"September 2002" Includes bibliographical references (leaves 200-209) Outlines an evaluation procedure for stratigraphic trap exploration by employing sequence stratigraphy, 3D seismic data visualisation and quantitative risk analysis with case studies in an actual exploration basin.

Alkaline/surfactant/polymer (ASP) flooding is of increasing interest and importance because of high oil prices and the need to increase oil production. The benefits of combining alkali with surfactant are well established. The alkali has very important benefits such as lowering interfacial tension and reducing adsorption of anionic surfactants that decrease costs and make ASP a very attractive enhanced oil recovery method provided the consumption is not too large and the alkali can be propagated at the same rate as a synthetic surfactant and polymer. However, the process is complex so it is important that new candidates for ASP be selected taking into account the numerous chemical reactions that occur in the reservoir. The reaction of acid and alkali to generate soap and its subsequent effect on phase behavior is the most crucial for crude oils containing naphthenic acids. Using numerical models, the process can be designed and optimized to ensure the proper propagation of alkali and effective soap and surfactant concentrations to promote low interfacial tension and a favorable salinity gradient. The first step in this investigation was to determine what geochemical reactions have the most impact on ASP flooding under different reservoir conditions and to quantify the consumption of alkali by different mechanisms. We describe the ASP module of UTCHEM simulator with particular attention to phase behavior and the effect of soap on optimum salinity and solubilization ratio. Several phase behavior measurements for a variety of surfactant formulations and crude oils were successfully modeled. The phase behavior results for sodium carbonate, blends of surfactants with an acidic crude oil followed the conventional Winsor phase transition with significant three-phase regions even at low surfactant concentrations. The solubilization data at different oil concentrations were successfully modeled using Hand's rule. Optimum salinity and solubilization ratio were correlated with soap mole fractions using mixing rules. New ASP corefloods were successfully modeled taking into account the aqueous reactions, alkali/rock interactions, and the phase behavior of soap and surfactant. These corefloods were performed in different sandstone cores with several chemical formulations, crude oils with a wide range of acid numbers, brine with a wide range of salinities, and a wide range of temperatures. 2D and 3D sector model ASP simulations were performed based on field data and design parameters obtained from coreflood history matches. The phenomena modeled included aqueous phase chemical reactions of the alkaline agent and consequent consumption of alkali, the in-situ generation of surfactant by reaction with the acid in the crude, surfactant/soap phase behavior, reduction of surfactant adsorption at high pH, cation exchange with clay, and the effect of co-solvent on phase behavior. Sensitivity simulations on chemical design parameters such as mass of surfactant and uncertain reservoir parameters such as kv/kh ratio were performed to provide insight as the importance of each of these variables in chemical oil recovery. Simulations with different permeability realizations provided the range for chemical oil recoveries. This study showed that it is very important to model both surface active components and their effect on phase behavior when doing mechanistic ASP simulations. The reactions between the alkali and the minerals in the formation depend very much on which alkali is used, the minerals in the formation, and the temperature. This research helped us increase our understanding on the process of ASP flooding. In general, these mechanistic simulations gave insights into the propagation of alkali, soap, and surfactant in the core and aid in future coreflood and field scale ASP designs. / text

On July 31,1981 the federal cabinet approved the Norman Wells Pipeline and Expansion Project (NW Project). The project consisted of a tenfold expansion to the existing oilfield at Norman Wells, N.W.T., and the construction of an 870 km pipeline to Zama, Alberta. The approval was subject to a formal delay to allow "time for effective and meaningful planning" for the implementation of special management measures and benefit packages. Construction commenced January 1983 and the project became operational in April 1985. Although the project did not represent a major undertaking by industry standards, it was significant for the north because it was the first major hydrocarbon production and transportation project to be completed in the Northwest Territories. In addition, the project involved a number of unique impact management structures in order to coordinate government and industry's activities and incorporate native concerns. The approach, if successfully implemented, would represent an important step towards recognizing native concerns in project management. As a result of the new impact management structures, the NW Project has been referred to by the federal government and industry as a "model" for future northern development projects. On the other hand, native organizations viewed the project as a 'test case' that failed since all the conditions to their approval were not fully met. This inconsistency highlights the importance of clarifying which structures were successful for future northern megaprojects. This thesis focuses on one of the management structures unique to the NW Project, the Project Coordinating Committee (PCC). The PCC was established "to provide a forum for formal project update, reporting, communication and coordination of activities". The Committee had representatives from the federal government, the two proponents, the Government of the Northwest Territories, the Dene Nation, and the Metis Association. The specific purpose of this thesis is to assess the performance of the PCC using criteria derived from the literature on Planning Process and Citizen Participation, Group Dynamics, and Environmental Dispute Resolution. The results of this evaluation showed that the committee failed to satisfy all the performance criteria. However, at the root of the problem were the politics associated with the approval of the project, and in particular, the fact that the native land claims issue had not been resolved. Even in the absence of negotiated powers, the Dene and Metis had expected to actively participate in the regulation and management of the NW Project. When these powers were divorced from the processes the Dene and Metis were to be involved in, the Dene and Metis boycotted them. In addition to politics, there were also fundamental structural and operational deficiencies with the PCC which were detrimental to its performance. On the basis of this analysis, an improved committee framework for future projects is proposed.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:52:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MariaAD.pdf: 1151403 bytes, checksum: ec2a5410864dfc28e3a9b2591ef3f6f8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-04-28 / This master?s thesis presents a reliability study conducted among onshore oil fields in the Potiguar Basin (RN/CE) of Petrobras company, Brazil. The main study objective was to build a regression model to predict the risk of failures that impede production wells to function properly using the information of explanatory variables related to wells such as the elevation method, the amount of water produced in the well (BSW), the ratio gas-oil (RGO), the depth of the production bomb, the operational unit of the oil field, among others. The study was based on a retrospective sample of 603 oil columns from all that were functioning between 2000 and 2006. Statistical hypothesis tests under a Weibull regression model fitted to the failure data allowed the selection of some significant predictors in the set considered to explain the first failure time in the wells / Esta disserta??o apresenta uma aplica??o do estudo da confiabilidade em dados de tempo de vida de po?os petrol?feros terrestres produtores de ?leo da Bacia Potiguar (RN/CE). A vari?vel resposta do nosso estudo ? o tempo de funcionamento do po?o dentro de sua normalidade at? apresentar a primeira falha relacionada a equipamentos de subsuperficie, que cause uma parada total no funcionamento do po?o. O principal objetivo do estudo foi, com base em um conjunto de dados reais fornecidos pela PETROBRAS, verificar a exist?ncia do relacionamento do tempo de vida com diversas caracter?sticas dos po?os como, m?todo de eleva??o utilizado, quantidade de ?gua produzida (BSW Basic Sediments and Water), Raz?o G?s ?leo (RGO), profundidade de instala??o da bomba, unidade operacional de origem, entre outras. Neste trabalho foi feito um estudo retrospectivo com uma amostra composta por 603 po?os-colunas que estavam em funcionamento no per?odo de 2000 a 2006. A modelagem probabil?stica dos dados foi feita atrav?s do ajuste do modelo de regress?o Weibull. O ajuste deste modelo se mostrou apropriado aos dados e permitiu avaliar, atrav?s de testes estat?sticos de hip?teses, os fatores significativamente relacionados com o tempo at? a falha dos po?os

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:27:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MarianaS_capa_a_resumo.pdf: 271175 bytes, checksum: 926338aea632e3cbde76e722465b1d6e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-09-10 / Instituto Brasileiro de Petr?leo, G?s e Biocombust?veis / The oil activities in Brazil had been started in an intensive way in the end of the 30 s and in the beginning of the 40 s. Many of the brazilians fields discovered in the past are nowadays in decline. They are called ―mature fields‖. These fields, because of the decline situation that characterizes them, are not interesting for the majors. The majors want the big fields and big productions. On the other hand, they could be interesting for the small and medium enterprises. The mature oil fields are instruments of development, they have oil and the oil production is an activity connected with many social and economics benefits: jobs, taxes, royalties, etc. The Brazilian State, in this context, needs to realize actions to promote the activities in the mature oil fields, especially with the work of the small and mediums enterprises. Many of the onshore brazilian mature fields are located at the Northeast, a region matched by many social and economic problems. The activities in the mature fields of the Northeast Region could solve some of its problems. The present research analyses the mature oil fields and its situations in Brazil, making criticisms and suggestions. The methodology adopted is theoretical and descriptive, with literature review, case law and legislation (Constitui??o Federal de 1988, ―Law of the Oil‖). This research examines the following points: mature fields rounds and its documents, name and definition of the mature fields, definition of small and medium enterprises, environmental aspects, concentration of certain activities of the sector and the royalties / As atividades do petr?leo no pa?s foram iniciadas de forma mais intensa no final dos anos 30 e in?cio dos anos quarenta. Muitos dos campos de petr?leo descobertos no passado hoje se encontram em decl?nio produtivo, s?o os chamados ―campos maduros de petr?leo‖. Estes campos, em decorr?ncia do decl?nio em sua produ??o, n?o se revelam interessantes ?s grandes empresas de petr?leo. Grandes empresas desejam grandes campos e grandes produ??es. Por outro lado, podem os campos maduros se revelar interessantes aos empreendedores de menor porte. Os campos maduros, ainda que em decl?nio, possuem petr?leo e o petr?leo ? recurso energ?tico demasiadamente relevante. A produ??o de petr?leo, mesmo em campos declinantes, ? atividade ligada a in?meros benef?cios sociais e econ?micos: gera empregos direitos e indiretos, promove o recolhimento de tributos, o pagamento de royalties, dentre outros. O Estado brasileiro, neste contexto, necessita realizar a??es que promovam a continua??o da produ??o em campos maduros, especialmente atrav?s do ingresso de empreendedores de menor porte. Muitos dos campos maduros onshore se encontram no Nordeste brasileiro, regi?o marcada por s?rios problemas econ?micos e sociais e por uma intensa desigualdade. As atividades de produ??o de petr?leo nos campos maduros nordestinos podem resolver alguns destes problemas, fato este que ressalta a import?ncia do fomento ? continua??o destas atividades nestes campos. A presente pesquisa, atentando para a relev?ncia do fomento ? continua??o das atividades desenvolvidas nos campos maduros de petr?leo, se debru?a sobre seu estudo e atual realidade, formulando cr?ticas e sugest?es, em especial no que diz respeito ? entrada de empreendedores de menor porte no setor. Para isto, utiliza a metodologia do tipo te?rico-descritiva, com an?lise bibliogr?fica, jurisprudencial e normativa. Neste ?ltimo caso, a Constitui??o Federal de 1988 e a ―Lei do Petr?leo‖ se destacam. S?o aqui especificamente analisadas as licita??es at? hoje efetuadas em torno de ?reas contendo campos maduros de petr?leo, seus editais e contratos de concess?o. A pesquisa em quest?o ainda se ocupa das seguintes tem?ticas: conceito e denomina??o dos campos de petr?leo com produ??o declinante, necessidade de formula??o de um conceito para a express?o ―empreendedores petrol?feros de menor porte‖, licenciamento ambiental no setor do petr?leo, passivos ambientais atinentes aos campos maduros, concentra??o de determinadas atividades do setor junto ? Petrobras e royalties e necessidade de sua cobran?a em percentual reduzido

Orientador: Ana Cristina de Almeida Fernandes / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Economia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-10T09:30:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Serra_RodrigoValente_D.pdf: 3255251 bytes, checksum: a8855fffc4c65dad77004cb2bca78167 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005 / Resumo: Trata este estudo de realizar uma exposição crítica dos critérios de distribuição e aplicação dos royalties petrolíferos entre a União, os Estados e os Municípios brasileiros. Uma exposição crítica construída de acordo com as etapas apresentadas a seguir, as quais são também reveladoras das preocupações e das escolhas que nortearam a feitura deste estudo. A partir de uma recuperação da gênese do conceito de renda mineral, elegeu-se, idealmente, a promoção da justiça intergeracional como política apropriada para aplicação das rendas petrolíferas. Afinal, sacar do subsolo, hoje, uma riqueza finita, equivale a dilapidar o patrimônio das futuras gerações. Do ideal para o concreto: nossa segunda preocupação foi verificar, entre os grandes países petrolíferos, a existência de regimes de distribuição e aplicação dos royalties orientados por este princípio da promoção da justiça intergeracional. A análise das experiências concretas de aplicação dos royalties petrolíferos entre alguns dos grandes países produtores de petróleo não mostrou ser regra a utilização destas receitas como fonte de financiamento de políticas de promoção da justiça intergeracional. Por outro lado, pôde ser visto que aqueles países, ou esferas de governo sub-nacionais (GSNs) que promoveram, com os royalties, políticas compensatórias às gerações futuras, o fizeram de diferentes maneiras, entre estas: através da montagem de fundos de pensão; planos governamentais para diversificação produtiva; investimentos públicos em infra-estrutura produtiva; financiamento de programas de pesquisa em fontes alternativas de energia; sustentação de fundações educacionais. E no Brasil? A forma de distribuição e aplicação dos royalties petrolíferos reflete, em algum grau, esta preocupação em promover a justiça intergeracional? Para enfrentar esta indagação procurou-se oferecer uma recuperação histórica dos debates sobre a matéria, travados nas duas casas legislativas federais. Recuperação esta que nos permitiu compreender que a arquitetura institucional da repartição e aplicação dos royalties é, fundamentalmente, obra das tensões de nosso pacto federativo. Por fim, mesmo com respostas parciais às indagações apresentadas, pôde-se sistematizar um conjunto de fragilidades das normas de rateio e aplicação dos royalties, bem como reunir sugestões a fim de aproximar as referidas normas de uma efetiva promoção da justiça intergeracional / Abstract: This study carries out a review of the distribution and application criteria of the petroleum royalties among the Brazilian Federal, State and Municipal governments. The review was constructed according to the phases presented below, which also reveal the concerns and the choices that oriented this research. The resurrection of the oil rents original concept, was chosen for the promotion of the 'cross-generation fairness¿ concept as an appropriate policy for the application of the oil and gas revenues. After all, extracting from the underground a finite wealth today, means to destroy the heritage of future generations. Moving from the theory to the reality, a second concern was to verify, among the main oil producing coutries if there were distributing systems and the royalties¿ application guided by the 'cross-generation fairness¿ principle. The analysis of the royalties¿ application among some of the these countries did not show the use of these revenues as a financial source for the promotion of the 'cross-generation fairness¿ policy as the common rule. On the other hand, it could be noticed that those countries or levels of sub-national governments (GSNs), which promoted compensating policies to the future generations, did it in different ways: through the creation of pension funds; governmental plans for production diversification; public investiments in infrastructure for production; financing research programmes in alternative sources of energy; supporting educational foundations. What happens in Brazil? Does the way of distribution and application of the petroleum royalties reflect, in some degree, this concern in promoting the 'cross-generation fairness¿? In order to face this question, a historic review about the debates on this issue, that had taken place in both Congress¿ house, was carried out. This review allowed us to realize that the institutional architecture of the royalties¿ distribution and application is basically the fruit of the pressures of our federal pact. Finally, even having only partially answered the questions set out by this study, it was possible to systematize a set of fragile aspects of the rules of sharing and application of the royalties, as well as to draw suggestions with the purpose of steering these rules to an effective promotion of the 'cross-generation fairness¿ / Doutorado / Desenvolvimento Economico, Espaço e Meio Ambiente / Doutor em Economia Aplicada

This empirical study is concerned with the extent to which news announcements affect the performance of common equity securities of oil and gas producing companies. The market effects of news announcements are considered to be of importance in resolving two issues. One concerns financial statement disclosure and the second concerns examination of prior oil and gas industry-related accounting research. This dissertation assumes capital market efficiency and addresses two research questions: do news announcements concerning activities of nonintegrated oil and gas producing companies affect the companies' common stock prices, and are announcements concerning nonintegrated oil and gas companies' financial, personnel, explorational, and developmental and operational activities used equally by investors in their decision-making?

On July 31,1981 the federal cabinet approved the Norman Wells Pipeline and Expansion Project (NW Project). The project consisted of a tenfold expansion to the existing oilfield at Norman Wells, N.W.T., and the construction of an 870 km pipeline to Zama, Alberta. The approval was subject to a formal delay to allow "time for effective and meaningful planning" for the implementation of special management measures and benefit packages. Construction commenced January 1983 and the project became operational in April 1985. Although the project did not represent a major undertaking by industry standards, it was significant for the north because it was the first major hydrocarbon production and transportation project to be completed in the Northwest Territories. In addition, the project involved a number of unique impact management structures in order to coordinate government and industry's activities and incorporate native concerns. The approach, if successfully implemented, would represent an important step towards recognizing native concerns in project management. As a result of the new impact management structures, the NW Project has been referred to by the federal government and industry as a "model" for future northern development projects. On the other hand, native organizations viewed the project as a 'test case' that failed since all the conditions to their approval were not fully met. This inconsistency highlights the importance of clarifying which structures were successful for future northern megaprojects. This thesis focuses on one of the management structures unique to the NW Project, the Project Coordinating Committee (PCC). The PCC was established "to provide a forum for formal project update, reporting, communication and coordination of activities". The Committee had representatives from the federal government, the two proponents, the Government of the Northwest Territories, the Dene Nation, and the Metis Association. The specific purpose of this thesis is to assess the performance of the PCC using criteria derived from the literature on Planning Process and Citizen Participation, Group Dynamics, and Environmental Dispute Resolution. The results of this evaluation showed that the committee failed to satisfy all the performance criteria. However, at the root of the problem were the politics associated with the approval of the project, and in particular, the fact that the native land claims issue had not been resolved. Even in the absence of negotiated powers, the Dene and Metis had expected to actively participate in the regulation and management of the NW Project. When these powers were divorced from the processes the Dene and Metis were to be involved in, the Dene and Metis boycotted them. In addition to politics, there were also fundamental structural and operational deficiencies with the PCC which were detrimental to its performance. On the basis of this analysis, an improved committee framework for future projects is proposed. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Social and economic impacts are often by-products of large scale resource development projects. These socio-economic impacts have become an important component of assessment and review processes during the 1970's and are beginning to attract attention as an issue within impact management. Effective measures of socio-economic impact management are being sought by industry, government and communities who wish to mitigate or avoid negative impacts and/or to enhance potential positive impacts of development. The Norman Wells Oilfield Expansion and Pipeline Project, approved by the Federal Cabinet on July 30, 1981 was formally assessed as having potentially significant socio-economic impacts. The Federal Government therefore created a number of measures that constituted a socio-economic impact management plan. One of these measures was a benefits package of $21.4 million "to ensure that the training objectives, jobs and business opportunities which we have insisted be part of this project are real and meaningful." The federal government's "coordination approach" to management associated with the Norman Wells Project has been vetted as a model for the management of future development projects. The subject of this thesis is the implementation of two of the impact funding programs within this benefits package. The thesis purpose is to assess the effectiveness of these impact funding initiatives as programs of socio-economic impact management. The descriptions of the two initiatives chosen for this analysis indicate that their general purpose was to involve the Dene Nation and the Metis Association of the Northwest Territories in the initiation of programs of community and social development and of planning support and monitoring for the communities of the Mackenzie Valley. These two programs are the subject of some debate between federal government representatives and representatives of the two native organizations involved in the Norman Wells Project. The key parties-at-interest disagree over the effectiveness of the two initiatives as instruments of socio-economic impact management for the Norman Wells Project. In preparation for the actual analysis of these programs, I first developed a process model for socio-economic impact management. This process model provides the framework within which programs of socio-economic impact management are located. Next, I examined the relationship between the socio-economic issues and anticipated problems identified during the Norman Well's Project review processes and the impact fund initiatives under study. This was achieved through a content analysis of documents produced by the Norman Wells Environmental Assessment and Review Panel (E.A.R.P.) and the National Energy Board. I then examined in full the implementation of the initiatives. This was accomplished through a review of documentation and interviews with the relevant actors associated with the two study impact funding programs. My assessment of the effectiveness of the two study initiatives as programs of socio-economic management is based on a comparison of the implementation of these programs to a set of criteria that reflect the basic requirements of programs of impact management. The two study initiatives failed to satisfy all but the program effectiveness criteria that required a relationship with the public review process concerns. The thesis conclusion, therefore, is that as programs of socio-economic impact management for the Norman Wells Project, the two study initiatives have not been effective. I discuss the basis of this conclusion and propose three recommendations toward the planning for future programs of socio-economic impact management. This thesis contributes to the assessment of the impact management efforts associated with the overall approach to management of the Norman Wells Project. It should be useful for parties involved in the determination of impact management programs in future development projects. This analysis will aid in the planning of effective procedures to reduce negative impacts, thus serving the interests of both those affected directly, and the nation at large. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, 2017 / This research report conducts a critical examination of Ayo Akinfe’s Fuelling the Delta Fires by paying attention to the writer’s use of satire to highlight social problems such as corruption, deception and exploitation in Nigeria. The focus is on how Akinfe’s novel represents exploitation, waste, and excess that have become normative in a country on the brink of collapse. The work also seeks to identify and critique how Akinfe employs satire to interrogate the syndrome of the ‘big-man’ in Nigeria, showing how their actions contribute to social decay and violence. The research will also examine issues of ecology in the Niger Delta. Ecology has often been construed as a Western ideology that has little resonance within the framework of the African novel. However, this work, tries to show that as the scholarship on ecological humanities has evolved over the years, African alternatives which take account of the unique challenges of the continent have also being developed. Akinfe draws from these proposed models of ecology to focus attention on the ecological issues that are a direct outcome of the exploration of oil in the Niger Delta and by so doing, brings attention to the transgressions of government and multinational corporations who go to great lengths to extract oil in the region. Applying ecocritical examples suggested by scholars like Anthony Vital, Byron Caminero-Santangelo and others, the research report demonstrates how literature has been used as a medium to expose greed that facilitates ecological degradations and how the culture of consumerism affect the daily lives of the inhabitants of the Niger Delta. / XL2018