"Chuck Darden is the first and only full-time IAGC president since the association's inception," said Doug Elrod, IAGC chairman of the board. "Chuck's dedication and ongoing contributions have kept the IAGC effective and on track through the terms of 25 elected chairmen who came before me. All of us in the association will miss his expertise, knowledge and insightful industry perspective."

Commenting on his tenure, Mr. Darden remarked, "It has been both an honor and a privilege to serve the geophysical industry in this unique capacity for nearly three decades. Without question, the geophysical community contains the finest and most professional men and women found anywhere. I wish both my successor and the global IAGC organization continued success in the future."

IAGC is a Houston-based trade association that represents the interests of the service companies that supply virtually all of the worldwide geophysical services and data used in the search for new oil and gas reserves. For more information on the IAGC, visit www.iagc.org or contact Jodi Bonhomme at 713/957-8080. See the press release at: http://www.businesswire.com/webbox/bw.050101/211210316.htm

Total attendance was pegged at 47,649, well short of the more than 108,000 attending during the show's record 1982 year. However, conference organizers were pleased with this year's attendance results. More than 2,100 companies exhibited their goods and services in almost 400,000 square feet of exhibit space. Courtesy Oil Online, visit... http://www.oilonline.com/news2/news_domestic_inquirer_ot050401.html

System outputs from the MiniPOS are extensive and controllable. They include: heading, pitch, roll, depth, X,Y & Z velocities, X,Y & Z accelerations, X,Y & Z angular accelerations as well as full positional information in a variety of formats (Cartesian, Easting, Northing etc.).

The CDL MiniPOS is a tiny unit measuring only 18cm in diameter by 30cm high. It's subsea housing is rated to 2,000m water depth (6,000m available) and the entire package weighs less than 10kg in air. The MiniPOS will be an integral part of Ashtead Technology's increasingly expanding rental pool.

Ashtead Technology Ltd is part of the Ashtead Group, one of the largest rental groups in the world. They are dedicated to supplying a broad range of quality survey, inspection, video and ROV accessories and instrumentation equipment to an increasing number of markets.

CDL design and manufacture equipment for use in the ROV and positioning industries. Current CDL products include inertial navigation systems, subsea metrology systems, gyrocompass systems, surface gyrocompass systems, bathymetry systems, video telemetry, data telemetry, pitch & roll sensors, shock sensors and data display units. For the complete details, contact Kevin Murray-Taylor, Sales & Marketing Manager at CDL or visit their web site at http://www.cdltd.net

Baker Hughes Incorporated (NYSE:BHI)(PCX:BHI)(EBS:BHI) announced today that the international rig count for April 2001 was 742, up 20 from the 722 counted in March 2001 and up 140 from the 602 counted in April 2000. The international offshore rig count for April 2001 was 219, up 12 from the 207 counted in March 2001 and up 51 from the 168 counted in April 2000.

The U.S. rig count for April 2001 was 1,206 up 42 from the 1,164 counted in March 2001 and up 402 from the 804 counted in April 2000. The Canadian rig count for April 2001 was 217 down 228 from the 445 counted in March 2001 and up 71 from the 146 counted in April 2000.

The worldwide rig count for April 2001 was 2,165 down 166 from the 2,331 counted in March 2001 and up 613 from the 1,552 counted in April 2000. View rig count comparisons for April and March 2001 versus April 2000 courtesy Houston Chronicle at http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/prn/texas/901187 For a complete graphical view of worlwide rig counts, visit one of the Baker Huges flash rig count pages at: http://www.bakerhughes.com/investor/rig/rig_int.htm

• Autodesk Map 5 - New features include a direct connection to an Oracle 8i Spatial database, streamlined thematic mapping using Wizards, an improved user interface, and an enhanced import/export engine and wavelet support: Mr. SID, from Lizard Tech and ECW from ER Mapper.

• Autodesk Land Desktop 3 - New features include all of the new capabilities delivered in AutoCAD 2002 and Autodesk Map 5, plus LandXML support, and management of standards via improved Point Group and Point Listing.

• Autodesk Civil Design - New features include the Vertical Road Design Editor that incorporates LandXML reports, engineering rules and better interaction between graphics and tabular editor. Other new features include plotting of secondary, non-parallel profiles onto a master profile, sampling of stations at key super elevation locations and tighter integration with Autodesk Land Desktop.

• Autodesk Survey - New features include support for Autodesk Land Desktop 3 and an update of TrimbleLink.

• Autodesk OnSite 2 - A platform for deploying enterprise-specific mobile solutions that deliver live interactive design and mapping information from a company’s central server to Microsoft Windows CE-based mobile computing devices. New features include a robust API, a design publisher, server synchronization, a multi-user system, easier and faster connection to a database and more. For the complete press release, visit http://www.profsurv.com/news.htm

The newly installed pipe will allow methanol to be safely pumped into the existing Pluto well, enabling production of oil and gas to continue. The project began at South Pass Block 89 on March 29 and was completed at Mississippi Canyon Block 674 on April 10. Click here for the press release...

The three specialists from the Houston-based Boots & Coots International Well Control company were flown in on Friday to the affected area, Yorla Fields, to deal with a blow-out at a well which shot jets of crude oil and gas 30 metres into the air for the better part of last week. They brought it under control and re-capped it on Sunday, Shell officals said. For the complete press release, visit... http://allafrica.com/stories/200105070222.html

Thales Geosolutions will use two of the GSP-1086-2 500 Series recorders with sub-bottom profiling systems supplied by Applied Acoustic Engineering Ltd. (Great Yarmouth, UK). Three of the recorders will be used out of the Aberdeen office for real-time printing and post processing of side-scan sonar data. The three 1086 Series will be the newest version of the popular series, the 1086NT and will incorporate the new 32 bit architecture, Network Interface, speed correction and other features . Thales Geosolution has EPCs in operation in other Thales Geosolution offices around the world including, Racal NeSA (The Netherlands), Racal Survey USA (Houston, TX), and Racal Survey Mexicana, S.A. de C.V (Mexico).

The order was secured through the efforts of newly appointed sales representative, MacArtney UK Ltd. With offices in Aberdeen and Poole, MacArtney UK Ltd. will maintain stock of recorders, parts and consumables out of the Aberdeen office. Sales contact in the UK for the EPC Product Line will be Mr. Simon Reeves, MacArtney UK, Poole. E-mail Ted Curley or visit their web site at: http://www.epclabs.com

Syntheseas will offer innovative solutions from a range of ABB and Schlumberger technologies, products and services from reservoir evaluation and development, subsea production through to topside facilities. In addition the company will also provide life of field management expertise. Syntheseas will utilize preferred supplier relationships for drilling rig and installation services.

The new company's executive team includes President Svein Kjellesvik, Vice President Commercial & Contracts Tor-Inge Baldersheim, Vice President Operations/QHSE Curtis W. Jones and Vice President Marketing & Technology Alan McGovern. For the complete press release, visit: http://ny-web1.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/f_headline.cgi?day6/211210528&ticker=slb

The Geological Survey of Canada suggests there could be more than 18 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves from known and potential discoveries located offshore Nova Scotia, while other studies have suggested even higher estimates. This natural gas would be well situated geographically to provide energy supplies for nearby growing markets. Tennessee and Marathon have completed a preliminary feasibility analysis to examine technical and environmental issues. Preliminary findings were favorable and the two companies have agreed to proceed with further study.

Marathon Oil Company, part of the USX-Marathon Group (NYSE: MRO) and a unit of USX Corporation, is a large fully integrated oil firm engaged in the worldwide exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas. Through Marathon Ashland Petroleum LLC, the Company also refines, markets and transports petroleum products in the United States. Visit the company's Web site at http://www.marathon.com or http://www.usx.com.

El Paso Corporation, the largest and most broadly based natural gas company in the world, spans the energy value chain from wellhead to electron. With an enterprise value in excess of $50 billion, El Paso is a leader in every phase of the natural gas industry. The company owns and operates a significant portion of the North American natural gas delivery grid, operates the fastest growing, most sophisticated energy merchant group, and is the nation's third largest natural gas producer. El Paso, a leader in risk management techniques, is focused on maximizing shareholder value, transforming existing markets, and speeding the development of new markets. Visit El Paso at http://www.elpaso.com. For the complete press release, click here...