYSE:NE) most recent earnings report. Revenue and earnings continued to decline, and there wasn't much news during the quarter about new contracts to suggest things are going to get better soon.

Let's take a look at Noble's most recent results and what management sees that might suggest the market will improve.

Image source: Getty Images.

Source: Noble Corporation earnings release.

It's not easy to find the good things in this most recent earnings report from Noble. The companycontinues to keep a close eye on costs, but rigs continue to roll off contract faster than it can sign customers up for new contracts. There was also a $0.07 per sharecharge related to the Paragon Offshore bankruptcy baked into that most recent result. The net income loss from the first quarter relates mostly to a $260 million non-cash tax expense, so it's not as though there was a sharp increase in the past few months.

Noble's jackupfleet continues to be the pride of the fleet. Jackups ended the quarter with a utilization rate of 93% and a respectable average dayrate of $121,300. It did have one floating rig roll off contract, though, which was a big dent to profitability. The worst performing segment of the business continues to be itsolder fleet of semisubmersibles -- utilization rate of 17% and an average dayrate of $126,100. Considering the age of these vessels, it would not be a stretch of the imagination to see these rigs get retired and ultimately scrapped in the next several months.

Thankfully, Noble continues to generate free cash flow even though earnings are negative because of high non-cash depreciation and amortization expenses. At the end of the quarter, the company still had $600 million in cash on hand and a net debt of $3.2 billion.

Noble CEO David Williams mentioned in his statement that this quarter was a testament to the company's ability to weather the storm in the rig market, which isn't exactly a glowing review of the most recent quarter. He did say, though, that things are starting to look better thanks to new discoveries and better economics for offshore projects.

Despite the recent crude oil price volatility, our customers continue to evaluate offshore rig needs covering the remainder of 2017 and 2018. The number of jackup rigs under contract has risen steadily since the fourth quarter of 2016, while several contract awards in recent weeks provide evidence of intermediate-term support for the industry's floating rig capacity. Some of the recent floating contract awards and others still pending are addressing new, emerging offshore opportunities, such as theBlack Sea,Guyana, Suriname,MexicoandEgypt, driven in many cases by the confirmation of excellent hydrocarbon potential. We still expect a meaningful decline in the industry's total supply of jackup and floating rigs given the age, condition, and state of preservation of much of the global fleet. While our industry requires more time to recover, we continue to show steady progress.

Noble's results weren't great. There isn't a whole lot of new contracts out there for rigs, but some of Noble's peers havefound work lately. The fact that the companyhasn't been able to pick up much work might suggest that the company has some work to do on the marketing side of the business. Management is hoping that its collaboration with General Electric on what it's calling the Digital Rig could reap rewards down the road, but certainly not today.

If the company isn't able to find work for some of its rigs in the coming quarters, especially those that are slated to roll off contract by the end of 2017, then Noble could be in a little trouble.

Tyler Crowe owns shares of General Electric. The Motley Fool owns shares of General Electric. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Noble Corporation's Earnings Keep Declining on Weak Offshore ... - Motley Fool

South Korea's best defense.

As the world worries about the increasing threat from North Korea and its dangerous leader Kim Jong Un, there is a temptation to believe that the problems will be solved ashore. Newly installed president Moon Jae In of South Korea is exploring a return to the so-called sunshine policy of dealing openly with the North while using trade and engagement incentives to defuse the situation. The U.S. wants to deploy a new ground-based missile-defense system to protect troops at the demilitarized zone as well as Japan and Guam. China is increasing its control over the notoriously leaky border, moving military units closer to North Korea and preparing for a potential refugee crisis if conflict erupts.

All these are prudent moves, but it is well worth remembering that Korea is a long peninsula, with all approaches dominated by the sea. So it was perhaps not surprising that China and Russia are pushing vigorously to stop the robust program of at-sea exercises the U.S. undertakes with allies in the region as a precondition for talks with North Korea. While canceling some practice drills off the Korean coast may seem like no big deal, doing so would be one of the worst mistakes the U.S. could make, in terms of both security and diplomacy.

It is important to understand just how vital it is to train and exercise at sea, in the demanding maritime environment itself, if we are to be prepared to operate effectively in a crisis. Sailors and their ships effectively rust in port, and the complexity of preparing for large-scale activities on the oceans demands weeks of training individually for each ship, followed by weeks of working together.

The recent collision of U.S. destroyer Fitzgerald with a container ship off the coast of Japan -- a single ship, operating alone reminds us how inherently difficult it is to operate on the high seas. Our Navy ships typically train for over a year in U.S. waters before deploying forward. Working with other navies -- given language, cultural and operational differences -- adds another layer of difficulty. Facing North Korea at sea is a team sport, and we have to practice like any team if we are going to be effective.

In terms of actual operations, there are five key maritime tasks ahead of the U.S. military. First, as the Donald Trump administration seeks to control escalation and find a way for diplomacy to succeed, we need to gather intelligence effectively and conduct surveillance, especially of the North Korean nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile programs.

That work can best be done from international waters by the U.S. Navys stealthy submarines and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers equipped with Aegis combat systems. These multi-mission destroyers have superb intelligence-gathering capability, and also boast the worlds most effective air-surveillance radar, the SPY-1, which can track even the smallest and fastest targets hundreds of miles away. The Navy has many of these ships at port in Yokosuka, Japan, as well as in all aircraft carrier strike groups that operate in the region.

Second, sea power is also vital for enforcing of sanctions against North Korea, including those passed unanimously last week by the United Nations Security Council. Over 90 percent of non-Chinese trade for North Korea moves across the oceans, and our ability to stop it matters deeply. This means not just cutting off incoming technical materials, foodstuffs and consumer goods, but also stopping goods leaving the country. The Kim regime is able to obtain hard cash by selling weapons and technology to countries and organizations including Iran, Hezbollah and Syria, as well as raw materials and seafood.

Another crucial element of deterrence is ballistic-missile defense. The ability to use sea-based platforms -- the Aegis-equipped destroyers and the comparable Ticonderoga-class cruisers -- in the waters off the southern portion of the peninsula is central to neutralizing North Koreas long-range missiles. Coupled with the land-based system known as Thaad in an integrated air-defense network, these maritime systems can significantly reduce the power and lethality of the North Korean threat.

And while the U.S. can do much alone, it also needs to cooperate with allies, particularly our principal Asian partners, Japan and Australia. Japan, of course, faces a very specific series of threats -- from Kims bellicose rhetoric to his propensity to launch test missiles in that direction. The Japanese, who operate the Aegis combat system on their Kongo-class destroyers, have the most capable navy in Asia after the U.S. and China. New Zealand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and other partners are also part of the coalition approach to stopping North Korea.

Finally, if we do end up applying hard power in either a massive or a precise set of preemptive strikes -- a very bad option, but certainly a possibility -- many will come from the sea. A strike force consisting of up to three carrier groups would bring together hundreds of tactical strike aircraft, as well as hundreds of Tomahawk cruise missiles. Supplemented by long-range Air Force assets, this armada would be crucial in striking the North Korean leadership and nuclear program. Given the ships ability to move nearly a thousand miles daily, it could operate on both sides of the Korea peninsula -- out of range of effective North Korean counters-measures -- and continue to pummel the regime.

One final consideration may seem counterintuitive, but is worth considering -- doing some level of exercises with China itself. These would best focus on benign operations such as training in disaster relief, medical diplomacy, humanitarian projects, narcotics interdiction and the like. While not operationally significant, such exercises would help build confidence in terms of being able to communicate rapidly with the Chinese navy in times of crisis.

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Given all the maritime capability that is needed in dealing with North Korea, it is clear that the U.S. must exercise on the high seas and practice all the scenarios outlined above. We need to do this in concert with our allies, honing our interoperability in ways that demonstrate to North Korea the overwhelming level of firepower they are facing. These exercises cannot be a bargaining chip in multilateral negotiations.

While Kim likes to maintain an air of bravado, he is not irrational -- he knows open combat means the end of his nation and his family. Making clear to him the military threat he faces from the sea will help us prepare for the worst and, more important, perhaps help coax him to a negotiated conclusion to a situation that has the entire world on edge.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tobin Harshaw at tharshaw@bloomberg.net

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The Key to Countering North Korea Lies Offshore - Bloomberg

CWind technicians and equipment expected on site by September 2017 to deliver the main cable pull-in campaign for Merkur Offshore Wind.

CWind, a provider of services to the offshore wind industry, announced that it has been successfully awarded a contract to deliver all cable pull-in services for 66 offshore wind turbines and one offshore substation at Merkur Offshore Wind Farm.

The 396-MW Merkur project is currently being constructed 45 km from the island of Borkum in the German North Sea.

The contract for CWind, which is part of the Global Marine Group and delivers the Companys power capabilities, has been awarded by Tideway, part of the DEME Group, a global leader in dredging, marine engineering and environmental remediation.

The expertise of CWinds technicians and project engineers will ensure on-time project completion and will assist Merkur to supply energy to 288,469 homes.

CWind is known for our Right First Time approach and has vast understanding with this type of project, having competed 421 cable pull-ins to date. This experience and know-how provides our clients complete confidence in our teams capabilities, said Lee Andrews, Managing Director of CWind.

Pre-project engineering is already underway, with CWind technicians and equipment expected on site by September 2017 to deliver the main cable pull-in campaign. High-proficiency training at CWinds Barrow-in-Furness offshore wind training facility is currently being arranged for the Tideway Team, focusing specifically on cable termination and testing.

The contract emphasises the ongoing period of intense activity for CWind, which has project teams and vessels working at numerous locations, completing both installation and repair projects across the UK and Europe.

With pre-project engineering already in progress, this prestigious project supports our group vision of engineering a clean and connected future for the offshore power sector, addedAndrews.

The rest is here:

CWind secures cable contract for Merkur Offshore Wind Farm - Windpower Engineering (press release)

August 9th, 2017 Jason Jiang Greater China, Shipyards 0 comments

Sinopacific Offshore & Engineering resumed full operations yesterday following the approval of the shipyards restructuring plan last week.

The shipyard went into a bankruptcy restructuring process in August 2016 and suspended operations after delivering a second 38,000 cu m ethylene gas carrier to Ocean Yield in June.

In July, CIMC Enric entered into a new restructuring investment agreement with the receiver of Sinopacific Offshore to take over the yard for RMB799.8m ($117.58m).

An official from SUMEC Group, a major creditor of Sinopacific Offshore, told Splash that the shipyards primary goal now is to complete existing orders and market the yard for new orders.

Sinopacific Offshore currently has two 22,000 cu m LEG carriers under construction for Odfjell.

Jason Jiang

Jason worked for a number of logistics firms following his English degree, then switched this hands-on experience to writing and has since become one the most prolific writers on the diverse China logistics industry writing for a host of titles including Supply Chain Asia, Cargo Facts and Air Cargo Week. Jasons access to the biggest shippers with business in China has proved an invaluable source of exclusives.

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Sinopacific Offshore resumes operations - Splash 247

The Government has given the green light to a major offshore wind farm which could prove to be the cheapest yet in UK waters.

Greg Clark, the Business and Energy Secretary, granted ScottishPower planning permission to build the second phase of its East Anglia wind farm 42 miles off the coast of Norfolk using wind turbines more than two and a half times the height of Londons Big Ben.

The 1.2GW project could produce enough electricity to power nearly a million homes by 2025, and is expected to be better value than the first phase of the development which is the cheapest to go into construction so far.

ScottishPower Renewables, owned by Spain's Iberdrola,will need to compete with other projects in an auction to secure a contract which guarantees a set revenue streamthrough top-up payments from consumer bills.

The first phase of the East Anglia project is the cheapest offshore wind project to be built, but the 119 per megawatt hour deal has nonetheless raised calls for developers to work harder to reduce the burden on bill payers.

The project cost is roughly 30pc higher than EDFs Hinkley Point C nuclear plant which has attracted fierce criticism for being too expensive to build or support.

Originally posted here:

UK greenlights ScottishPower's offshore wind farm - Telegraph.co.uk

By Laura Leslie

Raleigh, N.C. Federal regulators again want to hear what North Carolinians think about allowing oil and gas drilling off the state's coast.

Last year, former President Barack Obama's administration adopted a five-year energy plan that excluded drilling off the East Coast. But President Donald Trump has said he wants to see more offshore energy development, so his administration has tossed aside the 2016 plan and is starting over.

As part of that process, a public hearing was held Monday night in Wilmington, and others are set for Morehead City on Wednesday and Manteo on Thursday.

Gov. Roy Cooper said last month that he's opposed to opening the coast to offshore exploration and drilling, saying he doesn't think the risk to the state's coastal tourism and commercial fishing industries of a major oil spill are worth the limited revenue North Carolina would receive from the move.

"In some quarters of the Gulf Coast, they're still trying to recover from the impact of Deepwater Horizon," said Margaret Lillard, spokeswoman for the North Carolina Sierra Club, referring to the 2010 BP oil spill from that fouled large swaths of shoreline from Louisiana to Florida.

"North Carolina's coastal economy is based primarily on tourism and on fishing, commercial and recreational. They've got to have a clean environment," Lillard said.

Advocates for the oil and gas industry says those fears are overblown, maintaining such disasters are rare. They say drilling off the coast could create good-paying jobs in counties where they're badly needed.

"Embracing our nations offshore energy potential would bring enormous benefits to North Carolina," said David McGowan, executive director of the North Carolina Petroleum Council. "Our state is uniquely positioned to add thousands of additional jobs and increase local revenue through safe and environmentally responsible offshore energy development. The industry has a long history of safe offshore operations, which can safely coexist with our tourism and fishing industries while providing much needed diversity for local economies."

"A sensible, robust energy policy will provide a much needed boost at a time when North Carolinas middle class is struggling," added Michael Whatley, executive vice president of the Consumer Energy Alliance. "An all-of-the-above approach, which includes offshore energy development, will create tens of thousands of quality, living-wage jobs and generate billions of dollars for the states economy."

But Lillard said tourism and fishing support far more jobs in North Carolina than offshore drilling would ever create. More than 30 North Carolina communities have officially voiced opposition to offshore drilling, she noted, and a recent survey by Public Policy Polling found that seven out of 10 people in the state are concerned by the prospect of offshore drilling.

"That's people across the state who recognize the price that we would all pay in North Carolina if we were to have offshore drilling and something were to go wrong," Lillard said. "It's just not worth the potential impact."

Anyone who wants to register his or her opinion on the issue but cannot make one of the three public hearings can submit comments in writing by Aug. 15 to Timothy Webster, 217 W. Jones St., 1601 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1601 or via email to timothy.webster@ncdenr.gov. All comments will be forwarded to the U.S. Department of Interior.

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Offshore drilling backers, opponents ready for NC battle :: WRAL.com - WRAL.com

Telecom fraud suspects from Fiji arrive in Changchun, China after being deported. Photograph: Xinhua/REX/Shutterstock

Fiji has deported 77 Chinese nationals accused of running a phone and online scam targeting victims in mainland China, the latest in a series of overseas crackdowns orchestrated by Beijing.

The mass arrest and expulsion was part of a month-long operation involving both Fijian and Chinese law enforcement agencies, and echoes similar joint operations carried out in Indonesia and Cambodia last week.

Cyber criminals targeting victims in China have increasingly exploited technological advances to operate from abroad in a bid to evade authorities.

The Fiji-based ring is suspected of involvement in more than 50 telecom and online fraud cases, and cost victims in China more than six million yuan (US$892,000), Fijian police said Tuesday, without giving precise details of the scams.

These 77 Chinese nationals have been sent back to China from Fiji on 4 August, 2017, the Fiji police and Chinese embassy in Suva said in a joint statement.

The accused were flown to Changchun in northeast Chinas Jilin Province.

Chinas official Xinhua news agency said the scam came to light after one of the victims was swindled out of 1.3m yuan and committed suicide, triggering a large-scale investigation.

The probe exposed an illegal online gambling and lottery gang involving more than 200 suspects based in China, Indonesia and Fiji who had illegally taken nearly 100m yuan.

A team of Chinese police were sent to Fiji four weeks ago and on 18 July they arrested the 77 suspects and confiscated equipment, including mobile phones, computers and bank cards.

Another 83 people were arrested in China.

Beijing has become increasingly assertive in extraditing overseas fraud suspects.

Last week, Indonesia deported 143 people, including 22 Taiwanese, to China over fraud cases, days after police said they had busted a sprawling US$450m cyber fraud ring targeting wealthy businessmen and politicians in China.

The deportations drew a strong protest from Taiwan, which said the Taiwanese suspects should have been returned to the island.

Taiwans representative office in Suva said it had been assured by Fiji police that the 77 deported from the South Pacific nation were all nationals of the Peoples Republic of China.

Also last week, Cambodia arrested more than 200 Chinese men and women suspected of running an online scam that persuaded victims to send nude photographs and then extorted them for cash, after a tip-off from Chinese authorities.

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Mass deportation of Chinese from Fiji in latest offshore crackdown by Beijing - The Guardian