MMS Regional Director Chris Oynes said, "We are pleased with the continued industry competition for Gulf of Mexico leases. Shallow water bidding -- water depths up to 655 ft -- was significant for this sale, with shallow water tracts receiving almost 62% of the total tracts bid on."

MMS said the shallow water activity could be attributed to relatively strong energy prices and the new MMS royalty relief provision for 20 bcf of deep gas production (greater than 15,000 ft) in shallow shelf waters.

It noted that 20% of the winning bids were in deep water ranging from 2,624 ft to 5,248 ft, with a lease term of 10 years, and almost 9% of the bids were in ultradeep water (5,249 ft or greater), also with 10-year terms.

The highest bid accepted on a tract was $26,115,000 by Exxon Asset Management Co. for Mississippi Canyon Block 912. Other winning bids of $18,378,000 by Kerr-McGee Oil & Gas Corp. for Green Canyon Block 680 and $18,315,000 by Exxon Asset Management for Mississippi Canyon Block 956 were the second and third highest bids in the sale. All three were in waters greater than 1,600 m (5,249 ft).

MMS said the sale indicates the continued strong showing of both major and independent oil and gas companies participating in the gulf.

It said the companies with the most high bids in the sale were Chevron USA Inc. with 53 tracts, Magnum Hunter Production Inc. 45, Samedan Oil Corp. 33, Remington Oil & Gas Corp. 33, Kerr-McGee Oil & Gas Corp. 32, and Spinnaker Exploration Co. LLC with 32. For the complete press release, click here...

SparTEC will act as the general contractor and overall project manager for the design engineering, procurement, fabrication, installation and commissioning of the facility. Work on the project, which is scheduled to enable first production by mid-2003, will begin immediately. For more information and the complete press release, click here...

The Robert E. Lee was a passenger freighter in route from Trinidad to New Orleans carrying American construction workers and survivors of U-boat attacks in the Caribbean.

As the Robert E. Lee and its escort vessel PC-566 neared Florida, the vessels attempted to make port in Tampa. Unable to get a pilot both vessels continued on to New Orleans. The patrol craft radioed its command center, Gulf Sea Frontier, of the intentions of both ships to carry on to New Orleans.

As the Robert E. Lee and PC-566 steamed towards New Orleans, the U-166, possibly alerted by the radio message from the patrol craft, waited along the shipping lanes to attack the Robert E. Lee. On the calm clear morning of July 30th the U-166 struck. A single torpedo from the U-boat tore open the side of the freighter. The Robert E. Lee sank quickly taking several passengers and crew to the bottom. As survivors struggle in the water and into lifeboats, the patrol craft rushed in and commenced a depth charge attack on the U-boat. Once the commander of the PC-566 was confident that the U-boat had been chased away the survivors were rescued.

Two days later approximately 100 miles off Houma, Louisiana a U-boat was sighted and bombed by a Coast Guard aircraft. The two Coast Guard Aviators noted an oil slick near where the sub had been attacked. At the end of the war records showed that the only boat not to return from the Gulf of Mexico was the U-166. Since that time it has been assumed that the boat bombed by the Coast Guard aircraft off Houma was the U-166, but this is no longer the case, the history of the U-166 has been changed!

In January 2001, C & C Technologies, Inc. (C & C) conducted a deep-water pipeline survey for British Petroleum (BP) Amoco and Shell International Exploration & Production, Inc. in the vicinity of the reported location of the Robert E. Lee. This survey was conducted using C & C's new HUGIN 3000 (High Precision Untethered Geosurvey and Inspection System), which was under contract to BP. The HUGIN 3000 is the world's first commercially operated Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) capable of surveying to 3000 meters water depth. It is untethered therefore it can operate even in rough seas at faster speeds with greater mobility and accuracy (to within 3 meters after post processing) than conventional towed arrays. The HUGIN utilizes a state-of-the-art multibeam bathymetry and imagery system, a dual frequency chirp side scan sonar, chirp sub-bottom profiler, and a inertial navigation system. This HUGIN's leading edge instrumentation coupled with the precision HiPAP (High Precision Acoustic Positioning) acoustic tracking system operated by the launch and retrieval vessel, make the HUGIN one of the most powerful commercial survey packages operating in the world.

The wrecks of the Robert E. Lee and another nearby vessel thought to be the Alcoa Puritan were known to be in this area from a 1986 survey conducted by Shell. Because of the proximity of the wrecks to the proposed pipeline, BP and Shell determined that C & C would conduct and investigation survey of the area using the HUGIN 3000.

C & C Marine Archaeologists Robert Church and Daniel Warren reviewed the new data collected by the AUV crew. From their analysis they noted two areas of wreck debris. One of the areas was determined to be with relative certainty the wreck of the Robert E. Lee. The other wreckage, thought to be the Alcoa Puritan, did not seem to match the characteristics of a nearly 7,000-ton freighter. Several possibilities were developed as what this target could be, including the wreckage of the U-166. The dimensions of the sonar contacts matched almost exactly to a type IX-C German U-boat (like U-166). Additionally, historical evidence indicated that no communications had been received from the U-166 following the attack on the Robert E. Lee.

With this evidence a new hypothesis regarding the loss of the U-166 was developed. The archaeologist surmised that the crew of the escort craft PC-566 were far luckier than they ever knew that July 30th and they had sunk the U-166. It was also their contention that the Coast Guard Aviators had bombed a different U-boat on August 1st. Further historical research in fact did indicate that another U-boat, U-171, had been bombed by a "flying boat" at about the same time, but had not been sunk.

Following the initial disclosure of the possibility that this could be the remains of the U-166, both BP and Shell sponsored further site-specific investigations of the Robert E. Lee and the suspected U-166 using the HUGIN 3000 AUV.

The results of this data provided further evidence supporting the U-166 hypothesis and stressed the need to verify the identity of this wreck using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV).

On May 31st and June 1st, 2001 a research team from BP, Shell, C & C, and the Mineral Management Service using a ROV set out to test the U-166 hypothesis. Through the combined efforts of this team the expedition verified the U-166 hypothesis and revealed new insights into last moments of the U-166 and the Robert E. Lee. For more information, e-mail Jeff Fortenberry.

This project defines new frontiers for the industry, both in terms of working depths and the level of technology applied to the design and installation of flowlines and risers. The CSO Deep Blue, which will be operating from CSO's Gulf support base in Mobile, Alabama, will demonstrate its unique and versatile pipe laying capabilities. The vessel's systems will enable the installation of the deepest ever pipe-in-pipe system using the J-lay solution, and the deepest ever fully reeled SCR, as well as the deepest ever pipe-in-pipe SCR.

The NaKika project ties back five fields using subsea techniques, to the NaKika floating development and production platform located in Mississippi Canyon block 474, in the Gulf of Mexico. The contract awarded to CSO Inc. involves the installation in water depths up to 2,130 m (7,000 ft) of over 100 miles of high specification flowlines including an 8" reeled gas flowline, an 8" in 12" reeled pipe-in-pipe system, a J-laid 10" in 16" pipe-in-pipe system and steel catenary risers (SCRs). The SCRs which will be installed by the J-lay method, will include an 18" oil export riser, a 20" gas export riser and two pipe-in-pipe steel catenary risers of 8" in 12" and 10" in 16" respectively, as well as two 8" risers and two 4.5" gas lift risers.

CSO will also be responsible for the design and fabrication of the 8" in 12" reeled pipe-in-pipe system, based on a similar successful project recently completed in the Gulf of Mexico where CSO designed and installed one of the deepest pipe-in-pipe flowlines and a complete dynamic steel catenary riser with the reeled method.

Onshore fabrication of all the reeled flowlines and SCRs sections, as well as the mobilization of the J-lay operations, will be performed at CSO's new construction support base located in Mobile, Alabama.

The flowlines and the steel catenary risers, will be installed by the CSO Deep Blue, the Group's new ultra deepwater pipelay vessel, between Q3 2002 and Q2 2003 during two installation campaigns. The vessel will utilize both her J-lay and reel lay capabilities in deepwaters; these are tasks for which she has been designed by CSO, anticipating the future needs of clients for their deep and ultra deep water developments.

This and other press releases can be accessed on the CSO Group's website: http://www.coflexip.com. For the complete press release, click here...

The discovery well was drilled by BP (77.5%) on behalf of itself and partner Texaco (22.5%) on a prospect called Blind Faith. The well was drilled to a total depth exceeding 25,000 feet from the water line. Blind Faith was the first well drilled by the dynamically positioned semi submersible drilling rig Ocean Confidence, owned by Diamond Offshore Drilling Company.

The discovery was made on Mississippi Canyon Block 696, approximately 175 miles Southeast of New Orleans. The reservoir covers parts of two blocks, MC 696 and 695, some 20 miles East of BP's Crazy Horse discovery, the largest field ever discovered in the Gulf of Mexico. For the complete press release, click here...

Through a joint venture partnership with Petrotrin, the National Oil Company of Trinidad & Tobago, New Horizon Exploration is developing Block E in the famed Parrylands oil field. Petrotrin is providing an extensive infrastructure including paved roads, access to crude oil pipelines, utilities, and a market for the crude through its refinery at Pointe a Pierre, which recently underwent a $100 million upgrade to produce products that meets U.S. specifications. The Petrotrin refinery is capable of processing approximately 170,000 barrels of crude daily, most of which is currently exported to the United States.

"New Horizon is to provide the necessary capital to develop the Block and share its knowledge, expertise and technological innovation with Petrotrin and students," said Allen Russell, manager of Petrotrin's joint venture operations. "The enhanced oil recovery method proposed by NHE should result in higher production levels and greater recovery potentials."

NHE has invested over $5 million in the project through the first half of 2001. The company is drilling 18 vertical and 3 horizontal development wells within the Block with its rig, shipped from Texas. Over the next four years, NHE plans to invest up to $35 million to fully develop the block, estimated to contain 60 million barrels, using their Six Pac(TM) enhanced oil recovery process. The Six Pac(TM) combines proven horizontal drilling with steam injection, and is expected to recover more than 50% of the oil in place in less time than other methods, according to Boyles, as it combines gravity drainage with secondary and tertiary recovery methods.

"We aren't here just to pump oil and be an absentee landlord," explained Boyles. "We are committed to being a hands-on operator and making a positive contribution to the economy and to the health and welfare of the people here. Our success depends on having a long-term commitment to the people we involve in each project. As world oil fields mature, we believe independents can secure big opportunities if they have the right experience, and are willing to share it locally so that everyone may benefit," said Boyles. "'The Little Engine That Could' is not just a bedtime story -- it's who we are and what our world can be, if we have the determination to keep chugging along." For the complete press release, click here...

Both the third generation crossed dipole wireline tool and the LWD dipole sonic tool provide compressional and shear measurements in fast and slow formations, offering a two-alternative, one-solution concept that gives operators critical wellbore evaluation answers from spud to total depth of the well. For more information, click here...

In seismic business for over 30 years, following a formal post-graduate education in mathematics and physical oceanography. Numerous varied roles & positions held ranging from professional duties as an oceanographer & as a geodesist to recent work in the formal Product Development & Management.

Ph.D. Candidacy, Physical Oceanography (completed all comprehensive Ph.D. prelim exams); M.S. Physical Oceanography, B.S. Meteorology, cum laude, HONORS (at Major University). Active Member of organisations such as NOIA, ESPG, APSG, THSOA, ASCM, ION and MTS including Vice Chair (NOIA Technology Policy Committee ), Trustee & Director (THSOA) and member of EPSG Geodesy Working Group. Also served as President of a 3000-member international non-profit organisation.

Looking for position where experience, skills and abilities would be used to advantage. Detailed Work History is available with full details on positions held.

Currently Available. For detailed Resume/CV including references, E-mail:infocdj@e-pageads.com