Wednesday, April
5, 2000
Canadian 88
Energy and Kerr-McGee team up for
Nova Scotia deepwater play
Canadian 88 Energy Corp. , Calgary, Alberta has entered into
an agreementthat sees Kerr-McGee Corporation of Oklahoma City
acquire a 50% participation interest in Canadian 88's four offshore
Nova Scotia holdings.
Canadian 88 is one of the largest single
landholders in the newly evolving deepwater Canadian East Coast
exploration play. It holds four exploration licenses offshore
Nova Scotia. Located approximately 100 miles southwest of the
prolific Sable Island developments in waters 500 feet to 9,200
feet deep, the licenses cover over 1.5 million acres. Canadian
88 and Western Geophysical have shot a large deepwater 3-D seismic
program (900 square miles) off the east coast of Canada. Initial
mapping indicates a large turbidite fan play analogous to major
discoveries offshore Angola and Brazil.
Kerr-McGee will pay U.S. $10.5 million
(Cdn. $15.2 million)for its 50% stake in the holdings and will
become operator. It will also , on behalf of the participants
who remain contingently liable, replace Cdn. $9.4 million (US
$6.5 million) of work commitment promissory notes previously
filed by Canadian 88 with the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum
Board. Kerr-McGee will also assume U.S. $1.5 million (Cdn. $2.2
million) of future seismic processing costs related to the project.
"Kerr-McGee brings to the table the
deepwater expertise needed to drill and develop this play while
leaving us with a very significant ownership interest,'' said
Canadian 88 President Joseph Pritchett III.
Heavyweight backing for
bulk shipping e-site
A new Internet based on-line exchange claims to be "set
to revolutionize the traditional marketplace where shipowners,
shipbrokers and cargo owners conduct business."
LevelSeas.com, will offer a "life-of-the-voyage"
solution for all seaborne wet and dry bulk commodity shipping.
It will provide comprehensive freight management services encompassing
market intelligence, online chartering, pre and post fixture
activities and risk management tools, including freight derivatives.
LevelSeas.com has the backing of BP Amoco,
Cargill, shipbroker Clarksons and Royal Dutch/Shell Group - investors
who represent significant shipping volume and expertise - and
will accelerate industry-wide adoption of the new marketplace.
Shell International Trading and Shipping
Company Limited's VP of Shipping, Jan Kopernicki said: "We
think this will act as a real catalyst for change in the industry
and change for the better. Nothing else offers a seamless
service to take us from the start to the end of a voyage."
LevelSeas.com will provide greater market
access, lower costs and greater efficiencies in today's shipping
environment, delivering significant value to a broad community
of large and small industry players, including intermediaries.
Gary Weston, Chairman of Clarksons shipbroking
commented, "The advent of LevelSeas.com provides a real
opportunity to create an electronic market place for the shipping
industry. We believe LevelSeas.com will provide liquidity as
well as a level playing field for all participants to trade on.
This is an environment in which Clarksons can assist our clients
in making the move to on-line trading."
LevelSeas.com will be uniquely positioned
to cater to the freight needs of international businesses which
rely on ocean transportation as a critical link in their global
commodity supply chain.
According to consulting firm Booz·Allen
Hamilton, the global bulk ocean transportation market has an
annual turnover in excess of US$100 billion. This industry is
ideally suited for an online marketplace that can bring together
buyers and sellers of freight across the world and streamline
the present substantial administrative burden.
Said Tom Intrator, Vice-President,
Ocean Transportation Division of Cargill, "LevelSeas.com
will combine the latest internet technology together with deep
shipping expertise to provide the central point for what is today
a complex and dispersed global industry. We see this as a tremendous
opportunity to fundamentally change the way we and the industry
manage our freight business."
Cargill is an international marketer, processor
and distributor of agricultural, food, financial and industrial
products with some 82,000 employees in 59 countries. Revenues
for the fiscal year that ended May 31 1999 were US$46 billion.
Cargill's Ocean Transportation Business
is headquartered in Geneva with offices in London, Amsterdam,
New Jersey, Tokyo and Hong Kong. It is a global leading charterer
of primarily dry bulk commodities, including grain and minerals.
Cargill operates an extensive period timecharter fleet and has
been in the vessel owning business for over 30 years.
LevelSeas.com says it is "committed
to developing further strategic alliances and relationships with
other businesses in the industry to ensure its position as the
recognized industry standard."
"We are very excited about participating
in LevelSeas.com, and believe it will become the premier player
in the online bulk ocean transportation marketplace, providing
substantial value for all industry participants," said Linda
Adamany, CEO of BP Amoco Shipping.
Finnish bid for Masa-Yards
reported as ended
Finnish business daily Kauppalehti says the Finnish group bidding
for Kvaerner's Masa-Yards shipyards has decided to withdraw.
The paper reports an unnamed member of the consortium as saying
that the main reason for the withdrawal is that Carnival Corporation
has decided not to participate.
Masa-Yards chief Martin Saarikangas, who
heads the consortium, declined comment to comment on this morning's
national radio news
Kauppalehti quoted Januz Szlanta, chief
executive of Poland's Gdynia shipyard, as saying that Gdynia
was not withdrawing its bid and the timetable for talks with
Kvaerner was still open.
CP Ships to acquire CCAL
CP Ships has reached agreement with Thor Dahl Shipping AS of
Norway to acquire Christensen Canadian African Line (CCAL).
The deal is expected to be completed by
the end of April.
The acquisition includes the CCAL brand
and three Astrakhan-class ships, designed to carry containers,
breakbulk and roll-on/roll-off cargo.
CCAL, which will operate as part of the
CP Ships subsidiary, Americana Ships, offers a 21-day multi-purpose
service between Montreal and South Africa.
According to Frank Halliwell, CEO of Americana
Ships: "The transaction represents a strengthening of our
position in the South Africa trade following the termination
of Lykes Lines' relationship with SafBank and MSC. Our intention
is to improve the service of CCAL and also maintain the brand."
Erik Gloersen, CEO of Thor Dahl Shipping
AS said the sale is part of Thor Dahl Shipping's strategy of
focusing on owning and
operating pure container vessels. With the recent purchase of
three 3,000 TEU container vessels, TDS now owns five container
vessels and has a minor stake in a tanker. TDS, said Gloersen,
is "set to expand its activities within container shipping."
Korean group to invest
in Indonesian shipbuilding
A South Korean consortium headed by Samjoo Co Ltd reportedly
plans to invest in the Sabang economic development area on Weh
island off Indonesia's Aceh coast. The consortium will invest
$14 million in projects involving shipbuilding, petrochemicals,
oil refining and crude oil shipping and storage.
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