Many Sabahan O&G firms in ‘limbo’ – Upko Youth

July 10, 2019

Why? Isn’t Repsol and Hibiscus slinking round there? And there are newcomers everywhere, thank you.

Dateline 2019-06-13, Borneo Post Online:

Petronas has been urged to help Sabah oil and gas (O&G) contractors to grow as they are newcomers, thus unable to compete with other more established companies from Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak.

Upko Youth chief Felix Saang said that Sabahan oil and gas players are new in the industry compared to their counterparts in the peninsula and Sarawak, thus they need to be given priority until they grow ‘big’ enough to compete on a level playing field.

Speaking to reporters after attending central Upko Youth Exco meeting here recently, he said he was informed many Sabahan oil and gas contractors were in limbo now as they were trapped in a difficult situation whereby they need experience and size before being able to bid for contracts while at the same time, they need contracts in order to gain experience and grow big.


PM: Targeted petrol subsidy still at data-gathering stage

July 9, 2019

Dateline 2019-06-11, Malay Mail:

 Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today the federal government is still “collecting data” for the planned targeted fuel subsidy, with just one month left to its own July deadline.

Earlier this year, the Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration said it expected to roll out the system by July 1, amid scepticism from both experts and the public due to the complexities of targeted subsidies.

 


CM: Oil and gas complex will boost development in Sarawak’s north

July 8, 2019

And China has a base in North Sarawak.

Dateline 2019-06-10, The Star:

A proposed integrated oil and gas complex in Lawas will help boost development in Sarawak’s northern region, says Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg.

The Chief Minister said the US$5bil (RM20.8bil) project by China’s Beijing Beca Sci-Tech Co Ltd and Sinopec Engineering Incorporation would create jobs and spread development to the area.

“This will be a game changer for northern Sarawak, particularly Lawas and Limbang.


Edra Power to establish institute to cultivate domestic talent in renewable energy

July 7, 2019

Nuclear and renewable.

Dateline 2019-06-09, Malay Mail:

Edra Power Holdings Sdn Bhd plans to set up an international institute in Malaysia to cultivate local talent in renewable energy under the aegis of its parent company, China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN).

It will be one of eight such training institutes in CGN’s active exploration for international talent training methods to support its worldwide operations.

 


Anniversary – Piper Alpha Disaster

July 6, 2019

Oil & Gas Engineers never forget.


Volatile oil a drag on govt coffers

July 5, 2019

Dateline 2019-06-08, The Star:

THE first three months of the year have been the best quarter for oil traders in recent years. Vitol, which is the largest independent energy trader in the world with 350 partners spread across the globe, made a clean profit of US$600mil (RM2.48bil) in the first quarter from the trading of oil.However, repeating the feat would be difficult.

Even the most seasoned of oil traders feel that oil would be volatile in the next few months and predicting the direction of the market is rather complicated.

The top trader in London-based Merchant Commodity Fund, Doug King, has described the oil market as greatly uncertain because traders are grappling with the dynamic forces of supply and demand.


Sarawak launches Asean’s first integrated hydrogen production plant

July 4, 2019

Is this renewable energy?

Dateline 2019-05-27, Malay Mail:

Sarawak is poised to become a world exporter of hydrogen following the launch of Southeast Asia’s first integrated hydrogen production plant and refuelling station here today.

Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Openg said a potential overseas investor had shown interest in setting up a plant to produce hydrogen here and buy the product back to replace nuclear power in their country.

“I cannot reveal the details yet because negotiations are still on and there is a possibility of Sarawak becoming a world exporter of hydrogen that will give extra revenue to power our economy in the long run,” he told reporters after the launch of the plant and refuelling station being undertaken by Sarawak Energy, an energy development company, in collaboration with Linde EOX Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Linde Malaysia.


Fuel subsidy mechanism in final stages

July 3, 2019

Dateline 2019-05-23, NST:

The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry has almost completed its final preparations to introduce the fuel subsidy mechanism for the low-income, or B40, group.

Its minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the ministry was looking for an appropriate window for its implementation before presenting it to the Cabinet.

“All our preparations and research on the mechanism are almost done. We are now looking at the right time for the programme implementation before bringing it to the Cabinet to share the mechanics and the process,” he said.


Crucial for Malaysian O&G companies to innovate to survive — Dr Mahathir

July 2, 2019

For safety, at which point does/did innovation in safety features reach peak ALARP, and now O&M has to bear the flag?
Dateline 2019-05-23, The Borneo Post:

Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad says the oil and gas (O&G) industry remains volatile and therefore, it crucial that Malaysia continues to highlight its potential in the oil, gas and energy (OGE) sector while keeping up-to-date with the latest innovation and technology to strengthen its position.

He said this in his support message for the upcoming Asian Oil, Gas & Petrochemical Engineering Exhibition (OGA) series which will be returning next month to showcase the latest cutting-edge technology and the most innovative companies/individuals in O&G industry.


IEM Shout Out – 2019-07 One Day Course on “Offshore Sand Separation: Design, Operation and Maintenance”

July 1, 2019

My technical division will be hosting a 1 day course on the 23rd July 2019 It is worth 6.5 CPD points, and held at Wisma IEM. The course will be presented by Ir. Dr. John Eow.

In the upstream offshore oil & gas production, effective and efficient sand separation and management are vital, since the presence of sand particles and solids in wellhead production lines are likely to cause erosion and blockage issues in the subsequent downstream equipment at production platforms. As a consequence, dangerous incidents, such as failures of flowlines, production vessels, pumps and control valves, have a higher risk of occurring. Moreover, oily sands discharged into the sea are also an environmental concern.

This full-day course is designed to educate the participants on the engineering design, operation and maintenance of the technologies for the removal and cleaning of the sands and solids prior to discharge. Proven sand removal technologies, such as wellhead desanders, produced water desanding hydrocyclones, sand fluidizers, and sand cleaning systems are commonly used in the upstream oil & gas production. However, these sand removal and cleaning systems need to be designed and operated correctly to ensure optimized separation performance.

Ir. Dr. John Eow is a Chartered Engineer (UK) and a Professional Engineer (BEM), with more than 15 years’ experience in the Oil & Gas industry, having worked with sand separation and management, produced water treatment, crude oil dehydration-desalting, seawater treatment & injection, and gas processing technologies and equipment.   He also conduct lectures in chemical and process engineering at Singapore Institute of Technology. Dr. John obtained his B.Eng in Chemical Engineering (1st Class Hons) and PhD in 1998 and 2002, respectively, from University of Surrey, UK.   His PhD work was on electrostatic water-oil treatment technology.   Over the years, he has worked as a technology specialist with oil & gas technology-provider companies, such as Global Process Systems (Malaysia), Keppel Offshore and Marine (Singapore), Cameron Process Systems (Singapore, Japan and Malaysia), and EDES Technology Malaysia.   His experiences cover a wide range from Technical and Commercial Proposal to Detailed Engineering to Commissioning to Production Improvement & Troubleshooting for oil & gas processes and technologies.   He has also conducted technical training and process improvement work for Saudi ARAMCO, SABIC, PETRONAS, Sarawak SHELL, CNOOC, Murphy Oil Sarawak, Husky Oil Energy, GAIL India, Transwater API, CPOC, Boustead-Salcon Water Solutions, etc.

Register here, or download the form here.