PetroVietnam starts gas output from offshore facility

PetroVietnam has begun gas production from its processing plant and pipeline network, based at its offshore Rong-Doi Moi oil fields. The gas compressing rig, in southern Vietnam, processed in the region of 960,000 cubic metres per day, which accounts for 4.3 per cent of the estimated daily output for this year. The field contains around 2.5 billion cubic metres of gas.

The gas unit is connected to the gas pipeline in the Rong-Doi Moi and White Tiger oil field through a RC-3 rig and five underwater pipelines totaling 43 kilometers. PetroVietnam and its subsidiary PVGas are partners in the project together with VietsovPetro, a joint venture of PetroVietnam and Russia state-owned oil and gas company Zarubezhneft.

VietsovPetro said the project will supply gas to power plants material production plats and household customers throughout Vietnam. The annual gas volume is estimated to cost around $56.5 million annually and is expected to cover the investment cost in eight years.

PetroVietnam has said that Rong-Doi Moi is one of several gas projects the company has been working on and that its subsidiary PVGas currently operates five gas pipeline networks, with annual capacity of 14 billion cubic metres. More projects are shedualed for competion by 2014.

Sources: VietNamNet, Platts

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Russia ready to do business with Brazil

Russia's Energy Ministry has declared its interest in the Brazilian energy sector. A senior energy ministry official, Stanislav Dorzhinkevich, said that, “the Russian government is prepared to provide multifaceted support for the expansion of co-operation between Russian and Brazilian companies”.

Brazilian and Russian officials met to discuss prospective business during a gas conference in Rio de Janeiro. The Russian delegation included officials from Gazprom, Zarubezhneft, Power Machines and the Russian Energy Ministry, while the Brazilian delegation was represented by officials from the Brazilian National Agency of Petroleum and Petrobras.

Co-operation in oil production is likely to involve deep offshore oil fields, and these, “practical steps for co-operation were considered,” during the meeting, said the Russian energy ministry.

“It is not clear what advantages Russia offers for oil production. It is much more geo-strategic. Russia lends its pre-eminence and reputation to Brazil and allows it to say that it is diversifying on its own terms and own rights,” said Senior Energy Analyst at IHS Energy in Washington Andrew Neff.

Source: The Moscow Times

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