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Drilling & Production — Quick Takes
Chevron: Yet to receive lawsuit from Brazil
Chevron Corp. said Dec. 15 it had yet to receive formal notice of a civil lawsuit that a Brazilian federal district prosecutor said he intends to file against Chevron and drilling contractor Transocean Ltd. seeking $10.7 billion in damages and also seeking an injunction to stop Chevron's activities in Brazil.
The lawsuit concerns a November oil seep from an appraisal well at Frade oil field in 3,800 ft of water 370 km northeast of Rio de Janeiro. Upon receiving approval from the Brazilian National Agency of Petroleum on Nov. 13, Chevron Brazil immediately began plugging and abandonment activities.
Chevron said the oil flow was stopped within 4 days, and the company continues to contain any residual oil (OGJ Online, Nov. 16, 2011).
Brazil's regulatory agencies and regulators have not issued any instructions to Chevron about suspension of operations, the company noted.
"From the outset, Chevron responded responsibly to the incident at its Frade field and has dealt transparently with all Brazilian authorities," the company said Dec. 15.
Chevron said it continues to address the surface sheen, which is now estimated at less than 1 bbl. At one point, the sheen was estimated at 400-600 bbl. There have been no coastal or wildlife impacts.
Ali Moshiri, Chevron's president for Africa and Latin America exploration and production, said Chevron remains committed to its long-term strategy in Brazil. He talked briefly with reporters at the Dec. 15 Deloitte LLP Oil & Gas conference in Houston after making a speech.
Chevron has 51.74% interest in Frade field, which has been in production since 2009.
CNOOC shuts down platforms because of leak
CNOOC Ltd. said Zhuhai Hengqin gas processing terminal reported a leak in a subsea gas pipeline, prompting the shut down of relevant platforms in Panyu 30-1 gas field and Hui Zhou 21-1 oil field in the eastern South China Sea off Guangdong Province.
Zhuhai terminal, on the Hengqin island of Zhuhai city, is the gas processing terminal for the joint development gas project of PY30-1 and HZ21-1 fields. No injuries or environmental damage was reported, CNOOC said.
Currently, the terminal is under accelerated depressurization process. A pipeline leakage emergency plan was initiated CNOOC and Chinese authorities are investigating the cause of the incident.
CNOOC is monitoring the situation and setting up an alert zone around the area where the incident took place. Operations at Zhuhai terminal are to be resumed as soon as possible once the pipeline is repaired, CNOOC said.
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